Raya Wouters Wins HRC Culinary Academy Spring Scholarship 2026

Every great dish tells a story. The one Raya Wouters submitted for this year’s HRC Culinary Academy scholarship competition told three – and the jury listened closely to all of them.

Raya is the winner of the 2026 scholarship, worth €2,000 toward the Culinary Arts programme beginning this March. Her interpretation of the theme Fusion Chicken stood out not as a simple blend of cuisines, but as a refined dialogue between French technique, Japanese philosophy, and Bulgarian roots.

Through her hojicha-infused chicken confit and carefully balanced components, identity qualities that define future professionals in the industry.

“It is not simply fusion; it is conversation. And I believe the most meaningful cooking happens exactly there – in the tension between worlds.”

– Raya Wouters, scholarship application