From the warmth of a grandmother’s kitchen in the Balkans to the high-stakes heat of Calcutta, a new culinary star has risen.

A young man from Albania who trained in a Michelin-starred restaurant in Piedmont, Italy, and works as a chef de partie in Tirana after college, lifted the trophy in a culinary competition that had participants from 40 nations.

Enri Cuedari is the winner of the 12th IIHM International Young Chef Olympiad 2026, which concluded on Friday.

The 21-year-old said he was not just carrying the golden trophy back home, but memories, friendships and recipes from all over the world.

“I feel proud of myself, my family, and my country. This was a big platform,” Cuedari said.

Enri Cuedari prepares a dish at the Young Chef Olympiad

In the final round, Cuedari from Instituti Kulinari Neranxi impressed the judges with a chicken roll with polenta (an Italian staple) and vegetables and cannoli of strudel for dessert (prepared with coconut, ginger cream and lime sauce).

“He is not only passionate but also curious about cooking, which makes him a good chef,” said Cuedari’s mentor, Mirko Monteduro.

This was Monteduro and Albania’s third visit to YCO. Earlier, they had reached the top 20.

“It is a tough competition, and every participant brings to the table their culture and tradition,” Monteduro said.

Every day after college, Cuedari works at a restaurant.

“Cooking is a passion imprinted on me by my grandmother. Though she is gone, and time has claimed many of her written recipes, the essence of her kitchen remains. I may have lost the instructions, but the landscape of her flavours and the distinct aromas she created are still vivid in my memory,” he said.

Dominic Thomas Grundy from England won the silver trophy, and Vidanagamage Rumira Reshan Piyasiri from Sri Lanka won bronze.

The international gathering of young chefs, spanning six days, served not merely as a culinary contest but also as a platform for exchanging culinary concepts, sharing insights into one another’s traditional recipes, and discussing the application of technology in the hospitality sector.

At its heart, the YCO is a place where “borders dissolve, politics disappear, and food builds bridges”.

“We consciously placed participating countries as a living laboratory of global culinary heritage — not something you watch or download, but something alive, experienced through people, kitchens, mistakes, learning and friendships,” said Suborno Bose, chief mentor, IIHM.

IIHM is set to deliver AI training to students from every country that participated in YCO, according to Bose.

The training will span 44 hours for those students nominated by their colleges.

The institute is set to organise an online master class for all participants in the following weeks. Cuedari from Albania will lead the inaugural masterclass.

“Education is not just within the four walls, but outside them. The use of technology is crucial because it will enable one to become a better chef,” said Bose.

From the presentation of a dish to the accurate measurement of ingredients and the evaluation of nutritional values, technology can play a significant role.

Satya Teja, 21, from IIHM, Kolkata, won the Kitchen Cut Chef Management Award.

“I had to be precise about the amount of ingredients I was using and uploading on the app. Simultaneously, I had to be sure of the nutritional value of each ingredient that I was using,” said the boy from Hyderabad.

The son of a bank manager, Satya, picked up cooking skills from his mother while in school.

“My parents wanted me to become a doctor, and I had qualified for NEET too, but my calling was elsewhere, something that my parents had to accept with stone in their hearts,” a smiling Teja said.