Renowned chef, Kylie Kwong, got elbow-deep in dirt and dumplings at Crown Street Public School, joining Year 3 and 4 students in the kitchen garden as part of the 2026 National Kitchen Garden Awards.

Ms Kwong, one of this year's official awards judges, toured the school's newly expanded vegetable beds with students alongside fellow chef Darren Robertson and Rose Tilbury (Blacktown Kitchen Garden Lead), before heading into the kitchen, where students prepared gyoza using produce they had grown themselves.

The session was led by the school's Kitchen Garden Program Specialists, Jill Camara and Alex Muldoo, supported by parent volunteers and teacher Mr Thomas.

For Ms Kwong, the visit carried personal weight.

Her late father attended Crown Street Public School for kindergarten and his primary years in the 1940s.

"He came here for kindy and his primary school years because he lived in Commonwealth Street, Surry Hills, with his family," she said, recalling stories of him riding his billy cart down Wentworth Avenue to Chinatown.

The connection runs deeper still. Ms Kwong's original Billy Kwong restaurant operated a few doors up from the school in a building that once housed the Crown Street Women's Hospital, where her father was born. But it was the students' enthusiasm for the program itself that she returned to throughout the visit.

A NSW Patron of the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation for a decade, Ms Kwong said the hands-on program did far more than teach cooking skills.

"It's not just fun and delicious but it actually promotes a sense of well-being and belonging," she said.

"I love how this program empowers children and young people to feel very proud about their food culture, because it grows plants and ingredients that are important to them and then they can share them with their school friends."

Relieving Principal, Olivia Parry, said the program, powered by an extraordinary community of parent volunteers, gave every student the chance to experience the full journey from planting to sharing a meal.

"Joining the Kitchen Garden Program this year has given our volunteers and teachers additional structure, resources and support to build on something our school community already values deeply," she said.

Crown Street's kitchen garden runs year-round, giving all 280 students the chance to plant, harvest, cook and share food together.

The National Kitchen Garden Awards, now in their third year, celebrate creative food education across Australian schools and early learning services. Entries close 7 August, with winners announced at Stanmore Public School on 15 September.