Winnipeg chef heads to Canadian Culinary Championship

As the 2026 Canadian culinary championship approaches, local chef Emily Butcher is dishing out recipes.

Butcher, executive chef at NOLA, a restaurant in the Saint Boniface neighbourhood, will be heading to Ottawa in January for the national championship.

“You put so much work into this dish, and you get to see what the other competitors are bringing forward and get inspired by what they are doing,” Butcher says as she sharpens her skill preparing delicate and beautifully presented dishes.

Butcher, who has been following her passion for cooking for 15 years, says that representing Winnipeg at the national championship means a lot to her.

“I think an opportunity to go out there and represent Winnipeg on the national scene – it’s so exciting for me! To bring our warmth and our friendliness and just show what we are made of,” Butcher says.

Butcher says she was anxious before winning the regional championship in October, but the victory has given her a lot more confidence.

This would also be the second time Butcher will be heading to the Canadian Culinary Championship. Butcher brought bronze back to Manitoba in 2019.

“I am so excited! I mean, I am nervous too, but it’s good nerves,” she says.

The contest consists of three parts. In the final test, contestants will have to prepare the dish which they developed before the championship.

The dish that brought her victory at the regional level was smoked duck and squash dumpling.

“The idea for the dish started with thinking back to some of my favourite food memories growing up,” Butcher says.

“Roast duck was always a really special time. We’d have it for holidays and things like that.”

The championship will take place in Ottawa on Jan. 30 and 31.