For Sgt. Jason De La Mora, a culinary specialist with the 553rd Field Feeding Company, 61st Quartermaster Battalion, 13th Armored Corps Sustainment Command, a lifelong passion for cooking began not with a prestigious apprenticeship at a five-star restaurant, but with a childhood punishment.
Growing up the youngest of five siblings, De La Mora admits he used to sneak into the pantry to eat all the snacks. His mother’s solution was simple: his consequences would be to help her cook and clean the kitchen. What started as a chore quickly grew into a genuine passion. It was in his family kitchen that the foundations of his future career were laid.
“I learned a lot from both of my parents,” De La Mora recalled. “My mom taught me the fundamentals like starches and kitchen discipline, while my dad showed me how to work with meats. That’s really where everything started.”
This hands-on education set him on a path that would eventually lead him to the U.S. Army. Over a nine-year career, he's honed his craft as a culinary specialist, determined to compete with his twin sister, who was also an enlisted Soldier in the Army ranks. However, it took support and encouragement from his wife to push him to take the next step and try out for the Fort Hood Culinary Arts Team.
That decision propelled him into the thick of one of the military’s most demanding culinary competitions, the Joint Culinary Training Exercise (JCTE) at Fort Lee, Virginia. The JCTE is the largest and most prestigious military culinary competition in North America, sanctioned by the American Culinary Federation and held to its notoriously rigorous standards. This year’s competition was the 50th iteration of the annual event.
The Fort Hood team, rebuilt in 2025 from the ground up after a seven-year hiatus, arrived at Fort Lee on Feb. 27 as an underdog. By the end of the competition on March 6, the culinarians had earned numerous honors, including Armed Forces Chef of the Year and Student Pastry Chef of the Year. The 12-member team, composed of Soldiers from eight different brigades from across the installation, earned 14 gold, 13 silver, and 5 bronze medals.
“If you compare last year's team to this year's, we were thankful for Sgt. Maj. [Michael] Bogle, the captain, the manager, the advisor, and the support from our companies,” De La Mora said. “We managed to get six months to practice everything, whereas last year they only had about two months. That made a real big difference.”
The crowning achievement was winning “Best in Show” for the Military Hot Food Kitchen event. In this demanding team challenge, the Soldiers prepared a five-course meal for 50 diners using only a Mobile Kitchen Trailer, an Assault Kitchen, and standard operational rations.
“I’m going to say the field feeding MKT cook-off that we did as a team was one of the proudest moments,” De La Mora said. “We struggled trying to make a dish out of UGRs [Unitized Group Rations]. It took us a lot, four months, to actually start getting the final product... we committed to what we wanted to do, we got the dish right, and we got gold.”
For his part, De La Mora earned a gold and two bronze medals. He credits the team’s incredible success to their shared commitment and discipline in training.
“Competing at that level isn’t easy, especially when you’re aiming for gold,” he explained. “Gold comes with a price. It takes time, accountability, and strong morale. Our team brought their ‘A-game’ every day, stayed disciplined, and in the end, we executed exactly how we needed to.”
When De La Mora first arrived at Fort Hood, he admits he had doubts, but he came with an open mind, determined not to judge the experience before he lived it. That mindset paid off as those initial doubts transformed into even better and more profound opportunities.
De La Mora was selected for the prestigious C20 program, an elite, nominative assignment thattrains 92G Culinary Specialists to become flight stewards on military aircraft.
“A lot of people think, ‘Oh, you’re a cook, you’re just here in the DFAC cooking grits and oatmeal,’” De La Mora said. “But in all reality, there’s a whole big world out there... [the C20 and JCTE] is a very good program and training exercise that we can do.”
From a boy paying his dues in the family kitchen to a gold-medal-winning chef, Sgt. De La Mora’s journey is an example of how passion and an openness to opportunities can serve in building a career. His message to other soldiers is as straightforward as a good recipe.
“A big shout-out to the team and to the people who supported us,” De La Mora said. “And to any Soldier who reads about this, just know that there are more opportunities than just being in your unit or in the DFAC. If you really want something, go for it.
Sgt 1st Class William Pelkey, 3rd Cavalry Regiment, was named the 50th JCTE Armed Forces Chef of the Year. Spc. Carolina Sanchez with the 1st Cavalry Division is the 50th JCTE Armed Forces Student Pastry Chef of the Year. They will both represent the armed services at the American Culinary Federation’s national competition June 28-July 2 at Grand Rapids, Mich.