One bite and you know the sandwich is a winner: spicy marinated tofu crisped and served with pickled vegetables and cilantro on a ciabatta bun with a side of peanut dipping sauce.

But the recipe for four is going to be, in chef-speak, "exploded" to serve 800 to 1,000 students in UC Davis dining halls next week in honor of it winning a head-to-head cooking competition on campus.

Recipe to be featured in the dining commons

Junior Cameron Vinoskey of San Diego made her vegan Thai tofu satay sandwich before hungry onlookers at the Segundo dining commons Nov. 19 to win the honor; culinary prizes including knives, cutting mats and measuring utensils; and $20 in Aggie cash.

"I'm so excited to have my food in the dining hall," said the neurobiology, physiology and behavior major. "It will be great to see it. I'm real excited."

The "Favorites From Home" competition — to be held in the other dining commons in winter and spring quarters — evolved from UC Davis Dining Services' tradition of adapting students' family recipes to serve in the dining commons.

Food and cooking education

It's now part of a food and cooking education series to encourage students to eat healthy and prepare to cook nutritious meals when they move out of residence halls — and away from their meal plans — to live in the community. Students can even take cooking classes.

The student judges — who evaluated the dishes based on nutrition, taste, texture and presentation — also gave high marks to the spaghetti squash chicken Alfredo prepared by freshman Ryan Abusaa of Ridgeland, Mississippi.

UC Davis is growing California

At UC Davis, we and our partners are nourishing our state with food, economic activity and better health, playing a key part in the state’s role as the top national agricultural producer for more than 50 years. UC Davis is participating in UC’s Global Food Initiative launched by UC President Janet Napolitano, harnessing the collective power of UC to help feed the world and steer it on the path to sustainability.