Hamburger sushi and a doughnut hamburger.  Just two of the more unusual recipes grilled up Friday evening for the KIDSQ barbecue contest in downtown Hays.

This was the first year for the youngsters division in the fourth annual Kansas City Barbeque Society-sanctioned contest as part of  “Blues, BBQ & Bargains.”  Committee volunteer Katie Joy expects it will be a regular event “after a few kinks are worked out,” which she says are inevitable the first time around.

Cooper Flores, 13, was one of 19 aspiring young chefs competing in age categories of 6-10 and 11-15.  They were were set up outside the North Central Kansas Technical College Big Creek campus across Main Street from the adult contest.

Cooper grilled his specialty, “Spicy Bacon Explosion Sliders,” which Cooper says includes everything from “jalapenos  to heavy cream.”

Like any good cook, Cooper likes to experiment a little.  “I kind of put a lot of recipes together, that my friends and family like, and put them together with a recipe from the Internet, ” he explained.

Helping those sliders slide right off the grill and on to the judges’ plates, Cooper also used some special utensils made by his dad, Fort Hays State University art professor Toby Flores.   

See more from KIDSQ tonight on Street Beat Eagle Community TV Channel 14.