Bay Area teen's love for baking shines through in business, competition win

Naiel Chaudry is just 14 years old but has already accomplished something many bakers work a lifetime for.

"I just tried my best, and yeah, in the end, I tried my best and I won," said Chaudry.

Last winter, Naiel was a contestant on the Food Network's Kids Baking Championship. He beat out 11 other kids using original recipes that featured traditional Pakistani ingredients, in the end taking home the grand prize of $25,000.

But Naiel said his love of baking runs even deeper than just what America saw on TV.

"Ever since a really young age I've been very fond of cooking and baking. Like whenever I could then I would help around with my mom in the kitchen," said Naiel.

As Naiel got older, he started cooking with his younger sister and said it was a meal the two of them made for their parents during the pandemic that led them to realize their mutual love for baking.

"It was garlic bread, a pasta of their choice and a hazelnut chocolate soufflé, and we found that we enjoyed making the hazelnut chocolate soufflé the most," Naiel said. "And then we started baking more after that, and that's kind of what just led to our business."

That business, complete with a website and cookbook, is called La Jawab, a name Naiel said his mother stumbled into while writing an email to a friend who was actually in the process of trying to help the kids come up with a business name.

"My mom wrote, 'Your creativity is very la jawab,' and la jawab means like unmatchable or, literally it means like there's no answer to it," said Naiel.

The second their mom said it they new it was the perfect name. La Jawab Treats launched not long after and has been going strong ever since.

One of their best sellers is the Rose Cardamom cupcake. 

"It's pretty exciting because ever since I was little I was brought up with these flavors, and I really enjoy them. So, sharing them with other people is definitely a really amazing thing," said Naiel.