Surf & Turf 06 / Sand Chef Competition

[desertdude]

PabloVTA - your crew could have one best portable kitchen set-up

maybe this could be a category for next year?


Alvaro did a fantastic job MC-ing and keeping things lively during the cook off - this was one fun to watch event

Butch - eveyone knows Texans can mix the drinks and still judge the road

[wngrog]

Alvaro, that was a killer idea.....I loved seeing you wagon boys getting after it on the camp stoves.....

Spressomon and his fine wife cooked up some DEAD serious grub!

[rmirandayopo]

well, I need to talk with spressomon, he did all hard work.
Mine was easy.
Rice Coconut:
simple, rice cooked with coconut milk instead of water. (Asian aile at any grocery store)
cook the 2 cans of coconut milk just before boiled and
add one can of rice
cook for 20 minutes +o-
add some salt (I forgot that)
Mango Ribs:
even easier, pork ribs, BBQ sauce (your favorite) and dry mangoes (bag at Costco)
grill the ribs, add some BBQ souce and the mango slides, one per rib...
done!

[snailwagon]

I made my wife and a friend help me for "Third Member". Kinda got a little drunk while cooking, but not too bad. I brought the vanilla porter, so that was to blame, and a couple of shots of tequila. Somehow some of that texan shiner stuff ended up in my gut also. Not sure how I ended up drinking double barrel ale too, but enough with the booze. Nothing compared to that micky rubicon, the guy can outdrink an elephant. Someone needs to have a talk with the local beer distributors, shiner light, that light part is plain wrong.

It was a blast and was one of those competitions where it didn't matter who won. The rivalry was intense, lamb kabobs, jumbalaya, and seared ahi flying. But no rice pudding, that was sweet. We took on a very experimental approach with a Thai influence. Every dish we made represented the first time we ever made that dish. They were not dishes we have had before or even had recipes attached. I'm glad cooking rice on the camping gear worked. here's the menu:

Spicy chicken(pad krapow) on black glutenous rice with microcitrus. For this we pan cooked some chicken breast with fish sauce and satsuma mandarins (wifey does citrus for the USDA) with thai basil and thai dragon chilis. THis was slapped ontop of a bed of black thai rice, made to look all pretty, and topped with microcitrus and cilantro.

Jasmine rice in a Thai yellow curry with coconut milk, bell peppers, more thai dragons, fish sauce, onions, and kafir lime leaf shreds. We tried adding some potatos, but they didn't cook enough by the 80 minute mark so we pulled them out.

Popped jasmine rice in a peanut coconut sauce topped with fried plantains. This was a very original experiment. If you get oil hot enough to smoke and add uncooked rice, it pops like popcorn, only a bit firmer. We mixed this with sugar, coconut milk, and ground peanuts. Cooled it in the ice chest and topped with bananas.

I will enter again for sure. That was the first cooking event I have ever done. Next year I am going to go for a little more mild, recognizable dishes. We tried to make every dish be predominately rice. The trace instead of the predominate seemed to do a lot better, so this will influence another approach for next year. It was nice to cook next to jumbalaya aromas, that stuff smelled gooood.

[PabloVTA]

Thanks Dude,
Great to meet you and Desert Girl, wanted to catch up on the alaska blog, guess we'll do that another time.

Since my rig is pretty much stock, having a tricked out kitchen makes up for it.
first time using that stove, man, I can't wait to make some beer with it, and a turkey, and a craw fish boil...you get the point.

after all, it's a wise man who builds a shelter over his tool.
(that's my excuse for the large belly)

Maybe by next year I''ll have it lifted and locked! LOL!

[snailwagon]

I'm curious about the guys running the really high end media equipment. Who were they and are the photos accesible or have they become private. Someone said they were from a toyota website? The jeep wranglers just made me wonder. Once again, thanks to those who organized the event. They put in their own time and resources, really cool. The stickers are pretty slick too.

[woooody]

The Toyota FJ Trail Team is the ones that had the video stuff. The DVD's were from them and from others in attendance. The jeep one was from an expedition company, if it's the one I'm thinking of.

[FirstToy]

You guys were great! Thanks for making extra after the competition was over, I enjoyed it!
Your team had the cool gear too

[snailwagon]

a couple random shots, we didn't take too many pics of this.

[RubiRed]

Alvaro - Thanks for putting the event together. We had a great time. I guess the pressure is on for next year!

Recipes:

Louisianna Gumbo: If you want the recipe, pm me and I'll email it to you.

Lamb Kabobs:
blend 1 onion, 1 Tbsp fresh ginger, 2 garlic gloves, and 2Tbsp Garam Masala. Mix with 1 lb ground lamb and 1 cup cooked rice. Form into ovals, skewer, grill.

Key Lime Pie:
blend 1 package cream cheese, 1 14oz can of sweetened condensed milk, 1/3 cup rice milk, 1/4 cup key lime juice, 1 tsp coconut extract. Pour into a graham cracker crust, chill.

Thank you to all my fellow competitors for the stiff competition!

[spressomon]

Originally Posted by rmirandayopo

well, I need to talk with spressomon, he did all hard work.
Mine was easy.
Rice Coconut:
simple, rice cooked with coconut milk instead of water. (Asian aile at any grocery store)
cook the 2 cans of coconut milk just before boiled and
add one can of rice
cook for 20 minutes +o-
add some salt (I forgot that)
Mango Ribs:
even easier, pork ribs, BBQ sauce (your favorite) and dry mangoes (bag at Costco)
grill the ribs, add some BBQ souce and the mango slides, one per rib...
done!

I had originally wanted to judge (see Andy's comments)...upon learning Roberto did not have a partner on Wednesday night while at dinner together I agreed to help. Normally I can get pretty wound up competitively but Roberto kept me well grounded, relaxed with a focus on having fun (and drinking to relax). So thanks for the opportunity...fun I did have Roberto!!!

Byryani Rice
1# Chicken breast, skinned & cubed
2t Garam Masala
1t fresh grated ginger
1t minced fresh garlic
1C plain yogurt
4- dried red chilies (VONS no have...subbed Chipoltle Powder)
1/3C cashews
2C cooked basmati rice
1/2t cloves
1-black cardamom (yeah right...good luck in Arroyo Grande!)
1t black pepper
2-jalapeno, minced
1C chopped fresh parsley (thanks Rick!)
1C chopped fresh mint
4T ghee or butter

Marinate the chicken in the yogurt, garam masala, ginger and garlic paste. Saute red chilies & nuts; add chicken along with yogurt/spice marinade; cook down until meat is tender and mixture is reduced by 50+%. In a separate pan fry the jalapeno and spices until fragrant; combine rice and remaining ingredients.

You can fry some very thinly sliced red onions to top this off. Somewhere between VONS in A.G. we lost the jalapeno's and the fresh parsley...so I subbed Chipoltle powder and Rick was kind enough to let us have some of his fresh parsley!


Swedish Rice Dessert
2C mini marshmallows
2C cooked and chilled rice
1C crushed pinapple
1/2C marchino cherries (1/2'd)
1/2C toasted sliced almonds
1C heavy cream
1/4C sugar
1t vanilla

Combine all ingredients except cream, sugar & vanilla. Whip the cream...add sugar and vanilla and combine all. Chill.

[NorCalDoug]

It was the first time I used these recipes -- I think they turned out pretty well.

Cajun Chicken and Sausage Jambalaya

1 pound mild smoked pork sausage, sliced 1/4-inch thick
1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thigh meat
1 large onion, diced
3 cloves minced fresh garlic
1/2 pound tasso ham, cubed
1 teaspoon dry thyme
1 teaspoon dry basil
1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 cans (aprox 30 oz) chicken stock
1.5 cups long-grain rice
1 teaspoon freshly chopped curly parsley leaves

The most important thing is to use the right equipment and I would suggest the following: a 2-gallon cast iron Dutch oven, a high BTU gas stove, and a large stainless steel chef's spoon.

Use high heat to preheat the Dutch oven and add the sausage. Using a chef's spoon or large spoon, constantly move the sausage from the bottom of the pot. Be careful not to burn the meat.

Add the thigh meat and brown the chicken on all sides. Again use the spoon to scrape the meat from sticking and burning to the bottom of the pot. Browning the sausage and chicken meats should take 20 minutes. Be careful not to over cook the thigh meat to the point that it shreds.

Lower the heat to medium and add the onions and garlic; sauté for about 15 minutes or until the onions are very limp and "clear". Scrape the bottom of the pot to remove all the "graton". This is where the jambalaya gets its distinct brown color and taste.

Add the tasso ham, thyme, basil and black and white pepper. Simmer over low heat for 10 minutes. This will give the seasonings time to release their oils and flavors.

Add the stock and bring to a rolling boil. Add the rice, reduce the heat to medium and gently break up the rice. Using the stainless steel spoon, continue to ensure that the rice is not sticking to the bottom of the pot; this is very important!
After about 5 minutes, fold in the parsley. Continue to scrape the pot to insure that no rice sticks to the bottom. When the jambalaya returns to a boil, reduce heat to the lowest possible setting and simmer, covered, for at least 25 minutes. Do not remove the cover while the rice is steaming.

Plate Presentation:
The jambalaya is best when served directly out of the cast iron pot. While the rice is steaming, the sausage and meat will have a tendency to float to the surface of the jambalaya. Therefore, after the rice has steamed for 25 minutes, use the spoon to gently fold in the meat and seasonings into the cooked rice. This should only be done once or twice, the rice will loose a lot of heat and the rice will break apart.

Also note, that there was no salt added to the jambalaya. The herbs, tasso ham and seasonings satisfy the need for salt. Have the table set with salt shakers and a selection of hot pepper sauces.

Shrimp Etouffee

12 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups chopped onions
2 cups chopped green bell peppers
2 cups chopped celery
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
2 bay leaves
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons Seasoning Mix, recipe follows
2 pints chicken broth
3 pounds medium shrimp (21 to 25 count per pound), peeled and deveined
2 Tablespoon chopped parsley leaves

Steamed white rice, for serving

Melt the butter in a large Dutch oven set over medium heat. Add the flour and stir continuously to make a roux. Stir the roux over medium heat until the color of peanut butter, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the onions, bell peppers, celery, and garlic to the roux, and cook, stirring often, for 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes to the pot and season with the bay leaves, salt, cayenne, and 1 tablespoon of the Seasoning Mix. Cook the tomatoes for 2 to 3 minutes and then whisk in the chicken stock.

Bring the mixture to a boil, and reduce to a simmer. Cook the etouffee, stirring occasionally, for 45 minutes. Season the shrimp with the remaining tablespoon of Seasoning Mix and add them to the pot, stirring to evenly distribute. Cook the shrimp for 5 to 7 minutes, or until they are cooked through. Add the chopped parsley to the pot and stir to combine.

Serve immediately over steamed white rice and garnish with sliced green onion tops.


Seasoning Mix:
2 1/2 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried thyme
Combine all ingredients thoroughly.


Note: You can substitute "Emeril's ESSENCE Creole Seasoning" (also referred to as Bayou Blast) for the seasoning mix.

The rice I used for the competition was made by grating one large onion and mincing a bunch of cilantro tops and using chicken broth instead of water to cook the rice.

If you're making the rice at home, I suggest simply chopping the onion into large chunks, then add the onion to a blender with the cilantro tops and some chicken broth. Buzz it until it's liquified. Use this mixture to cook the rice rather than water...adding enough additional broth to cook the rice.

[e9999]

thanks to Alvaro for putting this together. A great idea!
good job all the Chefs and Judges!

[PabloVTA]

here's a link to some pics of the weekend.

http://stephybiris.shutterfly.com/



Any idea's on how we can make next years competition better?
I just got a Turkey fryer....i'm thinking crawfish boil and creole fixins!

what about a pig roast? underground?

I guess those are more group eating activities, but since it was such a big area, and so many spectators, I think if we got everyone involved, it would be great as well.

[PabloVTA]

Who's in this year?









***please let the special ingredient be tequila...please! ple,ple,pl,pl,please!****

[woooody]

we need an "07" thread

[alvarorb]

I'm out traveling. I'll get to it next week.

Alvaro

[peesalot]

I hope this does not detract from the typical NorCal80's fun feast undetr the pop ups ???????

[NorCalDoug]

Originally Posted by peesalot

I hope this does not detract from the typical NorCal80's fun feast undetr the pop ups ???????

nawww...it adds to it, IMO.