Culinary Fight Club Chicago - PORK: The Aftermath
Walking into the Culinary Fight Club Chicago's pork-themed event, held at Chop Shop/1st Ward Events, I was instantly greeted by a steaming chafing dish of meatballs in a hearty bubbling red sauce. Next to that table was a small bar serving complementary drinks from sponsors Samuel Adams and Nolet's Gin.
Ummmm meatballs!
Chop Shop's event space had been transformed into a culinary arena of sorts, with chef stations lining the perimeter of the room and an overflowing table of food ingredients at the foot of the stage. On stage, three judges flanked by color commentator "Chefferee" and host, stood beneath a projected timer flashing the 60 minute contest allotment.
The host and Chefferee hyped the crowd as the chefs dashed to grab ingredients from the table heaping with food items. Sausages fell, garlic spilled, bread bounced. The cooks were only able to use the ingredients they could carry, and prohibited from picking up dropped foods. After the 60-second meat melee, or meatlee if you will, the chefs went to their stations to began prepping their meal.
The chefs used various techniques to showcase the pork flavor. Smoking, searing, candied, and frying were all used to fill the event space with an enticing aroma and at times heavy layer of smoke.
Chef Tony Balestreri used a makeshift smoker to prepare succulent slices of pork chop, with pork-filled dumplings, and a spicy sauce.
Chef Balestreri & colleagues celebrate after putting final touches on their dish
Chef Ross Johnson fashioned a crispy pork and veggie egg roll with a zesty guacamole.
He liked it...a lot!
one home cook in the sea of chefs, Matthew Morin, served a seared pork slice on a cornbread waffle with a marinated salad of seasonings and carrot.
Chef George Phelps plated a savory pork belly over a bed of candied bacon-infused smashed sweet potatoes.
Chef Lance Avery prepared an udon noodle dish with pork and mushrooms topped with crumbled bacon.
After the smoke had cleared and the last scrumptious morsel of pig was consumed by the judges, Alex Shebar, Yelp Chicago community director, chef/judge Dylan Lipe, director of culinary operations at The Budlong Hot Chicken, and chef/judge Michael Fiddler, director of culinary and corporate chef at Charlie Baggs Culinary Innovations named chef Lance Avery's dish the winner. Fan favorite, Tony Balestreri, claimed the win in the Taster's Choice.
Culinary Fight Club Chicago - The Pork was a unique event akin to watching those televised cooking competitions we all love live and in person. The exciting experience of watching someone passionate about their craft coupled with donating to a charitable cause like Fight2Feed, made for an unforgettable affair. While I'm still digesting yummy pork pieces, me and my stomach are looking forward to next month's edition...TACOS!
Stay hungry!
