An ode to chili: “It can only truly be ‘Texas Red’ if it walks the thin line just this side of indigestibility: Damning the mouth that eats it and defying the stomach to digest it, the ingredients are hardly willing to lie in the same pot together.” - John Thorne, chef and author.
Yes, the fourth Annual Chili Spank-Off took place last Sunday with a huge gathering of foodies, partygoers, 25 amateurs and 13 restaurant chili contest entrants, and of course yours truly as one of the judges. There are two new culinary champions: For the professionals, chef Wade Watson of Lux Restaurant (P.S., he’s also created a whole new menu for the restaurant) and for the amateurs, “Chunk ‘o Skunk” by Brad Ainslie and Matt Brady, who are still staying mum on the skunk question (Was it or wasn’t it?). When pressed about their recipe, they did, however, admit to plenty of tequila, 12 whole red Thai chilies and sliced lamb tenderloin. It was quite a battle, but we tasted all 38 entries including extreme dishes like Thai Lemongrass with a super spicy rendition of chili, a Lebanese chili from Beirut and an anonymous crocodile chili, with 400 revelers (including JC Chan, son of Jackie!) imbibing in all the free-flowing Sol-sponsored beer and margaritas. Next up is “Chili Spank Off V – Ring of Fire,” which will take place in Oct 2007 and rumors of Spank Off Beijing and Bangkok have already surfaced.
Speaking of winners, young chefs from 12 Hong Kong catering establishments are gearing up for the next “Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) Black Box Culinary Challenge” in Pok Fu Lam, and the public will be given an opportunity - for the first time ever - to taste these dishes around town. Day one, each chef team receives a mystery box covered with a dark cloth containing various products, and they have one hour to submit a three-course menu proposal. The next day, the chefs return to make the meal for a gala VIP dinner where a panel of international chefs will judge the menus and announce the winners during the dinner.
Frenchwoman Adeline Grattard is one of the city’s only women chefs and presents her first gastronomic tour-de-force menu at “Autumn Moon” Oct 6 -7 at Bo Restaurant and Wine Bar. She joins “Demon Chef” Alvin Leung as Chef de Cuisine and comes with some heavy-hitting creds: Her former gig was at the 2-Michelin star restaurant L’Astrance in Paris, after stints at not one, but two other 2-Michelin star restaurants. Her French culinary background will be doing battle with Leung’s playful, innovative style: black truffle steamed radish cake “loh bak gou,” sautéed porcini with preserved duck yolk and roquette emulsion, suckling pig two ways, roasted and braised... It will blow your socks off. $815 for 11 courses. UG/F, Ice House, 32-38 Ice House St., Central (right beside the FCC), 2850-8371.