Good taste isn't everything: 'We eat with our eyes' cooking contest judge explains

McClatchy Newspapers (MCT) - Ever wonder what goes on behind the scenes at a cooking contest?

Are there rows of stoves _ no, electric ranges _ where smiling women in print aprons spend hours whipping up dishes like cherry pie and pot roast? Is the room hushed? Are the judges harsh, ready to discount a dish if the parsley happens to slip off the plate?

That's what I pictured when Foster Farms invited me to attend a cook-off for the National Chicken Cooking Contest earlier this month.

Well, I was wrong.

There's a windowless room, where three judges sit on one side of a long table, taking a dainty nibble of this drumstick, a tiny taste of that sauce. They glory in dissecting dishes like only foodies can, happily debating the merits of salt, this ingredient vs. that ingredient, where to buy a certain chili.

There's a kitchen _ hot and noisy _ where chefs scurry to turn out dish after dish. Recipes come not from happy homemakers in search of glory, but from home cooks _ I'm told one has a doctorate in physics _ who want to win a cash prize.

A very large cash prize. The National Chicken Cooking Contest offers $50,000, making it one of the nation's most lucrative cooking contests.

The competition, its public-relations people say, is part of the holy trinity of cooking contests _ up there with the Pillsbury Bake-off and the National Beef Cookoff. Close to 10,000 people enter.

The National Chicken Council narrows the field to one recipe per state. Then professional chefs _ in this case, Foster Farms chef Mark Tadros and crew _ prepare each dish.

Tadros, charged with making 13 chicken dishes in one day, immediately called in extra help: Jonathan Franco from the River Mill restaurant and two students from the culinary education program at Atwater High School.

The kitchen turned out one dish every 15 minutes. Was it difficult? A little, Tadros said.

"It's very important to follow the recipe precisely," he said. "We need to do the dishes justice, we don't want to mess up their recipe."

Not to worry. As Tadros set small plates of food in front of the judges, each one looked like something I wanted to eat. Indian spiced drumsticks with mint chutney? Yum. Chicken chili verde cooked in beer? I'm there.

They all looked good, at least to me. But dishes are judged on more than appearance, obviously. The three experts _ among them food personality Narsai David _ also rated each dish on taste, appeal and simplicity.

When a plate appeared before them, they didn't dig in. They took a moment to look at the dish.

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"It needs to be visually attractive," said Teresa Farney, food editor for the Colorado Springs Gazette, who often judges cooking contests. "We eat with our eyes."

They don't eat very much. Judges take a few bites, discuss the dish, then move on. With 13 plates to sample, they have to pace themselves.

So, what's fun about judging a cooking contest? David, who can be heard discussing food and wine on KCBS radio, said he enjoys trying innovative dishes.

"I like to see creativity, new ideas, things I might want to try," he said.

So, what's new in chicken? Big flavors, David said. He was impressed with the variety of spices used in the many ethnic dishes.

Representatives from the National Chicken Council and Foster Farms looked on as judges sampled the food. Pam Rogers, a consultant for the chicken council, was there. She was one of the people who read contestants' recipes and helped narrow the field.

She does this every other year (the contest, once held yearly, is now biennial), and has seen some unlikely dishes.

"I've seen peanut butter and jelly chicken," she said. "I've seen Jell-O with chicken."

What about a chicken dessert? Not yet, thank goodness.

Chef Tadros figures he used 20 pounds of chicken on cook-off day.

Judges picked two winners _ one from the contest's Pacific Region, one from the Mountain Region. These home cooks will go on to compete for the grand prize on May 2.

People prepare their own dishes for the final cook-off. The reason they didn't do that in the Turlock, Calif., event? Logistics. It's too difficult to fly people across the country to make their food multiple times.

The final cook-off will be nerve-wracking, and not just for the contestants. The most common mistake they make while preparing their recipes? Undercooking the chicken, which can lead to food poisoning.

"Chicken, especially white meat, is very easy to overcook," said Farney, the food editor. "So they undercook it. I think it's the nerve factor, probably."

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FLATTENED CHICKEN WITH HERBS AND STICKY LEMON

Serves: 4

This recipe is from Pacific Region winner Elsie Lalor of Issaquah, Wash.

Ingredients:

1 whole chicken, back bone and breast bone removed and flattened

2 teaspoons kosher salt

˝ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

5 sprigs rosemary

10 long sprigs thyme

10 cloves garlic

2 tablespoons olive oil

Ľ cup sherry vinegar

1 lemon, thinly sliced

Ľ cup honey

2 tablespoons chipotle pepper sauce

2 tablespoons toasted sliced almonds

Ľ cup chopped fresh parsley

Instructions:

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Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. On cookie sheet, place rosemary sprigs, thyme sprigs and garlic. Arrange flattened chicken on top and sprinkle with olive oil. Place chicken in 400-degree oven for 20 minutes. Pour sherry vinegar over chicken and cook additional 15 minutes. Place lemon slices over chicken. In small bowl, mix together honey and chipotle sauce; brush over lemon slices. Bake chicken additional 10 to 15 minutes, brushing with honey sauce (use foil to cover chicken if it starts to burn). Remove chicken to platter and sprinkle with almonds and parsley.

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GINGER SCENTED HONEY HOISIN CHICKEN THIGHS WITH SESAME

Serves: 4

This recipe is from Mountain Region winner Ruth Kendrick of Ogden, Utah.

Ingredients:

8 boneless, skinless

chicken thighs

1 tablespoon cooking oil

˝ cup soy sauce

˝ cup honey

˝ cup hoisin sauce

˝ cup chicken broth

3 tablespoons grated fresh ginger

2 teaspoons pepper

Ľ cup toasted sesame seeds

4 cups cooked white rice

Ľ cup sliced scallions, green tops included

Instructions:

In large skillet over medium-high heat, place cooking oil. Add chicken and brown on both sides. In medium bowl, mix together soy sauce, honey, hoisin sauce, chicken broth, ginger and pepper. Pour mixture over chicken, turning to coat. Cover pan and place in 325-degree oven. Bake about 20 minutes or until chicken is done. Stir in sesame seeds.

Place hot rice on serving platter, top with chicken and sauce and garnish with scallions.

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Bee staff writer Kerry McCray can be reached at 578-2358 or at kmccray@modbee.com.

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© 2009, The Modesto Bee (Modesto, Calif.).