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MAY 2023 NEWSLETTER
Washington State Chef's Association
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Leading the Northwest's Culinary Arts into the 21st Century through
Professionalism, Education & Community Service
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President's Message from Gary Fuller | |
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Hello Members and Friends,
Another successful competition... We had a large crowd to taste our 16-team competition for the Bite of the Duck in April at Renton Technical College. All the bites were extremely creative and packed with GREAT taste! However, you can only have one winner. Below is an image of the winners and their winning “Bite”. Congratulation Mary and Tara.
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Picture: Tara (on the right) is the Training Manager and Mary is the Night Sous Chef at JOEY Bellevue. It was Tara's first food competition as an apprentice and Mary's second.
Mary’s comments about creating the winning bite:
We learned how to appeal to the demographic when it came to flavor by bringing in a fan-favorite dish like the Loco Moco, but we also wanted to push our limits by making the dish into an eye-catching dish that let the flavor of duck speak for itself. We challenged ourselves by making each appetizer per order to upkeep the food quality, not wanting to compromise each dish going out fresh and hot. One of the biggest take-aways from the competition was very similar to what we practice at our restaurant, to always see what we can do to heighten the eating experience for every person that wanted to try our dish.
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For our Duck Off appetizer, we created an elevated spin on the Hawaiian dish, the Loco Moco. It consists of a crispy rice base layered with ground duck patty, both pan-fried in duck fat. We drizzled our hot-held duck gravy over the patty and garnished it with green onion ribbons. Finally, we plated the dish with a smear of egg yolk sauce and droplets of scallion oil. We paired the scallion oil for the strong aromatic flavor to balance the richness that came with our duck egg yolk sauce. The charred scallion oil is a staple and popular sauce that we serve at JOEYs and the duck egg yolk sauce we created ourselves to emulate the image of a fried egg on top of the entire dish. | |
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A special thanks to our sponsor Maple Leaf Farms and Don Ruffin their Regional Sales Manager for supplying the duck. | |
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And thank you to our 3 judges, our host Tony Parker and Diana Prine (not pictured).
Picture from left to right: Steven Janik from the CORE Foodservice, Don Ruffin from Maple Leaf, Robert Cugini from Chaine des Rotisseurs and Chef Instructor Tony Parker, the organizer and host.
Visit the website to see the photos from the event.
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FOOD BANK FUNDRAISER
THE EMERGENCY FEEDING PROGRAM PRESENTS
2023 CHEF'S MIX BOX
CHALLENGE FUNDRAISER
SATURDAY, JUNE 10th, 2023
LOCATION
Renton Technical College
TIME
4-8PM
HELP NEEDED
The Renton Emergency Feeding Program is holding a fundraiser at Renton Technical College on June 10th from 4-8PM. We still need 1 competitor and 1 judge and 2-4 cakes.
Six of Seattle's top chefs will compete in a challenge to see who can create the best meals from the food items provided to Emergency Feeding Program recipients in their food boxes.
The WSCA is helping with their competition and desserts. We still need 1 judge and 1 competitor. There will be 6 total competitors. The mystery basket competition will be streamed live to the guests. The 1st round will be a cold appetizer, next up entrée and then dessert. Rounds 1 and 2 will see 2 chefs eliminated, with the final round having two chefs competing to be crowned the Mix Box Champion. All meals will be translated into recipe cards and provided to those who receive our food on a daily basis.
If you know of someone, a culinary school or a company, that would like to make a 2-4 cakes, the chapter will pay for the cost. There will be a dessert dash.
If you can help, please contact Gary Fuller at garylf3@gmail.com and or 360-509-2682.
FUNDRAISER TICKETS
General Admission: $100
-Includes dinner, beer/wine, swag bag, and a raffle ticket.
Join us for Emergency Feeding Program's first EVER...MIXED BOX Challenge Fundraiser where you can see local chefs battle for a cause. Watch six of Seattle’s top chefs compete in a challenge to see who can create the best meals, from the food items provided to Emergency Feeding Program recipients in their food boxes.
Three rounds of competition include an appetizer, entree and dessert round. Rounds one and two will see two chefs eliminated, with the final round having two chefs competing to be crowned the Mix Box Champion. All meals will be translated into recipe cards and provided to those who receive our food on a daily basis.
Live Music provided by "Global Heat Band", Food, Drinks & plenty of Dancing.
Click the link below to get your Fundraiser tickets today!
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JUNE MEMBER APPRECIATION EVENT
WASHINGTON STATE CHEF'S ASSOCIATION
SEATTLE MARINERS GAME
MONDAY, JUNE 12th, 2023
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Hot Dogs, Beer and Baseball coming your way on June 12th at T-Mobile Park!
This is a member appreciation month event and you are invited to watch a Seattle Mariners game in the Terrace Club reserve seating. Game starts @ 6:40pm.
LOCATION
T-Mobile Park
1250 1st Ave S
Seattle, WA 98134
TIME
6:40PM
COST
- Free -
Advanced Reservations Required.
WSCA Members can reserve 2 tickets Maximum.
Limited tickets are available, so RSVP as soon as you can.
Please RSVP by filling out the form below.
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NATIONAL CONVENTION IN NEW ORLEANS | |
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I can taste the gumbo now, and of course the warm beignets, King Cake, Jambalaya, Crawfish and Etouffee. You get the idea: GREAT food in a GREAT city full of history.
Click here for more information.
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Hungry: Eating, Road-Tripping, and Risking It All with the Greatest Chef in the World
By Jeff Gordinier
A food critic chronicles four years spent traveling with René Redzepi, the renowned chef of Noma, in search of the most tantalizing flavors the world has to offer.
“If you want to understand modern restaurant culture, you need to read this book.” -Ruth Reichl, author of Save Me the Plums
Hungry is a book about not only the hunger for food, but for risk, for reinvention, for creative breakthroughs, and for connection. Feeling stuck in his work and home life, writer Jeff Gordinier happened into a fateful meeting with Danish chef René Redzepi, whose restaurant, Noma, has been called the best in the world. A restless perfectionist, Redzepi was at the top of his game but was looking to tear it all down, to shutter his restaurant and set out for new places, flavors, and recipes.
This is the story of the subsequent four years of globe-trotting culinary adventure, with Gordinier joining Redzepi as his Sancho Panza. In the jungle of the Yucatán peninsula, Redzepi and his comrades go off-road in search of the perfect taco. In Sydney, they forage for sea rocket and sandpaper figs in suburban parks and on surf-lashed beaches. On a boat in the Arctic Circle, a lone fisherman guides them to what may or may not be his secret cache of the world’s finest sea urchins. And back in Copenhagen, the quiet canal-lined city where Redzepi started it all, he plans the resurrection of his restaurant on the unlikely site of a garbage-filled lot. Along the way, readers meet Redzepi’s merry band of friends and collaborators, including acclaimed chefs such as Danny Bowien, Kylie Kwong, Rosio Sánchez, David Chang, and Enrique Olvera.
Hungry is a memoir, a travelogue, a portrait of a chef, and a chronicle of the moment when daredevil cooking became the most exciting and groundbreaking form of artistry.
Praise for Hungry
“In Hungry, Gordinier invokes such playful and lush prose that the scents of mole, chiles and even lingonberry juice waft off the page.” -Time
“This wonderful book is really about the adventures of two men: a great chef and a great journalist. Hungry is a feast for the senses, filled with complex passion and joy, bursting with life. Not only did Jeff Gordinier make me want to jump on the next flight (to Mexico, Copenhagen, Sydney) in search of the perfect meal, but he also reminded me to stop and savor the ride.” -Dani Shapiro, author of Inheritance.
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WELCOME TO NEW MEMBERS
Welcome to our new and renewed members! Thank you for joining the Washington State Chef's Association!
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MY FAVORITE QUOTE
"Kindness is more important than wisdom, and the recognition of this is the beginning of wisdom." -Theodore Isaac Rubin
Chef Gary L. Fuller, CEC, CCE, AAC
President, Washington State Chef's Association
Cell: (360) 509-2682
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Member Spotlight - JP Downey-McCarthy | |
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Favorite Quote:
"Lets us all be the leaders we wish we had." Simon Sinek
Bio:
My name is JP and I am an instructor for the Culinary Program at South Puget Sound Community College. I began my food service career in 1998 serving banquets and working in hotel kitchens while earning my culinary certificate from South Seattle Community College. Since then, I have traversed the country in a variety of culinary roles. I have cooked in fine dining settings, boutique restaurants, wineries, a vegan bistro, and hospital kitchens. I have owned and operated a mobile food business and recently transitioned from an Executive Chef role at Providence Swedish Health Alliance. I love to cook and I feel privileged to support emerging culinary professionals and help inspire thoughtful and passionate culinary leaders.
Favorite Recipe:
Crispy Glazed Tofu
(Recipe Link from The Splendid Table)
Visit the Member Spotlight page for more info or to see other Member Spotlights.
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Certification Practical Exams | |
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We have 2 more Practical Exams scheduled at Maynard's Silverdale for 2023.
Saturday, May 13, 2023 at 8am
Saturday, October 21, 2023
WANT TO BECOME ACF CERTIFIED FOR FREE?
The WSCA has decided to help all WSCA members including culinarians, chefs, cooks, bakers, and pastry chefs by reimbursing for payment of their certification. We will pay all fees associated with the process. We want to help your career path towards a more successful culinary experience. More and more employers are looking for qualified experienced and educated employees. ACF Certification proves your knowledge and practical skill level.
Once you pass the final written and practical test and receive your ACF certification send us the receipts and we will reimburse your personal cost.
Visit the Certification page for more info. You can register online or submit the Practical Exam Candidate Registration Form. If you have ANY questions about certification, please reach out to any of our board members or other chapter-certified chefs and we will walk you through the process.
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Complimentary 90 Day ACF Memberships | |
ACF recently launched a promotion for complimentary 90-day memberships. Invite your friends and colleagues to check out this promotion. Have them get familiar with the acfchefs.org website and engage in some of the free educational courses that are offered or log on to Chef’s Table. | |
Apply for a WSCA Culinary Scholarship! | |
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APPLICATION DEADLINE: AUGUST 1st, 2023
AWARD DATE: SEPTEMBER WSCA MEETING
Visit the Scholarships webpage to find the scholarship application and more info on other scholarships offered.
*One scholarship awarded per period. Two may be issued at the committee's discretion based on criteria met by more than one applicant.
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Please feel free to contact us at any time if you have ideas for the association.
Visit the WSCA Contact page to find contact info for the Association as well as each WSCA officer.
Sincerely,
Chef Gary L. Fuller, CEC, CCE, AAC
President, Washington State Chef's Association
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Thank you to our Sponsors! | | | | |
