On Sunday, I had the honor to be a judge at the first ever Portland Vegan Iron Chef competition, put on by Try Vegan PDX.
It was truly epic! Thanks to all of you who were watching the live stream and have contacted me to tell me how much you liked it, but I deserve none of the credit. I just showed up and ate mind-blowingly delicious gourmet vegan food, for free. Best gig ever! Next year, I hope to have the time in my schedule to volunteer and help put it together.
I just wanted to share a few memories of the event, accompanied by some photos courtesy of Lucas. The secret ingredient was chocolate (I might have let out an audible anticipatory gasp when it was announced), and the chefs outdid themselves incorporating the chocolate into their dishes.
Here I am at the judges’ table, trying to quickly devour coconut-chocolate-chickpea dal prepared by the fine chefs from Blossoming Lotus:
judge's table
That dish was the dal of my dreams. I wish that I could eat it every day. It shouldn’t even be called dal, it should be called “silky flavor explosion heaven, put it in your mouth!” (Hey Blossoming Lotus, if you end up naming it that at your restaurant, you’re welcome.)
Another appetizer favorite of mine:
Qausu's fried plantains with chocolate-ginger dipping sauce
My favorite dessert of the night was Qausu’s chocolate-cashew pudding with fresh berries and peanut brittle:
oh hell yes
It was no surprise to any of the judges that Chef Qausu AsaaseYaa won the tournament (although the votes were extremely close and both Wes Hannah and Aaron Adams made some outstanding dishes), but we were all a little surprised that we teared up when she accepted her trophy.
the winner!
It was a good day to be a vegan! Can’t wait for next year.
