Pro and amateur chefs cooked off at the San Diego County Fair to determine the top finalists in each category
Chef submissions for the Long Beach contest now open through July 11
The Big Bite Bacon Fest is invading the San Diego County Fair on July 5 and the Queen Mary in Long Beach on August 2. Both salty savory festivals will host the Big Bite Bacon Dish Competition, a battle of pro, amateur and kid chefs in a culinary cook off showcasing the ingredient of the summer bacon. San Diego event competitors participated in a preliminary cook off contest on June 17 at the San Diego County Fair to determine the top finalists that will move on to compete at the July 5 event.
Pro and amateur chefs presented their own unique bacon concoctions to a panel of expert judges in hopes of moving on to the Bacon Dish competition finals. Dishes spanned savory, sweet and salty recipes all highlighting bacon as the key ingredient. The three pro finalists were all chefs hailing from San Diego and included Leo Garcia of Mexico City Cafe and his Mexicano Alambre Chilango, Derek Jaeger of The Cravory and his Banana Bacon Sundae, and Matt Ham of La Jolla Brewery with his Bacon Jalapeño Mac and Cheese. The amateur finalists included San Diego locals Tore Trupiano and his Porchetta Apricot Pork Belly, Tammy Zeigler and her Garlic Chicken Bacon Pizza, and Juli Hull with her French Toast Bacon Cupcake. Each of the three pro chefs will be paired with one of the amateur chefs to compete at the Big Bite Bacon Fest at the San Diego County Fair on July 5.
The Long Beach and San Diego Big Bite Bacon Dish Contest professional and amateur first place winners will each claim their stake in a prize package that includes $3,000 cash and automatic entrance into the World Food Championships in Las Vegas, Nevada in November.
No matter where you are in Southern California this summer, the Big Bite Bacon Fest will cure your bacon cravings with bacon inspired cuisine, cook-offs, beer tastings, entertainment, pageants, games and more.For more information visitwww.bigbitebaconfest.com.
posted by: Eric Fujimori
6/23/14
