Written By Colin Hynes Edibles / Food Events Oct 3, 2012 Photo Essay: Chef Survival Challange at Madrona Farm SHARE VIA: Facebook Twitter PinterestVICTORIAThe 5th annual Chef Survival Challenge, held at Madrona Farm, was furious from the start as competing chefs began the race in old potato sacks hopping towards a mud pit as their first challenge. Chefs also endured getting sprayed with super soakers as they crawled on hands and knees under irrigation piping; zip lining over the farm into the corn field to collect their backpacks full of ingredients; and paddling canoes to Condiment Island (I saw at least one over-turned canoe and few very wet cooks). This year the race was set-up like a rally as chefs were paired with Canadian Olympians spelling off each other through the various tough challenges. After the race portion of the event was over (Mike Dunlop of Vista 18 won this portion of the event), each team scoured the farm for fresh produce to complete their ingredients list. I saw yellow chard, corn, arugula and much more being hustled back to the cooking stations. Guests pulled up chairs in front of their favourite chef to watch all the cooking action. At precisely 2 pm all the cooking was done and a live auction for the finished dishes was held. The auction was fast and fun, with bidding wars aplenty. Plates went for a variety of prices–Robin Jackson of Sooke Harbour House’s Albacore tuna dish sold for $135. While the bidding wars unfolded two large pigs (prepared by chef John Brooks) were smoked for everyone to enjoy (hey, not everyone nabbed a chef dinner at the auction). To quench thirsts on this hot and sunny fall day, Caffé Fantastico, Muse Winery and Vancouver Island Brewery were set up to serve drinks as everyone watched the challenges.Congratulations to Amanda Chesley from Stage Wine Bar for taking 1st place & the Golden Broccoli at the chef’s auction.—BY COLIN HYNESleft: Bacon from the Whole Beast. Middle: Tuna from Sooke Harbour House. Right: crowds sitting down to watch the cooking action.Auctioneer Jim Cassels getting the crowd ready while Mike Dunlop of Vista 18 finalizes his dish. Cosmo Meens from Hot and Cold Cafe dices up some fruit.Chef Robin Jackson of Sooke Harbour house dresses a dish for an auction winner.Deciding which part of the farm to go and collect from first.Sablefish from Relish.Mike Dunlop gears up for the zip line.Hunting for their backpacks amongst corn.One of the Challanges was to zip line over the farm.Boating to “condiment Island.”Robin Jackson (Sooke Harbour House) running hard from under the irrigation pipes.Chefs run over the Mud Bog.The first Challange: The Potato Sack Race.Pork Belly from Camilles.actionbaconbaconsBCBritish ColumbiaChef Survival Challengeeventeventsfarmersfarmingfarms SHARE VIA: Facebook Twitter Pinterest Written By: Colin Hynes Colin is the Assistant Editor at EAT. You can contact him via colin@eatmagazine.ca. Colin was born in Nova Scotia and spent his first five years there. His mother and father owned an inn and restaurant and Colin spent his time ... Read More You may also like EAT Magazine News / Food News December 7, 2020 EAT’s 2020 Gift Guide EAT’s 2020 Gift Guide. Not just for the holidays! Bolen Books Flavor by Yotam Ottolenghi ($45.00) Cat’s Meow Trivet ($6.95) Book Seat ... Read More EAT Magazine News / Food News November 30, 2020 CITY EATS December 2020 | January 2021 A new bakery has opened in the Leland building at 2506 Douglas St. Working Culture Bread is serving up naturally leavened sourdough breads, as well ... Read More Food / Food News / Restaurants November 30, 2020 Eating Out—At Home Originally published in EAT Oct|Nov issue. Are you missing those romantic date night dinners, a favourite dish from a local chef, the fluffy ... Read More Breads / Food / How to Cook / Recipes November 27, 2020 Rosemary and Feta Potato Loaf A delicious homemade bread is always a welcome treat that can really set the mood for a good day. This is an approachable recipe to bring to holiday ... Read More Food / How to Cook / Main course / Recipes November 27, 2020 Skewered Spicy Chicken and Shiitake Skewers Rebecca Wellman serves up her delicious take on chicken and mushroom skewers with a tasty side of sauce. Serves 4 ... Read More Food News October 10, 2020 Green Sauce — Jambalaya Recipe Oct|Nov Issue We neglected to provide a recipe for green sauce in this recipe. There are many recipes online if you want to make your own, or can’t find one ... Read More Comments are closed.
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