Wow! What an event! From the day we found out our ingredients and the winery we would be paired with, we were in our glory planning something to amaze the taste buds off of our guests! And we did!
It was a challenge in itself organizing time to prepare the food and making sure we would have enough of everything and be ready on the day of the event.
We started early in the week collecting Lamb’s quarter leaves as a vessel to serve the finished ‘bite’ off of. While we were out, we decided to incorporate some other readily available wild edibles, such as lavender, roses and sage.
We wanted to stay true to the BBQ theme and so we saved a good portion of the actual cooking for the day of. This way we would have our BBQ and access to the Big Green Egg that we were lucky enough to win in a draw! (Turns out some chefs opted out of the draw having never used this type of smoker before, where’s the sense of adventure in that?)
We had an awesome time grilling zucchini and smoking pork on site at the Grist Mill in Keremeos, on what felt like one of the hottest days this year! But we carried on working hard and enjoying the flavours of our labour as our dish came together.
Service started at 6 sharp, and we had a few people waiting patiently to get ours first! The line up was long, the air was warm and smokey and we were running full steam making fry bread and placing 5 prepared items on top: to order!!!! It was a little bit crazy and we were a little bit tired but when the adrenaline switches on, we go till the last person is fed! We had plenty of positive feedback throughout the evening, and when we finally had a chance to sample our dish in it’s entirety we were shocked at how beautifully it paired with Orofinos Home Vineyard Reisling! It was a perfect match!
Our families were there as well, cheering us on as we fed the masses as quickly as we could. They also worked quietly as spies, checking to see how many judges slipped their vote into our box!
By the time the clock struck 8:30 and the ‘doors closed’ we had fed almost 400 guests and definitely garnered some attention. People seemed to respond well to our philosophies on foraging and the homage we paid to local natives, by making a traditional fry bread.
It was time to crown the King!
Natasha Shooten from the Grist Mill came in second in the people choice category, while Lee Humpfies from Local Lounge claimed first. And then the lovely Kim Lawton, announced the very coveted BBQ King award was so close between two competitors, it had simply never been this close before!
‘And the runners up are: Shayna & Shulman!’
Chef Humphries takes first again!
The excitement was unmeasurable as the cameras flashed and we took our place next to one of the greatest chefs this province has.
We patted each other on the back and embraced our proud families. We did exactly what we needed to do, show everyone who we are.
Shayna&Shulman 