Courageous Kai Secures Seven Spots In Cook Off

Media release

27 July 2011

Courageous Kai Secures Seven Spots In Cook Off

After a long wintery month of hunting, gathering and presenting their prey to the public, the five finalists in the 2011 Monteith’s Beer and Wild Food Challenge have been selected, along with two people’s choice finalists The top seven competitors will go head to head in a live cook off to decide who will snare the spoils, including $10,000 in prize money.

Head judge, Kerry Tyack, travelled the length and breadth of the country, devouring wild food to complete the hard task of naming the top five participants who had expertly crafted an innovative and adventurous dish, impeccably paired with a Monteith’s beer or cider.

“The quality of beer and food matching amongst the semi-finalists was higher than ever which made my job incredibly difficult. The five finalists chosen to compete in the Cook Off submitted entries that meet all the criteria of the Challenge and in all cases show a genuine commitment to making the most of locally sourced ingredients presenting dishes with a true touch of the wild. Of course, their beer and cider matches were right on the money. It is going to be a very interesting task trying to find a winner,” says Tyack.

The five finalists as chosen by the Monteith’s Beer and Wild Food Challenge judges are:

The White Swan Hotel, Greytown – Chef Shannon Katipa’s entry Look hare… a wild little pig said, so what if I’m with a tart! Featured wild hare and pork belly ragout accompanied by a horopito, thyme and caramelised shallot tart. The entry was matched with Monteith’s Original Ale to complement the deep and rich flavours and the ragout.

Pepper Tree Restaurant and Bar, Coromandel – Honey, the duck’s sweet on the sow was crafted by Chef Scott Corbett who served up honey and ginger braised pork belly and confit duck leg paired with Monteith’s Radler Bier. The beer was chosen to complement to chilli and lime syrup that accompanied the dish.

Mount Bistro, Mount Maunganui – Chef Stephen Barry’s Two tales from the sea paired snapper mousseline studded with crayfish and rubbed with wasabi fuikake seasoning with Monteith’s Single Source. The beer was delicate enough to match the flavours of crayfish and fresh snapper without being overpowering.

Plateau Restaurant and Bar, Taupo – Chef Jude Messenger chose to match Four wild pigs in the orchard with Monteith’s Crushed Apple Cider. The various components of the dish; bacon wrapped pork tender loin, a filo cigar of wild boar neck and wild pork tortellini accompanied by roasted fruit, nuts and vegetable, found harmony when enjoyed with the crisp, refreshing cider.

Victoria Street Bistro, Hamilton – Razorback Carnival, devised by Chef Andrew Clarke, took roasted wild razorback boar with a pistachio and pancetta farce and cider braised belly and paired it with Monteith’s Crushed Pear Cider. The strong, sweet flavour of the cider was well matched with the pear and ginger relish that accompanied the dish.

In 2011, two people’s choice finalists have been selected to join in the Finalist Cook Off.

“One of the goals of the challenge every year is to encourage both chefs and the public to broaden their palates and experience new food and beer combinations. We saw a huge number of Kiwis come out in support of their favourite participant this year with a large number of votes being counted,” says Tyack.

The votes have been tallied and Kiwi wild food passionates chose the following two restaurants as their stand-out performers of the 2011 challenge:

Ribier Restaurant, West Auckland – Chef Eugene Sokolovski created Royal hare force, an entry featuring hare fillets, wrapped in bacon and served with smoked carrot puree, roasted wild apple and savoy cabbage stuffed with lentils. The dish was paired with Monteith’s Celtic Red to lift the game flavours of the hare and the subtleties of the smoked carrot.

Ambrosia Restaurant, Rotorua – the smooth, malty Monteith’s Celtic Red was chosen to accompany Chef Kristopher Beehre’s Sweetbread tahr baby. The dish featured lightly smoked wild tahr with prawn and sweetbread chorizo, with the beer match drawing out the rich favours of the dish and complementing the subtle smokiness of the tahr.

Come spring time, the seven finalists will converge on Auckland to fight it out for the top spot with the winner taking home the $10,000 bounty.

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