Seafood
Cook-off in New Orleans
New
Jersey seafood chefs Jim Weaver and Annie Prizzi went to
New Orleans,
Louisiana, on July 31 to go head-to-head with chefs from
14 other coastal
states to vie for the title of "King" or "Queen"
of seafood preparation in
the country. While they didn't win, they're still tops in
our book.
The
New Jersey Department of Agriculture, the Garden State Seafood
Association and the New Jersey Restaurant Association sponsored
Chef Jim
Weaver in the Great American Seafood Cook-off in New Orleans.
"New
Jersey is a leader in the seafood industry that is known
for its fresh,
high quality seafood," said New Jersey Agriculture
Secretary Charles M.
Kuperus. "The national seafood cook-off was a great
opportunity to show how
important Jersey Seafood is to a balanced diet and how easy
it is for
consumers to prepare."
In
2002, New Jersey harvested more than 162 million pounds
of seafood,
valued at about $113 million.
Weaver,
head chef of Tre Piani Restaurant, Princeton, along with
Prizzi -
the head chef and instructor for the culinary program at
Mercer Community
College, went to the cook-off armed with New Jersey's freshest
seafood and a
tasty recipe, Garden State Seafood Panzanella Salad, which
features Little
Neck Clams, sea scallops, calamari, monkfish, Jersey tomatoes,
cucumber,
fennel, basil, garlic, and scallions.
"New
Jersey seafood is pristine and high quality and speaks for
itself,"
said Weaver, the president of the Slow Foods Movement in
New Jersey, an
organization dedicated to preserving and encouraging traditional
foods,
beverages and recipes. "It's a great time of year to
highlight the freshest
ingredients of our region. New Jersey seafood and Jersey
Fresh produce are
the perfect marriage and will make our recipes shine."
The
Seafood Cook-off took place at the Louisiana Foodservice
Expo on July
31. One specific goal of the promotion was to showcase the
seafood products
that are characteristic of each region as well as to promote
seafood to
consumers as a quick, easy and healthy meal.
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