Keith Lusher 01.30.25
For those who’ve by no means skilled Cajun delicacies in a aggressive format, you’re lacking out on tasting among the greatest meals you’ve ever had! Add the music, drinks, and other people to it, and also you’ve received a one-of-a-kind occasion down on the bayou. There’s simply one thing about experiencing the magic of Louisiana’s cooking competitions; each recipe appears to return with a chunk of household heritage (and infrequently an hour-long story).
February brings an thrilling alternative as I’ve been invited by Johnny Marquez (of the Nationwide Wildlife Federation) to be a visitor decide on the 2025 Prepare dinner-Off for the Coast. The occasion is certainly one of many that each one come collectively to help coastal restoration efforts alongside the Gulf Coast.
The 2024 Prepare dinner-Off was a testomony to the occasion’s rising affect. Over 2,000 attendees gathered at Docville Farm, elevating over $20,000 for coastal restoration initiatives. Sixteen cook dinner groups showcased their abilities, getting ready dishes utilizing every part from shrimp to wild boar. Highlights included Crew White Fleet’s Semi-Blackened Jalapeno-Infused Tuna Bites profitable the “Swims” class and Crew Mudda Roux capturing the Crowd Favourite award with their White Beans and Shrimp.
However final yr’s occasion wasn’t nearly meals, as Grammy-award-winning musician Louis Michot of the Misplaced Bayou Ramblers supplied Cajun French music. On the similar time, native oyster farms like Brightside Oysters and Grand Isle Sea Farms supplied contemporary shellfish. The Chalmette Excessive College Brass Band added native taste, showcasing the group spirit that makes these occasions distinctive.
The 2025 occasion takes place on Saturday, February 1st, from 11 am to three pm at Docville Farm in Violet, LA. Proceeds will profit the Nunez Neighborhood Faculty’s Coastal Research Scholarship Program, which goals to coach the subsequent era of coastal restoration specialists.
Behind this occasion lies a important environmental story. Louisiana’s shoreline is vanishing at an alarming charge—dropping a soccer area of land each 100 minutes. This occasion raises consciousness a few conservation disaster that impacts our whole area’s ecosystem and tradition.
All cash raised will go to coastal restoration initiatives in St. Bernard Parish. This yr, the Prepare dinner-Off might be supporting the Chandeleur Sound Residing Shoreline Undertaking, a partnership with Nunez Neighborhood Faculty and Chalmette Excessive College that creates and locations synthetic reefs to sluggish erosion, in addition to the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana’s Oyster Shell Recycling Program, which collects oyster shells from New Orleans-area eating places and locations them again on the coast, creating dwelling shorelines with each wildlife and storm safety advantages.
Groups will compete throughout distinctive classes like “swims,” “flies,” and “crawls,” with trophies crafted by native artist Luis Colmenares. Attendees can get pleasure from stay music from JUCO and Louis Michot, take part in coastal restoration headquarters excursions, and discover a coastal artwork competitors.
At my final judging expertise—a gumbo cook-off—I walked away with a exceptional recipe now a staple in my kitchen. I look ahead to seeing what recipes and tales emerge from this yr’s Prepare dinner-Off for the Coast!
For extra details about this occasion, go to the Prepare dinner-off for the Coast Web site
