With Maynards Market & Kitchen executive chef Brian Smith defending the Iron Chef Tucson title, Chef Chic owner-chef Wendy Gauthier had a tough opponent.
In 2018, Smith won while demonstrating his finesse with pork belly. This year, the ingredient was both literally and figuratively tougher — octopus.
After a tight battle, Gauthier emerged victoriously.
“I’m just so excited and happy,” Gauthier said. “Brian is an amazing chef and it could have gone his way just as easily. I have an amazing team and we won it together.”
Here’s what Gauthier whipped up for the occasion:
Cold shrimp and octopus enchilada in a jicama sheet with a mango and avocado sauce
Lettuce soup with prickly pear caramelized onions and seared octopus
Octopus and cheddar fritter with creamy creole sauce with sautéed asparagus, carrot, shallot, purple potatoes, and herbs
Beer crepe with octopus apple bacon compote with brie cream sauce and a beer glaze
“The enchilada was inspired by another chef friend of mine talking about doing things that were light and crisp,” Gauthier said. “[For] the other items, we wanted to do dishes we knew were great but still out of the box. An hour is not much time, so we wanted to do a soup and at least one cold dish, which is where the enchilada came into play. With the soup, we wanted it to be really amazing but again a little different which is why we did lettuce soup. We knew our beer dish needed to be something you wouldn’t expect. It all just came together”
For more information about Chef Chic, read our article on female chefs or visit chefchicaz.com.
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Article written by:
Jackie Tran
More about JackieJackie Tran is a Tucson-based food writer, photographer, culinary educator, and owner-chef of the now-closed food truck Tran’s Fats. Although he is best known locally for his work for Tucson Foodie, his work has also appeared in publications such as Bon Appétit, National Geographic, and the New York Times.
An adventurous foodie, he enjoys culinary experiences ranging from seasonal omakase to sloppily devouring green chili patty melts in his car afterhours. His favorite foods include aguachile, garlic noodles, and leftover fried chicken illuminated by the fridge light. His favorite drinks include morning micheladas, fireside imperial stouts, candle-lit negroni, and grassy mezcales.
Outside of food, he also loves playing musical instruments, karaoke, Tetris, Super Smash Bros. Melee, and petting Addie’s dog Spaghetti.
If you’d like to stalk him, visit his Instagram @jackie_tran_ or jackietran.com.
