Nicolaisen Crowned Champion at Alabama Seafood Cook-Off

By DAVID RAINER, Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources

Four of the best chefs in Alabama showcased their extensive culinary skills this week at the Sweet Grown Alabama Seafood Cook-Off at The Wharf in Orange Beach to win a chance to compete in the Great American Seafood Cook-Off this summer in New Orleans.

A veteran of the competition, Chef Robbie Nicolaisen of The Hound restaurant in Auburn, was crowned champion with his dish of Ember-Roasted Cobia, which incorporated Gulf shrimp, sweet corn puree, Chilton County peach chow chow, cornbread crumble and anise hyssop into the winning dish.

Nicolaisen and Sous Chef Gabe Atkinson took line-caught Gulf cobia, portioned into 6-ounce pieces an inch thick, and covered it with the restaurant house barbecue rub before placing it over hot charcoal. The duo took fresh corn from Cassebaum Farms in Lillian, cooked it down and pureed it.

"We added a little miso for umami and salt, pepper and cream," Nicolaisen said. "We finished it with cornbread crumble that we made with brown butter. On top is a little shrimp and Chilton County peach chow chow.

"For the cobia, it usually takes six to eight minutes per side. It was challenging today because of the wind so it took a little bit longer. But that actually worked in our favor, I think. Cobia is a fish that if it cooks too fast, it can get tough."

For the cornbread crumble, they took stone-ground cornmeal and mixed in eggs, buttermilk and cheddar cheese then fried the batter in brown butter.

"We cooked them in a cast iron skillet, kind of like Johnny Cakes," Nicolaisen said. "Once that's done, we crumble it up and cook it a little more to crisp it up.

"Chow chow is a traditional Southern relish. We use a little peach vinegar, peach puree, fresh Chilton County peaches and some Gulf shrimp we got from Bon Secour Fisheries right down the road. We cooked the shrimp and chopped them up into small pieces and mixed that in with the peaches."

The winning team took home a check of $2,500 that was donated by the Organized Seafood Association of Alabama.

The teams were judged in five categories - presentation, general impression and serving methods; creativity; composition and harmony of ingredients; preparation and craftsmanship; and flavor, taste and texture.

In the Alabama competition, only the winner was announced. The other teams in the competition were Chef Chris Ippolito of Cayo Coco Rum Bar and Restaurant in Birmingham, Chef Jason McGarry of Central restaurant in Montgomery and Chef Emilio Urban of CoastAL Orange Beach restaurant.

Chef Ippolito and Sous Chef Chase Rogers prepared Red Snapper en Collard Green Papillote that was served with cornbread pudding and a green tomato beurre blanc.

"This dish just represents where the state is right now," Ippolito said. "It reminds us to be present and use what's available in the seasons. If you want to make this dish at home, you can use just about any fish. You're not limited to snapper. I chose snapper for this because we're getting really beautiful snapper from our fishermen."

Ippolito took a 6-ounce fillet and seasoned it with salt, pepper, thyme, a squeeze of lemon and a few slices of fresh yellow squash before wrapping it in a collard leaf and searing it to keep the collard leaf sealed. Butter and white wine were added to the pan, and the fish was placed in the oven to steam.

He combined four cups of whole kernel corn with four cups of flour in a food processor, creating a consistency similar to a pancake batter for the baked cornbread pudding. Roasted green tomatoes were pureed and added to the beurre blanc sauce.