Chef Brody Olive won the 2023 Great American Seafood Cook-Off with a dish of gaff-top catfish with flash-fried mole crabs, gulf shrimp horseradish cream, pickled purslane and smoked paprika coral tuile. Courtesy of GASCO
By Lawrence Specker | lspecker@al.com | AL.com You can access the full article here.
An Alabama chef has won national honors at the 2023 Great American Seafood Cook-Off. Chef Brody Olive of Orange Beach was crowned King of American Seafood at the conclusion of the Cook-Off, held Saturday in New Orleans.
Olive, who works at Voyagers at Perdido Beach Resort, previously won the eighth Alabama Seafood Cook-Off, held in Orange Beach in June.
“It feels great. All the hard work finally paid off for us. I’m so happy our dish came together and we were so happy to present it and be on this stage with the quality of these chefs which is remarkable,” said Olive, quoted in a release issued by the office of Louisiana Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser.
It was only the second time that an Alabama chef has won the event, held every year since 2005.
Jim Smith, a former executive chef for the state of Alabama who now operates The Hummingbird Way in Mobile, won in 2011.
Smith was among the 2023 judges, along with New York-based chef Ari Miller; chef and food writer Kiki Aranita; and Michael Benedict, CEO of Benedict Advertising and owner of Parker Stark Restaurant Group.
Olive won with a presentation of gaff-top catfish with flash-fried mole crabs, gulf shrimp horseradish cream, pickled purslane and smoked paprika coral tuile.
Runners-up included Alaska Chef Nathan Bentley from Altura Bistro in Anchorage, who came in second with his Alaska King Crab merus, prosciutto, and saffron-carrot foam.
Third place was taken by Ohio Chef Christian Gill from Boomtown Biscuits & Whiskey in Cincinnati, who prepared a Moraccan razor clam and Red Shrimp ceviche.
Chef Brody Olive's winning dish at the 2023 Great American Seafood Cook-Off featured gaff-top catfish with flash-fried mole crabs, gulf shrimp horseradish cream, pickled purslane and smoked paprika coral tuile. Courtesy of GASCO
“The competition was tough,” said Nungesser.
“The competing chefs cooked great meals. They taste great and look great and they do this all in one hour. My hat is off to the champion. We have crowned a great champion in Louisiana today.”
The Great American Seafood Cook-Off is presented by the Louisiana Seafood Promotiona & Marketing Board, the Louisiana Restaurant Association and ExploreLouisiana.com.
According to organizers, the event “is dedicated to promoting sustainable and domestic fisheries.”
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