Amateur Chef’s Winning Recipe For Convenience Pays Off

DENVER, Colo. (October 3, 2001) -- With her quick and simple main-dish recipe for Cumin-Crusted Beef Steaks with Orange-Olive Relish, amateur chef Priscilla Yee of Concord, Calif., won the 24th National Beef Cook-Off® and $50,000 in cash.

The biennial competition, which focused this year on convenience, drew nearly 5,000 entrants with the 20 finalists competing last Saturday in Tucson, Ariz. for $110,000 in cash. A panel of leading food professionals chose her recipe, which uses only six ingredients and takes only 30 minutes to prepare, for the $50,000 “Best of Beef” grand prize.

Now in its 24th year, the National Beef Cook-Off® invites amateur chefs across the country to submit their easy beef recipes. Designed to support the beef industry’s focus on consumer-friendly beef products, this biennial tradition is one of the nation’s most popular and long-running cooking contests.

Convenience is the Key

An eclectic fusion of cumin, oranges, Kalamata olives and chuck steak combined to create a colorful and fresh flavored dish to which the judges awarded their top prize. “The basis for my recipe was taking a combination of the hottest food trends with an all- American favorite like beef,” said Yee, a retired Pacific Bell employee who enjoys gardening and sewing. After winning the $50,000 “Best of Beef” grand prize, she exclaimed, “This is my first trip to Tucson and boy did it pay off!”

Underscoring this year’s theme of convenience cooking, entrants used several new and convenient beef products available nationwide in both the refrigerated meat case and the frozen-food section of local grocery stores. These included fully-cooked pot roast, meatballs, tri-tip roasts, smoked beef sausage and beef brisket and pre-marinated steaks.

Besides convenience, the grand prize recipe reflects some common themes emerging from American kitchens -- a love for ethnic dishes and innovative use of prepared ingredients. More contestants relied on timesaving ingredients, such as bottled pesto sauce and new, fully-cooked beef cuts. In addition, the Cook-Off showcased various chuck and round beef cuts that are often overlooked by consumers when looking for convenient, affordable, quick-cooking meal options.

The Cook-off attracted thousands of entrants who competed in this year’s categories: Fresh Beef, Prepared Beef, Fresh Beef and Potato and Prepared Beef and Potato. A panel of five distinguished judges rated each recipe based on taste, ease of preparation and appearance.

In addition to the “Best of Beef” grand prize, the National Beef Cook-off also honors category winners and category runner-ups. This year’s category winners are: Fresh Beef ($10,000 prize) – Greek-Style Beef & Cheese Ravioli, Mary Lou Cook from Welches, Ore.; Prepared Beef ($10,000 prize) – Roast Beef Cheddar Pockets, Debbie Eynon Finley from Austin, Texas; Fresh Beef and Fresh Potato ($10,000 prize) – Belize Beef on Spiced Potatoes, Valerie McArdle of White City, Ore.; Prepared Beef and Prepared Potato ($10,000 prize) – Tex-Mex Smokey Chili Hash, Patricia Harmon from Baden, Pa.

The runner-up in each of the four categories received $5,000. This year’s category runner-ups are: Fresh Beef: Janice Elder from Charlotte, N.C. with Oriental Express Lettuce Wraps; Prepared Beef: Patricia Schroedl from Jefferson, Wis. with Spicy Roast Beef Chili Over Cornbread; Fresh Beef & Fresh Potato: Sharyn Hill from Organ, N.M. with Little Havana Grilled Beef and Potato Salad; and Prepared Beef & Prepared Potato: Lori Welander from Richmond, Va. with Barbecue Beef Brisket with Smokey Cheddar-Chili Potatoes.

This year’s $50,000 grand prize is a record for the National Beef Cook-Off®. The top prize was $40,000 in 1999 and $25,000 in 1997. The $110,000 in prize money, also a record, contrasts with $35,000 a decade earlier in 1991 and just $800 at the first Cook-Off in 1974.

The next National Beef Cook-Off® will be held in Dallas, Texas in 2003. For more information on the Cook-Off and to receive copies of this year’s winning recipes, contact Sherry Hill at 303-850-3441.

The National Beef Cook-Off® is funded in part by beef producers through their $1-per-head check-off. It was produced for the Cattlemen`s Beef Promotion and Research Board and state beef councils by the American National CattleWomen, Inc. in cooperation with the National Cattlemen`s Beef Association and the National Potato Promotion Board.

The 110-member Beef Board is appointed by the Secretary of Agriculture to oversee the collection of the $1-per-head checkoff, certify state beef councils, implement the provisions of the federal order establishing the checkoff and evaluate the effectiveness of checkoff programs.

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Producer-directed and consumer-focused, the National Cattlemen`s Beef Association is the trade association of America’s cattle farmers and ranchers, and the marketing organization for the largest segment of the nation’s food and fiber industry.

2001 National Beef Cook-Off®

“Best of Beef” Grand Prize Winner

CUMIN-CRUSTED BEEF STEAKS WITH ORANGE-OLIVE RELISH

Total preparation and cooking time: 30 minutes

4 boneless beef chuck eye or chuck top blade steaks,

cut 3/4 inch thick (about 1-1/2 pounds)

2 to 3 medium oranges

1-1/2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 jar (7 ounces) roasted red peppers, diced

1/3 cup coarsely chopped Kalamata olives

1/3 cup diced red onion

Orange slices and Kalamata olives

1. Grate 2 teaspoons orange peel from oranges; reserve oranges. Combine orange peel, cumin and salt in small bowl; remove and reserve 2 teaspoons seasoning for relish.

2. Heat ridged grill pan or large nonstick skillet over medium heat until hot. Add pepper to remaining seasoning; press evenly onto beef steaks. Place steaks in grill pan; cook chuck eye steaks 9 to 11 minutes (top blade steaks 10 to 12 minutes) for medium rare to medium doneness, turning once.

3. Meanwhile peel and dice enough reserved oranges to measure 1-1/2 cups. Combine diced oranges, red peppers, olives, onion and reserved 2 teaspoons seasoning in medium bowl; mix well. Serve steaks with relish. Garnish with orange slices and olives.

Makes 4 servings