2010 OREGON REGIONAL EVENT

On September 1, 2010 the Oregon regional event was held in downtown Portland at the Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts. Our five Oregon semifinalists vied for their chance to compete in the final Foster Farms Fresh Chicken Cooking Contest event. Only two of the five dishes would move forward in the contest. All five had been narrowed down from nearly 2,000 fresh chicken recipes.

The five semifinalists and their recipes were:

Timmy Baker of Eugene
Sesame Chicken with Chili Dip
Michelle Benthin of Gates
Lime Gorgonzola Chicken Melt
Carol Hart of Florence
Plum Good Chicken 
Russell Kool of Hillsboro
Basil Fontina Fondue Chicken Tenders
Megan Mitchell of Portland
Chicken Sage Meatball Sandwich with Fig Chutney  

A panel of four judges: Katherine Miller, food editor of The Oregonian, Kelly Clarke, arts and culture editor of Willamette Week, Hayley Platt, co-host of KOIN Studio 6, and Kimberly Maus, co-anchor of "Good Day Oregon" were presented and tasted all five dishes. The judges had the difficult task of selecting only two dishes to move forward to represent Oregon at the final event. After careful consideration, Russell Kool and his Basil Fontina Fondue Chicken Tenders and Timmy Baker and her Sesame Chicken with Chili Dip were named as the two regional winners.

The two regional winners each received $1,000 and a trip to California’s Napa Valley to compete in the final event for a chance to win $10,000 and a one-year supply of Foster Farms fresh chicken. Wondering who ended up winning the grand prize? Check our final event to find out!