Bobby Flay's Throwdown! (3 page)

I certainly had my work cut out for me. Butch has the experience, the recipes, and the equipment (did you see his rig?!)—plus, I love his attitude. I am pretty confident in my grilling abilities but barbecue is a whole other game, so I got to work in the test kitchen. I tested a recipe for ribs, first baking them in the oven and then finishing them on the grill. I changed my game plan at the Throwdown, however, and prepared ribs
and
pulled pork, smoked chicken, coleslaw, grilled corn with Cotija cheese and lime, and a lobster potato salad. I wasn’t messing around; I was out to win.

I couldn’t wait to see the look on Butch’s face when I finished my two-hour drive to his Mount Laurel, New Jersey, party and issued him my challenge. It was worth it—he was completely shocked and I was treated to one of the warmest welcomes in Throwdown history. He may not have known what was going on at first, but once he did, he took the challenge like a seasoned pro.

We cooked and cooked and cooked some more. There was enough food to feed everyone in the crowd—twice—and the crowd kept filling their plates. I was getting some rave reviews, but Butch definitely had the home team advantage. I mean, his backyard was filled with his family and friends! Could I receive a fair chance? I was doubtful, but that’s why we called in Mount Laurel town official and barbecue lover John Drinkard to pick a reigning pit master. Butch and I each selected one dish for the judging; he chose his ribs and I went for my smoked chicken. My chicken scored a 9.6—nice! But Butch’s ribs got a 9.8. John loved both dishes, but I was edged out by the master.

This Throwdown was an unbelievable experience. Butch is a man who lives his craft every single day of his life. You can tell from his exuberance how much he loves what he does, and it shows in his food. I got to eat amazing barbecue and to spend the day with one of the nicest guys you could ever have the pleasure of meeting. And Butch, the pleasure was all mine.

Name: Ben Sargent
Hometown: Brooklyn, New York
Website :
www.brooklynchowdersurfer.com

I took on the “Brooklyn Chowder Surfer” Ben Sargent and his Island-inspired Bahamian chowder. Notorious for his questionable surfing style, his incredible seafood soups, and his willingness to do almost anything in the pursuit of a great wave and even better food, Ben has become a bit of an East Coast legend.

First schooled in the art of chowder-making by his grandfather at the tender age of five, Ben has devoted most of his life to embracing the ocean, both by riding its waves and by creating delicious soups with its bounty. Once the proprietor of Hurricane Hopeful Chowder Bar, Ben has spun his Food Network debut into an appearance on the
Martha Stewart Show
and his own web series documenting his ocean-centric travels and the dishes he finds on them. Ben is still chasing his dream of getting his famous chowder onto supermarket shelves across the country, and I would have to say he’s got the skills to ride the wave of that dream all the way.

Ben and I have the same philosophy when it comes to chowder: we want to avoid being conventional (read: boring) without jeopardizing the integrity and history of this classic American dish. Once considered “poor man’s food,” chowder began as a hearty meal of odds and ends collected by the fishermen of seafaring communities to sustain them on their long stretches at sea. The local ingredients and preferences of those communities led to there being not one definitive chowder recipe, though most chowders are a variation on the same theme. All chowder should be chock-full of fresh seafood and flavor with a rich, silky consistency that is neither too thick nor too thin—you know, just right! As long as you adhere to those principles, the sky is your limit!

Preparing to take on the Brooklyn Chowder Surfer, I took to the test kitchen to get my chowder pot rolling. We whipped up two different versions, the first being a fairly classic sweet potato clam chowder that has been on the menu at my restaurant Bar Americain since its opening in 2005. For a slightly less traditional option, I also tried my hand with a lobster corn chowder. Lobster makes this chowder decidedly upscale (though you could certainly substitute less expensive shrimp), and this is a dish worth pulling out for special occasions. Corn not only adds incredible flavor and a natural sweetness, it also acts as a natural thickener that eliminates the need for flour (an ingredient Ben and I agree on skipping). Lobster, corn, chiles…it may not be the standard, but this is definitely an all-American chowder.

I had thought all along that I would submit the sweet potato chowder to the judge’s table, but once I arrived at the Throwdown and learned that Ben would be going all out with his Bahamian monkfish chowder with plantains, coconut milk, and curry, I decided to go with my flashier dish, the lobster corn chowder. Our chowders couldn’t have looked or tasted any more different than they did, but they had one thing in common: they were both flat-out delicious. Our judge had a difficult decision to make. Ultimately, she went with my version for the simple reason that she liked the ingredients better. Food tastes are totally subjective—we eat what we like, and why we like what we do is anyone’s guess. That doesn’t mean that one individual ingredient or dish is better or worse than the other; it just is what it is. On this day, this particular judge preferred lobster and corn to monkfish and plantains. As for me, I was pleased with the win, but I’d be happy to eat Ben Sargent’s chowder any day of the week.