Rice and Creole Cookery contest set, details announced

CROWLEY – The Rice and Creole Cookery Contest, an outstanding feature of the International Rice Festival, will be held on Oct. 21.
Due to the August flooding the contest will be held at the Rice Festival Building, 717 W. Mill St. in Crowley.
Rice dishes and recipes must be brought in between 8 and 9 a.m. Judging will begin at 9:30 a.m.
The food safety rule will again be in effect this year. All dishes entered must be thoroughly cooked and chilled when brought to the contest for judging.
Failure to meet this standard will result in the dish’s being disqualified. Exceptions include items that would not normally need refrigeration such as cookies and cakes.
At least one cup of cooked rice must be included in each dish and listed in the recipe. Wild rice is not cultivated rice in Louisiana and does not meet the recipe requirement of one cup of rice.
Dishes containing rice products such as rice cereals, rice flour, etc., must also contain one cup of cooked rice.
The exhibit must include the number of servings indicated on the recipe. Example, if the recipe states that it serves six, six servings must be displayed.
Contest divisions are: Adult (18 years or older), Teen (youths ages 13 to 18 and still school), Intermediate (youths ages 11 to 12) and Children’s (youths ages 8 to 10), with categories in Rice and Meat, Rice and Seafood, Rice Salad/Vegetable and Rice Dessert.
Prize money and ribbons will be given to the top ten winners in each category. A tri-color rosette and $25 cash award will be awarded to the Best Overall dishes in the Adult, Teen, Intermediate and Children’s Divisions.
The Chef de Riz, or Master Rice Cook, will be selected from the first place winners in the eight categories between the Teen and Adult Divisions.
A group of judges will select this winner on the basis of the dish score and an interview of the contestant about his/her knowledge of the uses of rice and rice cookery.
The winner will be awarded a $100 premium as well as an engraved plaque. This contest is sponsored by the USA Rice Federation.
The Jr. Chef will be selected from the first place winners in the eight categories between the Intermediate and Children’s Divisions. A group of judges will select the winner on the basis of the dish score and taste. The Jr. Chef will be awarded a $25 premium as well as an engraved plaque. This contest is sponsored by the USA Rice Federation.
The Rice and Creole Cookery Contest carries out a goal of the International Rice Festival – to promote the rice industry in Acadia Parish, Louisiana, and beyond.
For more information and/or an entry form, visit the Rice Festival website at www.ricefestival.com.
For more information call Paula at the LSU Ag Center at 337-788-8821 or e-mail Letha at ricecookerycontest@gmail.com.