[katt]

Back in the day (meaning some time between 2003 and I don't know when), VB had their own version of of Iron Chef. The general theory was to have a theme ingredient and a set of rules. Vbers would post their dishes and after a set time, there'd be a vote for the winner. My memory is fuzzy, but I think the winner would then be in charge of setting up the next ICVB.

I feel like these competitions are good for people to participate in, because they encourage participants to expand their culinary horizons and get to show others the process of how to make a dish. I've seen some pretty insane and amazing things, like this:

(That's a miso glazed rice cake topped with a rhubarb and horseradish quick pickle from another forum's version)

My big thing is that on other forums where posters are used to fine dining, they find a lot of what vegetarians do to be kind of horrifying. It's not that they are so horrified at a dish that doesn't contain meat (let's face it, tons of ethnic food is meatless and freakin' delicious), but that instead of using whole foods and wholesome ingredients, we're using tons of fake meat products and weird processed vegan cheese to make up for not using meat/dairy/eggs.

So, I'd like to challenge this assumption with cooking challenges that encourage using fresh foods, minimal processed weird stuff, and to encourage everyone to make something awesome. For instance, marinated tofu used in a stir fry would be fine, but using a commercially available meatless product like MSF chick'n strips in it would not.

If I can get a decent amount of interest, I'd be willing to start the first challenge and provide some form of prize for the winner.

 

[SomebodyElse]

Sounds like fun, and I like the idea of not using fake stuff, though I do find that vegan cream cheeses and Vegenaise are very versatile and tasty ingredients in lots of recipes.

 

[*AHIMSA*]

This would be great!

 

[SuicideBlonde]

I am down, I want to experiment on new foods. I am not the best cook yet, but I try.

 

[AndrewFL]

This sounds awesome!

 

[Freesia]

Do we make up our own recipes or are we allowed to use other recipes?

 

[LilBigBug]

I'm fuzzy on the rules myself, but it sounds fun.

 

[Larissa]

Yes sounds like an awesome idea. I'd be in.

 

[Mojo]

I'm in. I might not participate in every challenge, but I like the premise.

 

[saxyphonist]

I cook mostly from other people's recipes but I'd be willing to try my hand at something more creative for this. And certainly to look at the delicious things everyone else will come up with.

 

[Phoenix Days]

That sounds amazing!

 

[*AHIMSA*]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mojo

I'm in. I might not participate in every challenge, but I like the premise.

Uh, you'll win, judging by the photos you take!

 

[Photojess]

hopefully I'll be in.....it's pretty much just myself at home now with the hubbs working away, and weekends are busy right now, but it does sound fun!

 

[katt]

I'm glad there seems to be positive response to this.

As for rules, I think most of it would come down to the current round's chair and the theme.
Rules might include that a dish doesn't have to be vegan, but must be easily veganized by omission of that ingredient or using a similar product (margarine vs butter, for instance), number of dishes (a main dish, side dish and dessert, or a cocktail, or a number of appetizers, or something like that), choosing a theme ingredient that would typically be available in stores for most VBers (I'm thinking ICVB: Durian would not go over well), an emphasis on less processed stuff and experimenting with new techniques.

Recipes: I'm fine with that, since coming up with something might be difficult depending on how unique the theme is. Give credit to the original author, of course.

The time frame I was thinking would be something like two weeks for planning, preparing and documenting your dishes, a week for voting, and a week between competitions so that there'd be twelve potential ICVBs every year.

Tomorrow, I'll post a new thread with the secret ingredient and some rules. This ingredient should be in just about everyone's pantry, and is a staple food for many people around the world.

 

[yally]

I'll be well up for this!

 

[Poppy]

This sounds fun, Katt! I'm in!