At Kaohsiung County’s Neimen Food God competition June13 on the grounds of the Tzuchu Temple, sixteen teams from around Taiwan entered the finals, with first place ultimately going to Lin Hsiu-mei, a local female chef.
Lin, 51, was her husband's assistant for many years, traveling all over Taiwan cooking. Thanks to her own natural talent in that direction, fifteen years ago she obtained her class B license. When her husband passed away seven years ago, she took over the business, and what was originally just a means of making a living became a renowned excellence.
Lin sometimes adds unexpected flavors such as fresh fruit into her dishes, making them light and unique. The largest banquet she has done to date was 120 tables, and the 12 dishes of banquet fare she prepared to take home top honors in the cook-off displayed not only her culinary prowess but her environmental consciousness as well.
The panel of judges comprised of teachers from noted cooking schools around Taiwan complemented Lin's nutritious offering for breaking new ground with innovation, and no flavor was lost despite the low-fat and low-salt contents. Because her dishes did not contain any special ingredients, any cook wanting to learn how to make them would be able to do so. Lin's dishes upheld the expectations of a banquet and rival restaurant offerings.
Female chefs traditionally cause heads to turn, making Lin think about giving up this profession on a number of occasions. However, the support of her family always helps her hang in there. The medal and NT$60,000 (US$1,860) in prize money she bought home make her believe that all the hard work she put in to get where she is today was ultimately worth it. She plans to continue cooking and will introduce Neimen specialties to other localities.
Neimen is known for its banquet chefs, but given the recent economic downturn, many people stopped inviting large numbers of guests to events. Moreover, the younger generation is less likely to go to banquets. To reverse this trend, the Kaoshiung County government has been trying to reignite the fever for outdoor banquets through events such as the competition held this time.
Over a course of five hours, the cooks produced twelve dishes without any limitations on ingredients, cost or seasonings, and the great concentration of culinary creativity thus engendered is sure to enliven the cooking scene in the area for some time to come.
(This article originally appeared in The Liberty Times June 14.)