The killer summer heat could do little to stop women in the city from doing their best to showcase their culinary skills.
The second leg of The Hindu MetroPlus Cookery Contest-2013, organised at the Anupuram Community Hall in A.S. Rao Nagar, was teeming with enthusiastic women.
Competing in one of the three categories – vegetarian, non-vegetarian and desserts – cooking enthusiasts from neighbouring and far-off areas brought dishes for the competition.
As soon as they set about displaying their entry to the contest, the venue was filled with aromas of kheer, puddings, halwas and cakes as well as chicken and prawn masalas amid colourful vegetarian items such as Kaya Kaya Dosakaya and Tarbuja Sarvipindi Rotte accompanied by Tarbuja Pachhadi.
Innovation, nutrition, taste and presentation were the key factors that the judges took into consideration. Elaborating on the parameters followed in selecting the winners, Vivekananda, a judge and faculty member at the Indian Institute of Hotel Management (IIHM), said: “There is no use presenting an innovative dish if it doesn’t look inviting. Also, a well-presented dish has to be tasty. Otherwise, it’s of no use.”
According to Suresh, the second judge and faculty member at IIHM, nutrition is very important, especially for growing children.
In the vegetarian category, B. Swati walked away with the first prize for her Soya Oats Tikki. S. Sujata’s Surprise Balls and Sanghamitra Sahu’s Meda Peta won the second and third prizes, respectively.
In the non-vegetarian category, Sabreen Naqeeb’s Tava Katakat bagged the first prize, followed by Anjali M. Goswami’s Malvani Chicken and C.V.L. Sujata Rao’s Murgh Rezala for the second and third prizes, respectively.
Among desserts, Mini Joseph walked away with the first prize for her dish Grapy Tender Coconut Sweet Delight. P. Sridevi’s Betel sweet and Aradhana Agarwal’s Soya Kheer Dips won the second and third prizes, respectively.
Apart from the first prize winners who walked away with a 20-gm silver coin sponsored by MAA Jewellery, the other winners won special gift packs, and scores of other contestants won gift hampers from various sponsors. Next week, The MetroPlus Cookery Contest-2013 moves to Kukatpally.
