Wild Rice

Wild
Rice
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It seems the Wall Street Journal’s
ranking of Rice as having some of the best college food in the nation has developed
a new trend in the housing and dining department.

Since the article ran, two campus
chefs have completed their chef de cuisine certifications through the American
Culinary Federation (ACF). And one of them, Roger Elkhouri, won first place
at the National Association of College and University Food Service’s Region
VII culinary challenge in March, his first competition.

Elkhouri, South Servery managing
chef, took home a bronze medal from the ACF for his menu of pan-seared beef
tenderloin fillet, saffron risotto, sautéed carrot paysanne, lemon vinaigrette
pea sprouts and raspberry port wine sauce.

The competition was based on a point
system, and Elkhouri scored the most points from the judges for his dish. He
also scored enough points to take home the ACF bronze medal, which was impressive,
considering the high judging standards.

“(The judge) told us, ‘I
don’t think anyone’s getting a gold medal today.’” said
Elkhouri, who advances to the national competition in Kansas City, Mo., in July.
“The judging was tough but fair. I liked the judge. He gave constructive
criticism.”

Elkhouri now is setting his sights
on the national competition and has gone so far as to hold a practice session.
Mary Cronin, associate vice president for human resources; Dean Currie, vice
president of finance and administration; and Richard Zansitis, general counsel,
were among several taste testers to sample Elkhouri’s tweaked menu.

If you have an item you would like
to be included in the monthly Wild Rice column, contact Greg Okuhara, Rice News
assistant editor, at (713) 348-6772 or <gokuhara@rice.edu>.