Chicken for the Soul

Baseball, horse racing and cooking all have one thing in common, and it isn't food. Each has a triple crown recognizing excellence. Food, however, is how IU alumna and former Indiana Daily Student cooking columnist Camilla Saulsbury won $100,000 Friday in Charlotte, N.C., in the 46th annual National Chicken Cooking Contest.\nAfter battling with 51 contestants, one from each state and the District of Columbia, Saulsbury awaited the results along with 200 to 300 people at the Westin Hotel. \n"As it got closer and closer our stomachs were turning over," Saulsbury said. "I couldn't quite believe it when they announced 'Indiana.'"\nOnce she overcame the shock of winning the competition, and the $100,000 grand prize, Saulsbury took the stage. Although she was fully aware of the cash, Saulsbury was unaware of the additional prizes she would be awarded. One was a new GE gas oven and range and the other was a new set of Cutco knives, something that is very important in the kitchen, she said.\nThis contest is considered among the top three cooking contests in the circuit. The other two include the Pillsbury Bake Off, and one sponsored by the beef industry. \nContestants submitted their best recipes and officials chose one finalist from each state. The finalists then prepared dishes for a panel of experts, who then chose a winner.\nThe criteria for the contest include taste, appearance, simplicity, and overall appeal, said Director of Communications of the National Chicken Council Richard Lobb.\nSaulsbury's dish, "Mahogany Broiled Chicken with Smokey Lime Sweet Potatoes and Cilantro Chimichurri," combined a unique balance of those elements, said Paul Schultz, executive food editor of the New York Daily News and chairman of the judges.\n"Sometimes when you have a lot of spice, it can be overpowering, but in this dish the combinations worked well," he said.\nThe recipe involves a chicken breast that is cut and cubed and marinated in sauce combining hoisin sauce, sugar, vinegar and mustard. The dish is served over mashed sweet potatoes and a chimichurri sauce.\nSaulsbury isn't a novice when it comes to contests and food. She began in 1999 and by the fall was chosen as a finalist for the Build a Better Burger competition.\nIn all, she has gone on 10 trips throughout the country trying her hand at cooking.\nAlthough Saulsbury is an experienced cook, anyone could prepare this award-winning dish, she said.\n"There are different parts, and people can do them the way they like," Saulsbury said. "Each part is really simple, it takes a little time to do all three and someone with little cooking experience could do it."\nDespite receiving her doctorate in sociology from IU in 2004, Saulsbury's future plans are more cooking-oriented.\n"I made the decision a year-and-a-half ago to do something food related in food writing," Saulsbury said. "Another profession I am involved in is the fitness industry and I would like to do more to fuse those things and bring sociology into the mix."\nWriting and cooking has paid off for Saulsbury as she has two books published -- "Cookie Dough Delights" and "Brownie Mix Bliss" -- and a third on the way in October, "Cake Mix Cookie \nCompanion."\nSaulsbury isn't wasting anytime putting the grand prize to work. She and her husband, Kevin West, are moving to Nacogdoches, Texas, where he will be teaching at Stephen F. Austin University.\nAs her victory sinks in, the thought of her win still brings her a chill, Saulsbury said.\n"I'm still in disbelief about the whole thing," she said.