Chicken dish takes top spot amongst firehouse favorites

On Thursday, November 4th, the kitchens at The Rachael Ray Show were hot with action as firefighters from the five boroughs battled in the finals of the 2nd Annual 5-Alarm Cookoff, presented by the Daily News and sponsored in part by MCU.  Each of the five boroughs produced championship dishes, but only one dish could be crowned king of the firehouse and win the $5,000 grand prize! 

Staten Island, winner of last year’s competition, featured Engine 166/Ladder 86’s Thomas Cavallo, a cooking school graduate who won his borough behind his restaurant-inspired Boursin Tilapia and Shrimp.  The Bronx was represented by Engine 63’s Robert Painter, who won over Bronx judges with his creative and his flavorful Coconut Crusted Chilean Sea Bass with Sweet Plantain Compote.  Brooklyn’s John Sierp was a finalist for a second consecutive year, this time representing Ladder 169 with his delicious Pan Seared Trout with Olive “Tapenade” over Israeli Cous Cous.  Chris White of Engine 328 represented Queens with a dish bringing health and flavor to the firehouse, his Crab Cakes with Chipotle Mayo.  Finally, Manhattan’s Scott Worontzoff of Engine 58 took on the four winning fish dishes with what he called “the quintessential firehouse meal” a savory Three Layer Shredded Chicken Torte.

After a heated battle inside the kitchen (which included plenty of trash-talking), and rounds of compliments from the judges, Scott Worontzoff and his Chicken Torte was announced the winner of the Cook-off!  Worontzoff’s 15 years of culinary experience prior to becoming a firefighter paid off in bringing the title to Manhattan, and now Manhattan will have to prepare to defend the crown in next year’s competition.  MCU would like to congratulate all the contestants on a fantastic Cook-off!