What’s for dinner? It’s an age-old question that people have faced for hundreds of years. Some days, it’s a challenge, to say the least. But what if you had to prepare a meal with unknown ingredients until you open the bag and begin cooking. Now add to that the fact that you only have 30 minutes to plan it, cook it, and serve it with a nice presentation. If you think that would be hard, how about if we throw in an “odd” ingredient like licorice that must be used somehow…and there’s no water.
That’s exactly what the Mystery Bag Cooking participants at the Wright County Fair had to deal with as six teams of two faced off against each other on Saturday, July 10. This competition has been going on for the last several years for 4-H participants, but this year, they opened it up to community members as well…and boy did they all have a blast competing.
There was room for six teams, and all slots were filled. Three of the teams were 4-H friends who paired up, one team consisted of two grown women, another was a father/daughter duo, while the remaining team was made up of a father and son. Each team was required to bring their own mixing bowl and cooking utensils. They were also allowed to bring any three condiments they wanted…keeping in mind they had no idea what food they were actually going to be preparing. Lea Charlson and Kali Wharton chose to bring raspberry jam and sour cream (they didn’t bring a third). These unique “sides” worked to their advantage as they mixed the two to make a filling for their meal. McKayla Johnson and Ethan Boots went with grape jelly, ketchup, and Lawry’s seasoning. Levi and Kale Christiansen brought salsa, barbeque sauce, and honey. The other teams consisting of Chris and Taylor Johnson, Dakota Alt and Emma Lalor, and Kylie Hill and Mercedes Thul had a variety of condiments as well. Some used all of what they brought, others used very little, if any.
At exactly 2 p.m., each of the teams were presented with a bag of ingredients that they were required to use at least a portion of each item to prepare the best meal possible. The sighs and looks on some of their faces told the whole story…this indeed was going to be a challenge, not only to cook something good, but something that showed a little creativity as well so they could hopefully be deemed the winner. Ingredients included: Spam, a can of pineapple, eggs, a pancake, licorice, and green peppers. “Where’s the water?” some of them asked. “How are we supposed to use the Bisquick with no liquid?” After rethinking the situation, all of them used the pineapple juice instead.
There was another problem that a couple of the teams faced…they forgot to bring a mixing bowl. Again, creative thinking solved the problem. Some used the pineapple can as their bowl to mix while another mixed it up in the frying pan. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. On the same note, Lea Charlson and Kali Wharton proved that your first idea doesn’t always have to be the finished product. When their first attempt at pancakes didn’t work, they scraped it out, threw it away, and started over.
As the final seconds clicked off the timer, the teams very carefully plated their food, trying to make it look as appetizing as possible. This was a very important part of the process. In the end, Lea Charlson and Kali Wharton had the winning edge with their filling they created with the sour cream and jam…that they placed between two pancakes, making it kind of like a crepe. Coming in second place were Levi and Kale Christiansen for their use of the peppers. Instead of “cooking” with them, they cooked the other food and placed it inside the peppers so it could be eaten more like a finger food. What a fun idea!
