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Forbes hosts Diversity Week cooking contest

The Forbes Multipurpose Room was transformed into Kitchen Stadium on Sunday night as students waged a culinary battle for the title of Iron Chef: World. For Forbes’ first college-wide cooking competition, participants were divided into teams, with each team representing one regional cuisine, and given ingredients to create dishes from their respective regions. The event was planned by a team of Forbes residential college advisers.

The teams represented East Asian, Middle Eastern, Mexican, Western European and Southeast Asian cuisines. The East Asian team offered chilled vermicelli and cucumber salad, a tomato and egg dish and salt and pepper shrimp. Meanwhile, the Middle Eastern team whipped up homemade hummus and shakshouka — its own version of tomato and eggs — while the Mexican group created guacamole, homemade tortilla chips and beef milanesas. The Western European and Southeast Asian teams offered pasta Alfredo and bruschetta, and chicken korma, respectively.

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The participants ranged in level of culinary experience, from complete novices to well-practiced chefs.

Eva Weng ’15 said she signed up for the event because of her love for food and for the chance to eat Chinese cuisine.

“It’s a good way to socialize and meet others who love to eat,” she said. Weng, who is from China, said she was excited to cook tomato and eggs, a dish her mother makes often.

After an hour of cooking in kitchens throughout Forbes, the teams reconvened in the multipurpose room for the judging by Forbes resident graduate students and Acting Director of Student Life Lyra Plumer. The judges evaluated each dish based on variety, presentation and taste before awarding first place to the Southeast Asia team for its variety of food. The East Asian and Western European teams took the second and third places, respectively.

With each residential college being required to host a number of diversity events, Forbes has turned the concept into a Diversity Week, Forbes RCA Natalie Guo ’12 explained. Other Forbes-hosted events this past week have included a talk on diversity in sports by Sports Illustrated writer Alex Wolff ’79 and a dance workshop hosted by BAC and Princeton Bhangra.

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