Iron Chef is was is a dinner party / battle that takes took place in Chicago for 2 years, but fortunately it followed us to San Francisco! Judging is similar to that of the real tv Iron Chef, and the person with the winning dish chooses the theme ingredient for the following battle.
Below, you’ll find a summary of all Iron Chef Battles. We just got started with Iron Chef SF, but Iron Chef Chicago made it through Battle 15! It really is a great time and a great way to meet new people and get to know the old ones better 
. And of course, there’s the competition…
IRON CHEF SAN FRANCISCO
Battle 1: Shit your Parents Made
August 2011
Winner: Judy Hsu
Dish: Dorito Salad
Battle 2: Roots & Tubers
October 2011
Winner: Tom (Molly) McGrath
Dish: Potato Soup
Battle 3: Citrus
January 2012
Winner: Jeff Decker
Dish: Fried chicken wings with spicy citrus hot sauce & Lemonade
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IRON CHEF CHICAGO
Battle 1: Basil
February 2009
Winner: Heather Wetzel
Dish: Chocolate Basil Cake + Basil Ice Cream
Battle 2: Coconut
April 2009
Winner: Terri Blase
Dish: Twice-Baked Coconut Sweet Potatoes
Battle 3: Strawberry
May 2009
Winner: Heather Wetzel
Dish: Strawberry Pizza w/ Goat Cheese, Watercress, & Pistachios
Battle 4: Fig
August 2009
Winner: Chris Wetzel
Dish: Grilled Lamb & Fig Skewers
Battle 5: Peppercorn
September 2009
Winner: Jim Rhodes
Dish: Black Peppercorn Custard w/ Chocolate Valentino Cake
Battle 6: Pumpkin
October 2009
Winner: Chris B
Dish: Pumpkin Brittle
Battle 7: Cilantro
November 2009
Winner: Jennifer Carter
Dish: Apple-Cilantro (gluten-free) bruschetta with feta cheese
Battle 8: Grapefruit
January 2010
Winner: Hope Harris
Dish: Dark Chocolate Grapefruit Cake (gluten free, vegan)
Battle 9: Cinnamon
February 2010
Winner: Emily Phillips
Dish: Cinnamon Ice Cream with Cinnamon-Roasted Pecans
Battle 10: Ginger
May 2010
Winner: Heather Wetzel
Dish: Ginger-Cardamom Oeufs à la Niege (dairy & gluten-free)
Battle 11: Tomato
July 2010
Winner: Hope Harris
Dish: Green Tomato Pie
Battle 12: Eggplant
September 2010
Winner: Becca Grothe
Dish: Marinated Eggplant
Battle 13: Mexican Chorizo
November 2010
Winner: Brook Critchfield
Dish: Meatgarita
Battle 14: Pistachio
January 2011
Winner: Michael & Kenna
Dish: Venison-Pistachio Sliders
Battle 15: Plantains
March 2011
Winner: Heather Wetzel
Dish: Mango Pulled Pork & Plantain “sandwiches”
[...] Iron Chef [...]
I found your blog when googling Chef Pierre – I’m in his class now. I just wanted to say that I LOVE the iron chef thing! What a great idea! The blog is great too of course. It’s great to see how other culinary school grads are balancing their foodie obsessions (well… for me it’s an obsession) and paying day jobs. Good luck winning the next iron chef title…
[...] Iron Chef [...]
[...] Iron Chef [...]
[...] Iron Chef [...]
I LOVE your iron chef parties and have enjoyed reading your accounts. We are thinking about trying to do the same during the long winter months here in Maine. We wonder how you keep your group from not ending up with all sweet items when the secret ingredient is traditionally sweet (ie. how to be sure the evening is balanced?) What might you do differently if your audience were couples? Would you treat everyone as an individual chef then? What has been the maximum size of your group? And, finally, how do yo handle the finances?
Hi Jennie – so glad you enjoy Iron Chef – you should definitely start it in Maine
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Strangely enough, the sweet/savory balance just happens; I worried about the same thing when we started and it really hasn’t been a problem. Occasionally, we only have 1 or 2 desserts, but that’s no big deal. People fortunately try to be creative and if it’s an ingredient that’s generically more sweet you’ll still get savory because of that – promise!
We have plenty of couples, and they each fend for themselves. If you had all couples, you could do a couple competition, though! We always have a big mix of singles and couples, but you could do it however you want. We did have a couple bring 1 dish as a “team” once, which was interesting, but it seems less fair that way to me!
Max size – 19! But usually 10-12.
Finances? People pay for their own food and bring their own alcohol. The person hosting assumes responsibility of whatever’s needed that night, like utensils, but that’s it. Do you have something specific in mind in regard to finances?!
Hope this helps