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There’s something fishy going on here

This year, the Second Annual Salmon Cook-off ended in a two-way tie for first place, after about 150 people became judges for a period of time during the day. The cook-off was part of a larger range of festivities celebrating Parks Day across Canada and featured six local teams from Tache, Fort St. James and Prince George competing in a fun and friendly affair.
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Two teams tied for the honour of having the best salmon in New Caledonia at the Salmon Day cook-off at the Fort St. James Nationl Historic Park. The White Goose Bistro and the Mt. Milligan teams received the same number of votes by the almost 150 judges on hand. (L-R) Rick Cyre

Fresh from the planks at Fort St. James National Historic Site, two teams emerged triumphant in their efforts to please local salmon connoisseurs.

This year, the Second  Annual Salmon Cook-off ended in a two-way tie for first place, after about 150 people became judges for a period of time during the day.

The cook-off was part of a larger range of festivities celebrating Parks Day across Canada and featured six local teams from Tache, Fort St. James and Prince George competing in a fun and friendly affair.

Six teams from the local region signed up to make 20 lbs of salmon over an open fire in whatever manner they thought would be best.

Using their own ingredients, skills and ingenuity, they created a culinary masterpiece for visitors to behold.

Ryan Cyre

The visiting teams for the salmon cook off included White Goose Bistro and The Smokehouse from Prince George. Community teams from SamWitches Catering, Tla’zt’en First Nation, District of Fort St. James and the Mount Milligan mine participated and tried to keep the title of best chefs from leaving the local area.

Last year’s winners from SamWitches Catering fought hard with a tasty dish, complete with a fantastically tasty and saucy marinade, and for their efforts they did manage to place third overall in the voting. This year was tougher as every team strategically developed their own recipes several months in advance of the event itself.

The top four salmon teams were all very close together in voting, with only a few votes separating each team.

Winning and sharing the title of Best Salmon in New Caledonia 2011 were Christy Smith and a team entry on behalf of the new Mt. Milligan Mine. Tied with and sharing champion honours is Chef Ryan Cyre from Prince George, owner of the White Goose Bistro, a popular fine dining establishment in downtown Prince George.

The teams had the honour of holding up the prized Best Salmon in New Caledonia trophy and each establishment will receive a plaque as testament of their achievements.

Salmon Day 2011 was also full of fun booths, exhibits and activities which made for a lively day for visitors of all ages.

Parker

Parks Day is celebrated across Canada at all national parks and sites in the Parks Canada system.

Admission is free as a way of engaging Canadians, local and abroad to engage with their protected places in interactive ways like this.