The winners of the 2008 James Beard Awards have been announced. (You can see a full list of all the winners here.)

Because of the area’s bumper crop of great chefs, fine dining, and fresh ingredients, local congratulations go to Robert Stehling of Hominy Grill in Charleston, SC who has won in the Best Chef: Southeast category.

(You can see our list of all the JBA nominees here.)

Here’s eight of Stehling’s recipes in case you want to experience a taste of Lowcountry inspired goodness in your home kitchen:

• Robert Stehling’s Buttermilk Pie from The New York Times (also an exploration of the recipe from The Wednesday Chef)

• Robert Stehling’s Shrimp and Grits from Discover South Carolina

• Bacon-Roasted Turkey with Sweet-Onion Gravy from Food & Wine

• Grilled Portobello Mushroom and Barley Salad W/ Basil Puree from Big Oven

• Citrus-Pickled Shrimp from Food & Wine

• Robert Stehling’s Spinach Potato Cakes with Roasted Tomato Sauce from Cookie

• Shrimp Burgers from My Recipes.Com

• Avocado and Wehani Rice Salad from Astray Recipes

If you’d like to learn more about Charleston’s Hominy Grill and see the chef in action, click here to watch a brief clip from the Food Network.

When you go on a fishing trip or go camping in the mountains, do you enjoy celebrating the pleasure of the great outdoors with a gourmet meal cooked on an open fire?

Fans of outdoor cooking at its finest (as well as gourmet food in general), won’t want to miss the four Redwood Creek Campfire Classic events taking place across the country throughout the spring and summer to kickoff the 2008 camping season.

The most recent event will be held on May 17th, 2008 as part of the Food and Wine Festival at National Harbor in Maryland and will feature the semi-final competitions for the contest for already selected competitors from both the North and Southeast (with Hugging the Coast’s own Doug DuCap competing in the Southeastern Division!).

In addition to the Redwood Creek Campfire Classic cookoffs, the Food and Wine Festival at National Harbor will also feature demonstrations by Michel Richard, the critically acclaimed chef of Citronelle and author of Happy in the Kitchen as well as lectures and samples from dozens of culinary experts from around the country.

Two other Campfire Classic semi-finalist cookoffs will be held in Seattle, WA on May 31st as part of the Pike Place Market Street Festival and in Chicago, IL on June 7th as part of the Chicago Botanic Garden Wine Festival which will determine the finalists from the Northwest and Midwest divisions. (The finalists from the Southwestern division were chosen on May 3rd at Mayfest in Fort Worth, TX.)

Winners of the Campfire Classic Semi-Finals will be awarded $1,000, plus an all-expense paid trip to New York City to compete during the first week of summer for a chance to win a $10,000 Grand Prize. The finals will be judged by Redwood Creek winemaker, Cal Dennison, and Bob Blumer, host of the Food Network’s Glutton for Punishment and The Surreal Gourmet.

Like the poster above? You can get it free here. Also, please see the 2007 Campfire Classic Finalists’ Recipes below to help inspire you on your own culinary campfire adventures:

• 2007 Grand Prize Winner: Coal-Roasted Chuckbox Pozole-Stuffed Onions by Leah Lyon of Ada, Oklahoma

• Chincoteague Scallops by Julia DeCastro of University Park, Florida

• Rocky Mountain Pinon Paella by Paul Heitzenrater of Denver, Colorado

• Down East Lobster Scampi a la Campfire by Brian Mulligan of Bath, Maine

• Lost in the Woods Pork Tenderloin by Kim Wittmers of Minneapolis, Minnesota

From the British newspaper, The Independent:

“For decades it was merely a slightly exotic option for holidaymakers in Spain, Italy and Greece, but a growing number of cooks experimenting with recipes involving tentacles and black ink have turned squid into a fashionable dish in British kitchens.

Although still less popular than other seafood such as prawns, the amount of squid sold in the UK has risen by 49 per cent in the past 12 months, according to the industry body Seafish.

The cephalopod’s new-found popularity owes much to the growing appeal of fruits de mer and to the promotion of a Mediterranean diet popular in Italy, France and Spain, where it is cut into rings and fried.

Among the chefs who have encouraged the eating of squid is Rick Stein, whose gastronomic tour of the Mediterranean was televised by the BBC last year. He suggested serving sautéed squid and chorizo with garlic, rocket (arugula), tomatoes and chick peas.”

You can read more of the story here:

One of the most popular ways to eat squid in America is as fried calamari, long a favorite of Italian cuisine. Squid is also commonly used in the cuisines of Spain, Japan, and China.

Here’s a recipe for fried calamari from Giada De Laurentiis of the Food Network.

In Japan, shredded, dehydrated squid is a popular salty snack and sold in small bags (it’s far tastier than it sounds). You can also get squid flavored ice cream (as well as a variety of other unusual ice cream flavors) in Japan.

Here’s one more squid recipe: Andalucian Fried Squid With Alioli from Tapas Recipes Andalucia…enjoy!

Check out these two YouTube parody videos from MadTV that hilariously skewer the cooking shows we all know and love.

3 Minute Meal: Tuna Melts

3 Minute Meal: Banana Splits

Finding it hard to keep up with (or find) your favorite shows on the Food Network? Click here to see their full upcoming show schedules for your time zone.

If you love southern cooking as much as we do, you might remember that Anthony Bourdain (author of the wonderful food memoir Kitchen Confidential) focused an episode of his No Reservations Show on the Travel Channel on the food of South Carolina last November.

Now the Food Network is celebrating Charleston cuisine on the Hungry Detective in an episode that will air on 2/1/2008 at 10:30AM ET/PT.

(more…)

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Doug DuCap
1643 Savannah Hwy. #277
Charleston SC 29407

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3/27/08: South Carolina Site of the Day!