Chef John Besh Victorious on "Iron Chef America"

New Orleans-native John Besh had an extra reason to celebrate this Mardi Gras: a spectacular victory on February 26, 2006, over Iron Chef Mario Batali in the Andouille Sausage battle.  As they say on the show, his "cuisine reigns supreme."  Chef Besh scored an impressive 55 out of 60 possible points, beating Batali's score in each of the competition's three categories (taste, plating, and originality) and achieving a perfect score for his masterful plating.

As he created his menu in Kitchen Stadium, Besh wanted to show the versatility of andouille as both a main ingredient and a spice.  He was also successful in showing his creativity and a little culinary muscle as he whipped up six dishes in just an hour, exceeding the expected five courses, and even offered a dessert featuring the theme ingredient!

So, what did Besh prepare?

Crawfish Boil en Gelee

For this dish, Besh cooked crawfish with andouille, onions, and garlic, all of which he then used to prepare an aspic that was topped with a micro-green salad and a corn vinaigrette.  This dish was described by the judges as "a little treasure chest."

Andouille Agnolotti with Sweet Breads and Lobster

The second course was andouille-stuffed agnolotti with fresh marscapone cheese, tossed with lobster, veal sweet breads, and truffle.

White Asparagus with Andouille Soup & Salad

Besh paired the sweet flavor of white asparagus with the spice of andouille.  The dish featured several stalks of asparagus topped with andouille salad and a white asparagus soup finished with andouille oil.

Crawfish and Andouille Grits

Described by Besh as the perfect brunch dish after returning from a morning of duck hunting, this course featured organic grits and crawfish cooked with andouille sausage and andouille-fortified chicken broth, and was finished with a little butter and fried sage.

Scallops and Porcini with Andouille Butter

In keeping with his Southern roots, Besh scored diver scallops, seasoned them with sea salt, and larded them with andouille sausage.  The scallops were perched on a bed of puree of porcini mushrooms and topped with andouille butter.

Andouille Beignet with Meyer Lemon Curd

Yes, he made a well-received dessert featuring the evening's theme ingredient.  Besh served andouille beignets with meyer lemon curd and berries cooked and stewed in red wine.

This episode of "Iron Chef America" premiered Sunday night, February 26, 2006, on Food Network.  Be sure to stop by to congratulate John Besh at Restaurant August or The Besh Steakhouse in New Orleans.