Chopped "Home Edition"

Goal: Do a Chopped-like, one-course mystery basket where the meal has to include all the mystery ingredients, service for 5.

Episode 1: P bought the protein and two other items, I bought the staple/starch and one item, we cook at his house (which isn't well-stocked so I brought a bunch of other things).

Secret Ingredients:
His:
Lamb chops [commentary: not the most flexible protein, you can't do much besides sear the whole chop, and they were single-thick so no stuffing possibility]
Fresh Guava
Salted Soy Nuts
Mine:
Quinoa
Chinese (green) honey tangerines

The meals produced were similar in that each had a grilled chop with a pureed sauce containing guava, and polenta on the side.

My chops were marinated in garlic, s&p, tangerine juice and peel, olive oil
A mirepoix of onion, carrot, celery and bell pepper was sauteed in more olive oil, followed by the quinoa, coated with oil and toasted for a couple minutes, then chicken stock.
Next, I built a pipian-like sauce out of more onion, celery, spinach, parsley, sage, guava, tangerine juice, garlic, ginger, cooked down, deglazed with some sake (it was handy) then spun smooth in a food processor.
The finished quinoa was then mixed with an egg and some flour, made into latkes, fried up in more olive oil.
Last, the chops were grilled and plated, garnished with more soy nuts, scallion, tangerine juice and a couple drops of olive oil.

IMG_20111106_183354.jpg by joelfinkle, on Flickr

I don't know all of P's processes and ingredients, but his quinoa was a "risotto" he claimed, with bacon, soy nuts and onions added.
His sauce had a lot of butter and cream and a little curry, and more guava than I got (I scooped out of the halves, he peeled and used the whole fruit), garnished with sriracha.

IMG_20111106_183347.jpg by joelfinkle, on Flickr

Verdict: My chop was a little tastier (the sriracha overpowered -- he needs to learn to edit), his sauce brought out the guava better. The toasty latkes had a nice crunch, but hey, bacon. Neither plate had a big flavor of tangerine, they were pretty mild and sweet but not bright.
Winner? The diners.

Wow really lovely! I wish I had that in front of me right now! --Joy