Ginger, cashews, spicy kimchi part of winning burgers in festival
Asian on the bun gets titles
Nonbeef winner gets family bragging rights

Burgers spiced with the flavors of China and Korea took top honors in the 3rd Annual Beacon's Best Burger contest.

The competition for amateur cooks was held Sunday as part of the National Hamburger Festival in downtown Akron.

The competition started about six weeks ago, when the Beacon Journal put out a call for burger recipes. Dozens of entries poured in and 10 finalists were selected to compete in two categories: traditional beef burgers and nontraditional burgers made from anything other than beef.

The finalists brought their burgers and their cooking skills to Lock 3 Park, where the grills and the competition really heated up.

Finishing first in the beef category was Matt Walicke, 35, of Arcadia, whose Korean Bi Bim Bap burger, topped with a fried egg and spicy kimchi, wowed the judges.

Walicke, who works as a music director at the First Presbyterian Church of Findlay, said food he enjoyed on a trip to Korea served as the inspiration for his recipe. Walicke's burger was spiced with soy sauce, dark sesame oil, garlic, brown sugar and chives.

Top honors in the nontraditional burger category went to Colleen Finn, 23, of Akron, for her Chinese Chicken Takeout Burgers. Finn, a veterinary medicine student at Ohio State University, said takeout Chinese food is her favorite and she created a recipe to encompass all of the ingredients of her favorite dishes.

Her chicken burger was loaded with crushed cashews, ginger, carrots, garlic and cilantro.

Finn, whose sister, mother, and grandmother also entered the contest, said she was pleased to have family bragging rights.

Helping me judge the event were chef Mark Kent, operations manager for the Crystal Room at the University of Akron's School of Hospitality Management; chef Louis Prpich, executive chef of The Office Bistro in Akron's North Hill, and chef Catherine St. John, owner of the Western Reserve School of Cooking in Hudson.

Finishing second in the beef category was Diedra Noel of Springfield for her Tahiti Sweetie Burger, and placing third was Patt Knotts of Medina, who entered a recipe for a Summer Sizzlin' Burger.

In the nontraditional category, Diane Negi of Akron placed second with her Curried Lamb Burgers. Matthew Harrelson of Lake Township finished third with his Sweet & Spicy Wild Raging Buffalo Burger.