Chef Ed Lam of Peacock has once again won gold at Canada’s Great Kitchen Party Winnipeg (CGKP), the regional qualifier for the Canadian Culinary Championship.
It’s another big win for the chef in 2026 after Peacock landed on the Canada’s 100 Best Restaurants list after being open for a few months. He’ll be joined by another chef on that list, chef Emily Butcher of Nola and Bar Accanto, at the Canadian Culinary Championship in Ottawa in January as they form what should be a formidable Team Winnipeg in this new format that marks the 20th anniversary of the competition. Chef Butcher was last night’s chef of distinction, serving on the judging panel after having won last year and in 2019, along with placing third at the Canadian Culinary Championship in 2020. The national competition has been won only once by a Winnipeg chef, when Makoto Ono took the inaugural crown in 2009.
Lam’s trio of dry aged duck had plenty of visual pop. There was a fun little sphere of cabbage (a choi farci) containing the diced leg meat along with garlic scape, jicama and fermented olives, all sitting atop a delightful pea puree that had been punched up with hoisin. The breast was marinated Peking-style before being roasted, with the skin rendered to a gorgeous caramel colour, while underneath a silky, translucent duck jus created harmony across the plate. The star of this show was a foie gras torchon featuring a base of nori nougatine (a sweet crisp, if you will) wearing a citrus hat on top. Were this component a canapé at a party, you wouldn’t be able to stop popping them.
Lam, who previously won the competition in 2022, paired the dish with Tawse Estate’s Limestone Park Riesling, a rather robust sparkling with the sort of acidity and crisp apple-y flavour that flattered the richness of the duck.
In second place – and only 9 points behind Lam, which is rather remarkable given seven judges scoring plates out of 100 – is a dish that I’d like to nominate as Manitoba’s new provincial plate. It was by chef Luc Jean of WOW Hospitality, who previously won this competition in 2014. He served a Manitoba maple-braised bison neck, a cut chef Jean said he was put onto after asking Indigenous elders what the best section of bison is.
The braise itself was everything you could ask for, with the tender bison meat having absorbed all the liquid. It was encased in a thin band of cabbage, while this parcel and the velvety sauce was held in a circle by a smoked parsnip puree that was the most luscious component of the night (I may have moaned). Beside it, reduced and pickled cranberry drew a line between a porcini flan topped with crunchy bits of prairie grains. Chef Jean paired the dish with an assertive Cab Franc (the Grower’s Blend) also by Tawse, whose warm spices gelled with all the bold flavours on offer.
Chef Jean’s dish also took home the People’s Choice Award.
In third, Darnell Banman, the executive chef at Thermea, wowed us all with his presentation of local chicken on a dish he called Humble Beginnings. There was crispy chicken skin set atop a mousseline that formed a triangle with a luxurious gougère filled with miso egg yolk cream that was covered in mircoplaned black Italian truffle in one corner, with a roasted and glazed local cipollini onion in the other. The sauce was a buttery carrot jus infused with chicken glaze.
Chef Banman paired the dish with our favourite wine of the night, the 2023 Clossen Chase Hillier pinot noir that lent the whole experience a pleasant earthiness.
Two-time silver medalist, chef Graham Peltier of The Oakwood presented the best-looking Scotch egg you’ve seen. It was surrounded by a smoked hollandaise, creamed greens, and delightful little jellied chunks of fermented red plum. The egg itself – which comes from Ogilvy Family Farms, who is the sole supplier of eggs to the Oakwood – had a jammy yolk and was wrapped in lamb spiced by sumac and Sugar Rush Peach Pepper, which has a very unique flavour. It was sensibly paired with a lively sparkling wine by Henry of Pelham which reset your palate between each rich forkful.
Chef Jessica Young, who had previously won bronze in 2024, served a prairie banh mi. Instead of liver pâté, chef used langue (beef tongue) that had been delicately braised before being shaved thin and draped over toasted brioche. Accompanying it were crunchy bits of green tomato, pickled kohlrabi and sesame, while a sesame aioli and begonia vinaigrette dressed it all up. For a pairing, chef Young used local Low Life Barrel House’s 2024 Pearl, a blend of Petite Pearl and Chambourcin grapes.
The event took place at the RBC Convention Centre, with 300 in attendance and many local suppliers and companies on display including Chocolate Zen Bakery, Jones and Co Wines, Trans Canada Brewery, CAPS Manitoba, Unique Brazilian Dairy and HealthySips. MusiCounts and Spirit North –– which provides access to music education, sport opportunities and healthy food to students –– are the two national charities with local impact that CGKP supports, while local funds were also raised directly for Harvest Manitoba.
The judging panel consisted of AV Kitching, culinary writer at the Winnipeg Free Press; author Christine Hanlon; Christa Guenther, owner of Feast Café Bistro; last year’s winning chef, Emily Butcher; chef Jesse Friesen, a two-time Winnipeg champion; Bartley Kives, award-winning senior reporter at CBC Manitoba; and myself. Judges’ scorecards are based on taste, presentation, texture, technique, beverage pairing and wow factor.
Canada’s Great Kitchen Party is held in 10 cities, with the winners going on to compete at the Canadian Culinary Championship in Ottawa from Jan 29 to 30.