Russian Cooking at the U.J.A.

Food

A fund-raiser between six teams in an Iron Chef-style race

Six Russian chefs and six sous-chefs competed in an Iron Chef-style competition last week to benefit the UJA-Federation of New York.

The organization's fourth annual Russian Cook-Off, held at the Jewish Community Center on Amsterdam Avenue, raised money for the UJA's annual campaign, to sustain its network of nearly 100 nonprofit agencies, helping 4.5 million people annually.

In a nod to the UJA-Federation's Wellness Month in March, the competing chefs were asked to incorporate a secret ingredient -- cauliflower -- into their dishes. First place went to the pizza with cauliflower crust by Tanya Gurovich (chef) & Natalia Karpov (sous-chef).

The cook-off was judged by Blue Apron CEO Matt Salzberg, blogger for The Nosher Shannon Sarna, and Shaya Klechevsky, a local chef known for cooking healthy, kosher, and gourmet food who teaches cooking at the Jewish Community Center in Manhattan.

The audience and fans will be invited to taste test all the dishes.