If you’ve ever been amazed by the elaborate dishes concocted by professional chefs, wondering if you’d ever be able to obtain their skill, then this year’s Louisiana Seafood Cook-Off was made for you. Born out of a response to a global pandemic, the statewide competition transformed itself by featuring condensed 30-minute videos from each individual chef while they served up seafood recipes to not only impress the judges, but to inspire their audience to give it a go at home.

When the original Lafayette location of the contest was changed to Louisiana’s capital of Baton Rouge, barbecue master Jay Ducote literally opened his front doors to the competitors, turning his party-size kitchen into a makeshift film studio. Hosted by Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser and the Louisiana Seafood Promotion & Marketing Board, the competition proved  that Louisiana cuisine can provide plenty of comfort as we power through the present.

Click here to read the full story from the November issue of inRegister, on newsstands now.