By Alexis Korman

Is lamb replacing bacon as the go-to fetish object for meat lovers? Recipes for the succulent spring meat have recently popped up on Seriously Good, Bitten and Market Manila, but lamb is also making an appearance on the competitive cook-off circuit.

This weekend, lamb was the star of New York City's Taste of Tribeca food festival, featured in an "Iron Chef"-style showdown between two well-known toques, "Top Chef" Season Five alum Leah Cohen (remembered not just for her cooking skills, but also for her scandalous make-out session with winner Hosea Rosenberg) and Austrian wunderkind Kurt Gutenbrunner of New Yorks Wallsé.

Read more about the heated competition after the jump.



The annual outdoor festival featured delectable dishes from some of Manhattan's best restaurants, and swarmed with foodies and food scene insiders hungry for a bite of the action, Kitchen Stadium style. Under a tent buffeted by the wind, two chefs, in the hallowed tradition of Throwdown, were presented with a mystery cut of lamb minutes before the competition began.

Cohen was a last minute replacement for Amanda Freitag, executive chef of New York's The Harrison and one of the judges on the Food Network's "Chopped." And while the crowd buzzed about the missing Freitag, whose father was apparently taken ill the night before, onlookers cheered on Cohen and Gutenbrunner as they began prepping their stations for the cook-off challenge
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Their mission: to prepare one knockout dish in just 30 minutes, using only the basic pantry items that had been provided and one "secret" ingredient of their choosing. "The secret ingredient is to get the judges drunk," joked Drew Nieporent, the event's jovial host and a James Beard Award-winning restaurateur.

And while the judges -- Citysearch editor Josh Ozersky, WABC reporter Lauren Glassberg and "Top Chef" judge Gail Simmons -- were indeed seen sipping the bubbly, the stellar chefs had a few gourmet tricks up their (stained) sleeves. Although both contestants worked the lamb sirloin over the grill, Chef Cohen brought homemade smoked yogurt, shallots and lime into the mix, while Chef Gutenbrunner claimed champagne as his secret ingredient -- though his real secret weapon seemed to be ramps, which he prepared along with spaetzle and olives.

In a finale whose suspense level would have done any reality show proud, Nieporent announced the victor, Chef Kurt Gutenbrunner -- by just one point.

So what's up with the sudden interest in lamb? While its versatility is undeniable, so are the marketing forces behind it. The American Lamb Board was one of the festival's sponsors, handing out reusable grocery bags, recipe books and even "I heart Lamb" temporary tattoos to attendees -- all beneath a giant sign that read "Lambtastic."

And Nierporent drove the point home, singing the praises of the U.S.-raised lamb and assuring the crowd that "American lamb is less gamey than Australian lamb, and closer to home."

So is lamb going to be the new must-have meat? Ewe be the judge.