Five of the country’s finest chefs gathered at the James Beard House on September 28 for the culmination of the American Lamb Board’s Global Flavors Lamb Jam Tour. Winning chefs from this year’s Seattle, Austin, Boston, Washington D.C., and San Francisco Lamb Jams put their prize-worthy lamb dishes to the test in the bid for the title of “Lamb Jam Master.”

Chef Tiffani Faison, of Boston’s Sweet Cheeks Q, won the hearts, and palates, of national food media judges with her Spicy Chengdu Lamb, which stole both “Best in Show” and “Best Asian” at the Boston Lamb Jam event in April.

"We try to create fun, craveable food. That's what this dish was about, but more elegant,” says Faison, whose dish combined Eastern flavors with Western techniques. “It’s all about the connections we have with farmers and ranchers. They produce the very best lamb and we do our best to showcase it." Faison credits her whole team for the win, noting that their uniqueness lies in the way they collectively think about food.