Wild mushrooms are so delicate a delicacy that foragers usually have two options: Eat the fungi fresh within a few days or dry them for future use. Chef Kevin Sousa went a completely different direction in preparing his winning dish for Sunday's fourth-annual Rachel's Sustainable Feast competition. He made a confit of the chanterelles and chicken of the woods mushrooms he picked on a weekend backpacking trip with his wife and daughter.

"I wanted to do a cold dish, so the idea was to mimic a cassoulet," says Chef Sousa, whose new restaurant, Salt of the Earth at 5523 Penn Ave. in Garfield, is opening the second week in September. It will host an open house Friday from 6 to 9 p.m.

Hundreds turned out for the festivities on the Ninth Street Bridge, Downtown, which included sampling dishes from more than a half-dozen local chefs. But only one was dubbed "Rachel's Sustainable Dish of 2010" by judges Rick Sebak and executive chef Justin Severino.

Cooked in duck fat with fresh pine shoots to infuse it with a "nice pine flavor," Chef Sousa's dish also included pickled shallots, fresh thyme and chopped brie. It was served with a slow-cooked white bean and garlic puree sprinkled with pink peppercorn, red sorrel, delicate baby dandelion greens and "a spritz of sherry vinegar."

In addition to bragging rights, Mr. Sousa won a pound of Rachel Carson organic coffee and Mr. Sebak's DVD "Right Beside the River."

"What made Kevin's the best? It was the most powerfully flavored," Mr. Sebak said in an e-mail. "The delicate little greens packed some real punch, and the wild mushrooms (foraged by Kevin near Titusville) were amazing. He said that he had preserved those mushrooms in a duck-fat confit. However he did it, it pushed his little plate of goodies into the top spot."

Looking for more from the Post-Gazette? Join PG+, our members-only web site. You'll get exclusive sports content, opinion, financial information, discounts from retailers and restaurants, and more. Our introduction to PG+ gives you all the details.