SAN ANTONIO —This year's National Chicken Cooking Contest winners reflect the country's current mood, with innovative ways to use chicken economically.

A ground-chicken burger with Asian flavor earned Brigitte Nguyen of Lexington, Ky., the grand prize of $50,000 on Saturday.

The $10,000 judge's choice award went to Elise Lalor of Issaquah, Wash., for Butterflied Chicken with Herbs and Sticky Lemon. Lalor took a whole chicken and cut out the backbone so that the chicken is flattened,

"Ground chicken is a good buy, and you can stretch it to feed a lot of people," noted Kathy Martin, food editor of the Miami Herald, who chaired the judges' panel.

"And in the end, the burger stood out because it was so incredibly delicious."

Nguyen could be called the Burger Queen, as she has been a finalist in Sutter Home's Build a Better Burger Contest and the Food Network's Ultimate Recipe Showdown in the burger category.

"So I have the burger thing down," she said while cooking her dish during competition.

But the Food Network competition was very different. "You are being filmed the whole time, so it's more about the production than the food. This one is more about the food. This morning, it almost felt like it was too calm," Nguyen said.

About Lalor's butterflied whole chicken, Martin noted, "Whole chicken is also an economical buy, and we liked the butterflied method of cooking a lot. It's really easy to do, and this recipe might encourage people to do it."

Ruth Kendrick of South Ogden, one of nine regional winners, received $1,000 and the trip to the finals, held at the Culinary Institute of America.

Kendrick's Ginger Scented Honey Hoisin Chicken Thighs With Sesame was another treatment of cheaper chicken cuts.

Americans have historically preferred the more expensive chicken breast. But sales of whole chicken, thighs and drumsticks have gone up as the economy has gone down, according to the National Chicken Council's marketing data.

Also, sales of fresh chicken are up, as people are taking it home to cook themselves.

The dark meat trend is welcomed by the chicken industry, which has had to export its dark meat to other countries, such as Russia and China.

But Kendrick said her main reason for using thighs was because the meat stays moister during cooking.

"I tried this recipe with chicken breasts, and it didn't work as well."

While the chicken might be more economical, the finalists certainly didn't skimp on flavor. The recipes used a lot of bold seasonings, ethnic sauces and fresh herbs.