In this diseased online world of sickeningly pretty food photo binges (everyone needs to tell and show everyone else about everything they eat), we thought about finding a reprieve. It’s pathetic (sometimes me too) to be caught and be possessed by the act of lifting, not your fork, spoon or chopsticks but the camera, when the food arrives.

So our counter-strike plan was to come up with an Uglicious Food Photo Contest. The rule was simple, shoot pictures of an uneaten dish, so ugly, it brings out the angry hunger in you. It makes you want to devour it with gusto in revenge. So the entries flowed in fast furious and funny…of things they ate or hate or were great for them. Some wowed us with gaping sharp toothed jaws of the a steamed garoupa fish, another just shot a blob of black mess (no idea what it was) but what made us angry the cooks can get away with plating that black mount and one even had a baked chicken with its feet stuffed through the derriere (the toes sticking out), probably for extra flavour.

I have to concede that some food are particularly difficult to make pretty. They weren’t created as eye candy in the first place. Natto beans over rice comes to mind, as do that plate of hideous looking rojak flooded with dark brown sauce and black brown everything with a consolation spoon of crush peanuts over it.

We gave away monthly and seasonal grand winners. It was a hoot, all those who submitted were hilarious and brave in their own ways. So in response to numerous requests, we’re gonna continue this Uglicious Food Photo contest gig till further notice, as an anti-thesis to the sickeningly pretty ones online.

We congratulate the seasonal grand winner Ms June Lee who saw giddy graphics with the plate of pigs ear. “It was so ugly no one else but me ate it all at the table.” She won a feasting party for 4 at Makansutra Gluttons Bay, and two Makansutra merchandise – teh tarek t-shirt and a snack time watch. Well done.

But, we wished Martha Stewart would submit here series on online social media food pictures. She would be a natural born winner and probably have us considering giving her a life achievement award for her efforts. But still, we have no idea how we can stop the uplifting act of camera wielding foodies when the food arrives at the table.

So be beautiful and eat ugly – all food are created equal (it feeds doesn’t it?). Keep shooting and send em’ in. Submit by uploading your ugly food photo to Instagram and include the hashtag “#uglicious”. View past entries here http://www.makansutra.com/Uglicious_15_top_entries.jpg