In a cramped Brooklyn apartment, a klatch of New Yorkers – some natives, some transplants, and even a few serious cooks – gathered recently for an experiment rarely tested outside of Midwestern church basements: a casserole contest.

The hostess, Emily Farris, was inspired by an earlier party at which a “food snob” friend practically inhaled a baked macaroni-and-corn dish. The contest rules were strict. The invitation stated that each attendee must bring “an entree consisting of two or more solid ingredients (one is generally a noodle of some kind), mixed – not layered – with a gooey or liquid-y substance, and baked in a casserole dish (generally known by the brand name Pyrex) … Potato chip and Durkee Onion crusty toppings are strongly encouraged.”

I entered with an apple-and-onion recipe from the 1975 edition of “The Joy of Cooking.” It was cruelly deemed “the very worst by a large margin.” But the sight of so many one-dish meals in New York City was enough to console this Illinois native and transport her back to Midwestern roots.

Casserole is the opposite of New York cuisine because its essential qualities are the opposite of New York.Too boring for the Bronx and too fatty for Manhattan, casserole is bland and unsophisticated. Somehow, however, it also can be inexplicably delicious. Especially when served on Styrofoam.

The offerings at this casserole contest were proof that potluck fare can be fabulous. Ali Ruth Davis, a Minnesota native, brought a “Triscuit Hot Dish” – with chicken, cream of chicken and mushroom soup, asparagus, and pimientos, topped with Triscuit crackers – made using a recipe from a spiral-bound Lutheran Church cookbook. “Pedro’s Delight” – a standard meat-and-cheese casserole with just a hint of spice – boasted a card that said it provided “white-bread ethnicity.”The creator of a pasta-peasand-bacon dish rued his decision not to “pour on an entire can of cream of mushroom soup,” as many cooks had done.

Each attendee tasted all 10 dishes, and then voted on his or her top three favorites. When all the votes were tallied, the winner was a potato leek au gratin that stretched the definition of casserole but was undeniably delicious. The hostess’s macaroni-and-corn dish placed second. Kentucky native Heidi Vogt’s “Beef and Cheese Extravaganza” – which included ground chuck, noodles, several kinds of cheese, and a can each of tomato soup and mushroom soup – took third place.

One guest, Debra Cleaver, a native of Bensonhurst, was too intimidated to bake an entry in the face of such expertise. “Jews aren’t so into casseroles,” she explained. “Well, I suppose we have noodle kugel, but that’s not really a casserole.”

By the end of the evening, wine was the definitive beverage of choice. Third servings of cold remains were halfheartedly consumed. Belts were loosened. New diets were sworn to.

Although partygoers happily consumed almost every square inch of available casserole, most of them doubted that New York would ever embrace the ultimate red-state meal.

Mono Schwarz believes that casserole is simply too bland: “The fat isn’t so much the issue as the lack of intensity of flavor.” Sofia Borges noted that with so much fresh food available to New Yorkers, “canned anything can quickly lose its appeal.”

“It might need a new name,” Ms.Vogt suggested. “Perhaps a ‘blend,’ or maybe if ‘bake’ is the same thing it could work. I could picture ordering an ‘onion and crab bake’ at a restaurant.”

In the ultra-cool city outside, however, the ultimate square meal remains simply too square. The next week, Ms. Farris’s boyfriend “not-so-subtly” discouraged her from taking her prize-winning dish to his parents’ Thanksgiving dinner on the Upper East Side. Manhattanites may eat turkey, but they’re still too chicken to enjoy a good casserole.