Chili Rules

Since this is a chili competition, the following rules apply:

  1. All entries must be cooked onsite the day of the cook-off. All food must be prepared out in the open (i.e. no cooking in RV's etc.).
  2. Traditional competition Texas-style Chili:
  3. Chili must be cooked from scratch. "Scratch" is defined as starting with raw meat. No marinating allowed. Ingredients may be peeled, cut or chopped ahead of time and brought onto the cook site in containers, as long as they are raw. Commercial chili powder is permissible, but complete chili mixes, which contain several pre-measured spices, are not permitted.
  4. Chili should contain NO filler. In other words, no beans, macaroni, rice, hominy, or similar items will be permitted.
  1. Creative / Free-style Chili:
  • Prepare your best chili with your favorite recipe that includes any ingredients you like.
  1. Vegetarian Chili:
  • Meat or seafood (including broths) is NOT allowed in vegetarian chili. The use of dairy products is permitted.
  1. Sanitation: All cooks are expected to prepare and cook foods in as sanitary a manner as possible.
  2. Cooking conditions will be monitored by the judging committee and referee.
  3. All cooks may be required, at the discretion of the referee or head judge, to eat a spoonful of their own chili before turning it in for judging. (If the cook refuses, the entry will be disqualified.)
  1. Registration for competition: Each registration fee entitles the cook to prepare ONE chili recipe for entry in the competition. Any cook wishing to enter more than one category may do so by paying additional registration fees, but only one chili per category per team may be entered for judging.
  1. Quantity:
  1. Each head cook is responsible for preparing at least 2 gallons of the chili recipe to be judged.
  2. The chili made from the chili batch being judged cannot be given out to the public until the judging cups have been collected.
  1. Throw-down Chili:
  2. Cooks are encouraged to prepare additional chili for public sampling; however, this does not have to be the same chili recipe that is being submitted for judging. If you choose to cook a different recipe for public sampling, this may be given out at any time.

Judging Criteria

All chilis are “blind-judged.” No one knows the ticket number of a chili until judging is complete. Even after numbers are revealed, only each cook team knows which number is theirs. This method insures that every chili is judged fairly.

Traditional Competition Texas-style Chili: Since CASI points are awarded for this category, all Texas-style Chili must meet the following criteria:

  1. AROMA - Chili should smell appetizing. A good aroma is a tip off to good taste.
  2. CONSISTENCY - Chili should be a smooth combination of meat and gravy. There should be no big chucks of onion, peppers, etc., and chili should not be dry, watery, grainy, lumpy, or greasy, just good and smooth.
  3. RED COLOR - Chili should look good (appearance) and should have a reddish or reddish-brown color. Shades of gray, yellow, etc. are not as good.
  4. TASTE - Chili should taste good above all else. Although individual opinions vary, a really good taste will stand out.
  5. AFTERTASTE - Chili should have a pleasant taste after swallowing. Any aftertaste should not be bitter or metallic.

Creative / Free-Style Chili & Vegetarian Chili: Judges are looking for a unique chili recipe, but taste is very important as always! Bring out your favorite old or new chili recipe and enter one of these categories.