Yesterday was the 4th chili cook-off put on by me and my friend Aaron. We had it at Red Brick (formerly ABC) brewery again, which has been good to our event. The beer and chili flowed. We had about 175 attendees, and should end up with an extra $600 or so, which we’re giving to the Georgia chapter of the National MS Society.
I made the two out of focus chilis above, a pork green chili and a black bean chili with quinoa and butternut squash. They were both solid but I was especially happy with the pork. I roasted the tomatillos in rendered Benton’s bacon fat, and also threw in homemade pancetta when I seared the pork shoulder. I didn’t think it would win because it wasn’t traditional enough, but it was the chili I wanted to eat the most.
This year we used chafing trays with sterno instead of crockpots. Last year the power circuit was tripping due to the overload and we had to worry about extension cords. I thought this worked much better and each setup only cost $5-6 at Restaurant Depot. The chili below was a “pho chili” – a thin pho broth with a pickled vegetable garnish and sriracha. It was definitely creative and pretty tasty too.
Ryan J. worked hard to defend his title, but I found his chili to be the most palatable it has been during his four year reign of gastrointestinal terror.
This is what it looked like. It just looks hot.
This was a brisket chili I liked – tender, sweet up front, and a little bit of heat. Maybe a bit too sweet for my tastes, but it was definitely one of the better chilis, and there were some goods ones.
Some people, such as my brother, got creative with the naming.
Here he is, having a grand time.
When the winners were announced, it was no surprise that Annie won the Best Unusual trophy, her 2nd piece of hardware in three years.
Ryan (2nd from left) won for the 4th time for spiciest, despite the protests from one guy who kept bragging about his ghost pepper hot sauce he had back in his car. We got it, yours would have been spicier.
“3 Guys, 1 Chili” won first prize, with a stellar brisket chili. I think the competition has increased the last two years. Both this year and last, the winners appear to have put a good bit of thought and effort into the chilis.
You can tell by looking below, there’s no messin’ around anymore. See any smiles? Chili is serious business.
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