Chili Cook Off Online Entry Form

Treat yourself to some Homemade Chili! Buddy and his Elf friends want you to be part of the 2024 Neewollah Chili Cook Off. Teams will be competing to cook up their best chili and walk away with bragging rights and $750. Entry fee is $25 and checks may be made payable to Neewollah Inc. or pay online! It’s Saturday, October 19, @ Riverside Park Oval, so enter & mark your calendars!

2024 Neewollah Chili Cook Off Rules
Saturday, October 19th- Riverside Park Oval
GENERAL EVENT INFORMATION
There will be a MAXIMUM number of 30 Chili Cook Off teams. Booth space is approximately 12’ x12’ Neewollah will provide five pounds of ground beef. After checking in with the chairs, teams may set up their booths either on Friday, October 18th between 5:00-7:00 p.m., or on Saturday, October 19th between 6:00-7:00 a.m. Head Cooks must meet with the Chili Cook Off Chairs at 9:00 a.m. at the Check in tent. During this meeting each team will receive the following: ---Officially marked containers for judges’ chili. ---Sampling cups for public ---Procedure information for turning in chili entries to judges. ---An official container to collect People’s Choice vote tickets. A chili cook-off committee will collect chili samples for the Judges’ Tent between 10:45am-11:00am No beer or alcoholic beverages will be permitted at Riverside Park Oval. Any team or any of its members violating this rule will be disqualified. People sampling chili must be wearing the official arm band. Sampling can NOT start before 11:00am, any team serving before this time will be automatically disqualified. The People’s Choice Award is determined by public vote. Display official container in a prominent place.
GENERAL COOKING INFORMATION
The Neewollah Chili Cook Off is not affiliated with nor sanctioned by the International Chili Society or the Chili Appreciation Society International. Their rules do not apply to this event. Teams may begin cooking, if check in has been completed, at 6:00 a.m. Saturday. All chili must be cooked on site, in designated booth location. Vegetable and meat prep/chopping may be done prior to event. Additives that require long cooking, such as hominy, rice, and dry beans may be cooked prior to the event. Teams may have condiments or toppings available for the public sampling. However, those will not be allowed on the official chili entries for judging. Please ensure you provide means for safe food handling by the public for their condiments. Each chili team is required to cook a minimum of 5 gallons of chili. Every team member MUST keep a clean and sanitary work area. Please bring water and sanitizers to ensure safe food handling. Every team must furnish their own cookware, utensils, paper towels, tables, canopy and cooking sources. Acceptable cooking sources include: --Traditional propane/Coleman camp stove. --BBQ grill (propane or charcoal). --No open camp fires are allowed. Electrical outlets are available, but limited. Please try to use as many non-electrical sources as possible. -- An electrician will be onsite to help with problems and check for appropriate electrical usage. -- Each team must provide their own outdoor rated 12 gauge extension cords. -- No multi-outlet electric cords or strips are permitted. -- Chili must be kept at a serving temperature of 140 degrees. When chili is not being served, containers must be kept covered. Chili must be labeled indicating “heat” level!!! The suggested chili serving size to the public will be approximately 2 ounces to ensure all samplers will be served.
CHILI JUDGING CRITERIA INFORMATION
A representative from each team will turn in chili samples, in their officially marked containers, to chili cook-off committee collectors. Turn-in time is from 10:45- 11:00am . Entries will not be accepted after 11:00 a.m. If official judges’ containers become damaged, please return these to the judges’ tent to receive replacement containers. People’s Choice is determined by popular vote. All chili entries will be judged by a select panel of community members. The judges will use 5 criteria, scored on a scale of 1-10. The teams with the 3 highest scores will be deemed the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners. In the event of a tie, there will be a “taste off”. Criteria for judging: COLOR: Is the chili an appetizing color? Reddish brown is the acceptable color for traditional red chili. However, the color of nontraditional chili such as white chili or chili verde (green) will be judged accordingly. AROMA: Chili should smell good! This indicates what is in store when it is tasted. CONSISTENCY: Chili must have a good ratio between sauce and meat. It should not be dry, watery or greasy. TASTE: Taste, above all else, is the most important factor. AFTERTASTE: The aftertaste, or bite, is the heat created by the various types of spices and peppers used.
BEST DECORATED BOOTH
Judging for the Best Decorated Booth will be based on 4 criteria: Theme: Booth decorations should correspond with the 2024 Theme “Treat every day like Neewollah.” Costume: Have fun and dress according to the theme. Booth set-up: Decorate like CRAZY!!! Remember, you are limited to the number of electrical outlets. Audience Appeal: Include the audience in your team’s fun!!! Judging will occur between 11:00 a.m.-11:30 p.m. Judges will remain anonymous.
PRIZES
1st Place $750. 2nd Place $350. 3rd Place $150. People’s Choice $150. Best Decorated Booth $50. Generalissimo’s Choice It’s a secret!!
A MESSAGE FROM THE 2024 CHAIRS For questions and additional information, please have the Head Cook contact Grant Webster (620-330-7467) Our wishes for a great 2024 Neewollah Chili Cook Off! Good luck to everyone and bring on the chili that people will love.