The smell of simmering beef, beans and secret spices filled the air at the University’s 4-H Mini Barn for the Louisiana State Chili Cook-Off. The cook-off, hosted by the Audubon Kiwanis and the Baton Rouge Head Injury Association, was a first for the state. Lowell Tilley, Audubon Kiwanis former president, wants this to be a tradition for Louisiana. “I’ve been wanting to host the chili cook-off for a while now,” Tilley said. “It takes some hard work though. We had a lot of people help put this together.” The 20 competitors set up their booths at 7 a.m. The hosts rang the bell at 10:30 a.m. and yelled, “Start the fires!” to signal the start of the competition. The cooks had three hours to cook two pots of chili – one for the actual state competition and another to be judged by the spectators for the People’s Choice Award. “The cooks can’t have beans in the competition chili,” Tilley said. “The People’s Choice chili is the one with beans in it.” Tilley said the 12 judges are local celebrities, such as chef John Folse, Ron Zappe of Zapp’s Potato Chips and WAFB’s Donna Britt. These judges determined who would take home the cash. “The first place winner gets $500, and the second place winner gets $300,” Tilley said. “Then the winner of the state cook-off advances to the world cook-off competition.” Bruce and Cindy Wilkins of Houston, Texas, traveled to the University in order to compete. Cindy Wilkins said she won top prize in the Chili Appreciation Society International in 1992 and 1993 and was the only person to win two years in a row. “I have a family recipe I use, and I just modify it for my chili,” Cindy Wilkins said. Cindy Wilkins said she recently quit her job in order to compete in chili cook-offs on a more regular basis and to market her chili mix, Cin Chili. Bruce Wilkins said he is ready to tackle the Louisiana state championship like he did for his home state of Texas. Debbie Turner of Waxahachie, Texas, found true love through chili competitions. “I met my husband at a chili cook-off, and I told him I would move away from my family and friends, but I was not going to give up cooking my chili,” Turner said. “And 20 years later, here we are!” Turner said it takes about three hours to prepare her chili. She has competed in 35 states nationwide, two Canadian provinces and two Mexican states. “It’s a nice way to get out and meet people,” Turner said. “Once you get to a chili competition, you’re automatically part of the chili cook-off family.” Doug Roy of Clearwater, Fla., took home the first place prize, and Bruce Wilkins got second place. Tilley said people traveled from Florida, Nebraska, Tennessee and Texas among other states for the competition. “We had a good turnout for the first year,” Tilley said. “We’re just trying to bring together a lot of people to make the community a better place.”
—–Contact Michelle Mathew at [email protected]