Thanks for taking part in the 20th Annual Mount Vernon Chili Cookoff on October 24th! These are a few guidelines to help make the cookoff a success for teams and for the public.

Please note that food safety is critical! Use sanitary practices that meet health code requirements; keep chili hot and dairy items must be kept cool. The Linn County Department of Health will inspect each team’s set up.

All ingredients must be prepped and cooked on-site under a 10’ x 10’ canopy tent per Linn County Health Department.
Each team must make a minimum of 5 gallons of chili.
Cooking on a camp stove, propane burner, turkey fryer is strongly recommended.
Limited electricity is available; power strips are not allowed.
Chili MUST be at the correct temperature before serving by 2:45 p.m. and will be checked by a committee member

You’ll need to bring:

Heat source for cooking
Extension cord (no power strips) if you’re using electricity
Ingredients to make your chili
Utensils for preparing and serving your chili
Hats or hair nets
Hot and cold food thermometers
Canopy tent, 10’ x 10’ and leg weights are required (limited supply available for rent)
Tablecloth & decorations for your canopy tent, costumes for you and your team (optional)
Chairs, additional table for your own use (optional)

Provided to you:

One 8’ table (for preparing and serving your chili)
Handwashing station with catch bucket
Sanitizing solution in a spray bottle
Paper towels
Waste buckets for compostables, recyclables, garbage
Gloves, serving cups, napkins, spoons for serving your chili
Common rinsing station for utensils (there will NOT be a place to wash dishes so please plan accordingly)

Timeline:

10:00 a.m. - Teams can arrive and begin setup - NO COOKING BEFORE 11 A.M.
10:45 a.m - MANDATORY team meeting
11:00 a.m. - Cooking can begin
11:30 a.m. - Bags Tournament registration
12:30 p.m. – Bags Tournament begins
3:00 p.m. – Public tasting begins
5:30 p.m. - Ticket Sales Done // Token Buckets Collected
5:45-6 p.m. – Announcement of the Winners!

Judging:

Separate judging will be decided by a panel of local judges AND a people's choice vote. Judging will take place throughout the public tasting portion and winners will be announced at 5:45pm.

Finally, we are endeavoring to make this a waste-free event. All supplies provided by the Chili Cookoff committee can be recycled or composted. We ask you to participate by avoiding use of styrofoam and other nonrecycleable, noncompostable trash as well.