Chili & BBQ Cook-Off

We got to Amarillo Elks Club about 3 p.m. to find all the RV sites taken with participants of the cook-off.  We were happy to boondock, but some of the members said they’d see how to fit us in…and fit us in they did….pretty tight fit but we made it with Jim’s superb backing abilities.

We walked around and watched the teams prep their meats

 

 

 

Jim walked around and talked with several of the team members during the night and in the early morning….many teams stayed up all night tending their fires.

The smoke pits came in many sizes and shapes…some simple and some elaborate…

	Back
Front	Lite up at night

Here are a couple of the teams plating up their samples.

       

They asked Jim and I to be judges.  There was to be chili (Texas style-no beans) barbecue chicken halves, ribs and brisket. We judged the chicken and the chili. There are strict judging rules. You have to use a different spoon, fork or knife for each sample. You had to take you taste of the chicken from the same spot on each sample. You have to “cleanse you pallet” with a pickle slice, celery or tortilla chip and take a drink of something between each sample. (I found a slice of dill pickle worked best for me.  Plus we got to drink all the beer we wanted during the sampling “to cleanse our pallets”.  I drank my green tea.) Plus you can’t talk about your opinion of any sample during the judging.

Jim and I tasted 13 chickens and had a teaspoonful of 19 different chilis….between that and all the “cleansing of the pallets” we ate a lot of food.  We bowed out of judging the ribs and brisket…too full.  But we did walk around and sampled one or two ribs. 

Lots of fun and camaraderie all around.  We’ll spend another night tonight and then drive towards Oklahoma City tomorrow.  I think we’re going to spend a couple nights at the Lucky Star Casino in Clinton on the way to use up some of the days before we meet the Mossmans on the 16th.

Remember, you are loved.