Lions Club Chili Cookoff Draws Hundreds to Riverwalk Stadium

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River Region youth programs and charities are getting some additional funding thanks to the annual Montgomery Lions Club Chili Cookoff. Twenty-eight teams took part in this year’s competition at Riverwalk Stadium for the 16th annual Cookoff.

“This cook off is one of our two main fundraisers for the Montgomery Lions Club,” President Chad Bryan said.

Hundreds of people came out to sample both amateur and restaurant-family recipes: “We are out just enjoying the festivities and enjoying the chili, of course,” Olivia Griffin said.

There were several categories, including Best Amateur recipe, Best Beef Restaurant division, and Best Vegetarian recipe.

“They’re made up of, some of amateur teams, of local businesses, business people, business owners. And we have a group of local restaurants who are in the restaurant category,” Bryan said.

With so many teams cooking and serving, there was a variety of chili to choose from: “The majority is going to be your traditional beef based chili, but there’s also several white chicken chili recipes, and even a few wild game recipes,” Bryan said.

“I cooked with three different kinds of beans: They have cantelini beans and great northern beans and navy beans. It cooks down with some really good different kinds of peppers. I use green peppers, yellow peppers, red peppers,” competitor Rick Plaskett said.

All proceeds raised from the Cookoff will benefit the Lion Club’s Community Foundation. The number one winner in the amateur category was Brantwood Children’s Home. In the business category, the winner was The Shinbaum Law Firm.