Taste the heat

Chili lovers turn out for annual cookoff at the Fort Museum

So just how hot was the Three Carolina Reaper chili that Dan Flippo, of Fort Dodge, brought along for people to sample at the Fort Dodge Chili Lovers’ Society's 44th annual Chili Cookoff Saturday at the Fort Museum?

Hot enough for him to put a few warning signs on it.

"Consume at your own risk. Not responsible for any adverse effects. Must be 18."

"I used homegrown Carolina Reaper peppers from the original creator," Flippo said. "I grew one single plant."

"Why” is probably a legitimate question.

"I wanted people to be able to experience an extreme heat," he said. "This isn't my actual entry; it's more of a novelty."

Marc Kenney, of Fort Dodge, tried a cup of Flippo's chili.

At first, he downplayed it a bit.

"It's definitely got some heat to it," Kenney said. "I tried a couple of bites."

A few minutes later, he was sweating and his face went red.

"My mouth is on fire," he said.

Dawn Farr, of Fort Dodge, went a bit milder.

"I don't really make a really hot chili," Farr said. "It's more gentle with some heat at the end. It's not overpowering."

She cooked the chili at home before the competition.

"I cook over a fire," she said, then pointed to her granddaughter Clara Farr, 6, of Fort Dodge. "She could fit into it."

She keeps it simple.

"I use two meats; the meat is very fine," Farr said. "I use beans; I don't like big chunks."

Each year, she also chooses a different apron design for herself and her chili crew. This year, it was a chili pepper motif.

The judging for the contest is done out in the open on the stage in the Opera House. It's as transparent as a plastic container of chili can be.

Justin Goodno served as head chili tester.

His instructions covering different aspects of chili were simple.

"Chili is supposed to be red," Goodno said. "If it's orange, then there's something wrong."

Texture is important too.

"If I get a bite of tomato the size of my fist," he said. "That's not good."

Each judge has to make their own ratings.

"Try not to share our ideas," he told the group. "Discuss as little as we can."

What if someone hid money in their chili as a sort of tomato bribe.

"That would be bad for consistency," Goodno said.

Fellow judge Jane E. Morgan, of Fort Dodge, planned on being careful if that were to happen.

"Hopefully, I wouldn't eat it," she said.

As the judges judged, Flippo continued to serve up samples of his Three Carolina Reaper chili.

He's not done experimenting with the peppers that can, in some cases, have a Scoville Heat Rating higher than consumer pepper spray.

"Next year I'm growing four to six plants; I'm going to produce an extract," he said. "I'm going to do some chemistry."