Chili cook-off keeps it hot
Dennis Peters considers himself a chili fanatic.
On Saturday, the Hoffman Estates resident had his fill of piping hot chili during a chili cook-off with six local fire departments at Whole Foods Market Palatine.
"I'm originally from San Diego which is known for its spicy foods. This has been great," Peters said, adding that his personal favorite was the chili made by the Villa Park Fire Department.
Peters was among scores of customers who sampled each of the six chilies and voted for their favorite. Besides Villa Park, fire departments from Lake Zurich, Hoffman Estates, Huntley, Palatine and Mount Prospect made chili for the event.
When the votes were counted, the majority of voters agreed with Peters, pushing Villa Park into first place. Besides bragging rights and a trophy, the department received $250 for its fire prevention education fund.
The Mount Prospect Fire Department took second place and the Palatine Fire Department brought home third. For their efforts, both departments received enough food to feed firefighters during a 24-hour shift.
Jeff Wiley, a Mount Prospect firefighter/emergency medical technician, said he used his grandfather's recipe.
"He picked flavor over heat in his recipe and allowed people to adjust the spiciness. At the firehouse, I cook up a loaf of cornbread to go with the chili," Wiley said.
For Marti Folena of Schaumburg, the best chili was Palatine's. "Theirs was the spiciest and the tastiest," Folena said.
Palatine's chili recipe was a team effort, said Lieutenant Pat Gratzianna. Firefighters tested several different recipes before choosing one based on round steak, smoked sausage and coffee.
"We had fun with this," he said.
Lake Zurich firefighters didn't win an award at this event, but have won other competitions, including the Lake Zurich Area Chamber of Commerce chili cook-off, said Lieutenant Mickey Wenzel.
The department used Wenzel's recipe which has cocoa as its "secret" ingredient.
"The cocoa takes out some of the acidity," Wenzel said.
This was Whole Foods Market Palatine's fourth annual Chili Cook-off, and the first year that fire departments competed, said George Economos, the store's marketing director.