Legacy Sponsor:

Mary Jones 

Naming Sponsors:

 Platinum Sponsors:

 Gold Sponsors:

Copper Sponsors:

We are building a team of volunteers for the 2012 cook-off. We are looking for people with great team spirit and a willingness to work. We need volunteers to work in the reception area, the bars, the auction tent, etc. Most volunteer shifts are 2 to 3 hours only. It’s great fun and a great way to get involved! We need almost 200 volunteers to make this event a success, so get some friends together and sign up to volunteer!

If you are interested in, please contact us at  smachilicookoff@gmail.com.

Gracias!

As most of you are aware, the SMA International Chili Cook-Off benefits the San Miguel Community Foundation, one of San Miguel’s most important charities.

Click here to make a donation by credit card.

Please be sure to note in your donation that it is for the SMA Chili Cook-Off.

Muchas muchas gracias for your support!

The cook-off will be held on the beautiful grounds behind Hotel Real de Minas in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. The hotel is located on the corner of Ancha de San Antonio and Stirling Dickinson. If you need further directions, the local number for the hotel is 152-2626. You can also check their website for further information: Hotel Real de Minas

Hotel Real de Minas

FREE CHILI TASTING IS FROM 1:00 TO 4:00

Gates open at 1:00!

Musical performances all day, including strolling mariachis, local dance band La Corporacion (with Alex Guitterez, Gaby Amaya, Xavier Gibbler, Mario Ricalde & Aaron Romo), the fabulous Maria, and San Miguel’s famous estudiantinas (Tuna Real de Pablo Tellez), followed by a special concert performance by VUDU CHILE from 6:00 to 8:00.

The San Miguel Team Sorting group will perform in the rodeo ring from 2 to 4:30. This is a great in-town opportunity to see this amazing equine sport.

The silent auction tent will be open from 1:00 to 5:00. We have amazing items of all kinds, including art, jewelry, items for the house, trips, dinners, and more!

Our second annual denim jacket fashion show will be at 2:30.

We’ll have activities for kids all day, including face painting.

So come out and join us for a full day of fun!

The Cook-Off will be on Saturday, January 28, 2012 from 1:00 to 8:00 pm in the grounds behind Hotel Real de Minas. Chili tasting is from 1:00 to 4:00pm.

Tickets to enter the cook-off are $130 pesos per person if purchased in advance, and $150 pesos at the door. Children under 12 enter for free. The price of your ticket includes free chili tasting and “front row seats” to a full day of live entertainment including musical performances and rodeo ring performances. It’s an afternoon of unbeatable fun AND you’ll be making a much-needed contribution to the charities of San Miguel.

Advance tickets will be available from December 11 through January 27 at:

Keith’s Longhorn Smokehouse (Ancha de San Antonio, across from Hotel Real de Minas)

Casa de Vidrio (Correo #11)

Ticket Centro at the Biblioteca (Insurgentes 25, Monday through Friday between 10 and 5), and

San Miguel Community Foundation (Prol. Pila Seca 91A, Col San Antonio, Monday through Friday between 9 and 2)

Tickets for Beverages & Food

As soon as you arrive, you’ll want to buy some tickets that you can use to buy drinks (water, soft drinks, beer, margaritas, tequila shots, mescal or rum & coke). Drink tickets are $10 pesos each, and drink prices are anywhere from 1 ticket for water and soda, to 4 tickets for shots and mixed drinks. We will also sell tequila, wine and rum by the bottle. If you’re still hungry after the chili tasting ends, you can use your $10 peso tickets to purchase a selection of Mexican-style Cheap Eats from vendors that will be on site all day and into the evening.

Harry’s “Two for One Top Shelf” VIP Tent

This year Harry’s New Orleans Cafe is sponsoring a special VIP tent where you can experience two parties in one! Lounge in luxury, enjoy four free top-shelf drinks from the VIP tent’s private bar, feast on free botanas such as cajun hot tamales, boudin sausage, cajun potato salad and more. The VIP tent will have servers for your convenience, and if you run out of free drink tickets, you can buy more tickets in the VIP tent good for 2 for 1 top-shelf drinks all day. You will also receive a goody bag with special Chili & Charros VIP treats, including gifts from Ablu, Jofreh, a talavera chili tasting bowl made especially for us by San Gabriel of Dolores Hidalgo and, of course, a silver tasting spoon for your VIP chili tasting! VIPs will enter the event through a dedicated line to minimize waiting. VIP tickets are $1,000 pesos each. We only have 100 tickets available, so get your tickets early. They will be available beginning December 15 at Harry’s restaurant on Hidalgo, or at Ablu (Cuna de Alende 15 A), or by contacting us at smachilicookoff@gmail.com.

There are five competitions this year

Best CASI Chili (judged by a panel of judges)
Peoples’ Choice for Best Chili (judged by the people!!)
Best Charro Beans (judged by a panel of Mexican judges!)
Best Margarita (judged by a panel of judges)
Best Booth (judged by the organizers)

Sign up online by pressing the green Sign Up Now button on this page OR pick up Rules and Entry Forms at Keith’s Longhorn BBQ on Ancha de San Antonio or at the San Miguel Community Foundation’s offices at Prol. Pila Seca 91A, Col San Antonio.

Keep in mind that tent locations are assigned in the order that sign-up sheets are received. Location is critical in the Peoples’ Choice contest – so sign up early to get a great spot.

There is no deadline to enter the CASI contest. The deadine to enter all other contests is January 13, 2012 if you want to be assured a burner and a tent.

The entry fee is $35 USDs or $350 pesos per team – and that includes 10 pounds of ground meat (kilo equivalent) IF you are entering the Peoples’ Choice for Best Chili contest. Additional ground meat can be purchased in 10 pound increments for $30 USDs per 10 pounds.

First place prize for Peoples’ Choice for Best Chili is two round-trip tickets provided by our sponsor American Airlines for travel anywhere in the United States, Mexico, Canada or the Caribbean. Cash prizes for second and third place.

First place prize for Best Charro Beans is 7 nights for up to two couples in Casa Blance at Que Ve el Mar in Zihuatanejo! Click on the picture above for more information about this beautiful condo! Certain restrictions apply to travel time. Cash prizes for second and third place.

First place prize for the Best Margarita contest is a 3 liter bottle of Jose Cuervo Tradicional tequila!

So dig out your recipes, gather your ingredients, find some decorations, and get ready for some really HOT competition!

The CASI International Competition 

The San Miguel International Cook-Off is honored to be sanctioned by the Chili Appreciation Society International (CASI) as an official International Open Championship. This is a coveted distinction that allows our 1st, 2d and 3rd place winners to compete in the CASI World Championship at Terlingua, Texas, November 2012. (1st place winner will also receive a Coleman cookstove beautifully hand-painted by Wendell Rankin.) 4th-10th place will receive points toward qualification for Terlingua. You don’t have to be an expert to compete in the CASI competition. EVERYONE is invited to compete. And click here to read about the annual CASI World Championship Cook-Off in Terlingua, Texas. This is the granddaddy of all chili cook-offs and is the ultimate celebration of chili!

Cook-Off Kick Off Party: Learn the Secrets to Success!!!!!

Need help with your technique? No problem! On Sunday, December 11, 2011, we will have a special Cook-Off Kick-Off party where we will share some critical secrets of our prior winners. Learn the secrets to making CASI-quality chili and true Mexican charro beans – and to winning Peoples’ Choice! The party will be from 2 to 5 pm at Keith’s Longhorn Smokehouse. You’ll get free chili and charros to taste, and Keith will have a limited menu of food for purchase, plus a cash bar. This will be the perfect opportunity for Q & A. IF you sign up to compete in the Chili Cook-Off at our Kick-Off party, we will reduce your sign-up fee from $350 pesos to $250 pesos.  Tickets for the December 11 Kick-Off party are $100 pesos and will be available at Keith’s Longhorn Smokehouse beginning November 20, 2011.

Click here for a winning CASI recipe by Don Gill, a “seasoned” CASI cook-off professional and a part-time resident of San Miguel!