Doug Wilkey of Shoreline, Washington, whose spicy, flavor-filled red chili earned rave reviews from the judges for its exceptional depth and richly blended character, won the honor of “World’s Best Chili” for 2005 in the International Chili Society’s (ICS) 39th annual World’s Championship Chili Cookoff™, sponsored by ConAgra Foods.

The winning red chili recipe took the title in a closely matched finals competition that included some 400 award-winning cooks from across the United States and globe.  The event was held in Omaha over three glorious, sunny days on the shores of the Missouri river at Lewis & Clark Landing, from Friday, Oct. 7 to Sunday, Oct. 9, and crowned the officially sanctioned “World’s Best” in the red chili, green “verde” chili and salsa categories. 

For most dedicated “Chiliheads,” the purest form of chili is traditional red, also known as “Texas red.”  Competition cooks spent countless hours adjusting and agonizing over seasonings and ingredients in their quest for the winning edge – that perfect blend of meat, spices and sauce that would grab the judges’ attention and not let go.  Most red chili recipes included finely chopped meat, diced vegetables, tomato sauce or paste, garlic, chili powder and other spices.  According to official ICS rules, beans or other fillers may not be added.  
 

This year’s Cookoff winners earned more than just bragging rights – first-prize awards included:

• $30,000 to Doug Wilkey of Shoreline, Washington, for winning the red chili cookoff with his recipe, “Dog Breath Chili.”  ConAgra Foods contributed $5,000 of the award because Wilkey’s winning recipe included Hunt’s® tomatoes, Ro*Tel® diced tomatoes & green chilies, Gebhardt® chili powder and Wesson® oil, all quality products from ConAgra Foods.  
• $3,000 went to Jeff Netser of Seymour, Indiana for his winning “Green Chili” recipe of chili verde, a popular Southwest blend of pork, tomatilloes, green chilies, jalapeno & habaneros, added to the cookoff in 1999. 
• $1,000 went to Tom Hoover of Columbus, Ohio for his “Happy Trails” recipe for salsa, which uses tomatoes, bell peppers and onions as a base, with cilantro, honey, lime and jalapenos for a unique blend. 

Traditional Red

Chili Red World Champion - Doug Wilkey

ICS World Traditional Red Champions
1st Place - Doug Wilkey
2nd Place - Jim Weller
3rd Place - Wes Carlson
4th Place - John Jepson
5th Place - Bonnie Tomasek

Finals Table (No Particular Order)

Christian Parker	John Jepson
Ed Cooley	Bonnie Tomasek
Darol Wetzel	Armando Sanchez
Margo Knudson	Linda Odom
Diane Lentz	Doug Roy
Paul Laroche	Jim Beaver
Robbie Swart	Dan Bauer
Mike Stewart	Mick Joplin
Wes Carlson	Janis Davidson
Tom Hoover	Loretta Lawrence
Bill Ray	Mark Johnson
Ron Judson	Doug Wilkey
Jim Weller	Larry Lentz
Nancy Swenberger	Kim Mallory
Ken Brown	Mike Ford

Last Chance Winners

Linda Odom	Miranda Beaver
Kit Hoff	Dick Swenberger
Marilee Barrett	Barbara Ward
J.R. Knudson	Ken Brown
Mick Joplin	Jim Beaver

Chili Verde

Chili Verde World Champion - Jeff Netser

ICS Chili Verde Champions
1st Place - Jeff Netser
2nd Place - Patricia Sanchez
3rd Place - Eileen Beaty

Finals Table (No Particular Order)

Ron Boisseranc	Charlie Blosfield
Eileen Beaty	Patricia Sanchez
Jim Beaver	Bob Hall
Chuck Hoff	Tom Hoover
Scott Navaroli	Ron Judson
Jeff Ray	Diane Lentz
Rodney Smith	Mary Ann Smith
Tom Calvert	Steve Falkowski
Nancy Swenberger	Charles Rigby
Ron Burt	David Mallory
Steven Lee	Jeff Netser
Darol Wetzel	Scott Barrett
Julie Netser

Salsa

Salsa World Champion - Tom Hoover

ICS Salsa Champions
1st Place - Tom Hoover
2nd Place - Charlie Ward
3rd Place - Cindy Haught

Finals Table (No Particular Order)

Georgia Weller	Kimberly Mallory
Aaron Deutsch	Barbara Ward
Steve Tomasek III	Jerry Simmons
Wes Carlson	Bill Donovan
Armando Sanchez	Dave Schulman
Charles Burdick	Joe Barrett
Kevin Foley	Laurin Staley
Linda Carroll	Joni Deere
Jim Heywood	Eileen Beaty
Mick Joplin	Kevin Christensen
Charlie Ward	Cindy Haught
Tom Hoover	Sean Barrett
Ralph Johnson	Jim Deere
Mike Rook	Red Brecke
Kathy Plager

Other Events

Restaurant Division
1st Place - Ron Pullen - Texas Roadhouse
2nd Place - Troy Sperry - McKenna Blues & Booze & BBQ
3rd - Mark Johnson - Farmer's Kitchen

People's Choice
Friday and Saturday -Don Hammes
Sunday - Steve McIntire

Best Booth & Showmanship
1st Gail & Bill Donovan
2nd Mike Stewart
3rd Doug Roy

Mr. Hot Sauce

Miss Chilipepper

Shoot N'Holler

Chili Eating Contest

The ICS would like to thank our sponsors
The International Chili Society’s World's Championship Chili Cookoff was presented by ConAgra Foods and produced by ICS and Downtown Omaha Inc., Foundation.  Media Sponsors include Cox  Communications,  Lite 101.9 KLTQ, BOB 106.9 FM and The Reader.  Additional sponsors are: Hy-Vee Food Stores, Eclipse gum and mints, Tabasco, Douglas County Commissioners, Michelob Amberbock, Pepsi, Jack Daniels, Fetzer, Keebler, Kimberly Clark, McCormicks, Sargento, Ricks Cafe Boatyard, Hilton Omaha, XDI, Martex Software, Smart Space, The Family Jewels, Designing Images and the Carroll Shelby Children's Foundation.