Bull City Chili Challenge

Tomorrow's a big day in the Bull City. You've got the Juneteenth celebration up at Stagville. You've got Durham Rising all over downtown. (Yikes, is that a mental image to be forgotten quickly or what? At least we'll end up with two-way streets at the end of the deal.)

And not to be forgotten is the Bull City Chili Challenge in Durham Central Park beginning around 10 am. Two years ago, a tasting kit cost $3.00, and all proceeds went to the Special Olympics. I don't know what it's going to cost this year, but the charity remains the same. (A note on Craigslist syas it's still 3 bucks, but i haven't seen anything official.)

Two years ago, on a lark, i entered my grilled pineapple salsa in the "Individual Salsa" category, and lo and behold, i won a blue ribbon. Last year, i was out of town and unable to defend my title. This year i'm back, and after much internal debate wherein i weighed the advantages of retiring undefeated, i've decided that no guts means no glory, and i'm going to try and regain the crown with an updated pineapple salsa 2.0

The basic ingredients are pineapples, sweet red and orange peppers, jalapenos, poblanos and habaneros in varying combinations for heat, tomatillos and onions for texture, flavor, and color. Some of the pineapple is grilled to add a little smoke and sweetness to the mix. Oh, yeah, and this year's model has a secret ingredient that i've been experimenting with to try and get the proportions right. I think i'm there.

We'll find out tomorrow. Hope to see you there.