Pahrump Valley Times earns second place at annual Silver State Chili Cook-off

Sunny skies and mild temperatures greeted crowds at Petrack Park for the annual Silver State Chili Cook-off on Saturday.

Organizer Ron Frazier, who took second-place honors in the People’s Choice category, said more than 7,500 tastings took place to determine which recipe stood out before the judges.

Mary Ann Yorke from the Pahrump Valley Times took second place honors in the People’s Choice category.

“It was so much fun entering the chili cook-off,” Yorke said. “The basic recipe was originally created by Pahrump Valley Times ex-sportswriter Don McDermott, who passed away, but left me his chili legacy. I’m proud and grateful to be a part of the No To Abuse fundraiser, and especially proud of our second-place Judges’ Choice award and we’re looking forward to next year.”

The staff at the Pahrump Senior Center earned a distinguished title on Saturday.

The center won the Judges’ Choice award for the fourth consecutive year.

The judges are tasting blind, thus they are not aware of who made what entry.

“The Grand Champion designation is a better award than first place because it means that you’ve won more than three years in a row,” Frazier said. “There is a special plaque that goes with that distinction, which I am going to have one made.”

Additionally, Frazier said the chili committee deemed it best to allow other competitors to have a chance at winning first place in the People’s Choice category.

“We decided this year that we wanted to make sure that someone other than the Pahrump Senior Center was given the first-place status,” he said. “We would in turn give the Pahrump Senior Center the Grand Championship status which would not include first, second or third place. Tiffany Lippett from the senior center took third place. Mary Ann Yorke and Lisa Andresen from the Pahrump Valley Times took second place, and first place went to Yolanda Briehof from the senior center.”

The center’s site manager, Anne Harris, said she and the staff were extremely pleased with their victories.

“We are all honored to win first place for the fourth year in a row and also third place in the Judges’ Choice awards,” she said. “Tiffany and Yolanda have once again proven their cooking skills. They work very hard at the Pahrump Senior Center to put out a great meal every day for our seniors and this is a wonderful tribute to their ability as cooks. This is not only a fun event but it helps a great organization and we are happy to help support No To Abuse.”

Frazier, meanwhile, noted the attendance could have been much larger this year.

“We had about one third less cooks because we could not get rooms for them,” he said. “We are going to notify people earlier that they need to get their room reservations in and we’re going to work a little closer with all of the motels and hotels here in town to see if we can lock more rooms.”

Frazier also gave kudos to the Pahrump Valley Times for entering the chili cook-off this year.

“It’s been a few years since the Pahrump Valley Times entered the chili cook-off contest,” he said. “We are very happy to see the Times back in the competition. We are going to tweak quite a few things for next year because I know that your publisher has agreed to be on the committee. We’re getting some younger people on board.”

Last year’s event raised upwards of $12,000 for No To Abuse.

Frazier said he’s hopeful this year’s event comes close to that total.

“We don’t have a tally for how much was raised but I’m going to say it’s probably a little less than last year’s total,” he said. “I’m hopeful that we generated around $10,000 this year.”

Frazier also noted that roughly 30 vendors participated this year, which is up compared to last year.

Additionally, two Pahrump residents advanced to the International Chili Society World Championship.

Contact reporter Selwyn Harris at sharris@pvtimes.com. On Twitter: @pvtimes