‘Chili’ with a Side of Heat

Saturday afternoon, life on Marco Island was just a bowl of chilies.  

Over 1,000 people thronged the Esplanade courtyard Saturday for the 12th annual Jerry Adams Chili Cookoff put on by the Marco Island Fire Rescue Foundation for a new attendance record. The event honors the late firefighter Jerry Adams, for many years the chili chef of the department, and is a way for the public to thank their first responders while chowing down on chili in almost every imaginable form. 

For those who attended the cookoff, sampling 18 different chili recipes and listening to the sounds of James Williams and the Tamiami Shakedown on a warm November day was a painless way to “give back.” They tasted as many of the chili entries as they could accommodate and cast their ballots in the People’s Choice competition.  

For the fourth year in a row, the “Spice Girls” took top honors in the individual category, as well as notching a win for most spirited. St. Mark’s Episcopal Church won for best civic organization chili, and Hideaway Beach Club, led by executive chef Tim Smith, came out on top for the professional category.  

In the ‘hotly’ contested first responder’s category, it ended up as a sort of split decision – everybody won. Once again, the MIPD bested the fire department on their own turf to win the award for best first responder chili, but the professional chefs judging the event awarded their top prize to the firefighters. Chef Hafid Oliver of the fire department bragged on their hot honey chiliwith smoked bison, hot sausage and beef, topped off with cornbread squares. MIPD chef Sgt. Joe Belardo countered with homemade chili paste. “I make it from scratch and balance the heat with sweetness,” he said.  

The firefighters had an in with the band. Behind the drum set was Fire Captain Paramedic Chris Bowden, keeping the beat on a setlist heavy on Southern rock, with tunes including “Can’t You See,” “Wagon Wheel,” “Seminole Wind,” and “Bad Moon Rising.”  

The record-breaking crowd led to a record-breaking monetary haul, although numbers were still being tallied at presstime. The receipts were swelled when the winner of the 50/50 raffle, a Marco Island resident known only as “Rich B.,” donated his $1,040 winnings back to the fire rescue foundation.  

Foundation President Dianna Dohm made the rounds to all the booths along with Barbara Murphy, chairperson of the chili cook-off, giving each a few moments on the cordless mic to tout their chili and their group. Dohm thanked the sponsors, including signature sponsor 1-800 BoardUp, represented by “two retired fire department battalion chiefs,” Ken Pyle and Jeff Morse. They didn’t cook chili but talked up their services to all comers. 

But the ones with the hardest job going to every booth were the official judges.  

Anonymous during the event, the judges can now be revealed as Mary Jo and Moose O’Regan, along with “Chef Laura” Owen. “It’s a lot of chili,” allowed Owen. Mary Jo confessed she had a bottle of Tums with her – not that the chili wasn’t excellent.  

That chili came in a multitude of flavors and styles. Many of the chefs listed “love” as their secret ingredient, but there were quite a few recipes, including bison meat, brisket, pork, pepperoni, and more. Winning chef Tim Smith of Hideaway Beach Club said, “We smoke the brisket for 12 hours, and then let it rest” before adding secret ingredients. One, he fessed up, is chocolate.  

The Hilton hotel served up green chili, made with “salsa verde and wild boar,” said server Alicia Rosas. The Italian Deli added “pepperoncini’s,” whatever that is, along with three kinds of meat, said chef Joe Gargano. The Mango’s recipe included beer – “no mangoes in the chili, but maybe next year,” said manager Christian Nicula.