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Sample And Savor Summer at Edgerton's Chilimania 2026
by Lakes Edition Staff
Last Updated: August 31, 2026 reading time: 10 minutes
Ready For Fire in the Belly? Come savor and celebrate dozens of professional and backyard chili artists and aficionados at Edgerton's largest festival of the year, Chilimania. The Friday-Saturday high-octane food fete is one of 400 American and international chili competitions sanctioned by the Texas based Chili Appreciation Society International (CASI.) $15 admission gets you through the gates on Henry Street in downtown Edgerton. Chilimania like the other CASI endorsed cookoffs raises money for a good cause. To date, the Edgerton chili competition has raised close to $250,000 raising awareness of the town's local businesses and educational
funds for area youth.
What is chili? Ask anyone on the street and you might get this as answer:
Onions, tomato paste, ground beef, red kidney beans, chili powder, black pepper cumin, and salt, these are the basic ingredients of chili. Starting with those baseline ingredients the skilled regional cooks competing at Chilimania deliciously create culinary magic, part alchemy, part science, and a large helping of
creativity and art.
The CASI sanctioned cook off is open to chili cooks of all levels and interests. Not ready to graduate yet to chili? There is also a salsa contest. And the admission fee entitles all entrants to tasting (beginning at 3 pm) what the competitors have cooked up. Competitors can enter one of four categories: CASI Chili, Traditional Chili, Salsa, and People's Choice
And Chilimania is not just great tasting chili. Be sure to check out the family fun, food and live music from the opening gate at 11 am until 10 pm. Friday night's main act, a regular and popular favorite with the Chilimania crowds is Irish musician, Jason Stubbs, a string instrumentalist with a powerful voice, for those VIP attendees. Then at 7:30 is cover band from Minnesota based, IV Play, followed by the feature performance by multi-platform, country music star Dylan Scott. If you missed these great Friday night, live performances don't worry there are great performances starting with psychedelic country band Cactus Mother, followed by two performances by Billy Elton and cover performer of elton John and Billy Holiday. The musical lineup continues with cover band, Rock the 90s and Def Leggend closes off the evening with Def Leopard of course. Saturday is also the chili judging, not to be missed, and the great cooks clean up, lend a hand a get some chili filled to-go containers, it's worth a shot!
THE DETAILS
Chilimania runs all day Friday, September 11th through Saturday, September 12th from 11 am to 11 pm along Henry Street in downtown Edgerton, right in front of Lakesedition.com's home, The Edgerton Reporter.
Tickets: $15 adults, children under 12 free; There is also a VIP price $100 which also includes
assigned tables and other features.
Phone:
(608) 561-7566
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