By
eHow Parties & Entertaining Editor
Difficulty: Moderately Easy
Things You’ll Need:
- Judging sheet
- Spoon
- Saltines
Step1
Sign up to judge the cook-off and meet with the head judge prior to the start of the event. Get your assignment and directions on how to evaluate the entries.
Step2
Use a new, clean spoon to test chili from the judges' cup. Most chili cook-offs have one chili judges' cup that all the judges sample from, so no double-dipping allowed.
Step3
Evaluate each chili on the predetermined criteria on your judging sheet. Typical categories include color, aroma, taste, aftertaste, consistency and texture. Assign whole numbers to each entry, not decimals or fractions.
Step4
Clear your pallet between each tasting to provide each entry an unbiased evaluation. Use water or saltines to clear your pallet.
Step5
Place your score on the official scoring sheet that corresponds to the contestant number on the judges' cup. Check that you record the correct score on the correct sheet. If you realize you made a mistake after handing in the sheet, alert the head judge immediately and let him render a ruling.