Wrightwood will hold its annual chili cook-off from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Oct. 10, 2026, with contestants competing for a $300 cash prize for first place. The event, held at the Wrightwood Community Building at 1275 Highway 2 off Park Drive, mixes competitive cooking with live music, a beer garden and a jalapeño-eating contest for anyone brave enough to sign up in time.
According to Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, chili tasting begins at noon and takes place outside, rain or shine, while salsa tastings run earlier, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., inside the community building. A chili tasting kit costs $10 and includes samples from every contestant, while entry to the salsa tasting room runs $5, according to wrightwoodchamber.org. Tasting kits can be purchased ahead of time online or picked up the day of the event.
Jalapeños, Live Music and a Beer Garden
Things heat up at 1:30 p.m. with the jalapeño-eating contest, which the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin reports is capped at the first 10 people to register. The day's lineup also includes live music from Blue Cut Revival, plus a beer garden for adults looking to cool off between tastings. Winners of the chili and salsa competitions, which offer cash prizes, will be announced at 2:30 p.m.
The event has followed a similar rhythm for years. Per Victor Valley News, the 2025 edition landed on Oct. 11 with the same $10 chili and $5 salsa tasting prices, the same community-building venue and the same $300 first-place chili prize. The 2024 cook-off, held Oct. 12, also charged $10 for chili tasting kits and $5 for salsa kits, according to 4newsplus.com.
A Tradition Stretching Back Years
Go back to 2023, and the format looks much the same: cash prizes of $300, $200 and $100 for first, second and third place, plus a People's Choice award, were handed out at that year's cook-off on Oct. 14, as reported by dailybulletin.com. That edition also featured chili sampling, a jalapeño-eating contest, music, vendors and a beer garden, the outlet noted at the time.
The jalapeño-eating contest itself has become something of a fixture. This year's cook-off is hosted by the Wrightwood Chamber of Commerce, which is also handling competition rules and online entry forms through its website. The deadline to enter the 2026 chili cook-off is Oct. 7, and anyone with questions can call 760-249-4320 for more details.
