NATCHITOCHES – This year’s Natchitoches-NSU Folk Festival on July 19 will include a Red Beans and Rice Cookoff. Professionals and hobbyists alike can compete to demonstrate their cooking skills. Registration and the cooks’ meeting will take place at 8 a.m. in the N-Club Room inside Prather Coliseum. Cooking officially begins at 8:45 a.m. The Festival will be held in the air-conditioned Prather Coliseum located at 220 South Jefferson Street on the Northwestern State University campus in Natchitoches.
Tasting and judging will begin at 12:30 p.m. with winners to be announced at 2:15 p.m. First place will be awarded to the categories Pork Sausage, Other Protein Sausage and People’s Choice. The category Other Protein Sausage may include sausage made from chicken, beef, duck, turkey, wild game, etc. There is no fee to compete in the Cookoff. Red beans must be cooked on-site outside of Prather Coliseum, although beans may come pre-soaked.
Competitors are provided a 10’ x 20’ cooking space outside Prather Coliseum where they will make their temporary kitchens using either propane burners or contained cookfires in order to prepare a minimum of two gallons of their finest red beans and rice. Cooking with charcoal is allowed. Running water is available to competitors, but all ingredients and supplies must be brought on site by the head cook. Chefs are not allowed to use any pre-made mixes or roux, though proteins and broth/stock may be prepared in advance, with all proteins being kept on ice until use. Red beans and rice must be cooked on site and contestants are responsible for all serving and sampling dishes and utensils, as well as all items needed to prepare their dishes and workstations. For a complete list of rules and entry form, please visit https://www.nsula.edu/folklife/.
“A Buck A Cup” red beans and rice sale to the public for the People’s Choice category will begin at 1 p.m. Festival attendees will be invited to purchase the red beans and vote on which red beans and rice they most enjoyed. Chefs participating in “A Buck A Cup” must provide their own bowls, spoons and napkins.
In addition to the cook-off, this year’s Natchitoches-NSU Folk Festival will include the Louisiana State Fiddle Championship, three stages of live music, over 75 crafts people, Louisiana cuisine food vendors, dance lessons, informances, narrative sessions, on-site demonstrations, and much more. Admission to this family friendly event is only $10 for an all-day all event pass, after 5 p.m. passes are only $6, and children 12 and under are admitted free all day.
For a full schedule of events, as well as registration forms to participate in the Louisiana State Fiddle Championship and the Red Beans and Rice Cookoff contact the Louisiana Folklife Center at (318) 357-4332 or email folklife@nsula.edu or go to louisianafolklife.nsula.edu.
Support for the festival is provided by grants from the Cane River National Heritage Area, Inc., the City of Natchitoches, the Louisiana Division of the Arts Decentralized Arts Fund Program, the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, the Louisiana Office of Tourism, the Natchitoches Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Natchitoches Historic District Development Commission, the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation, the Shreveport Regional Arts Council, and the State of Louisiana. The festival is sponsored by Atmos Energy, C&H Precision Machining, City Bank, Cleco, Evans Family, LLC, Exchange Bank, the Family Doctors of Natchitoches, the Harrington Law Firm, Natchitoches Wood Preserving Company and Young Estate, LLC.
