The All Star Lanes Chilli-Off

It’s the hottest day of the year and I’m at a chilli-off. Ha ha The London Word, very funny.

What’s next? Asking me to cover an Easter egg hunt the next time a blizzard sweeps in?

But all good-natured, fist-shaking aside, this event is quite an entertaining spectacle at which to be present. No less than 20 chillies are competing for the right to be on the menu of Brick Lane’s branch of All Star Lanes. Judging the competition are noted food writers and chefs such as Dominic Midgley and Hereford Road’s Tom Pemberton, amongst others. There is also a People’s Choice Award that is decided by the votes of those punters coming in off the street and snaffling up small samples.

Talking to some of the entrants before the tasting, there is a wide spread of opinion as to what a good chilli should have. I discover that there is a sharp dividing line between those who believe that a chilli should contain beans and those that believe these legumes have no place in a dish such as this. I can’t even get a straight answer from a Texan woman who really should be the definitive voice on the subject.

Moving past this controversial issue, I ask the competitors as to the make-up of their particular entries. There are ingredients consistent to pretty much every entrant, with dried ancho, paprika and salsa being regular fixtures in the recipe. However, there are some leftfield additions too. Some secret ingredients I manage to prise out include avocado, organic chocolate and even Mexican beer fetching up.

The selection is very meat-heavy, with only one vegetarian and one vegan chilli being put forward. However, both are pretty decent offerings with the vegan chilli having a solid mushroom base and a strong finish that most meat-based chillies would do well to emulate. There are a few chillies that don’t make the grade with an attempted Indian-Texan hybrid being particularly unsuccessful.

But overall, the standard of the chillies is very good. My favourite chilli, which has braised steak as its base, is also the choice of the judges and will be resident on the All Star Lanes menus for many years to come. The winner of the Peoples’ Choice is Charlie Nelson who also comes third in the judge’s estimations. It’s been a charming and friendly day, but I’m now off to run my tongue under a cold tap.

All Star Lanes
95 Brick Lane
E1 6QL

www.allstarlanes.co.uk