The Great Dorset Chilli Festival

It's going to be a scorcher - the 13th Great Dorset Chilli Festival

We're busy planning the 2024 festival, and we'll be holding the chilli plant growing competition on the Saturday, and the chilli sauce competition on the Sunday. All weekend there will be talks on growing chilli plants, cooking-with-chilli demonstrations, and of course the chilli eating competitions on both days. This year we have both a Curry Cook-Off (Saturday) and a Chilli Cook-off competition (Sunday), so this is sure to be a great day out for chilli enthusiasts, food lovers and families. So if you enjoy the sensation of steam coming out of your ears then this is the Chilli Festival for you! We have some of the country’s most respected chilli companies showcasing their plants, seeds and condiments; chutneys, hot sauces, chilli chocolate, relishes, pickles and oils.

Speak to the experts and discover how to cook with chillies and which chillies to use that won’t blow your head off. The stallholders all love chillies and will be only too pleased to talk to you.

BUT if you don’t like it hot there’s plenty of choice from the stallholders for the less robust palette. Artisan cheeses, brownies, jams, kimchi, charcuterie, baklava, olives, herbs, garlic, Dorset ice cream, wooden chopping boards and smart kitchen knives for chilli-chopping, rum bar, garden ironwork, ethnic clothes and bags, hammam beach towels, chilli-themed ceramics, beautiful artwork, leatherwork, firepits, jewellery...... .