CHALLENGE OPENS IN THE HEAT OF TAILGATING SEASON
Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Louisville, KY. – Just in time for tailgating season, the Kentucky Derby Festival is calling all burgers bosses. The Festival and the Kentucky Beef Council are looking for the next ‘Derby Burger’ Champion and the 2025 competition opens TODAY – Tuesday, Oct. 22. Grill masters and burger enthusiasts can submit their recipes through Jan. 31 to see how they stack up. This marks the 13th year for the beef showdown sponsored by 80 Acres Farms, Dan-O’s Seasoning, Kentucky Beef Council and Kroger. Recipes can be submitted online at KDF.org/Beef.
“Real beef burgers present a unique way to help make every bite count with an unlimited array of options to boost nutrition and flavor,” said Carey Brown, Chief Operating Officer of the Kentucky Beef Council. “With tasty toppings like fruit, vegetables and whole grains to choose from, we always look forward to the unique recipes that are submitted from around the state.”
Participation is open to all chefs – from the home kitchen to restaurants. Entrants are encouraged to use a creative burger name, description, and photo as part of their submission. All burgers must be 100 percent beef and include Dan-O’s seasoning (Official Seasoning of the Kentucky Derby Festival) and greens and/or herbs from 80 Acres Farms (Official Greens of the Festival) in the recipe. The burger recipes are judged based on Taste, Appearance, Creativity and Ease of Preparation.
Derby Festival and burger fans will help choose the finalists in the competition. In February, 8 preliminary finalists will be announced from all submissions and then voting will open online. Those votes will help narrow down to the final four ‘Derby Burger’ contestants who will then move on to a cook-off in March.
The winning burger will be featured at Kroger’s Fest-a-Ville during Derby Festival, as well as inside Kroger stores. Official rules of the competition can be found online at KDF.org/Beef.
The winning chef receives a 2025 Official Kentucky Derby Festival Poster, two VIP tickets to the Thunder Over Louisville VIP Rooftop Party, two VIP tickets to Republic Bank BourbonVille, a $100 gift certificate to Kroger, a grilling prize package courtesy of the Kentucky Beef Council, which includes a grill, a prize package from Dan-O’s Seasoning, and an 80 Acres Farms Swag Pack.
