The Chili Cook-Off Countdown

10: There will be ten venues at each of the cook-offs, each handing out samples of their own home-cooked chili to the good people of Edinburgh and Glasgow. Those good people will then become evil, cynical food critics for the afternoon, scoring the chilis and nominating their favourites. 10 is also the number of pounds you’ll need to fork out for a ticket for the day's festivities.

9: It'll take you nine minutes to walk from one end of the Edinburgh cook-off circuit – Lebowski's on Morrison Street – to the other at the Golf Tavern. Not that storming from end-to-end is the way to do this – slow and steady wins the race, but it also gets all the chili without accidentally scalding itself.

8: Spicy food seems uniquely placed to bring out the competitive edge in otherwise reasonable individuals. Expect this year’s venues to pull out all the stops to win your support, but don’t expect them to go too far. ‘Too far’ in this context would be something like… oh, eating 275 jalapeño peppers in eight minutes. That’s what chilli-eating world record holder Patrick 'Deep Dish' Bertoletti did several years ago. Mind you, call your child 'Deep Dish' and you are asking for trouble.

7: Chili has a special place in the culinary pantheon, partly because there’s so little agreement as to where it actually originated. A number of US states and groups lay claim to the dish, but Texas went all-in back in 1977 when it declared chili con carne to be the official state food, and that’s Texas – they’ve never made or inflicted a bad decision on anyone.

6: Each of the top six venues from last year’s cook-offs return to attempt to defend their honour in the theatre of oregano-seasoned combat. In Glasgow, last year’s winners The Left Bank, runners-up The Roxy 171 and third place Stravaigin are all back looking to repeat their feats of 2013, while the Edinburgh top three of Lebowski’s, Henrick’s and The Cuckoo’s Nest will also be out to restore their bragging rights over their neighbours.

5: Five hundred tickets went on sale for each of the cook-offs in 2013, and expect to see similar-sized crowds marching en masse between venues throughout the events this year. It can be a confusing sight for a Saturday lunchtime, particularly when so many of the participants dress in Tex-Mex-inspired garb. There’s nothing quite like hearing two Glaswegian 'wrestlers' discussing the finer points of chili preparation while on your way to the shops for a pint of milk.

4: It’s the fourth year of the cook-off, which began in Glasgow back in 2011. It branched out to include the capital in 2012, and the spirit of friendly rivalry and smell of aromatic spices has never been far away since.

3: When undertaking the solemn duty of judging the chili, there are three things to consider. Taste, texture and originality are the three criteria for the cook-off, with each chili being marked for its performance across the categories. Expect much umm-ing and ahh-ing, and the odd bit of frenzied re-scoring, as the afternoon wears on.

2: Glasgow and Edinburgh are the two hosts of the cook-off, with two very different locations planned for wandering chili lovers. In Glasgow, it’s a chance to take in the scenic delights of the West End and Kelvinbridge, while Edinburgh’s eaters will be firmly ensconced in the urban splendour of Tollcross, safe in the knowledge that their map for the day is basically a straight line covered in flecks of mince.

1: At the end of the day, there can be only one winner – you lot. Okay, there will be twenty chefs battling it out to bring you the best chili they can, but if you can grab a ticket you’re in for a day of wandering around town with spicy sauce on your grinning, ridiculous face. That makes you a winner in our book.