National Lentil Festival
Encyclopedia
Activities
Each year, the citizens of Pullman congregate to enjoy, celebrate, and revel at The National Lentil Festival, a food festival honoring the lentil.The festival takes place every year the weekend before classes resume at Washington State University, also in Pullman. There are many things to see and do at the National Lentil Festival, Friday night includes live musical entertainment, a kids' carnival
Carnival
Carnaval is a festive season which occurs immediately before Lent; the main events are usually during February. Carnaval typically involves a public celebration or parade combining some elements of a circus, mask and public street party...
, free lentil chili and many business and craft vendors. Saturday's events include contests, The Lentil Cook-Off, many art and business vendors, a grand parade
Parade
A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually celebrations of some kind...
, lentil pancake
Pancake
A pancake is a thin, flat, round cake prepared from a batter, and cooked on a hot griddle or frying pan. Most pancakes are quick breads; some use a yeast-raised or fermented batter. Most pancakes are cooked one side on a griddle and flipped partway through to cook the other side...
breakfast, the Tase T. Lentil 5K Fun Run/Walk, beer garden, food court featuring lentil dishes, a large kids area and many other great family activities.
Cook-off
A major highlight of this award-winning festival is the Legendary Lentil Cook Off. It is sponsored annually by the USA Dry Pea and Lentil Council, a non-profit organization founded in 1965 for the purpose of promoting and protecting those engaged in growing, processing, warehousing, and merchandising peas, lentils and chickpeas.The 2008 cook-off was held on August 23, the second day of the two day festival. The 2008 Cook-Off was a record breaking year with a total of 125 different recipes from 27 different states. This year's winner was Carolyn Johns of Lacey, WA for her Appleberry Lentil Spinach Salad. Second place went to KatiAnn Watson of Colfax, WA for her Mama's Lalapalooza Chili recipe. Third place went to Raylene Floyd of Cheney, WA for her Mexican Platter recipe. Fourth place went to Trisha Kruse of Eagle, ID for her Spicy Lentil Burrito recipe. Fifth place went to Janice Elder of Charlotte, NC for her Lentilicious Southwestern Salad recipe. Finally, sixth place went to Jack Campbell of Clackamas, OR for his Cuban Lentil Wrap recipe.
In 2007 there was a preliminary cook off event with volunteer judges who rate each recipe on a number of factors, and the top six recipes from this preliminary judging event are mass produced for 400 Saturday festival-goers to taste and judge for final placing. The winners of the 2007 Cook Off was Fabulous Lentil Mushroom Poppers submitted by Linhda Sagen of Pullman. The second went to Brown Lentil, Chicken and Andouille
Andouille
Andouille is defined as a coarse-grained smoked sausage made using pork, pepper, onions, wine, and seasonings. Andouille is French in origin, and was later brought to the United States through Louisiana by French immigrants. In the United States, the sausage is most often associated with Cajun...
Jambalaya
Jambalaya
Jambalaya is a Louisiana Creole dish of Spanish and French influence. -Jambalaya varieties:Jambalaya is traditionally made in three parts, with meats and vegetables, and is completed by adding stock and rice. It is also a close cousin to the saffron colored paella found in Spanish culture...
submitted by Judy Armstrong of Prairieville, Louisiana
Prairieville, Louisiana
Prairieville is an unincorporated community in Ascension Parish, Louisiana, United States. It is south of Baton Rouge and north of Gonzales, Louisiana. The latitude of is 30.302N. The longitude is -90.971W. Elevation is ....
. Third went to Cheesy Lentil and Double Olive
Olive
The olive , Olea europaea), is a species of a small tree in the family Oleaceae, native to the coastal areas of the eastern Mediterranean Basin as well as northern Iran at the south end of the Caspian Sea.Its fruit, also called the olive, is of major agricultural importance in the...
Nachos
Nachos
Nachos are a popular food based on nixtamalized corn, of Mexican origin associated with Tex-Mex cuisine that can be either made quickly to serve as a snack or prepared with more ingredients to make a full meal. In their simplest form, nachos are tortilla chips or totopos covered in melted cheese...
submitted by Nancy Dentler of Greensboro, North Carolina
Greensboro, North Carolina
Greensboro is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the third-largest city by population in North Carolina and the largest city in Guilford County and the surrounding Piedmont Triad metropolitan region. According to the 2010 U.S...
. The most creative recipe award went to Smokey Three-Cheese Lentil and Caramelized Onion Pizza submitted by Patricia Schroedl of Jefferson, Wisconsin
Jefferson, Wisconsin
Jefferson is a city in Jefferson County, Wisconsin, and is its county seat. It is located at the confluence of the Rock and Crawfish Rivers. The population was 7,338 at the 2000 census. The city is located partially within the Town of Jefferson.-History:...
.
In 2006, 88 lentil dish recipes were submitted from all around the nation to be considered for the grand prize of $1,000.
History
The original festival was organized in 1989. The objectives of the festival were to promote tourism to the Palouse RegionPalouse
The Palouse is a region of the northwestern United States, encompassing parts of southeastern Washington, north central Idaho and, in some definitions, extending south into northeast Oregon. It is a major agricultural area, primarily producing wheat and legumes...
and to promote the locally grown pulses
Pulse (legume)
A pulse is an annual leguminous crop yielding from one to twelve seeds of variable size, shape, and color within a pod. Pulses are used for food and animal feed. The term "pulse", as used by the Food and Agricultural Organization , is reserved for crops harvested solely for the dry seed...
, particularly lentils. At the time of the original festival, the lentil was selected because over 98% of the United States crop of lentils was then grown in the Palouse. The initial festival drew a crowd of approximately 4,000 people.
Each year The National Lentil Festival is organized with the help of The Pullman Chamber of Commerce and a festival committee in addition to the many volunteers that help make the event run smoothly.
The Palouse region grows one third of all the lentils in the US, according to the festival's website.