Pawhuska to host Fifth Annual National Indian Taco Championship

Journal Record, The (Oklahoma City), May 8, 2009 by Kirby Lee Davis

Which would you enjoy more, winning $1,500 for cooking up the nation's best Indian taco, or becoming the Simon Cowell of taco chefs, helping decide who'd take home the crown?

Since the entry deadline has past, only a minor miracle can get you into next week's competition for the Fifth Annual National Indian Taco Championship - but the judging stakes remain wide open.

"I have not got the technique of good fry bread down yet, but I sure like to eat them!" said Mike McCartney, executive director of the Pawhuska Chamber of Commerce.

City leaders hope to surpass last year's 2,000-plus attendance with this year's festival, running from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. May 16 across downtown Pawhuska, capital of the Osage Nation. Tribal Communications Officer Paula Stabler said the 2008 event drew enthusiasts from Osage County, as well as from Kansas, Arkansas and other states, all to sample the fry bread concoctions of 30 contestants.

"It has a huge impact on the community," Stabler said. "This is a wonderful community that has a lot of historic history and architecture. There's a lot to see here, a lot of historic sites."

Besides the prize money, which starts at $500 for third place, all the cooks receive peddler's licenses to sell their tacos, promising a first-class dining event for spectators. The carnival atmosphere will boast concessions, music and other entertainment.

A simple $5 turns enthusiasts into judges, ready to evaluate traditional and dessert versions of this American Indian delicacy.

Fry bread remains the one essential ingredient. For the desserts, the rest is left to the cook's imagination. The classic or traditional Indian tacos must balance some mix of meat, lettuce, tomato, cheddar cheese, sour cream, and the optional green chili.

"You can make them as hot as you want them," McCartney said. "I like mine just with the bread, the topping, the bean chili, whatever, a little bit of lettuce and a lot of cheese."

The championship is sponsored by the Osage Nation and Million Dollar Elm Casinos, the Pawhuska Chamber of Commerce and the Pawhuska Community Foundation.

Although the name demands attention - and has received press coverage across the Plains and Southwest - McCartney said, the championship's economic impact remains in the shadows of several other Pawhuska events, including the world's largest amateur rodeo.

"Five years is not quite long enough to get it built, but people are starting to hear about it," he said. "With the tourism boom that Oklahoma has, we're going to see it do nothing but grow."

The chamber hopes to broaden the event with district playoffs across the region, leading to the national championship in Pawhuska.

"We just have to keep it going," he said. "I think that's the main thing. And to get on it a little earlier. We've already got the date set for next year."

How do I find Pawhuska?

The northeast Oklahoma community lies between Ponca City and Bartlesville on U.S. Highway 60.