Today is National Chili Day, and in our house, that’s not a suggestion — it’s a production. Now, for some folks, National Chili Day means popping open a can and calling it festive. And if that’s your plan, go on ahead. I won’t stop you.
But I will whisper, sweetly, “Bless your heart.”
Now, before you accuse me of culinary snobbery, let me confess: I have opened a can of Wolf Brand Chili in my lifetime. More than once.
We’ve even hosted full-blown canned chili taste tests at our house like it was the Super Bowl of sodium. And I’ll tell you right now — Wolf Brand didn’t win. H-E-B did—every time.
Which would be mighty convenient… if we had an H-E-B close enough to run to when the craving hits. But here’s the truth: canned chili may get you through a Thursday night. It does not prepare you for Terlingua.
Here I’ll give you a great recipe and share a bit about my chili upbringing and some fascinating recent events that took us to Terlingua three times to become champions.

Read the full On the Table story in your Thursday Bowie News.

There’s something quietly comforting about a meal that takes its time. Long before dinner is served, the house begins to change — aromas drift down the hallway, lids are lifted just long enough to stir and the day seems to slow to match the rhythm of what’s happening on the stove or in the cooker.
Slow cooking isn’t flashy or rushed. It asks for patience, and in return, it gives us something deeply satisfying.
In a world that moves quickly and eats even faster, slow cooking feels almost radical. It’s not about convenience so much as intention — about letting flavors develop, letting tough cuts turn tenderize and letting time do the work it was always meant to do.

Read the full feature on January’s Slow Cooker Month in your Thursday Bowie News.

One year ago, I sat down to write my first On the Table column for The Bowie News, not knowing just how meaningful the journey would become.
A proud fifth-generation Montague County resident, I am a lifelong believer in the power of gathering people around food. Today, I am honored to continue that tradition as both the writer of On the Table and the newspaper’s food page editor.
Growing up in Montague County taught me food is more than nourishment—it is memory, heritage and hospitality. Feeding my husband, children, friends, and now the readers of The Bowie News brings me genuine joy.

Read the full story On the Table in your Thursday Bowie News.

Top photo – Suzanne Storey and husband Tommy whipping up some dinner with her late mother Gayle Storey, who she calls the best cook she knows.