Lafayette's Boudin Cook-Off has been surprising people from the start.

The crowds have long impressed organizers while creations like boudin sushi and boudin bread pudding continue to intrigue attendees.

Now in its 10th year, the cook-off has become a staple event in Acadiana's fall festival scene.

"It's community — a celebration of boudin and our unique culinary culture," says founder Bob Carriker. "It fills a need that people have to celebrate boudin."

Carriker had no idea what he was getting into when he decided to host a boudin cook-off. He expected 200 people to show up for the first event but instead found 2,000 people eager to sample as much boudin as possible.

Now, several thousand people attend the Boudin Cook-Off each year in downtown Lafayette.

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Most boudin vendors are affiliated with a meat market, grocery store or restaurant, but the event is also open to individuals and teams.

"We've had a handful of average people participate since day one," Carriker says. "The playing field is leveled because they make it offsite and bring it in. You can make as good of a link in your kitchen if you have the right equipment as anybody who has a meat shop."

Amateur boudin maker Jamie Price never expected to win an award for his creation.

"I was shocked," Price says. "I was really surprised to hear my name."

He won second place last year in the unlinked category for his boudin bombs, which are cheese-stuffed jalapenos he surrounds with his homemade boudin and wraps in bacon. Price then smothers the bombs in barbecue sauce and smokes them.

The Baldwin resident started making his own boudin about two years ago "just to try it."

Although he'd never seen anyone make boudin and couldn't find many recipes or tutorials online, Price didn't get discouraged.

"I just did my own thing," he says. "And the first batch was awesome. Everybody asked if I could do it again, and I didn't know if I could because I hadn't measured anything."

Price made his second batch of boudin a couple of months later, measuring everything as he went. Friends and family have been hooked since.

The 2016 cook-off was his first time making and serving his boudin for a big event.

"It was unbelievable," Price says. "It went from just a few people and next thing you know, you've got 20 people or so waiting in line to try your boudin. It was non-stop, non-stop."

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Price isn't sure if he'll be able to return as a vendor this year because he is recovering from surgery. He still plans to attend, even if only as a boudin sampler.

People eat about 6,000 pounds of boudin during the annual cook-off. About 20 pounds of that is consumed during the boudin-eating contest.

"There are a lot of boudin-loving people who attend," Carriker says. "We easily go through over three tons of boudin."

The 10th annual Boudin Cook-Off on Oct. 21 will include staple events like the boudin-eating contest, people's choice voting, live entertainment, kids' activities, yard games and free ice cream sandwiches.

It will also include some new features, such as a boudin ball-eating contest, a giveaway for free boudin for a year, an official boudin pie reveal, and boudin cooking and pig roasting demonstrations.

Music for this year's event will be provided by the Babineaux Sisters and The Specklers.

"It's the premier boudin event that invites and encourages boudin makers and enjoyers from all walks of life and all parts of the state to come out and show their appreciation for boudin," Carriker says. "And now that it's been around for 10 years, the cook-off has its own place in the festival scene. People expect it and plan for it and understand it."

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The 10th annual Boudin Cook-Off happens from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 21 at Parc Sans Souci in downtown Lafayette.

The cook-off is free to attend. Sample tickets for boudin and drinks are $5 for eight tickets.

Learn more about the event by visiting boudincookoff.com.