LUMBERTON — Aside from candy apples, cotton candy and other fair favorites, visitors to the 65th annual Robeson Regional Agricultural Fair will get to sample a Robeson County county tradition.

At 5 p.m. on Oct. 8, the 17th annual National Chicken Bog Cook-Off will award one creative cook with $1,000 for their recipe.

About 15 contestants compete each year, making their own rendition of chicken bog, which is a mixture of slow-cooked rice and chicken. Sometimes sausage and spices are added.

“I have seen bogs with all kinds of unusual ingredients such as red hots, mushrooms cooked in wine, tomatoes — but judges seem to favor those recipes with just the basic ingredients of chicken and rice, small amounts of sausage, and other basic flavorings,” said Everett Davis, one of the event’s coordinators. “We always have five very qualified judges, so those selected, as winners, are very deserving.”

Participants are allowed to spruce up their booth and cooking area, but the judging in based solely on recipe only. The bog is cooked on site and once the judging is finished and the winner announced, fair-goers can sample at least three of the bogs of their choosing for $6.

“This is an event that has been going for years,” said Jean Stewart, an event coordinator. “For some folks, it is an annual tradition to come down and taste the different bogs and for others, it is all about who are named the best chicken bog.”

Profits will be donated to the FFA of the Public Schools of Robeson County.

Registration forms and a complete set of rules can be printed from the Robeson Regional Agricultural Fair’s website, www.robesoncountyfair.com, or by stopping by the Robeson County Cooperative Extension Office, located in the O.P. Owens Building at 455 Caton Road in Lumberton.

For information, call (910) 671-3276, or Davis at (910) 739-7386, or Stewart at (910) 671-0926. Pre-registration is required and must be made by 5 p.m. on Oct. 7.