54th Annual Burgoo Festival

Established in 1969, the Burgoo Festival is one of the longest-running and largest fall festivals in northern Illinois. The Burgoo Festival is an annual village street party featuring flea marketers, craftsmen, musicians, and other entertainment. More than 375 vendors will present their wares at this craft show and flea market. Sponsored by the non-profit LaSalle County Historical Society, it is the organization’s major fundraiser.

Burgoo is a traditional pioneer dish, a kind of stew that gives the festival its name.  For the LCHS Burgoo the ingredients are beef, carrots, potatoes, hominy, celery, tomatoes, cabbage, onions, peppers, and other vegetables carefully blended with special spices and herbs. It is cooked outdoors Saturday night for 12 hours over a wood-burning fire that gives it a special taste. Squads of volunteer vegetable choppers and kettle stirrers spend the night preparing this pioneer dish.  The Burgoo Stew is always ready to serve at 9am Sunday morning!