Culver’s Cravings

Inside Our Cheese Curd Dipping Sauce Competition

A group of young men take a photo with cheese curd props in front of a Culver’s backdrop

Over the years, Culver’s guests have made it clear that they love Wisconsin Cheese Curds. You’ve dressed as cheese curds for Halloween, declared your love on social media and embraced Curdis, our Curd Nerd mascot. It was your appreciation for cheese curds that inspired us to throw an event to celebrate our favorite cheesy snack.

We got together with more than 60 Curd Nerds in Chicago, Illinois, to host a friendly competition between Emily Hallock, a Top 10 finalist on MasterChef Season 9 and a loyal Culver’s guest, and Quinn Adkins, the director of menu development for Culver’s. They competed to make the best cheese curd dipping sauce exclusively for the guests in attendance.

Here’s how Culver’s Cheese Curd Challenge went down.

Emily and Quinn prepared their sauces. Emily’s take was basil-inspired and meant to complement the richness of the cheddar cheese. Quinn’s sauce amped up the cheesiness, incorporating both parmesan and bleu cheese.

Emily prepares her work station for cooking, Quinn adds ingredients to a metal bowl

Guests sampled the sauces with some Wisconsin Cheese Curds—they’re perfect for dipping.

A table of guests sample Culver’s Cheese Curds and dipping sauces

The judges—Jocelyn Delk Adams of Grandbaby Cakes, Erin Byrne of 312food and Billy Parisi of Simple Creations, Chef Inspired—deliberated.

Three judges taste cheese curds and dipping sauces and talk

Quinn was named the winner, but we were all winners—we all got to enjoy Wisconsin Cheese Curds, after all.

Two dipping sauces sit beside a dish of Culver’s Wisconsin Cheese Curds

We celebrated with cheesy photos.

Quinn, Emily and a guest take photos with cheese curd props in front of a Culver’s backdrop

Lots of smiles.

Two women, seated with empty cheese curd dishes, smile for the camera

And more Cheese Curds, of course.

A close-up of a cheese curd being stretched apart

Even Curdis was in on the fun!

A young girl holds up Curdis plushes and smiles for a photo in front of a Culver’s backdrop

There’s no doubt that we all had a great time at the Cheese Curd Challenge. See more of the event in the video below.

Ingredients for Cheese Curd dipping sauce sit on a table, image links to YouTube video

Are Wisconsin Cheese Curds one of your favorite foods, too? Tell us about it on Facebook or share your cheesiest photo on Instagram or Twitter using #culvers.

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