33nd Annual

Indio International Tamale Festival

December 6-7, 2025

10 AM - 7 PM

🥇 2024 Tamale Competition Winners

Last Year’s Champions

These are the 2024 winners from last year’s Indio International Tamale Festival.

Come back after Saturday to see the 2025 winners added below!

Traditional Tamales

Classic masa, bold fillings, and smoky flavor.

1st
Smokey Lips BBQ – Smoked Brisket with Beef Tallow and Cheese Rich, slow-smoked brisket folded into tender masa.
2nd
Casa de Silvia
3rd
Nick’s Pizza

Veggie Tamales

Big flavor, no meat.

1st
Casa de Silvia – Veggie Tamale A hearty, vegetable-packed tamale that won over the judges.
2nd
Nick’s Pizza
3rd
Barrett’s Tamales

Sweet Tamales

Dessert-worthy tamales with a sweet twist.

1st
The Tamale Fiesta – Piña (Pineapple) Bright, tropical pineapple wrapped in soft, sweet masa.
2nd
Tamale Mi Ranchito
3rd
The Original Tamale

🌶️🏆

2024 Tamale Eating Contest Winner

Congratulations to Cristian for winning the 2024 Tamale Eating Contest by eating 5 tamales in just 2 minutes! The festival record still stands at 8 tamales — we’ll update this section after this year’s contest to reveal the 2025 champion.