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Keeping up with the “Super Teams”

Posted: March 16, 2013 in BBQ, BBQ Cooking Techniques, BBQ News, Editorial
Tags: American Royal, Barbecue, Barbeque, BBQ, BBQ Pitmasters, BBQ Rubs, BBQ Sauce, Big Poppa, Chicken, Competition BBQ, Cook, cooking tips, Dana, facebook, FBA, Florida, Florida BBQ, Food, Grand Champion, Jack Daniel, Janet Hillis, KCBS, Lakeland Florida, London, Meat, Pork, Ribs, Rooftop, Spare Ribs, Spice

It has been a while since I have just sat do and wrote about, BBQ and all that means to me. I have been busy, like the most of us, keeping up with, real life duties, ie, Family, Job & Life as a whole. After a while the competition scene, gets put on the back burner, literally. Unless you are one of the lucky few that can do competition BBQ for a living, this is something that happens to all teams, from time to time. When this happens to a team, it puts you off your game. It is no secret, the teams that consistently win, compete the most. Sure there are times where a surprise team will come in, and take the competition, on any given weekend, but for the most part, the winning teams are going to be the seasoned professional.

Living here in Florida, definitely has it’s advantages, when it comes to cooking BBQ. Minus a hurricane, or two, we can pretty much BBQ year around. The FBA (Florida Barbecue Association) competition schedule starts by the second week of January, and runs well into December. The biggest break is normally during the middle of summer, July & August, just too hot to be spending a long amount of time outside. Throw in a couple of KCBS (Kansas City Barbecue Society) events, a Sam’s club event, and even shoot across the border into Georgia, and try out a GBA (Georgia Barbecue Association) or an MBN (Memphis Barbecue Network) and there is a BBQ competition darn near every weekend of the year. Folks up north are just digging their cookers out of the snow, and FBA teams already have 3-4 competitions in for the year. It would be save to say, the competition here is very tough, and some of the best teams in the nation cook here in Florida, but not all of us are lucky enough to get after it every weekend. How can we close the gap, and be able to compete with these teams? Teams like mine, that usually hit the scores in about the middle of the field at many competitions, have to try and make up ground by practice cooks, by judging competitions and by attending the occasional class put on by a BBQ expert. All are great ways to make up a little ground on the super teams. Nothing will make up for real world experience, but practice and more practice will help to keep pace with the other teams.

Practice cook for chicken

Getting the Lang ready for a parctice cook, using some Kebroak Lump

Getting the Lang ready for a practice cook, using some Kebroak Lump

Practice Pork!!!

Practice cooks will help a team on many levels. It helps to try out those flavor profiles, and to get down the cooking times for each category. Getting familiar with the cooker that you will be competing on helps, and we even go as far as practicing boxing as we would for turn-in. I really enjoy doing practice cooks, and it really helps my confidence level, going into a competition. The one problem I have is, finding volunteers to eat all the BBQ. When I started BBQ I never thought this would be a problem, but after years of forcing BBQ on my family, to critique, they go running for the hills at the first sign of smoke. I’m glad I have a lot of folks at my real job who are still BBQ fans. My wife gladly helps me pack all the BBQ up, to take to work and offer up to all my friends.

In my opinion, judging is a great way to up your BBQ awareness. You will get the best bang for your buck through judging. If the competition you will be judging is a local one, all you have to do (once your a certified judge) is show up and eat some BBQ. Normally a judge will need to contact the event organizer to get on the list to judge, but judging is a good time, and great information that many cook teams will not experience. I have heard many cook teams ask, “What the hell was that judge thinking?”. What better what to find out then by setting at the table while food is being judged. While the actual judging is going on, judges are not allowed to commit on the entries, but after all scores have been recorded, judges are free to discuss the entries they have sampled. So not only has the judge experienced what 5-6 other teams have turned in, but they also get to participate in a discussion on what the judges liked or did not like about these entries. I have been privileged enough to judge at a few competitions, and I can honestly say, I have learned something at each judging. I think each cook team should really try to judge at least one competition, if only to experience the other side of competition BBQ, that most teams do not see. I also think judges should try to cook with a cook team, if possible. Great knowledge comes from experience, so get out there and experience as much BBQ as you can!!! It will not only be beneficial to you and your team, but to the sport of BBQ as a whole.

FBA judging at Grant, FL

Judging FBA in Haines City, FL

One very popular way for many teams to help them keep up with or over take the competition is by taking BBQ classes given by BBQ experts. This has been an option that has been growing in popularity over the past 5+ years. Many BBQ professionals have recognized that there is a great market for their skills, and classes are filling up across the country. Classes have seen cook teams travel from out of state & even from out of the country, to attend their, not to mention putting out hundreds of dollars. I am a fan of these classes, and have been to one organized class from; Dana and Janet Hillis, of Big Papa‘s Country Kitchen. For more information, on Dana’s class, please visit the FBA sight HERE contact information is listed in the competition schedule under; Big Papa’s Competition BBQ School – Naples, FL.

I have known Dana & Janet Hillis, for a couple of years now, from the BBQ circuit. I saw them walking to the stage, a lot, before we were able to meet personally. We were lucky enough to set up next to them at a competition in Sebring, FL a couple years ago, and they were very welcoming, and helpful. Us being the new team, Dana & Janet were happy to lend a hand, and give advice. Dana was so excited to try out and give us his opinion on our food, and it really helped, we got three calls that competition, and came very close to getting a GC, (tanked one category). I knew that if Dana ever came out with a class, I would take it. We took Dana’s first class in the summer of 2012, and we had a great time. My team has not won a GC since taking Dana’s class, but it has kept us competitive in a very talented field of BBQ cooks, around the Central Florida area. So, look around for a class that best suits you, and sign up for it. They do vary in price a bit, I have seen some that run about $150 for a one day class to $700-$800 for a two day class. Most classes will give a discount for folks who would like to bring their spouse to the class, as well. Many classes offer a fine dinner, cooked by your host, and plenty of goodies in your team bag. Sponsors are happy to give some sample products for folks in the classes to try out, because they know these are folks that are going to be doing BBQ for a long time, and could be a future long term customer. Another plus for taking a class is, not only do you get to see what a true Pitmaster does to compete in BBQ, but there is opportunity to meet some other great BBQ folks, who are there to take the class. A lot of discussion about procedures and other secrets, are normally shared during these classes, even amongst the students. I know we had a great time at the class we took, and will do it again. I also feel that we learned a lot during the class, and it was money well spent.

A few of Dana’s awards are a great back drop for his class.

Tables set up, and ready for students, at Big Papa’s Country Kitchen, cooking class.

Dana, giving some hands on experience to my wife, Biggi.

These are in my opinion, three ways to up your game as a professional BBQ cook team. I know there are more schools out there, and a few that are on-line or CD classes. I hope to be able to check them out, one day, and be able to render an opinion on them as well, but for now this is all the first hand experiences I have.

It is not easy to keep up with the “super” teams, and it is even more difficult to know just, “what the hell was that judge was thinking?”. I have heard it many times on the competition trail, it has a lot to do with luck, and that is very true, to a point. Luck does play a part in, which tables your entries land on, and which judges are at that table, and even which competitor’s entries are at the same table as your entry. Those are things you, as a cook team can not control, but what you can control is, the quality of BBQ you choose to turn in at any given contest. You and you alone will decide what your flavor profile should be, if your entry is cook to your liking, how you want to arrange your box for turn-in, sauce or no sauce, these are examples of things with in your realm of circumstances that you can control at a BBQ competition. The best thing we can do as cooks is to make the most informed decisions that we can make, this will help us with our performance at a BBQ competition. The best way to make a sound informed decision is by educating our selves as much as possible. Please go out and get involved with competition BBQ, if you can’t cook on a given weekend, go judge an event. Volunteer some time to a organization in your area, I know they would love the help. This is all good stuff to help our sport grow, and when competition BBQ grows, it’s good for all of us. I think I will take some of my own advice, time for a brisket practice cook. Thanks all and God bless!!!

Grilling Evolution: Part 3; The Finale

Posted: December 18, 2012 in BBQ, BBQ Cooking Techniques, Editorial, Team Spotlight
Tags: American Royal, Bandiola Spice, Barbecue, Barbeque, BBQ, BBQ Pitmasters, BBQ Rubs, BBQ Sauce, Biggi, Chicken, chicken wings, Competition, Competition BBQ, Cook, cooking tips, facebook, Florida, Florida BBQ, Food, Grand Champion, Hogs Gone Wild, Lakeland, Lakeland Florida, Meat, Pizza, Pork, Results, Ribs, Sebring, Sebring Florida, Spare Ribs, Unknown BBQ, Whiskey Bent BBQ

Hogs Gone Wild was scheduled to compete in its first professional barbeque competition in Sebring, Florida. I had gone over the schedule many times in my mind; drive to Sebring, cook some great barbeque, win a big trophy, then drive home, easy right? Wrong! The one thing about that fantasy was that there were 29 other teams there with the same scenario running through their minds as well, and only one team that could realize their fantasy. I wish I could tell you that it was our team who took home the GC, but like I said we
are dealing with reality here. I think my team did a GREAT job, especially for our first competition.

Our set up, with my old ’81 F150. Haines City, FL

HGW in Sebring, FL

Overall, the entire experience was a good one for us. That’s not to say there weren’t some hectic moments for my team, especially for me. Those moments materialized as soon as we arrived on our site. I drive a 1981 Ford F150, not much to look at, but the original straight 6 engine has only 109,000 miles. It is a very reliable vehicle, and the manual transmission makes it a good towing vehicle. We arrived in Sebring with no problems, got our site assignment, backed the smoker in, unhooked it, then went to unload the truck, well, the tailgate was stuck. The handle finally broke, and we were unable to lower the tailgate. What timing! This could be a problem. Sure, we could unload everything over the side without lowering the tailgate, except for my Green Mountain Grill, that would be very difficult to unload with the tailgate up, and even harder to reload after the competition ends. We tried for a while with no success. When all else failed, it was time to get out the hammer that I had in my tool box. I beat the tailgate into submission. What a stress relief!

Chicken at Sebring, FL

Finally, we had everything unloaded and set up, our work had just begun. We had to get our large cuts of meat on the GMG for overnight cooking, but first it was time for us to have dinner. What does a barbeque team eat at a barbeque contest? Well, pizza, of course. The last thing we wanted was more barbeque, we have been eating it non-stop for months, and just can’t take anymore. I love
cooking barbeque, but I do not think my family will ever request barbeque at birthday parties anymore. We brought along some frozen pizza, and cooked them up on the grill. Too bad there’s no category for pizza because they came out great. It could have just been that

Pizza on the GMG

we were just hungry, but I was just happy to have a hot meal, and a cold (adult) beverage to enjoy. We had planned on vending our barbeque at this event, but that did not work out well. The barbeque event did not bring in the crowd we had been told to expect. However, the folks that did eat our barbeque loved it! That made it all worth while. To me, there is no greater reward than to have someone enjoy your food. I spent a great deal of time and effort to prepare and cook this food, and for someone to 1) pay me for it , and 2) tell me that it is the best barbeque they have ever had—that’s my trophy. The few dollars we took in vending I think all went for iced tea and lemonade at the event. The weather was not bad, it was warm, but not hot. Our biggest complaint was about the thousands of love bugs. If you have spent time in Florida around March and October, you know what I am referring to—love bug season. Love bugs do not hurt anything, they are just quite pesky, getting into everything. We were feeling them crawling on us for days after the event ended.

Chicken turn-in, Sebring

Ribs turn-in, Sebring

Overall, our team had some obstacles to overcome, and I feel we did a fine job doing just that. There were only three of us at this event,
Biggi (my wife), Sue (my co-worker/team mate) and me. We safely set up, and did what we set out to do—turn in competition-level barbeque. Just completing and turning in all four categories on time is a major accomplishment. Think about it, you have four different meats, each prepared in different ways. They all have different cook times, different seasonings, and different techniques for turn-in appearance. All four meats have only a 10-minute window to turn-in for judging. So, you have to be very good at planning and executing your plan in order to make turn-in time. If you are late, your product will not get judged, all that effort would be for nothing. If your product is not done, you will be disqualified. I heard horror stories about teams who, having just turned in their product, see a FBA representative walking toward them holding a turn-in box. Your heart just drops, and a sick feeling comes over you. All you can do is hope they walk past your site. After all your efforts, to get disqualified, that’s got to hurt! I’m happy to say we got everything turned in without any disqualifications. We placed 19th out of 30 teams, with an overall score of 691, which was about 60 points off the first place team—not bad for the first time out. I did get to hear our name being called, but it was only that they need me to move my truck, not quite what I had in mind.

Pork turn-in, Sebring…WTH were we thinking?

Brisket turn-in, Sebring…thick cut.

I went over everything in my mind before arriving on site, but my execution just wasn’t there. There were times we found ourselves confused as to what we wanted to do, and in which order to do them. When it came to building our boxes, at times we were just standing there staring at the box and each other, not quite sure what we wanted to do. All this showed in our turn-ins. We were not happy with the barbeque we put out at this competition. I knew I needed to get some prospective on
where I want our team to go again, and look at what we could do to improve our next outing. I needed to get a good understanding of what the judges are looking for. Our taste scores weren’t too bad, and our tenderness and appearance needed some work. So, I decided to judge at the FBA’s Mulberry, FL, event. I feel that judging is a good way to keep up this what the judges are looking for, and it gives me a chance to look at what other teams are turning in. I recommend that anyone looking to start a barbeque competition team get
involved with judging. It is an inexpensive way to get an inside look at what the judges want and like, plus you get to eat some really good barbeque. Mulberry is always a good event, bringing in some of the top teams in the FBA. I knew this would be a good opportunity for me to check out some good product. I was chosen to judge the backyard portion of the event, and I was not disappointed. Some of the backyard entries were as good as some of the pros—these folks can cook some “Q.” Not only did the Mulberry event help me see where our product stands compared to other competitors, it also gave me a chance to relax and remember what it is all about—having a good time.

Ribs resting at Bartow, FL

After judging at Mulberry, I went into our next competition with a renewed outlook. I was almost dreading the Sebring competition, only because my nerves were just that bad. I wanted everything just right, which ended up stressing us all, and that effected our product. We decided to do the Backyard competition at the 3rd Annual Bartow Bluegrass & BBQ in Bartow, FL. We also again decided to vend our products, which went well for us at Bartow. We all just felt more comfortable, and things went much smoother for us. Biggi, Sue, and I were there again, but this time we also had the help of our son, TJ, and Sue’s son, Jay. Our sons ran the vending side of the house, and we ran the cooking and competition side. We all worked hard, and we put out some good product. Overall this was a very
good event for all of us.
Up to this time I’d had only some on-line interaction with other teams, but that changed during this event, I was able to put faces with the teams. Funny thing, many folks are remembered more by their team names than their given name. At this event, we made some new friends, and were able to catch up with friends we met in the past. We do not have any, what I would consider, “old friends” yet, we are still the newbies in this group. It is nice to meet people who are so welcoming. We actually had time to do some visiting with fellow barbeque teams. Shawn from Boca BBQ stopped by a few times, and we talked some shop. I had
a great time talking with the guys from Beachneck BBQ, real friendly folks. I got down to talk to Chad from Whiskey Bent BBQ for a short time, they were quite busy keeping the crowd happy with some of their outstanding chicken wings. Many teams were settling in for the night when I noticed a light show going on in the middle of the woods, I had to go check this out. For a moment I felt like I was in a bad Wi-Fi show, then something unexpected happened. Is that…it can’t be…it is, it’s Michael Jackson. I found myself at The Team Unknown
site, they had a full light and sound system show going on. There was one guy from Th e Smoking Guns BBQ) who was putting on a hilarious show that I’m sure would make Michael Jackson rethink becoming a dancer. Today cooking barbeque, tomorrow, “Dancing With The Stars?” Probably not, but it was good for a laugh.

Some barbeque enthusiasts came by to visit, some were interested in talking about starting their own team and had questions about how we got started. Talk about flipping things around in a short period of time; it was less then a year ago when I was on the other side of the fence, asking the questions, and dreaming about starting my team. I did take time out and was happy to talk to these folks, I also gave the advice I received when I was starting my team—just go for it! We were pleased with our turn-ins, we especially felt good about our ribs. They came out quite nice. I got a better knife, which helped me cut the product easier and with better results. Biggi was really on her game building our boxes; we got much higher scores on appearance, which really helped pump up our overall scores. I need to work on our flavor profile, and we need to get a consistent taste that will speak to the judges every time we do a competition. If we can have a consistent cook in each category, the overall results will fall into place. It is nice to do well, even win a category, but it is
nicer to win the Grand Champion or Reserve Grand Champion—that, after all, is the ultimate goal of each competing team. We made all of our turn-ins, and spent the remainder of the afternoon cleaning up, and anxiously waiting for the results. As I said before, I just wanted to hear our name called, just once!

Chicken turn-in, Bartow, they look very dark in the picture.

Ribs turn-in, Bartow

We made our way to the awards. My stomach was in knots, I know we were competing in the backyard division but, to us, it could have been the Super Bowl. It was a defining moment, this will let us know whether or not we are on the right path, or if we just wasting our time. The organizers took the stage, took care of some business, then were ready to announce the Backyard winners. The Bartow competition only announced the top three teams for each category, each of which received a trophy. First up, chicken, I was not happy with our chicken, the flavor was good, but the skin was not bite through, and I was right we did not get a call. Next up, ribs. This was it, I was on the edge of my seat, but I did not want to let anyone see it. I knew if we did not get a call here, it was not going to happen. But it did—we were called for our ribs! We took 2nd place and got a trophy. When they called our name, I don’t think my legs worked at first. We just all stared at each other not quite sure if we had heard correctly. We decided to go to the stage together, what a great feeling! So many folks in the crowd knew what this meant to us, and really gave us a great cheer. We had done it, at that moment, everything I had been working toward came to a climax. This was it, we achieved what we had set out to do—produce award winning
barbeque. All the time spent out at my old smoker that I received from my family all those years ago, all the books, all the research, everything, has lead me to this moment, and it was all worth it! We did not get another call that day, but I was happy with
our results, for the moment. Chad and his Whiskey Bent BBQ team got Grand Champion for the pro division. They had a great
cook, scoring an overall 756. I was finally able to congratulate Chad on his team’s great win, but all Chad could do was congratulate me for our call; what sportsmanship. This guy just won the biggest award offered that day, Grand Champion, and all he could do is talk to me about what a great job MY team did. Chad has been a great mentor to me through out this journey, and I owe more to him then I think he realizes, Thanks, Brother!

Pork turn-in, Bartow, still looking for a good style.

Brisket turn-in, Bartow

At the end of each competition, the Florida BBQ Association provides each team with a score sheet, which gives teams feedback. It records and breaks down the scores for each category by table where it was judged. This way you can see what score each judge gave each of your entries, the rankings for each category, and an overall ranking. I went to get our score sheet, with expectations of our team placing somewhere in the middle of the pack of 16 teams for our division. Well, much to my surprise, I was wrong. Normally the sanctioning body personnel hand out awards for the Grand Champion(G.C.), and the Reserve Grand Champion (R.G.C) in the backyard
division, but this event, they only recognized the G.C. No one knew who got R.G.C. What a surprise when I got our score sheet in my hands—we were awarded R.G.C.! I could not believe it, the first thing I thought was there must be some mistake; there were teams that took home three trophies yet we placed ahead of them overall. As I was stated before, if you have a consistent cook in all categories, you will have good overall results. Along with our second place ribs, we also had 4th place in both pork and brisket, and 5th in chicken,
we ended with an overall score of 722—not bad at all. We were all extremely pleased.

I do not even remember the drive home, my head was so high in the clouds. We did it, I kept thinking, we did it. The special spot in my home I had reserved for a trophy is finally occupied, and we are all saying to each other, “We now have ‘award-winning barbeque,’ how great is that?” When I started down this road, I had no idea how much was involved in making award-winning barbeque. I, like many of
my friends thought, “Oh just throw some meat on the grill and let it go.” There is so much more to it then that, but it is also a more rewarding experience then I ever expected. I know now, barbeque will be a presence in my life from now on. I will be competing as much as possible, and hopefully adding to our trophy collection. Whether or not we ever get a call again, no one can deny that Hogs
Gone Wild BBQ, makes “Award-Winning BBQ.”

2nd place ribs!!!

MOINK Ball Sandwich: VIDEO

Posted: December 16, 2012 in BBQ, BBQ Cooking Techniques, Recipes
Tags: Bandiola, Bandiola Spice, Barbecue, Barbeque, BBQ, BBQ Rubs, BBQ Sauce, Cook, cooking tips, Florida BBQ, Food, Green Mountain Grill, Home and Garden, Lakeland Florida, Rooftop, Shopping, Submarine sandwich, www youtube

This was a fun project. I made this video to be posted on Green Mountain Grill’s web-site, as part of a competition they were running. I was able to incorporate 3 of my favorite products in BBQ, Green Mountain Grills, Bandiola Spice rubs & Rooftop BBQ Sauce.

gmg band6

rooftop-bbq-sauce

HGW

MOINK Balls are something I have made in the past, and love them. For me, it does not get much better then bacon wrapped around meat balls, and then BBQ, but I think I found it. By placing the MOINK Balls into a sub sandwich and using cool slaw, it was a great combination of flavors. I did use a toasted roll, which added an other element to this wonderful sandwich.

Please view the video, and enjoy.

Happy Memorial Day!!! Here’s a couple small tips for your cookout.

Posted: May 27, 2012 in BBQ, BBQ Cooking Techniques
Tags: Barbecue, Big-box store, Burger, Burgers, Charcoal, Charcoal lighter fluid, cooking tips, Grill, Hamburgers, Memorial Day, Pepper Jack Cheese, World War II

To start off I would like to say Happy Memorial Day to everyone, and please hug a Veteran today, and thank them everyday, for what we are all able to enjoy here in our great country. Having been raised by a World War II veteran, my Father, taught me at a young age to respect our Men and Women in uniform. I am now a disabled veteran myself, and I understand more now then ever before that, the grunts are the one’s who make this country great, not the Washington group, they just try to guide, but we all know where the sacrifice, for what we have, comes from. Please while your grilling or BBQing this weekend, or anytime throughout the year, just take a moment, even if it’s a silent moment, just say a small thank you, that’s enough for them!!!

I know there will be a lot of outdoor cooking going on this weekend, I our town right now charcoal is on sell everywhere. The “Big Box Stores” have slashed the price of charcoal, and there is no limit on how many you can buy. Yesterday my wife came home with a trunk full of charcoal, God I love that Women!!!!! While shopping at these types of stores I always check out the grilling section, just to look at all the unnecessary accessories on the market. I start looking to see if there is something I need, or could use, but no matter how many different configurations you come up with for a grill brush, it’s still just a grill brush.

Back to the charcoal, it seems like every time I’m doing a bit of “window shopping” in the grilling area, some folks are there planning an upcoming “BBQ“, and the first thing they grab is the lighter fluid, eeeeeekkkkkk!!!!!! I saw a young couple place one bag of charcoal into there cart, and top it off with 3 bottles of lighter fluid, and then asked themselves, “do you think that is enough?” WOW. Now I know there are BBQ teams out there that use lighter fluid, and one of the greatest of all times has told everyone that he uses it, and does very well, it’s just not for me. I even heard on the radio, on the way home from work last night, for folks who plan to BBQ this weekend, to be very careful with the lighter fluid, the DJ had to also remind listeners, not to substitute gasoline for lighter fluid!!! I did not know this was something that had to be put out there, but apparently it happens all the time.

Yes, I have used lighter fluid in the past, I would NEVER use it again, I just can’t take the flavor, and yes I know that it can be burned off and all that, but I just do not like it. For me it is great for a cook that has quickly get a fire going to do some grilling on hot coals, not the low and slow BBQ that takes hours to produce. I love grilling, burgers, hot dogs, wings & brats, I will be having some or all later today at a Memorial Day cookout that we have been invited too. I know the cook, and I guarantee he will not be using lighter fluid, so I’m sure it will be cooked well. Please, just consider using some alternative methods to start your charcoal grills, I know playing with fire is fun and all that, but if your serious about your food tasting good, take a look at maybe an electric starter, or even using a chimney starter. Both very easy to use, fast convenient and are sold right next to the lighter fluid in most stores. Now off my soap box….

Here are a few pics from last year, just to put you in the mood. Have a great weekend all!!!!

Now that’s a fire!!!

Topped with pulled pork & onions sauteed in HGW Sweet with some Heat BBQ sauce!!!

Oh yea, I almost forgot….it is stuffed with Pepper Jack Cheese!!!! OMG!!!!

That is the famous BBB, “Biggi Barbeque Burger”. This was one of the best burgers I ever tasted.

Leftover Chicken? Here’s a new idea: Mexican Lasagna

Posted: April 8, 2012 in BBQ Cooking Techniques, Recipes
Tags: Casserole, Chicken, Cook, Enchilada, Home, lasagna, Left Overs, leftover, Meat, Sautéing, Tortilla

Doing competition BBQ, there is always left-over meat. Most teams cook more meat then what is the minimum amount necessary for turn-ins, trying to insure that they get the best meat possible to present to the judges. My team will typically cook 18-20 chicken thighs, 6 racks of ribs, 4 pork butts & two briskets. There is no way we will use all that meat during the competition, so we look to give it away to friends and family, or at times to folks in need. Pork and ribs are normally gone before the clean up from the competition is done, the brisket is one thing that we normally split amongst ourselves.

Chicken is a different story all together, I am very particular about the chicken, I don’t mind giving away left-over pieces that were cooked at the competition, only while it is still hot, but I also have many that do not even make it to the prep table. I normally end up with approx. 30 thighs when I buy chicken for a competition, the first round of cuts, working our way down to the final 8 that make their way into the turn-in box, starts before I start trimming. I look for pieces that have no chance in being worth trimming, because I won’t have room for more then 20 pieces, to cook. I take the worst looking thighs, which are still good chicken parts, put them into a freezer bag, and place them, straight into the freezer.

Chicken thighs, in line to see if they made the cut.

After a while, with 10 or more thighs going into the freezer before each competition, sooner or later, you need to clean house. What to do with all these thighs? I enjoy a good chicken and rice bake, but after two or three of those, it’s time to switch things up a bit. My wife and I have a very good, chicken enchilada recipe, but doing all that rolling, and warming the tortillas in the sauce before rolling, can be a bit time consuming. We happen to see a show that inspired a little tweaking on our recipe, and the outcome is our Mexican Lasagna. Please enjoy!!!

The first thing you will want to do is prepare you filling, which consists of:

2 Cups cooked chicken, diced (we just boiled the thighs till they were completely cooked)

2 8oz. packages of Cream Cheese

1 Medium Onion

1 8oz. can of Copped Green Chilies

1/4 tsp Granulated Garlic

Salt & Pepper to taste

Saute the onions in a sauce pan, adding the chicken, green chilies & cream cheese with seasonings until completely blended. Allow to cool before using in dish.

To assemble, you will need:

Corn tortillas (approx. 16-20)

Enchilada Sauce, (we used 3, 10 oz. cans)

Shredded Cheese, as much or as little as you like.

Filling that has been cooled to room temperature.

Grease the bottom and sides of a large flat casserole dish, we just use a cooking spray. Spread a thin layer of enchilada sauce on the bottom of your pan.

Start with a layer of tortillas:

More Enchilada Sauce:

Then spread on a layer of filling:

A layer of cheese:

Then, repeat…

Tortillas:

Sauce:

Filling:

Cheese:

Now your dish is ready for the oven, preheat your oven to 375F. Place your dish in the oven for 35-45 mins. the cheese should come out golden brown. Let it rest for at least 15 mins. after removing from the oven. Caution: Very Hot!!!

Cut into portions for serving:

Serve with sour cream & onions on top. Ice cold beer with be my beverage of choice for this meal. ENJOY!!!

HGW, makes ABC Action News, w/ Celebrity Grill.

Posted: February 21, 2012 in BBQ, BBQ Cooking Techniques, BBQ News
Tags: ABC News, BBQ, chicken wings, cooking tips

Please check out this short news clip featuring JM from Celebrity Grill. This is the short version, the series on cooking chicken wings will be out soon. JM was nice enough to wear our HGWBBQ, t-shirt for this video.

How to cook the perfect chicken wing.

Please take a look.

Celebrity Grill Giveaway, you don’t want to miss this one!!!

Posted: February 18, 2012 in BBQ, BBQ Cooking Techniques, BBQ News
Tags: facebook, giveaways, video challenge, www youtube

I have know JM, Jonathan Martinez, Producer/Host, of Celebrity Grill for about one year now. JM is one person who has, always impressed me with his knowledge around the grill, and his desire to continue to expand his knowledge of the grilling world.

JM has recently produced another one of his grill videos, this one was about chicken wings, this video is currently still being edited, but I can not wait to check it out. I was privileged to be a guest in JM’s first video challenge, Please be sure to check out all four videos.

JM has one of the best grilling web-sites out there, period!!! His site is full of all types of grilling information, and resources. I refer to it often, and learn something new each time. Celebritygrillshow.com

Now if that is not reason enough you check out JM, and all he has to offer the grilling world, how about some great giveaways? This guy is mad, how can he do it? He is offering the BEST giveaways, right now, on both Facebook & Twitter. It is very easy to sign up for both, don’t worry, he won’t be hounding you with spam after you sign up, and if you don’t win the giveaway, you still come out on top, by learning about some new grilling supplies. His current giveaway on Facebook is worth $323 & his Twitter giveaway is worth $225.

Please click here to learn how to easily enter both of these giveaways, Celebrity Grill Giveaway.

Good Luck!!!!

Rib Practice

Posted: February 13, 2012 in BBQ, BBQ Cooking Techniques

Doing a follow up on Practice cooks, are they necessary?

Yes, doing more practice today, ribs were on the schedule, and believe me, it was time for a ribs practice. We took a beating at our last competition on our ribs, finishing 60th out of 73 teams. Normally ribs are our go to category, we made some changes and got away from what has worked for us, in the past. Sometimes that can be a big mistake. So it was time to get back to the test kitchen, and really see what was going on with our ribs.

This was our turn-in at our last competition, really lacking color.

I was really not pleased with our ribs the last few times out, so we knew we had to test things out. So we gathered a few tasters, which funny enough, after doing BBQ for a couple of years, willing tasters are hard to come by. It use to be easy to find some folks, usually those who live with you, to try out your BBQ, but now, every time I have a BBQ event planned everyone mysteriously has to go to work, visit a sick friend or just leave town. So today I had to go outside of the house to get my tasters, and that worked out well.

Couple of nice racks!!!

I always try to run as close to the same quality products, and times, that I would use at the competition. I like to try a couple different recipes, and do a comparison.

Ribs getting happy before going on the smoker.

Today, I did a couple completely new recipes and used our normal recipe, with just a small variation. I did learn a couple things, the main thing was that were closer to being on the right path, then we thought. The ribs that we used our normal recipe, with one important change, was the hands down favorite.

I am very glad we did this practice cook, I thought we would be going with a completely new recipe, after the disappointments from our last couple of rib cooks, but the “new” recipe was a greater disappointment. To have just gone out to a competition and use a new rib recipe without testing it first, would be a huge roll of the dice. It is easier on the pocket, and the pride, do put out a little extra for a small practice cook, then to put out the cost of the meat, and the full expenses for the competition, on a gamble. So, make some friends happy, and practice, practice, practice.

Chicken, Your Nemesis?

Posted: January 22, 2012 in BBQ, BBQ Cooking Techniques

Here is an article I wrote a few months ago, and I posted it on Huck’s Hut, he has given his blessings that I can re-post it here, thanks Bruce. Please check out http://www.huckshut.com great site for a types of BBQ information.

I have made a few changes in my techniques since writing this article, which is what BBQ is all about. Learn the basic techniques, then make your product your. I think there are good basic techniques here, please enjoy.

One thing that a competition BBQ team needs each time out, is to have a consistent cook. Getting your name called in a category is fun, but everyone there wants to hear their name called last. You don’t have to win all four categories, but just have a strong cook in all. I was doing well in the pork & rib categories, but struggled in the chicken & brisket categories, I think it is these cuts of meats that most home cooks do not have experience with. Coming from the backyard into cooking competition BBQ, I had never cooked a brisket till I was in my first competition…we did not come in DAL, but…enough said. Chicken on the other hand, everyone has cooked chicken at some point in their lives, but cooking to competition standard…now that’s a different story. To many, chicken is the arched enemy of BBQ teams, there are many steps that need to be followed to achieve results that will please the judges. The procedure to get your chicken to that point, can be quite time consuming, some folks take longer then others, I have spent 5 hours prepping chicken for a competition, but of course, as time went on the more beer I drank, the more socializing I was doing, well you get the picture.

I try to do a chicken practice cook, when ever I can, and chicken is one meat that my family still enjoy, with practice comes results, I am probably most proud of our first place chicken award at our last competition. This was our first call EVER for chicken, backyard or pro, we got RGC at the event, but I keep telling everyone about our first place chicken!!!

First Place chicken St. Cloud FL 2011

Work paid off

Our take for a day at St. Cloud, FL Sweet!!!

I was happy with where we were going with our chicken, but I still had to try it again, just to make sure it was not by accident that we did so well in chicken, you can do the exact same procedures each time your out at a competition, and come home with different results each time. I want to do everything I can on my end to give the judges something to work with, if they score me down from what I turn in, at least I know that I have done everything I could have done. A couple of weeks ago I was taking, online, with a friend of ours here at Hogs Gone Wild BBQ, C-Dub’s BBQ Rub.

Great Floks, Check them out!!!

I have not had the opportunity to check out their great rubs, but I plan on doing it very soon, but I hear it is GREAT on chicken. Anyway, C-Dub’s and I were taking about chicken prep, online, and it got the urge to do a practice cook going again for me. C-Dubs and I exchanged a couple of ideas, then it was off to the drawing board. Thanks C-Dub’s!!!

I will be happy to share how I prepare my competition chicken with everyone, most things here can be found, more in depth trough out the internet, this is just a basic guide to do a couple of things that I feel are necessary to create competition style chicken. I will not be able to share certain, “proprietary” secrets, and flavoring will need to be something that everyone should do to their liking, but I did give you a good hint above!!! (Another hint…I do not use muffin pans!!!)

Let’s begin, I always cook thighs, white meat is fun to try out and experiment with, I have even thought about wings, but I always come back to thighs. There are many teams that have used wing, with good results, I’m just happy to get the thighs where I like them. Thighs stay juicy and have a good flavor, I do not take the bone out. I started off by cutting the “knuckle” joint off, but I have decided to stop doing that, I do not like the way the bone is exposed on the end piece.

Chicken straight from the package

I look for the package of chicken, that has the most uniformed pieces, the skin looks good & does not have any discolorations. Some chicken skin will appear to be yellow, I try to stay away from those brands, I want the skin to be as white as possible.

I take special measures with chicken, I store it separate from all other meats, I use different cutting boards & work are designated just for my chicken. The first thing I do is wash the chicken, then I take the skin completely off the piece of chicken. I just pull it off, some folks say it is better to cut it off, but I like to preserve as much skin as possible. I trim the fat from each side of the chicken, and make the piece nice and uniformed shape.

Keep all the skin for later

From the under side of the thigh, there is a small loose piece of meat, commonly referred to as the “oyster”, I always remove this piece. When a judge bites into the piece of chicken, this could put the flavor off, and has a strange texture after cooking, best to just remove it.

The "Oyster" take it off

After I cut off the oyster, I want to take care of a problem that gets many teams disqualified at the competitions, taking out the blood vein, (that’s what I call it, i don’t know the official name for it). This vein can be full of blood, even after washing the chicken thoroughly. The chicken can cook to temperature, but this vein can hold the blood, when bitten into, it will flow out, as if the chicken is under cooked, and we all know what comes from bloody chicken…disqualification!!! I normally find this vein near the bone, I will go in with my knife and work it along the bone, using the backside of the knife, if you use the sharp side of the knife, you’ll just cut through the vein. Use the backside of the knife, and pull the vein out as far as you can then cut it at each end. There is some extra work doing this, but it is better then having your box returned to you at the competition with a DQ.

Make sure to get the blood vein out.

This could mean the difference between D.Q. and 1st place.

I want my piece to be a nice uniformed piece of chicken, I take off as much fat as I can. Normally end up with a heart shaped thigh.

I will place the thighs only, keep the skins off to the side and cold, into a zip-lock bag for marinating. There are many commercial marinates and chicken soaks on the market, if you have a favorite, please continue to use them, I use Italian salad dressing. Yes it is true, Italian dressing makes a good marinate for chicken, the oils and vinegar works well on the chicken, and gives good flavor. I will try to have my chicken in the marinate over night. Please be sure to rinse all the marinate off your chicken before cooking.

Now I turn my attention to the skin. Skin on the chicken is another BIG issue. Even before the judge is able to taste the bite he/she had just taken, they evaluate if there is, what is known as “bite through skin”. The last thing you, as a competition BBQ cook wants, is for the judge to take that bite of chicken, and the entire skin comes off in that one bite. The judge was not able to bite through the skin cleanly. Smoking/grilling chicken, can lead to tough and rubbery skin, not a good thing to have on any chicken, mostly your turn-in chicken, one of the best ways to insure that does not happen, you need the skin to be a thin as possible. All the fat from the underside of the skin MUST come off. This does take some doing, and I would suggest doing some practice, before going to a competition. This will be something you will need to master, and not many folks will get it right on the first try. There are a couple of ways to achieve this, some like to scrape the skin, I like to use a thin filet knife, and cut the fat off.

Cutting the fat off the undside of the skin

Skin needs to be so thin, it only has one side!!! lol

Now I wrap the skin back onto the thigh, keeping everything as tight as possible, and place the thigh on your rack for cooking. As far as seasoning, and some special cooking techniques, there are so many out there, I will leave this up to you to decide which is best suited for you and your team.

All lined up, and ready to cook

I cook thighs at 300 degrees for at least 1 hour & 45 mins. For chicken you are looking for an internal temperature of 178-182 degrees. DO NOT UNDER COOK YOUR CHICKEN!!! When the chicken is at the point where I am satisfied that it is done, temp is good, and only clear juices coming out of thigh, I will then dip the entire piece into my sauce and place back on the grill for another 15 mins at 300 degrees.

Chicken after being sauced, ready to be eaten

I think we have a couple of useable pieces here.

Test your product.

Now that’s what I mean by “Bite Through Skin”

We made a mock box for your practice cook, it is not an official box, actually is the top of a serving plate. The competitions we enter are Florida Barbecue Association events, and they do not allow garnish of any kind.

Not bad!!!

I hope this has helped answer a couple questions about chicken, trust me, you never stop learning. Fell free to add comments, or to contact me at http://www.hogsgonewild.com Thanks for your interest.

Practice cooks, are they necessary?

Posted: January 15, 2012 in BBQ, BBQ Cooking Techniques, BBQ News, Uncategorized

Many of us who have entered the competition BBQ scene, started the same way, in the backyard of our house, cooking for family and friends. All of whom say, “man, that is the best BBQ I have every eaten!!!” Naturally we think, yea I can take this show on the BBQ road and Kick some Butt!!!, well there are about 5000 other teams out there who fell the same way. How do you stay ahead in this fast paced competition? Well you Mother was right, practice does make perfect.

One of my first attempts at ribs, for family and friends.

One of my first attempts at ribs, I learned early, resting is good.

When I decided that I wanted to start a BBQ team, I read as many books about BBQ that I could find, and they all agreed on one thing, do not go into a competition with a new untested recipe, you must do practice cooks. Well, I have been called the “C” word a couple of time before in my life, yes I am, of course, talking about being called…. “Cheap”….I like to call it “Monetarily Challenged”!!! lol It just goes against everything I learned while growing up, my Father lived during the Great Depression, so we were taught to really stretch our dollars. Well, I’m here to tell you, a BBQ competition is not a place to become, “thrifty”. Granted, you do not have to go out and buy a $30,000 BBQ rig to get started, but you will have to put some time and money into getting started.

The first time I went out to any type of cook set-up with my team was at an FBA event they put on every year for the teams known as the “Fun Cook”, it’s just a cook, in an RV park, no crowds, just the teams setting up, having a good time, and cooking all four categories. The FBA normally will have a judging class going on, and they get to judge the turn-ins. FBA also has a “No Holds Bar” class, geared towards folks who are starting a cook team, or just want to learn more about BBQ, we participated in this class, $50 for the class, can’t beat that. It was a great deal, and I learned a lot from it, like, you need to practice. The students in the class, also cooked all four categories, and were judged. Going out to that class, I had only tried cooking competition style chicken once, and I had not even touched a brisket, much less cooked one. I think there were about 24 teams there, we did not get a call. I thought we would just walk in there and slay them, not the way it goes in BBQ competition. Not one of my great moments in BBQ, thought about ending it right there……….I’ll save that for another time.

Our first set-up at the FBA Fun Cook

In the Photo above, the RV is not ours!!!! lol We were ruffing it!!!

Walking away, with out hearing our name, was quite an eye opener, I knew I need to really start practicing, so that is what I did, practice.

I was lucky, I worked at a place where there were may, willing participants, to “sample” my BBQ. I always got some good feed back from them, and they would also help offset my costs, by paying a small fee for the BBQ, (I guess i am cheap).

Just a few Ribs to practice with.

Practice Pork Butts

I do not think there is a time, where as a cook team, you can really get comfortable, and say, “I don’t need to do a practice cook anymore”. I am planning a practice chicken cook today. There are always things that need to be “tightened up”, checking your cook times, checking your recipes, trying new sauces, practice cooks can make the difference between, getting that walk to the stage, or walking away, empty handed.

Keep ‘em smokin’

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