BBQ Pitmasters Season 2

I read a Twitter post from BBQ Pitmasters creator John Markus recently announcing the narrowing of the field for the season 2 cast.  It took me awhile to warm up to Season 1.  Having competed in KCBS contests for several years, what I was watching on TV and what I actually experienced at bbq contests did not match up well. 

After the 3rd episode, my attitude toward the show changed a little and it started to grow on me.  I began to realize that some of the hype was necessary to draw a bigger audience (and advertisers to pay the bills), but that doesn't mean I agreed with all of it.

I wonder what Season 2 will bring?

BBQ Business Ideas

What choices do contest cooks have to combat rising expenses? For most contest cooks, starting a bbq business aimed at capitalizing on bbq contest participation seems viable. The basic choices are as follows:

--Start selling bbq rub

--Start selling bbq sauce

--Start a bbq vending / concession business

--Start a bbq catering service

--Start a barbecue website

--Pursue corporate sponsorship

On the surface, each of those ideas sounded promising to us. They certainly sound simple enough. How hard could it be?

We found a co-packer and started selling our bbq spice rubs at contests and to family and friends. If you're thinking of taking a similar approach, plan to spend at least $850 in start-up expenses, add another $300 or $400 if you want professionally printed labels for your bottles. To earn back the start-up costs, plan on selling at least 1,000 bottles of rub in 10 oz. bottles (600 if you decide to start with a larger 13 oz. bottle).

It would be much easier to sell bbq sauce in these volumes, but the start-up expenses are about 400% greater, so increase the sales to 4,000 small bottles (or 2,400 big bottles). After a little research with the health department and state regulators, we crossed bbq vending, concessions, and catering off the list quickly. The start-up expenses to comply with the legal requirements are nearly $20,000, plus rent on a commissary facility to store supplies and prepare foods.

I started two barbecue websites that do generate a small amount of revenue, but not nearly enough to support the cost of contests. If you have technical expertise, this might a viable alternative for you, but based on my "seat of the pants" knowledge level, it's not been the answer to our expense issues.  Hint: YouTube.com, Twitter.com, and Facebook.com will help you increase your web site traffic if you use them strategically.

Which leaves one more option -- corporate sponsorship. I haven't put any efforts into obtaining a corporate sponsor for our bbq team and as difficult as it sounds, it is probably the best option on this list. And that brings us back to the lack of spectator involvement in the events. Without large numbers of spectators at bbq contests (I'm talking thousands), the corporate sponsorship is going to be hard to come by.

Buffalo Ribs

Hello all, it is The BBQ Guy's better half.  I just ordered 2 racks of buffalo ribs from a local grass fed buffalo farmer.  We both like buffalo/bison, but have only eaten the basics -- steaks, bison hotdogs, and  buffalo burgers, so I decided that next weekend he will be smoking something NEW!!

Long story short -- I am asking for suggestions to pass along to my personal BBQ Chef.  Anybody out there with any Buffalo bbq experience??

Oh no I've got to go The BBQ Guy has just discovered I hijacked his blog!!!

What Puts the Sweet in BBQ Sauce?

It's become common place to find high fructose corn syrup in most barbecue sauces these days.  In a recent trip to my local grocery store, I searched each and every bottle of barbecue sauce on the shelf for those that did not contain high fructose corn syrup on the label.  Care to take a guess how many I found out of the 35+ bottles for sale?  Four - and I purchased a bottle of each.  All of the bottles I purchased contained corn syrup on the label as one the first one or two ingredients.  Two of them were made by the same company.

I'm not sure I know what it takes to qualify as corn syrup and I definitely don't know how it becomes "high fructose" so I decided to do a little research.

What is high fructose corn syrup?

According to MayoClinic.com:

High-fructose corn syrup is a common sweetener and preservative. High-fructose corn syrup is made by changing the sugar (glucose) in cornstarch to fructose — another form of sugar. The end product is a combination of fructose and glucose. Because it extends the shelf life of processed foods and is cheaper than sugar, high-fructose corn syrup has become a popular ingredient in many sodas, fruit-flavored drinks and other processed foods. Click here to read more.

And according to ScienceDaily.com:

...sucrose is composed of equal amounts of the two simple sugars -- it is 50 percent fructose and 50 percent glucose -- but the typical high-fructose corn syrup...features a slightly imbalanced ratio, containing 55 percent fructose and 42 percent glucose....Second, as a result of the manufacturing process for high-fructose corn syrup, the fructose molecules in the sweetener are free and unbound, ready for absorption and utilization. In contrast, every fructose molecule in sucrose that comes from cane sugar or beet sugar is bound to a corresponding glucose molecule and must go through an extra metabolic step before it can be utilized. Click here to read more.

So to summarize my understanding of those two articles, cane sugar appears to be a complex ingredient and slightly costlier and high-fructose corn syrup appears in processed foods as a preservative and is added to food readily accessible to the bloodstream.

So what is the difference between corn syrup and the "high fructose" corn syrup?

From TheFitShack.com:

...corn syrup solids are in a powder form, HFCS is a liquid. Corn syrup solids are not as sweet as HFCS, however it’s all sugar in the end. Corn syrup solids are dextrose sugar, and high fructose corn syrup is fructose sugar." Click here to read more.

Perhaps most interesting to me is that corn syrup is derived from a powder (corn starch) and can be refined as a powder or liquid.  The corn syrup is processed and most of the water is removed to leave the powder.  High fructose corn syrup is derived from an enzyme reaction and also can be either a powder or a liquid, depending the desired usage.  Click here to read about the processing in more detail.

Wow.  I feel smarter now. How about you?

Whole Chicken

I wanted to share some pictures of my Memorial Day bbq chicken.  This beer can chicken was cooked on my WSM (minus the water pan) at 300-325 degrees and took about 2 1/2 hours to reach 170 degrees in the breast and 180 degrees in the drumsticks. 
After eating chicken cooked this way, I'm not sure I'll return to cooking individual chicken pieces ever again. The brine allows a practical way to add flavor and retain moisture.

Original Charcoal Company Briquettes

I posted this originally a couple of years ago.  I had good results with these Rancher briquettes, but haven't been able to find them since.  I'm pretty sure I got this bag at Wal-Mart, but can't find it locally any more. Has anybody got any suggestions for who might carry this charcoal the Tampa, FL area?

For this bbq blog article, I'm testing some charcoal briquettes from The Original Charcoal Company as I cook a packer brisket purchased from a local butcher shop.

The label says these rancher briquettes are 100% all-natural hardwood briquette charcoal carbon madera which is bound together with yucca starch. The back of the package explains that you get lump flavor, heat, and burn time from a briquette.

When it was available, I used to purchase 40 pound bags of madera lump charcoal from a bbq supplier. I had some very good results with the madera lump in bbq competitions. The burn time was a lot longer than the Royal Oak lump I had been using. I'm expecting the same type of results from the briquettes as compared to Royal Oak briquettes. I guess we'll see how the testing goes and if the madera briquettes continue to be available from my suppliers.

Compared to oak and hickory, I think the madera lump burns even hotter, but I'm not sure I can prove it. I call it the "seat of the pants" testing method, which isn't very sceintific, but most of the time it's the best testing technique a barbecue guy can use...because it's quick, fast, cheap, and easy!

Stubb's Charcoal Briquettes

I grilled some bison burgers tonight and used Stubb's Charcoal Briquettes.  I've used these briquettes before and have no real complaints.  I think it works better for grilling than low and slow bbq cooking.  It seems to cook quite a bit hotter than the Royal Oak lump or briquettes that I usually use.

By the way, if you've not visited Stubb's home on the World Wide Web, I'd urge you to check it out. I've seen their products in grocery stores for years, but not really taken time to learn the story behind them.  I'm a big Stevie Ray Vaughn fan, so I enjoyed reading about the restaurant "in the beginning".  Pretty interesting for sure.

BBQ Chicken

BBQ 25, by Adam Perry Lang

I received the following press release today regarding BBQ 25, a new bbq book.

Grilling master, barbecue chef and best-selling author Adam Perry Lang has spent his career perfecting what he calls “3D Flavor” for the barbecue. Not satisfied with flat boring flavors, Adam has created an effortless method of layering flavors to get extraordinary results from your grill. In his newest book, BBQ 25: The World’s Most Flavorful Now Made Foolproof (HarperStudio, May 11, 2010, $19.99/boardbook) Adam distills his vast knowledge and creates the “25 recipes that you will cook 95 percent of the time” and puts them into a format that’s a first for a cookbook.

His hyper-visual “BBQ survival guide” comes in a wind-proof, easy-to-clean board book built to withstand beer and barbecue sauce spills out at the grill. BBQ 25 is organized by type of meat (beef, pork, lamb, chicken, fish & miscellaneous) and cooking time (quick, medium, long). He begins every chapter with a short list of “Sourcing Tips” and then dives in. Directions are split into “preparation” and “cooking method” and Adam communicates his 3D flavor-building techniques into easy-to-remember phrases including “season like rain,” and “glisten with oil.”In addition, each recipe is illustrated with full-color photographs of the process, a pictorial of the required tools, and ingredient lists for marinades, seasonings, and brines. And every dish can be done in 10 (or less) steps from preparation to table.

Adam takes every opportunity available to build flavor by marinating in advance, basting during and saucing (sometimes right on the resting board) post-grilling. He prefers indirect heat and likes to keep things moving to ensure even cooking. Grilling is an active sport for Adam—and it’s not enough just to marinate OR slather with barbecue sauce. Adam employs both for a superlative result. Take his nine-step recipe for boneless chicken breasts as an example. He begins with a wet marinade of herbs and spices and lemon juice which you “mix and crush with your hands” in a re-sealable bag. After you brine for at least an hour, dry them off and sear them in a cast-iron pan that’s been heating on your grill. While the chicken is cooking in the pan, make a glaze with herbs, honey, olive oil and lemon zest and place into foil pan on the grill. Then start moving. Cook the chicken back and forth between the foil pan and straight on the grill. The flavors build as you cook. When the chicken has finished cooking and rests, boil the glaze down and pour it over the rested breasts for the most flavor infused chicken your guests have ever eaten.

More than half of the recipes in BBQ 25 are “Quick Cook” because as Adam writes in his introduction, “Sometimes all you want is instant gratification. Relax, have fun, embrace simple ingredients and make them into something spectacular. Enjoy the stuff that surrounds you, and cook while having a beer, hanging with your family or watching a game with your friends. You want recipes that are straightforward, easy-to-follow and look really professional, with flavors that blow your mind.” What more is there to say?

# # #

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Adam Perry Lang graduated with distinction from the Culinary Institute of America and cooked at Daniel, Le Cirque, and Restaurant Guy Savoy. Tossing his pursuit of stars for pursuit of flavor, Adam became a pioneer in urban barbecue and opened a “rib shack”, the nationally acclaimed Daisy May’s BBQ U.S.A in New York City. Adam also left the bright lights of New York City kitchens for the competition barbecue circuit and has taken the prizes of Grand Champion honors at the World Pork Expo in Des Moines, Iowa and a First Place victory for his Pork Shoulder at the Kansas City American Royal a.k.a. "The World Series of BBQ". He also serves as meat maestro at Mario Batali’s Las Vegas Italian steakhouse, Carnevino, and is currently partnering with Jamie Oliver in Barbecoa, a restaurant scheduled to open in London in October 2010.

BBQ 25: The World’s Most Flavorful Recipes Now Made Foolproof
By Adam Perry Lang
Foreword by Jamie Oliver
Photographs by David Loftus
Price: $19.99 / Board book
Publication Date: May 11, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-06-199023-6

Florida Citrus Poultry Marinade

I've been working on a new marinade this weekend.  As a resident of the Tampa Bay area my goal is to embrace some of the local ingredients that are available and develop a unique flavor profile for bbq chicken. Here's a recipe that I plan to try out this afternoon.  I've changed it up a lot, but this recipe is based loosely on a recipe in Dr. BBQ's Big Time Barbecue Cookbook.

1 cup orange juice
1/2 cup tangerine juice
2 TBSP soy sauce
1 TBSP cloves
1 TBSP white sugar
2 TBSP sea salt
1 medium onion (chopped)
1 medium poblano pepper (chopped)

I call this a marinade because a brine would have substantially more salt.  I use this marinade by injecting it into chicken with a Cabela's injector and letting it marinade in the refrigerator overnight.

Poblano peppers are mildly hot at 1000-2,500 SHU's. For comparison, jalapeno peppers are 10,000 SHU's.  Feel free to substitute jalapeno peppers in the recipe if you decide to try it out. I wanted to use a pepper that's a little on the mild side because jalapenos are borderline too hot for my household.

Some may prefer lemon juice in the recipe instead of tangerine juice. I am trying tangerine juice because I've tried lemon juice before and didn't like the flavor profile. The lemon juice is a little too agressive and it presents an "in your face" approach. With the tangerine juice, I'm trying to take a more conservative approach.  If you've never tasted tangerine juice, it's very similar to orange juice.

Grilled Chicken and Vegetable Kabobs

We took a short drive down to St. Petersburg yesterday to visit the Saturday Market in the parking lot of Al Lang Stadium.

We purchased some fresh organic green peppers, oinions, and tomatoes and taste tested food from several of the vendors.  Fresh is always better, so we added some chicken to the mix and I fired up the grill.

The fine folks at McCormick and Lawry's sent me some Lawry's Szechwan Sweet & Sour bbq marinade and Tuscan Sun Dried Tomato marinade last week. I decided to try the Szechwan on the kabobs. 

I marinated the chicken in the Lawry's bbq sauce for about 4 hours and grilled everything using lump charcoal.  The marinade added a slight Szechwan heat to go along with the sweet and sour flavor.  I don't know the chemistry behind it, but the chicken breasts were very moist and tender. 

If I do this again I will sear the kabobs over direct heat and then move them into an aluminum foil pan or wrap. I think this will prevent the charring that occurs when the marinade begins to burn over the direct flame.

I can't wait to try out Lawry's Tuscan Sun Dried Tomato marinade on some pork chops next.

Simple Grilled Chicken Wings and Drums

--Marinade in Newman's Own "Olive Oil and Vinegar" for 5 - 6 hours (in the refrigerator)

--Start your charcoal and let it grey over a little, before adding chicken to grill
--Cook chicken slowly (around the edges of the grate) to reduce flare ups
--When it's done, brush with your favorite bbq sauce to finish
--Enjoy

 

The marinade will add moisture and internal flavor, while the bbq sauce adds a little kick.  No matter how you grill your chicken, I would not eat chicken that is not marinated in Newman's Own "Olive Oil and Vinegar". It really makes a difference.

Jimbo's Pit Bar B Q - Tampa Florida

I've lived in Tampa for three years. During that time I've been searching for "real" bbq ribs with little luck. Linda and I finally found them Saturday at Jimbo's Pit Bar B Q.

Lots of restaurants serve bbq pork ribs, but many are overcooked, over tender, and candied.  Jimbo's ribs are just the way I like them.  They still taste like pork and the meat doesn't fall off the bone. It tears off  and leaves bite marks.

Located in Tampa on West Kennedy near the Fox 13 studios, Jimbo's is a barbecue location. It's not some fancy upscale foo foo restaurant masquerading as a wannabe bbq joint. It's the real deal. After 33 years in Tampa, Jimbo's is still going strong.  The atmosphere is casual. The tables and chairs are rustic. Even the exterior is painted a plain, flat, brown color.  There's no stucco or fancy brick work at Jimbo's.  It's a "bbq joint" - plain and simple.  

The smoker is located out back and they cook with real wood.  I think it's an Oyler, but I haven't been able to verify that for sure.  I know Jimbo's in Lakeland definitely uses an Oyler Pit manufactured by J & R Manufacturing.  If you're not familar with an Oyler Pit here's a quick run down.  The pit is wood fired, NSF and UL listed.

Linda had the chopped pork sandwich and I had the combo platter with pork ribs and sliced beef.  The sauce is served warm. I hadn't seen that before, but I liked it. 

Both pork entrees were very good. The sliced beef, made from Beef Round according to the menu, wasn't the brisket I had expected and it needed a little more sauce than I usually like, but I enjoyed trying something different.

Bubba Ques - Brandon Florida

We made a second trip to Bubba Que's in the Brandon-Valrico area this weekend. The restaurant is located on Hwy 60 near Wal-Mart. The tables provide a choice of 6 different bbq sauces for your bbq entree or sandwich.

The bbq was pretty good, but we especially liked the restaurant's atmosphere and decor. As you might expect, with a name like Bubba's, there's not a lot of fancy fixin's or fancy furniture. They even use Igloo coolers for seating at some tables.

Their website is also uniquely different, although I had trouble accessing the online menu. I also enjoyed the banana pudding for desert.

This is a nice restaurant concept. I think they'll be successful.

Grilled Steak

I don't grill steaks a lot, but when I do I follow the "simple is usually better" philosophy.  I simply brush with olive oil, sprinkle with garlic salt, onion salt, and black pepper.  I marinate them overnight in the refrigerator and grill them over medium heat on my kettle grill.  They always turn out well.

Great Steak Challenge

NAPA, Calif., March 24 -- Wine simply makes a good steak taste better. That's why Beringer Vineyards, the oldest continuously operating winery in the Napa Valley, is hosting the "Great Steak Challenge," daring everyone from gourmet chefs to backyard grillers to pair their most creative steak recipe with their favorite Beringer wine for a chance to win a trip to Napa, cash prizes and a lifetime of bragging rights.

As part of the Great Steak Challenge, celebrity cooks Jamie and Bobby Deen, stars of the Food Network and sons of southern cooking queen Paula Deen, are hitting the road this summer to prove two of America's timeless and tastiest obsessions – steak and wine – really are the perfect combination. The brothers will be hosting select regional grill-offs across the U.S. and will be creating a virtual cookbook of their road tested recipes.

"Nothing says summer like tossing a steak on the grill during a backyard BBQ with family and friends. But believe it or not, something so easy also takes a special skill," said Jamie Deen. "Bobby and I are looking for the ultimate gourmet griller who can bring the best out in a steak simply by making use of what they consider to be the tastiest ingredients and the right wine."

The challenge consists of three culinary parts:

Online Recipe Contest: Everyone and anyone can participate, no matter your skill level in the kitchen or behind the grill. Simply submit your most creative steak recipes at www.greatsteakchallenge.com. Your recipe will be judged on three major factors: taste appeal, wine pairing and simplicity. Then, Beringer will select 100 best steak recipes per region to compete in regional grill-offs in ten U.S. cities during the summer of 2010, leading up to the ultimate finale in Napa Valley.

Regional Grill-Offs: The regional grill-offs will be hosted by Beringer, and will be judged by local celebrities from each market.

Great Steak Challenge regional prizes include:

•Winners receive up to $1,000 for airfare and hotel accommodations for 2 nights at the regional grill-off

•Runner-up (also the alternate): $100 Gift Card to Local Grocery Chain; Beringer Gift Bag

•Second Runner-up (2nd alternate): $50 Gift Card to Local Grocery Chain; Beringer Gift Bag

National Grill-Off: Beringer will host the ten regional finalists at a national championship in Napa Valley on October 8, where the Deen Brothers will judge the competition. The grand prize winner will win $15,000 and an all expense paid trip for two to Napa Valley for four days and three nights and an opportunity to compete on the Fine Living Network for a share of $25,000 in prize money.

"At Beringer, we believe in indulgences big and small. Pairing a glass of wine with a delicious steak can be an everyday celebration or something more extravagant," said Francesca Schuler, Chief Marketing Officer, Beringer Vineyards. "This nationwide contest will be an inspiring demonstration of how Beringer fans throughout the country are pairing their original recipes with our wines. We look forward to a mouth-watering competition!"

About Beringer Vineyards

No winery more thoroughly embodies the timeless appeal and seductive flavor of Napa Valley than Beringer Vineyards, Napa's benchmark producer since its establishment in 1876. Now in its third century of crafting classic wines from Napa's finest appellations and vineyards, Beringer today is guided by the inspired partnership of celebrated Winemaster Emeritus Ed Sbragia and Winemaker Laurie Hook. Together, they craft Napa Valley wines that speak eloquently of Beringer's rich heritage while offering cutting-edge quality and contemporary elegance. www.Beringer.com

For more information on the first annual Great Steak Challenge, visit http://greatsteakchallenge.com/.
For more information about Beringer Vineyards, please visit: http://www.beringer.com/.

Morgan O'Leary

Ruder Finn/West
W: 415-541-0750
C: 415-310-3366
www.ruderfinn.com

Travel Channel - Food Wars

I received a promo e-mail today from the Travel Channel.  They are introducing a new series to the airways - "Food Wars". It airs on Tuesdays at 10:30 E/P and this week the episode is centered in Lockhart, Texas for the ultimate BBQ showdown between Kreuz Market and Smitty's Market! 
Here's a clip about the show:

Smoke Barbeque & Grill - Tampa

What do you do in Florida when it's cold and rainy on a Saturday morning?  This morning we decided to make the drive from Riverview to Hyde Park near downtown Tampa and eat at Smoke Barbeque and Grill.

On the trip over we listened to tunes by B.B. King and R.J. Spangler to get in the appropriate mood for some 'que. After circling the block three or four times we abandoned the idea of parking in actual restaurant parking lot, but we did find a "spill over" lot down the street.

We settled into a booth and were presented with breakfast menus.  Since it was nearing 11:00 a.m., we asked for lunch menus, but the waitress explained that the bbq lunch we were hoping for wouldn't be available until noon.

I'm not a breakfast eater.  When I do eat breakfast it's usually a bowl of organic oatmeal, but after making the 30 minute drive and paying $2.50 in tolls (and $2.00 going back), we decided to give breakfast a try. 

But, I was thinking brisket and pork shoulder - not sausage and eggs.  If I eat sausage and eggs it's usually at Waffle House, IHOP, or Denny's - not at a bbq joint.

Linda ordered an everything omlette with home fries.

I settled for brisket hash.

It was a nice breakfast - truth be told - but I hope to make the trip again when they are offering more traditional barbecue items. I won't say I disliked the experience, but as you can probably tell from the tone of this post - I left dissapointed.

What does CRAB-BQ mean to you?

Hi, this is The BBQ Guy’s wife and I am honored to be asked to write a blurb about our recent trip to a new restaurant. Last week in the Tampa Bay Times I saw an ad for “Crab-bq” a restaurant in St. Petersburg. I loved the name and envisioned a varied menu of smoked seafood and traditional barbecue fare. The BBQ Guy said he took the name to be seafood and bbq. Off we went Saturday to see who was correct. My mouth was watering at the thought of eating some new smoked seafood delicacy and The BBQ Guy skeptically went along for the ride.

The trusty GPS got us to the restaurant. We arrived around 11:30 a.m. to an empty restaurant and were greeted by a very personable hostess/waitress. Although there was no BBQ feel to the restaurant, it was clean and neat and did have a nice outdoor seating area (we didn’t use this because it was 55 degrees here in Florida).

The server brought us our menus and took our drink orders. Well, our BBQ Blogger was correct. The menu was low on BBQ and heavy on traditional seafood fare. So away went my dreams of new exotic smoked seafood. Brian did like the idea of the Pulled Pork Sliders and I decided on half rack of ribs.

Boy did my eyes pop when I saw 4 untrimmed pork spare ribs arrive in front of me. I was reminded of our first BBQ contest when The BBQ Guy didn’t know any better and had not trimmed his spares. I ordered them dry with the sauce on the side. They were tender, but a bit awkward because of their size and bones. (They looked nothing like the rib picture on the restaurant’s website.) I was not all that fond of the flavor without some bbq sauce. I would definitely recommend having the sauce served heavy on them. My baked beans side item was not very warm, but it tasted fine. The bbq sandwich slider idea is still a really good idea, but they were served with cold meat on a toasted bun and The BBQ Guy didn’t really like that. His steak fries were delicious though!! He had to slap my hands away from them on several occasions.

Neither of us tried seafood, but I did hear 2 couples that came in after us comment on the chowder and I believe the waitress said it was made fresh there in the restaurant.

As a BBQ restaurant I have to give this a C-. Cleanliness of the dining area and bathrooms A+. Service an A- (our waitress was very sweet, but she never offered to refill our drink). I don’t think we will make a special trip over to St. Pete again for this restaurant, but would probably give it one more try if we were in the area - but we would definitely order seafood and not bbq.

Thanks to my hubby for letting me have a voice!!

BBQ Ribs for the Superbowl

I cooked two racks of babybacks and a rack of spare ribs for the Superbowl.  The Hen and Hog rub from Spicewine Ironworks was very good.  If you live in Missouri, you can get that rub from Hy Vee grocery stores. You can also order some from their website.