So You Want to Sell BBQ Sauce?

I get questions about selling bbq sauce and bbq spice rubs frequently via e-mail.  I've written a few posts about my research previously, but thought I'd do a more recent post for anyone with similar thoughts.

If you want to start by bottling and selling your own bbq sauce recipe, you're probably looking at about $10,000 in start-up costs because most bottlers will only do it in fairly large batches. That's an estimate based on research I did several years ago, so it's likely even higher now.

I found a bottler a few years ago who would do small batch bottling (less than 500 gallons), but based on my experience this is somewhat risky. The bottler I was using went out of business before filling my order and he kept my deposit. He changed his name and relocated the business to another state, so I was completely out of luck. Other than filing a complaint with the State Attorney General's office, there was little else I could do.

If you want to put your label on someone else's recipe, you can probably pull that off for $3,000-$4,000 to start depending on how much your liability insurance costs, the corporate structure you choose, how much you want to advertise, and several other variables.

The best thing to do is do a Google search for private label bbq sauce suppliers. You'll likely find 5 or 6 possibilities within 15 minutes or less.

I decided to pursue bbq spice rub instead of bbq sauce. Spice rub has a much lower cost of entry than bbq sauce, but it's also a Catch 22 because bbq sauce sells much, much better.

Whatever you decide, I think the "gimmick" you have for your name and the design of your label and overall branding approach is much more important than your actual recipe.  The best bbq sauce in the world might not sell very well if you can't, or don't know how to market it.

In my personal opinion, taking the "selling it on the side to friends and family and at bbq contests" is not a viable business strategy.  I tried that for 4 years with my spice rub. And, although I did not lose money doing it, I didn't really make much either.

Pictures from Martin's Bar-b-que Joint

Here are some pictures from our visit to Martin's BBQ Joint in Nolensville, TN.  The new restaurant and decor is a big improvement compared to the previous location. I didn't take pictures of the inside because during our lunch time visit the restaurant was absolutely packed full of people. But, take my word for it. The overall atmosphere is nearly perfect for a bbq "joint".

I love the music. How many restaurants have you been to that still play Charley Pride and Waylon Jennings?

I love the baked beans.  If you visit, promise me you'll try the baked beans.

The long lines for lunch speak volumes for how well the restaurant has been received by the local community.  I also personally know people that drive an hour to eat there. What a testimonial!

Here are a couple of pictures:

I've embedded a slide show that includes a few more pictures if you're interested.

Carnton Plantation Tour and Lunch at Martin's BBQ Joint

Tomorrow I'm headed to Carnton Plantation in Franklin, TN for a tour and to Nolensville for lunch at Martin's BBQ Joint.  It's a 45 minute drive from Manchester, so we should arrive in Nolensville around lunch time.

I am looking forward to seeing Pat Martin's new bbq place and after recently finishing Widow of the South by Robert Hicks I am eager to tour the mansion and learn more about Carrie McGavock.

Martin's was featured on Diners, Drive-in's and Dives hosted by Guy Fieri. I embedded the video below for anyone that's interested.

And, here's a link to a video about Carnton Plantation.

Two Purple Pigs

BBQ Joints come and go in Manchester, TN so when I heard about a new bbq place in Manchester called Two Purple Pigs I wanted to check it out.  After being in the house for a couple of days during the holidays enjoying our annual visit with Linda's family, we decided to try Two Purple Pigs today. 

We loaded up the car and headed into town and arrived at the restaurant about 11:25 or so.  Unfortunately, the restaurant wasn't open today so we head over to Logan's Roadhouse instead and had a nice 6 oz. sirloin steak and sweet potato fries for lunch.

I'll definitely be heading back to the Two Purple Pigs later this week before we return to Florida. It looked promising. I'll post some pictures and a write-up later this week.

BBQ Rib Recipe

I received a couple of e-mails today for the recipe that I use for bbq ribs.  The way I do it probably isn't that much different than the way most others do it.  I can't believe I haven't really ever written about my rib recipe on the bbq blog, so here goes.

BBQ Ribs Recipe

• Try to find pork loin back ribs weighing 2 1/2 pounds or less per slab.
• Remove the membrane from the back of the ribs, if it has not already been removed.
• Apply your favorite bbq rub on both sides and on the edges. You can use something like Blues Hog BBQ Rub, Bad Byron's Butt Rub, Smokin' Guns, or most any other of the "brand name" bbq rubs used by competitive bbq teams and it will work pretty well.
• I like to apply the rub the night before I plan to cook and I always refrigerate the ribs while they are marinating.  Some competition teams swear that you have to let them sit out at room temperature for up to 2 hours, but I disagree. You need to make sure the ribs are not in the danger zone (above 40 degrees and below 140 degrees for more than 4 hours). I prefer not to risk food poisoning and I would hate for my friends or family to experience it either after eating my ribs. It's just not worth the risk to me.
• Start your fire with lump charcoal and a little apple pecan, or hickory wood chunks.
• Bring the cooker to 225 - 250 degrees and add the ribs.
• Cook the ribs at 225 - 250 for 2 1/2 hours, flip them, and wrap in foil with some grape juice, apple juice, or a mixture of both.
• Cook the ribs in the foil for one hour and check for doneness. When done the meat should pull away from the bone when you pull it with your fingers.
• Open the foil. Flip the ribs to meat side up and apply your favorite bbq sauce before serving. You can also optionally add a small amount of brown sugar and allow it to melt onto the meat for 30 minutes before adding the sauce. If you choose to add the brown sugar, you'll want to keep the ribs wrapped in foil so the meat doesn't dry out.
• Allow the sauce to "set" for 15 minutes on the smoker before serving.

There are many other ways you can do it, but this is the basic method that many people use. Feel free to experiment with this basic recipe and tweak it for your own preferences and tastes.

I've not tried it, but a lot of people like to mix the Smokin Guns Original and Smokin Guns Hot spice rubs together. That sounds like a nice future experiment for The BBQ Guy's BBQ Blog.

BBQ for Christmas

We travel out of state for Christmas to visit relatives every year. To make it easier on the family we visit, we like to take some bbq along. We cook it the week before, vacuum seal it, and freeze it. When it's time to eat - we thaw it the rest of the way, reheat in the microwave, and add a little Blues Hog BBQ Sauce. It always turns out well. I highly recommend this method if you need to take food along with you when you're traveling - especially if you like to eat well. After all, what's better than bbq you cooked yourself?

I seasoned the pork butts and brisket the night before. I always refrigerate the meat overnight in the refrigerator to allow the spices to penetarate the meat better. I used my own spice rub on the brisket and tried some Oakridge BBQ seasoning on the pork butts.

I don't inject anything into the brisket, but usually inject a mixture of apple juice (3 cups), honey (1/2 cup), and whatever spice rub (3 TBSPs) I'm using into the pork butts. Those amounts work well for two pork butts. You would need to adjust the quantities accordingly for less or more meat as desired.

Since the cookers were hot, I decided to cook some chicken quarters (minus the drumsticks) on the WSM.

These were seasoned with poultry rub and marinated for 3 hours in Newman's Own salad dressing.

Here's a video of the pictures from the prepping and cooking process if you'd like to see them:

Lighter Fluid or Charcoal Chimney?

Lighter fluid is really not necessary for starting a charcoal grill or smoker.  With a charcoal chimney and a few pieces of cardboard you can achieve the same smoke and fire without the lighter fluid (and without the odor).

Simply add lump charcoal to the top of the chimney and add some corrugated cardboard either in the top or in the chamber below.  It doesn't take much. Three or four 3 inch strips of cardboard will likely be plenty. I do this inside the grill or smoker for safety. Always remember: safety first.

Bacon Paradise

I received this video and a short e-mail today from the Travel Channel.

You can see more on the Travel Channel Wednesday at 10 eastern.

Here are two of the bacon hotspots that will be featured on the show.

Restaurant 3: This is the “house that bacon built”, with a menu focusing specifically on the sensational treat.  In Arlington, Virgina, Restaurant 3 is a palace of pork inspired by southern-style cooking.  This hog heaven features everything from Bleu Cheese Chips with bacon and Bacon Stuffed Pork Chops to a Bacon Studded Waffle and Maple Bacon Ice Cream.

All Good Cafe: In Dallas, the All Good Cafe is home to the thickest, tastiest, crispiest peppered bacon on the planet.  This infamous diner offers great food, a low-key atmosphere, and the perfect spot to catch the hottest local bands.  Before even walking through the door, patrons can smell bacon and are quickly reminded of their mother’s home-style cooking.

Man vs. Food Episode at The Pit in North Carolina

I wish we had a place like this nearby.

My favorite line in the video:  "Vegetarians, you might want to change the channel right now."

Any Chowder Fans Out There?

We visited a local seafood festival today and Linda had some Tony's Clam Chowder from a World Champion.  It's too close to soup for me, but Linda raved about it.

While Linda ordered some chowder, I snapped a couple pictures of the 8 x 16 fully licensed concession trailer.

The graphic design on the trailer really make it stand out in a crowd of other vendors.

Want to try some and see if you think it lives up to World Champion status?  You can order 1/2 gallon or 5 gallons and have it shipped to your door on the Order Page of Tonyschowder.com 

Can't get enough clam chowder? Then here's a video from the 2010 World Champion Cook-off:






And after watching this video, I think Eric might have a future career as a motivational speaker.

BBQ Bacon

Are you one those people that thinks the only way to cook bacon is in frying pan?  Well, I was too.  A couple of weeks ago someone representing Burgers' Smokehouse from California, Missouri asked if I would like to try their new Bacon Steak Cuts.

I received two packets on my doorstep. One packet was labeled Original and the other one labeled Peppered. I decided to try the Original first and captured it all on video.

The directions recommended cooking with indirect heat at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. So that's what I did.

From Smokehouse.com:

E.M. Burger's folks started putting up hams. E.M.'s mother, Hulda, was from Germany, and she knew curing. E.M. would rattle off in his car to Jefferson City or up to Columbia and sell the hams to city folks, lawyers, doctors and other professional people, people with cash money. 

The story of the company is an inspiring little guy becomes big guy tale.  When I was a little kid, we lived in nearby Jamestown, Missouri and everybody knew about Burgers.

So if you're camping in the woods, without electricity, or your propane stove top is on the fritz, you can still enjoy wonderful bacon goodness on your charcoal grill.

FTC Disclosure:  I received two sample packets of Burgers' Smokehouse Bacon Steak Cuts to try on the grill.  The video above was taken when I grilled the "Original" flavor.

BBQ Vendor at Community Festival

Today we visited a local community fall festival.  We were still there at lunch time, and as luck would have it, there was a bbq vendor on premises.

First of all, we just love the name.  At a distance I thought it said Panson Bar-B-Q, but as we got closer I realized it was Pa and Son.  Pretty cool. 

I snapped this picture of their vending booth set-up.  They slow-smoke their bbq with oak wood and pull it with a nice van with a mobile kitchen.  Linda and I had pulled pork sandwiches, chips, and Coca-Cola's. 

To help get you in the spirit of the season, I took a picture of this nice batch of pumpkins. Have you got your Halloween costume ready?

Jack Daniels World Championship BBQ Contest

If you're like me and unable to attend the 2010 Jack Daniel's bbq event, you can still participate in the event via UStream on the Internet. Watch live or watch recorded clips. Set WiredBBQ TV as a favorite and check back periodically throughout the weekend to keep up with all the most recent bbq happenings.

Pinzgauer Beef

I don't know much about Pinzgauer cattle, but I like to research things that others sometimes find obscure or odd (just ask my wife).  When I stumbled across an article about these cattle today, my bbq wheels starting turning.

Besides a typical farm website based in Texas and a breeder association website based in Missouri, I found Pastry Heaven, a nice blog that offeres a first hand accounting of her experiences with Pinzgauer beef.

From an article on the website:

...2 Black Angus steer will fill a 55-gallon drum with waste of fat, etc., when butchering yet ALL 12 head of Pinzgauer beef butchered only filled (2) 55-gallon drums with waste! The meat is lean and tender.

I'm not quite sure how many pounds of waste fat will fit in a 55-gallon drum, but if I'm paying for beef butchering it's w-a-y too much.

Here is another article from CattleToday.com that explains why the Pinzgauer beef is so tender:

The breed overall has been bred for docility. New research shows that the easier an animal is to handle, the better the beef. This, along with their unique enzyme make-up, makes Pinzgauer beef one of the most tender meat breeds in existence. Genetic studies have confirmed that the breed carries the tenderness gene. Also, the dressing percentage of Pinzgauer steers is very high.

If you've ever tried to herd cattle through a gate or into a pen where they didn't want to go, that docile trait is very important. 

I haven't found a place to buy cuts of the beef here in West Central Florida yet, but I suspect I'll hone in on a source given more time.  I'm not sure I want to buy an entire side yet, but I'd like to try some steaks, roasts, and maybe a brisket.  The Desoto County Fair in Arcadia and Florida State Fair in Tampa, have featured some Pinzgauer shows in the past.

A Letter to the BBQ Guy

Dear BBQ Guy,
As your wife I have complained at times over the long hours you spent with your smoker and grill. I have grumbled when I had to scrub a grill grate or chopping board. I have begged you to finish one BBQ sauce or rub before starting another one. I have grudgingly given you one whole shelf in the pantry for your excess BBQ supplies. I’ve sat by you as you blog about your favorite subject or search the BBQ forum for old friends. I have asked for sympathy from other wives – that your obsession was driving me crazy.

Although tonight when I sat at work with my desk in disarray and your number flashed up on the cell phone I just knew that I was about to be mad. I just knew you were calling to ask what is for dinner, but I was wrong. You reminded me of the two Buffalo fillets that you seasoned with Miner’s Mix Steak Seasoning earlier in the morning. A huge since of relief fell over me when I remembered that I was married to The BBQ Guy and for this one instance he was using his grill powers to make my life a little bit easier.

I was nervous about the Miner’s Mix because I truly like your simplistic approach to steaks, however; this new seasoning was a pleasant surprise. The rub seemed to penetrate the meat and provide a delicious flavor. It’s a definite repeat in my book.

So I say bring on the raw meat, bbq rubs, sauces, brines, and marinades and I promise to keep my sarcasm to a minimum. I promise to be your loyal assistant while you pursue your obsession to grill and smoke outdoors. As long as you promise to save the day a few days a month with your trusty Weber Smokey Mountain or Platinum.

With love,

THE BBQ GUY’S wife

First Cut London Broil Top Sirloin

Today I barbecued my first London Broil.  The package said it was a "1st Cut London Broil Top Sirloin".  It was a 2 lb piece of lean beef.

I prepared the meat by marinating it for 8 hours to infuse flavor deep in this 1 1/2 - 2 inch thick London Broil.

Sometimes this can be difficult. A simple rub might work, but it won't penetrate the meat deeply enough to really get the flavor throughout the meat. With a rub alone, you might end up with a few bites of flavor and several bites of dry and plain tasting beef.

So, I chose a simple marinade to help improve my chances (and flavors).

London Broil Barbecue Recipe

Marinade mixture:

· 2 TBSP garlic powder
· 1 TBSP sea salt or kosher salt
· 1 TBSP black pepper
· 1/4 cup red wine
· 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
· 1 TBSP soy sauce
· 1 TBSP honey

Pierce the meat with a Jaccard meat tenderizer tool or a fork to allow the marinade to penetrate deeper inside the meat.

Marinade in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours. (I recommend marinating overnight for better results.)

Prepare the grill for high heat grilling using lump charcoal.

Coat the grate with olive oil to help reduce tendency for the meat to “stick” to the grate. Grill using indirect heat (coals banked to the side, not directly underneath the meat). My grill temperature ranged between 400 - 450 degrees.

Cook the meat to an internal temperature of 160-165 degrees maximum (about 45 minutes for me).

London Broil is a very lean piece of beef and will have a tendency to dry out if overcooked.

Let the meat “rest” for 5 minutes after removing from the grill prior to slicing. Slice the steaks perpendicular to the grain and enjoy.

Oakridge BBQ Rubs and Spices

I was recently introduced to Oakridge BBQ rubs and spices.  I haven't had a chance to order any yet to give it a try, but with statements like this one on OakridgeBBQ.com, it won't be long before I place an order:

...we use absolutely NO MSG, artificial ingredients, preservatives, fillers or anti-caking agents in our spice rubs. Our unique, quality-centered approach creates truly artisanal products with bold flavors and perfectly balanced sweet-hot, salty-savory profiles unlike any other barbecue rubs or seasoning blends on the market today

Oakridge has a variety of selections including rubs for venison, beef, pork, and chicken.


I marketed my own bbq rubs and spices for a few years, so I always enjoy reading about how bbq rubs are made.  Some of the bbq rubs on the market are "private label" copy cats.  I marketed my own rubs with my own recipes that I used in competition with good results, so I find myself gravitating to others creating their own added value (not copying someone else).  It seems like all products are being sold in smaller and smaller containers to keep profits up, but OakridgeBBQ is different.  Their rubs are packaged in "bulk" containers versus smaller plastic bottles. I started selling mine in 13 oz. bottles, but my packer stopped offering that size.  Oakridge has found a way to overcome those types of challenges.
 Way to go Oakridge BBQ.

Most barbecue rubs on the market today feature high percentages of salt, fillers or inferior grade spices in their formulations, often tending to be nothing more than just cheaply flavored salt in many cases. However, in stark contrast, all Oakridge BBQ rubs feature raw, unrefined cane sugar, ultra-high quality herbs and spices and just the right amount of all natural flake salt to perfectly balance each rub's flavor profile. 

Here's a list of retail locations.

Roadside BBQ Stand

We spent a few days at Disney this week and stopped in Haines City for a soda on the return trip home.  Linda snapped these pictures from the passenger window as we were pulling back onto the highway.

In the past few years, I've been seeing more and more of these roadside bbq stands.  This gas station had a little bit of everything available -- bbq, a hand car wash, catering, cigareettes, and...oh yeah, they did have some gasoline for sale too. 

The funny thing to me though about these roadside food stands...I hardly ever see anyone buying food from them.

American Royal Double Header Weekend

It's fall and besides football that means it's time for the American Royal Barbecue contest.

We made a trip to the Royal a few years ago. It's another one of those "must see" bbq events for bbq enthusiasts.  The invitational contest is held on Friday/Saturday and the open contest occurs on Saturday/Sunday.

It's the antithesis of the Jack Daniels Barbecue World Championship event in my opinion.  As small as the Jack is, the Royal is definitely not. 

When we were there in 2004, our friends who were competing had to contend with a 10+ minute walk to turn-ins and large crowds of people aka "obstacles". Under estimating the time it takes to walk from cook site to judges table can ruin and has ruined many bbq contest dreams.

Congratulations to Smokers Wild and TippyCanoe for their Grand and Reserve Grand results at the 2010 event. Here's a link to the full results from the Invitational.

Smoked Mullet at The Mullet Shack

I guess if you eat too much Smoked Mullet at the Shack, you can always buy a mattress and sleep it off.