Barbecue

The morning sky was gray. A heavy dampness and the sweet smell of smoke clung in the air. Off Lake Ontario, a barge’s horn rippled through the air, splitting the silence as it issued a warning. And as the sun rose higher in the sky, it burned away the milky mists of morning.

On Saturday May 28, the Roc City Rib Fest played host to a New England Barbecue Society (NEBS) grilling contest. The four categories of the day were scallops, Cornish hen, tri-tip, and bacon — how could this day possibly be bad?!?

Our scallop entries were nice. The first submission was wrapped in a purple cabbage leaf, with a bit of melon, and a corn relish. Sweet, flavorful, with with just a hint of crunch, it proved to be a big hit among the judges at our table. The fifth offering was a rinky, dink, little ole thang that was salty as all hell. And to make matters worse, we one scallop wrapped in bacon and served in a pie crust that might have been prepared in a muffin tin. The pie crust tasted like bad Crisco or spoiled lard. The scallop itself was cooked well, but, overall, this was the least favored item among the judges. The other three offerings were enjoyable enough, but most probably scored middle-of-the-pack. Two of the scallop entries were a tad undercooked for the liking of the judge’s table.

Five stunning hens, some a candied red, others a crisp, more natural brown, were quartered and presented for selection. Juxtaposed with them was one ironic looking submissions comprised of wing-lets, which were dwarfed by the quartered hens. The presentation suffered not only from a humorous contrast, but also because the winglets and drumlets (half the size of what the Anchor Bar serves) rolled around in the box during presentation. With all that said, the wings had excellent flavor and most of the judges scored them well for flavor. If the team that submitted them wants a second go, they should focus on presentation and size.

Tri-tip steak is a cut of beef from the underside of the animal’s sirloin area that is usually about 2 pounds in size. It has a different texture than brisket, but can still be a nice offering when done right. Overall, the judge’s table was pleased with our beef. The second offering was covered in an odd-looking green sauce. While it obscured the view of the meat, which may have hurt some of the presentation scores, the herbal sauce, was a tasty hit with most of the judges. We also had teriyaki-sauced slices of beef that appeared to have been hammered flat and tenderized. This beef had a nice flavor, but was a bit cold by the time we had an opportunity for a taste. By and large, the tri-tip entries were cooked well; almost all the meat was nice and tender.

The last category was bacon…and it created a lot of buzz. As the final offering for the day, we were happy to see some dessert offerings. The first of which, a chocolate chip cookie with big chunks of chocolate, was a sweet offering, but the bits of bacon provided little more than a hint of crunch. Had there more bacon flavor, this would have been a killer submission.

Unfortunately, we also had another ghastly offering of bacon wrapped within Pillsbury dough that didn’t have any standout flavor, except for Pam or Crisco. Some of the treats we had were shrimp wrapped with bacon, bacon layered with chocolate and kissed with a hint of cayenne pepper.

There was also a fatty pork offering, which kind of tough and chewy, and left an unpleasant taste for at least one judge. This entry was topped with a dollop of melted chocolate and a green leaf. The presentation was absolutely beautiful, but the taste fell flat. The most savored item among the judges was the carefully cut watermelon square that served as the entry’s base.

The NEBS grilling contests have always provided excellent eating. In 2011, Roc City was no exception. The scallops, Cornish hen, and tri-tip categories came up big, but the bacon entries were kind of a let down. While we don’t know which teams prepared the food we tasted, we do know who won the event. With that said, we’d like to congratulate Grand Champion Lakeside Smokers and Reserve Champion Buckner Brothers Barbeque. We also want to give a quick shout out to some fellas who attended a NEBS cooking class with us — congrats to the Beverage Brothers on placing fourth in scallops and second in Cornish hen!

Check out this video which demonstrates how to slow cook a Boston pork butt on a Weber kettle grill, using offset cooking techniques and mesquite wood.

This video shows a first attempt that was essentially an experiement. The cooking technique uses both fresh charcoal and ashy coal that was previously burned. You start by lighting the ashy coals, which catch the fresh coals. The goal of this process is a longer cook time per charcoal batch.

Did the technique work? What was the outcome of the pork butt? Watch and see…

Hey BOY, join JB, every Yankee’s favorite Cajun (OK, so maybe Celtic’s point guard Rajon Rondo ranks higher for some folks, but only some), as he talks about the ways he augmented his grimy Char-Broil grill using a vaporizer bar to prepare wood-fired pizza using a real cooking stone.

As far as the food goes, he starts with an off-the-shelf Marketside 12″ five cheese pizza, and then doctors it up. You gotta love JB’s fire-roasted bell peppers…and wait til you see what other toppings he slaps atop this beast.

Just for good measure, JB even throws in a crawfish tip at the end. Goota love Cajun cookin!

Dig the all-purpose spice rub by Jill Hough, food columnist at the Oakland Tribune and Bon Appetit, that this bar-b-cutie shares with us. This is a cajun-inspired rub that can be used on salmon, ribs, and anything inbetween.

So I’ve been on this hot dog kick lately. Hence the post about the Chicago Dogs. It’s part of my spring and summer solstice rituals. Before the grill gets primed back to smoker status I ease into things with some of the lesser meats. Burgers, Dogs, Sausages – if it’s processed it’s practice meat. They’re like my b-squad of barbecue and backyard entertaining.

So what’s really in hot dogs? Well, it ain’t pretty but it’s not as bad as you think. Pork, beef and chicken ‘trimmings’ from the traditional cuts of meat plus some corn starch (as a binder), corn syrup and seasonings. There are lots of regional variants to hot dog seasonings. What you find in Boston isn’t what you find in Detroit and certainly isn’t what you’ll find in the south. Here in the great Bay State I believe the current Fenway Frank is a specialized Kayem brand hot dog while if you head to Detroit you’ll be blasphemous if you use anything but Koegel’s on your grill.

The Discovery Channel has a great short video about the making of hot dogs from soup to nuts, so to speak. If you’re into meat paste and sausage Gatling guns it’s well worth your time. Plus, it might inspire you to make your own from scratch instead of trusting the ol’ playdough fun factory of meat making. Enjoy!

Kingsford charcoal briquets burn longer and light faster…in any language.

And because the Spanish-speaking world loves barbecue, gringo can get his green on with Fogo lump charcoal.