It's never too cold to BBQ.
 

I decided it's been too long since I had some good BBQ. Fired up the smoker this morning for some good ol' pork butt.

Gotta run into town soon and get me some stuff for beans.

That is all.

I can barbeque all year, 24/7, rain or shine here!

Eat your hearts out...I mean barbeque. :p

I BBQ in almost any weather. If it gets too cold (<20) I have trouble keeping my smoker (Weber Bullet) hot enough, especially if it's windy. I have grilled when the temps are in the single digits. I refuse to eat broiled, fried, whatever, beef. I bought a George Foreman grill a few years back and tried it a few times and then gave it away. I have to have live fire.

Wait, grill or BBQ? There's a HUGE difference. I'll grill in any weather... smoking is harder.

Funny you mention this. I haven't used the smoker since early December but I brined a couple racks of ribs last night and they'll go on later today.

I BBQ in almost any weather. I grill in all weather (that's not ridiculous). See my profile. I do competitive BBQing.

My BBQ can beat your BBQ. :p

Nobody from Florida can BBQ.

ROFL Riiiiiiiggggghhhhhtt!

My ribs are the best...better n' anything in KC, eventhough I've never been there. :p

I'm from KC and learned from the best. 'nuf said. :)

You the best country bumpkins! Mine have a touch of European sophistication!!
You can't BEAT that!

Come to KC for any one of the many contests. We always like new ideas/flavors. You may be surprised, though. There isn't much that hasn't been tried in competition... especially the amateur side of competition.

Europe can't cook.

Sometimes I'll put a little bit of Asian flair on my ribs. It's interesting.

Thanksgiving was Cajun this year. We had Cajun ribs, Cajun turkey, Jambalaya, and pumpkin pie.

I'm gonna have to try it one day. I get "your ribs are the best I've ever had" from almost everybody and I'm not trying to boast about it. I know they're good.

I actually jerkey them slightly because I prefer them that way. I don't think they'd do well in competition because of that.

You should. It's always a great time. My team started out doing the smaller BBQ contests and have done the Royal that past three years. We did well in the Shawnee BBQ contest in September, but have never won anything in the Royal. It's still worth it, but it's a hell of alot of work. We're only doing three or four this year because it can get to be too much.

I get that too. But there can only be one. Gotta admit, though some of your flavor mixes, such as the Asian, seem interesting. BTW, the night you mentioned your "cowboy rice" I made it the next day. My kid really liked it.
It was okay....but I don't think I got the right mix/proportions of spices down.

Stewie, I just may enter one of those competitions.

If you're serious about entering contests, be prepared. Most contests nationwide are sanctioned by the KC BBQ Society. You need to prepare ribs, pork butt, brisket, chicken. Sausage is usually an option that doesn't count in the overall score. Often times the contest will supply the contestants with a brisket that they have to prepare. This is scored separately, too. You never know what you're going to get as far as quality/cookability. You may want to hang around a BBQ contest before you actually enter to see what it's all about. And ask judges what exactly it is they're looking for. Or better yet, go to a judging class. You'll learn alot.

Interesting info Stewie thanks.

Seems, per that, I don't BBQ enough to even qualify. I mainly do ribs.
Other than that I cook cross-culturally many different things. If I wanted to though I could learn quickly.

Yeah, it's a big leap going from the back yard to competing. We're pretty serious about it, but not as serious as some. We have about $2000 tied up in smokers/grills. Some teams easily have $25K or more. Usually the pros (restaurant owners and caterers) have the big rigs. Lately, we've stood up pretty well against the big boys, but there's a limit to how much time/money we're willing to spend. The really competitive teams will easily cook $500+ worth of meat to get the ONE PERFECT rib, butt, brisket.

I got some new pans for the kitchen this week. I'm loving them.

If you could give me some more tips to perfect that cowboy rice...I'd appreciate. Like how much Worcestshire Sauce, type of rice etc.

Wolfgang Puck is a hell of a salesman.

Actually I bought some Calphalon pans after Christmas - their low end line. But then my wife checked Consumer Reports and for less money we could buy another, lesser known pan that performed better than Calphalon's most expensive pan set.

So we decided to buy the Kirkland Signature pans for $150. Unfortunately those pans went up to $225 before we had a chance to get to Costco. But they're $175 on ebay.

Long story but good advice. If you want a $900 quality set of pans for $200 you should get the Kirkland Signature set. Heh.

Sorry but Phobia wins after 41 years experience from the mid-west. Plus he had my family fighting (literally for them) and I won because I paid the bill..........

Thread over..................................................

I just use a long-grain white rice and I sprinkle the Worcestershire sauce on the rice after it has been frying for a while until it starts bubbling and steaming up through the rice on the bottom of the wok.

I'm not a quantity cooker. I almost never use measurements.

Non-stick set? I've found that the private label stuff is just as good. I bought a 10" sautee pan from HSN or QVC (don't remember) and it's a heck of alot better than my expensive Meyer cookware. The Meyer stuff is about worn out. I still use a set of SS and copper pans that my mom had. That stuff is indestructible.

The best fry pan I own cost me $10 at Sams.

I've got some of the high-dollar Calphalon stuff, Pampered Chef, etc... but I always reach for the Sams pan. I ****ing love that thing.

The pans are not really a weakness for me... now it's really good cutlery. A good knife is unbeatable.

I just got a Chinese cleaver, a Nakiri and a small paring knife around Christmas time... love those things.

Yeah, non-stick. Best value ever, IMO. We had a set from QVC previously - it lasted about 5 years before the non-stick stuff was worn out.

http://www0.epinions.com/hmgd-Cookwa...e_14_Piece_Set

Since they got away from teflon and now have non-stick/ceramic coatings the non-stick should last for years. My Meyer stuff was pre-ceramic and it's showing its age.

My weakness when we started BBQ contests was chicken. Virtual Weber Bullet was one of the first sites that I read religiously. Here's a link to a video on how to butterfly a chicken (the rest of the site is awesome and very helpful). I always buy whole chickens now because they're easier. Of course, in competition you'll only do well using the dark meat. But for family get togethers you can't beat fresh whole chickens for taste and economy.

The video link is on the right side of the page when it opens. It may be old news for some, but not everyone knows everything.

http://virtualweberbullet.com/butterflychicken.html

And it was great, thanks bye the way. I had to put my sister-in-law in her place when I took the ribs back home.

That biotch....

Brent

She was saying her ribs were better than mine and then you proved otherwise? Heh.

That cajun rib effort was pretty good for a first try, huh?

Planet BBQ Contest???

Competition chicken is a bitch!