Help me point my pork in the right direction

But first, this is not Woodpile so that being said,

I could really use a some input on a flavor profile for my pork entries. This is the one category that I really have no idea what the judges are looking for.

I have been using a fairly common injection (AJ, wooster...,), Head Country rub which is somewhat salty (but flavorful) and finishing with a sauce that's similar to Head Country but with just a bit more vinegar and just a little extra heat too. So far it's been good for mid pack results.

I'm not asking anyone to give me their recipes but I was just wondering what some of you are doing with your entries. I know that traditional vinegar, salt and hot pepper treatments won't do well in comps but I can't see something sickeningly sweet like many rib entries doing well for pork either.

What do you think might be better? Introducing fruity or possibly more savory flavors? Salty? Tangy? What do you think?

TIA, Kirk.

Sledneck said:

How about some Blues Hog Tennessee Red sauce

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I have some but I haven't tried it yet. Honestly, I forgot I had it. I have a coupla butts in the fridge that I did yesterday, I'll give it a try on them. Thanks.

Oh BTW, I never did wish you a happy b'day last weekend so happy belated!

Plowboy said:

Is it strictly your flavor scores that are hurting? What about tenderness and appearance?

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They're improving but could still be better. I was over shredding the meat to the point where it looked like one homologous mass with some pieces of bark here and there and I don't think it was tender enough. This last time I used choice pieces from the money end and left them as pretty good sized pieces. We went from the bottom 1/4 of the field to dead in the middle so I guess it was an improvement.

ique said:

I'd say you are on the right track with not shredding it...

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Thanks Chris. I figured shredding it was a mistake for the reasons you mentioned. One of these days I will have to try slicing. Never done it. I thought it best just to learn one thing at a time. With only 3 KCBS comps under our belts, the learning curve's been pretty steep.

Vinny, thanks for such a thorough post. Good stuff which I'd like to address one point at a time.

MilitantSquatter said:

1) Try an injection like Butchers BBQ Pork or Fab-P...

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We've talked so much about Fab B but nobody's ever really mentioned P. I'd like to stay away from it but I'm not sure why. Seems like something a purist would avoid but we all know what a purist's attitude will get you in a comp. I agree that injecting the chit out of your pork is the way to go though.

MilitantSquatter said:

2) Add some liquid to the foil (if you foil)...

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Excellent tip. We do it for our briskets, why not for the pork?

MilitantSquatter said:

3) Try a different rub...

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We actually have one of our own that I like a lot, like what you mentioned and a little savory too. I went away from it though because we did so poorly in pork at previous comps. I'm starting think the rub wasn't the biggest part of our problem...

MilitantSquatter said:

4) Don't oversauce.. Thin it out a bit more.

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Agreed. I hate thick sauce blanketing the meat. How are you supposed to taste anything through that? I look at sauce as a seasoning, not a smothering.

MilitantSquatter said:

5) Stick with the best parts of the butt/shoulder...

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I employed this tactic at Yardley. Cooked 4 butts instead of our usual two so I had more good stuff to pick from. Definately worthwile.

MilitantSquatter said:

6) Check taste and add some additional flavor at the end depending what is needed...

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This is so obvious but in the panic to get your entry together, I could see how you'd forget to actually taste what you're turning in. I did that for every entry of our first two comps. I can't believe we did as well as we did. Good basic advice there.

MilitantSquatter said:

7) Review what wood and charcoal you are using... May be too strong.

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Again, good basic advice. We're using straight hickory and I've always tried to err on the lighter side with smoke. I use 2 , maybe 3 fist sized chunks in my WSM with some up high to burn first, some in the middle and not so much toward the bottom. I figure by the time we're into the bottom of the coals, the meat's going to be foiled anyway.

Thanks for the responses guys. Looking forward to any and all input the rest of you might have.

Big George's BBQ said:

I was at Yardly and we did our best ever in Pork...

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Congrats. We were 26th or 27th in pork. Unfortunately, that was our best to date. I'm really hoping for more improvement between now and New Holland.

I'd love to take your class Steve, but my money's just going in too many directions right now. Can I just get in for just
the pork part? :-D

Scottie said:

Ah, the code...

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Not sure what you mean Scottie.

When I get home tonight I'll post our scores from Yardley to see if that tells you guys anything about what we're doing.