This brother needs help....(pics)

[wormdrink67]

Ok, so, we did our first comp of the year this weekend (Kings Mtn, NC Firehouse Cook off). 52 teams overall and I was so thrilled when we got everything boxed and turned in. It all went so smoothly and I was for the first time "happy" with everything we did. Then our scores came back....I was no longer happy. Take a look at the pics below and tell me whats going wrong. Thanks in advance.

[bmBBQ]

Those are first place pictures, are you kidding. They look perfect, nicely done.

[Frank Grimes]

What were your scores?

[Dallas Dan]

Looks like a first place presentation to me.

[wormdrink67]

Originally Posted by Frank Grimes

What were your scores?

Chicken: 153 (34th overall)
Ribs: 155 (28th overall)
Pork: 169 (12th overall)
Brisket: 156 (25th overall)

[Ford]

Without your scores it's hard to tell if the problem was appearance or taste or tenderness. Share with us.

Appearance - chicken probably a 7 or maybe an 8 if it looks better than the picture. Ribs 7. Pork 7 at the most - lettuce detracts from the meat and it looks like you're hiding the meat. Brisket maybe an 8 although more burnt ends would be nice.

[rxcellentq]

These boxes look fantastic what was the breakdown on the scores. You must have scored well on the look how was the taste and texture

[wormdrink67]

Chicken: 778 967 888 977 887 888
Ribs: 888 898 877 976 988 777 (3 7's....really?)
Pork: 978 988 889 999 999 987
Brisket: 888 777 976 988 988 887

[Rookie'48]

OK, here goes ...

Chicken: 8 pieces are always good, but the sizes don't match & the shapes are uneven - try trimming them down so that the size / shape are equal. The color seems to be un-even but that might just be the sauce. Also, I think that you need to raise the meat up in the box. Either more parsley or some chopped lettuce under there would help.

Ribs: The ribs themselves look very good. Try putting 5 in a straight line instead of staggering the bones then one on each side, it will look more uniform that way. Again, raise the meat up, it makes a better looking box.

Pork: As far as the meat goes it looks good to me. It looks like there are only 5 slices & 5 chunks in the box. Although that would be legal for a KCBS comp I would advise putting 6 pieces of each type in the box. Again - raise it up.

Brisket: Your knife skills look good - the slices are cut clean & even. I would have cut off or trimmed the heavy bark on the right side, or better yet, tried to find a few more of the larger pieces and cut them down to fit - more uniform that way. Also I think that the burnt ends need to be out there front & center, not half hidden. Here again, the sauce looks un-even.

I'm not trying to be overly harsh on my comments, I'm just trying to see what would help in your next comp. It looks like you've got the basics down good - now all that's left is the fine tuning. Unfortunately, some judges really get picky on the apperance scores.

[Q-Dat]

I can't believe the 7's on the ribs either those look great to me. Those three judges obviously don't have a clue. My only guess would be maybe they thought they should have been swimming in sauce.

[Smokedelic]

Sorry, but the answers to your displeasure aren't in the pics, they're on your score sheet.

Look at your scores...your problems are not in appearance, they are in taste and tenderness of your entries. If your scores continue to trend like these, I'd focus on the flavor profile of your chicken and brisket and the tenderness of your ribs and brisket.

[KC_Bobby]

The boxes look good and it looks like the judges also liked the way the boxes looked for the most part. You were awarded 96.5666 or 95.99952 (depending on which brisket judge you'd like to omit) of the possible 102.8520 app points, that's pretty damn good boxing.

Take a look at the pics below and tell me whats going wrong. Thanks in advance.

Based on pics and scores, it seems as if the pork was cooked and presented very solid. Seeing the taste and tenderness scores of the other three, each of those were less than an 8 average. Since those numbers are pretty consistent across the table (no further than 2 apart) ... I'd start with those numbers first to determine what to focus on. (At least that's what we're doing with our results as they have been less than stellar this year.)

[AZScott]

Originally Posted by Smokedelic

Sorry, but the answers to your displeasure aren't in the pics, they're on your score sheet.

Look at your scores...your problems are not in appearance, they are in taste and tenderness of your entries. If your scores continue to trend like these, I'd focus on the flavor profile of your chicken and brisket and the tenderness of your ribs and brisket.

I agree. Looks like appearance scores are good and the issue is taste and tenderness.

[HOG WILD BBQ]

wow, i would like to see who won first. those plates look awesome

[Hub]

I'm with Rookie'48 in general. You've got some room to improve but, overall, appearance should have been at least top 1/3 (there are no guarantees). My feel is that taste and texture are also a part of the problem. Don't get discouraged as there can be great variances from contest to contest and table to table. You're doing good work -- try some tweaks, keep notes.

I was a judge at Kings Mountain and I really appreciate the sportsmanship of all the cooks who endured a windy, stormy night and hung in there.