First full practice cook

Did my first practice cook this weekend. Learned so much. First rain is not your friend but nothing you can do about it. Poured during the night. I was so focused on not being late that I ended up having all the turn ins done way to early. Need to sort that out better. I'm very happy with the taste of the product but I need to work on the presentation. All in all it was a great experience. Much to learn but that is the fun part.

Here is a shot of the ghetto kookers.

Uncle Buds BBQ said:

Did you just set up in the back yard for the practice? If so...way to go! That's as close as it gets to a comp as long as you didn't run back into the house to get the apple juice!!!

Do you want an appearance score?

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Sure, I'll take scores, criticism, pointers etc. Any input is welcome. I know I have a long way to go with appearance.

Yes it was in the backyard and I never went into the house. Prepped all the meat under the tent, did all the clean up under the ten etc. Even slept in the tent in the rain with kids. Kept a log in case I forgot about something so I could write it down.

bbqstudent said:

Looks good to me! I see everyone who posts pics of their setup have banners. Is that a KCBS requirement or just a coincidence?

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Nope. Just shameless self promotion. Besides it looks cool.

Thanks for all the input. To answer some of the questions.

Yes I need a better and sharper knife. I bought a long slicing knife but not a good one and I'm paying for it now.

I cooked and did the turn in just like a real comp. I had a spreadsheet to work from but as it was the first time with the timing it all came together early. I did cooler the brisket, pork and ribs.

Chicken does not seem to hold well so that will take more work on the timing as chicken does not sit well. Need to get it right off the cooker and into prep mode. Need to bring more sauce as I ran out and could not dunk them in so I had to brush them.

I had a bunch of neighbors over to eat everything so I separated the point and the flat to make burnt ends. I think that caused me some dryness points. I can cook it hot and fast and get better results but I am afraid that if something goes wrong I will not have enough time to recover. This brisket came out over cooked so it was hard to make it look good.

Yes ribs were too dark. Tasted great though. Need to work on that.

When cooking on the drums I need to remember things cook faster.

Pork, yes it looked like I just dumped it in there because that's what I did. Not sure yet how to present that. Money muscle was too well done to slice with that fantastic knife of mine.

So much to learn but that journey is what makes it interesting.

Chipper, I like your drink advice.