Competitions

[Sawdustguy]

Look at it this way. The guys who manufacture the more successful commercial rubs and sauces have been perfecting it for years. Why re-invent the wheel. This is something we learned very quickly when we started competing.

A good point was brought up in a prior post. Quite a few of us don't prepare the que we eat at home the same way we prepare the que at a contest. Consider that at a contest we have two bites to capture the judges attention. The flavors are amped up beyond my personal taste. At home I make my own sauce because I do not care for real sweet bbq sauce but at a contest sweet wins. At a contest we prepare what we think the judges will give us the best scores for, not what we would prefer to eat ourselves.

 

[Tack]

Well said SawDust. I personally like my own sauces, judges on the other hand have a profound dislike for em, a lesson I learned tha hard way.

 

[Red Valley BBQ]

Well said SawDust. I personally like my own sauces, judges on the other hand have a profound dislike for em, a lesson I learned tha hard way.

Just use more salt. :laugh:

 

[viper1]

Look at it this way. The guys who manufacture the more successful commercial rubs and sauces have been perfecting it for years. Why re-invent the wheel. This is something we learned very quickly when we started competing.

A good point was brought up in a prior post. Quite a few of us don't prepare the que we eat at home the same way we prepare the que at a contest. Consider that at a contest we have two bites to capture the judges attention. The flavors are amped up beyond my personal taste. At home I make my own sauce because I do not care for real sweet bbq sauce but at a contest sweet wins. At a contest we prepare what we think the judges will give us the best scores for, not what we would prefer to eat ourselves.

Well I never thought of it that way. See I never done or would do competitive. I have a hard enough time pleasing my self and family and friends.LOL But I prefer my recipes. When I started smoking and BBQ'ing I did use store brought brands or ordered on line. Now i tend to use my own and do consider it a step up then beginners. I now understand you may also. And do what you do to compete. I also know some commercial things I do like. When I do for my own use I still prefer a clone to tweak. But I see how judges have maybe ramped things up where you are better off the way you do. I would probably personally like your home cooked better then the way judges do. My tastes are probably not as refined either. LOL

 

[Fat Freddy]

Viper1, i will take you at what you explained and I think Ron did an excellent job of explaining the issues with the post. I think if you would have posted this under Q-talk rather than competition the responses would have been different. Also there was one phrase you used and I truly believe only that one phrase that caused the unexpected responses. The phrase was "Guess i'll have to rethink how I judge the ribs and things now."

The reason that phrase cause several of us to react is because to enter a competition we have to pay for an entry, buy meats(usually chicken,ribs,pork, and brisket) usually buy ice, any kind of drinks, pay fuel costs and MANY MANY other expenses. So if we can save a few dollars buy buying a commercial rub or sauce it is well worth it.

But then by the original posting we read of that "rogue" judge that is going to judge our product differently if that judge perceives the product as "commercial", it will cause reactions.

Only speaking for KCBS comps, the judge is supposed to judge the entry as it is presented without personal biases.

I hope that may clear up any confusion as to why us comp cooks are reacting the way we are. After reading further you do say you are not a judge but that may not be understood right away.

 

[viper1]

Viper1, i will take you at what you explained and I think Ron did an excellent job of explaining the issues with the post. I think if you would have posted this under Q-talk rather than competition the responses would have been different. Also there was one phrase you used and I truly believe only that one phrase that caused the unexpected responses. The phrase was "Guess i'll have to rethink how I judge the ribs and things now."

The reason that phrase cause several of us to react is because to enter a competition we have to pay for an entry, buy meats(usually chicken,ribs,pork, and brisket) usually buy ice, any kind of drinks, pay fuel costs and MANY MANY other expenses. So if we can save a few dollars buy buying a commercial rub or sauce it is well worth it.

But then by the original posting we read of that "rogue" judge that is going to judge our product differently if that judge perceives the product as "commercial", it will cause reactions.

Only speaking for KCBS comps, the judge is supposed to judge the entry as it is presented without personal biases.

I hope that may clear up any confusion as to why us comp cooks are reacting the way we are. After reading further you do say you are not a judge but that may not be understood right away.

Ok Thanks now I understand. It was a statement I guess I didnt think out. When I eat BBQ I pay more attention to the rub. Searching for a taste or combination that works for me. That's all I meant from judging. I just did it here to get some feed back not irate any one. I haven't ever been to a competitive cook so I wouldn't know. I have been at burn offs. Like you say they cook a lot of meat up. So happy cookin! I'll keep my nose out of here from now on
. LOL

 

[Tack]

No reason to as you say "keep Your Nose out of here. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the site. Lots of info here that may help you find the taste that you like as you put it.

 

[Q-Dat]

Well I personally am trying to use my own rubs and sauce for competitions. I don't do it because I think any less of people who use proven products. I do it in preparation for a future that will probably never happen. On the very slim chance that any of my rubs or sauce are successful enough to warrant me selling them, I want to know the actual recipe, and not have to purchase someone else's already marked up product in order to make mine.

Like I said, this will probably never happen, but you never know!

 

[butt head]

No I would not consider that the same if you came up with the formula. again Apples and Oranges?

You know! I sure hope you guys are ribbing me. I ve already said Sorry but all these comments are still coming.
If your not then maybe you ought to re investigate your self and what your doing.. Why are you personally worried about what i said unless you feel somethings wrong? I made a statement to a group. I didnt say any thing was wrong. Only that I had noticed it.
I dont care if you use Open pit or just plain chili powder my self. And I could care less how some one feels about what I use. I do what I enjoy and you should too! Seems so many people today feel insecure. Ever notice that?
LOL

don't worry, it's winter and they always get like this after a little cabin fever:wacko:

 

[NRA4Life]

Also there was one phrase you used and I truly believe only that one phrase that caused the unexpected responses. The phrase was "Guess i'll have to rethink how I judge the ribs and things now."

You hit the head right on the nail.

 

[CBQ]

No worries! It's all good.

BTW, most competition cooks do have secret recipes But those secret recipes may just be the right combination of a couple of different commercial products :-D

:thumb: That's exactly right. I don't think (most) competition teams are winning by using a single commerical product. They are blending different products in a way to create the flavor profile they want.

That isn't much different than making stuff from scratch, but it often saves time. Rubs and sauces made from scratch could have dozens of ingredients in them. Using commercial products make that more managable, but it's still up to the cook to make it work.

 

[jbrink01]

:thumb: That's exactly right. I don't think (most) competition teams are winning by using a single commerical product. They are blending different products in a way to create the flavor profile they want.

That isn't much different than making stuff from scratch, but it often saves time. Rubs and sauces made from scratch could have dozens of ingredients in them. Using commercial products make that more managable, but it's still up to the cook to make it work.

We had our best year ever last year, and we started the season by getting a dozen sauces, 8 or 10 rubs and doing an excel sheet with combos and opinions. It cost a Saturday and several hundred dollars, but it was well worth it. BTW - We won our first grand using my own seasonings several years ago. We get more consistent results using a blend of commercially available products.

 

[Ron_L]

We had our best year ever last year, and we started the season by getting a dozen sauces, 8 or 10 rubs and doing an excel sheet with combos and opinions. It cost a Saturday and several hundred dollars, but it was well worth it. BTW - We won our first grand using my own seasonings several years ago. We get more consistent results using a blend of commercially available products.

I'll trade some freshly roasted coffee for that spreadsheet!

:tea:

 

[zombie barbecue2]

I Agree with Tack.

No reason to as you say "keep Your Nose out of here. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the site. Lots of info here that may help you find the taste that you like as you put it.

We started out in competition BBQ not knowing a thing. We have grown. And part of that is with mentoring from people like Tack, Porter Mac's Rocking BBQ and others on this site and at comps. We are here to compete, cook good BBQ, and have a great time with friends. Whether they be in person or online. No reason to hate when you can eat good BBQ and enjoy life.

 

[Brauma]

If you know a team that does fairly well at comps, ask if you can pit bitch for them or be the diddler. It will completely change the way you think about competition BBQ.

After 3 years of competing (we only did 2 or 3 comps a year, though) I am about to take a CBJ class next month. Can't wait! I'm positive I will learn a ton about judging that I never knew from 3 years of competing. I should've done this a lot sooner.

 

[Muddy River Boy]

With any recipe: if you change one ingredient (add or delete) then it is a different recipe.:attention:

Just saying.

 

[jbrink01]

I'll trade some freshly roasted coffee for that spreadsheet!

:tea:

But it would be so subjective, you wouldn't get much out of it......:icon_blush:

 

[landarc]

Viper, what JBrink points to really is the point, wven if you use all commercial products, eack combination of cooker, rub, sauce and smoke will change the result. Even if you use Blues Hog, there are no guarantees, as not every rub will work with it well.

 

[viper1]

Viper, what JBrink points to really is the point, wven if you use all commercial products, eack combination of cooker, rub, sauce and smoke will change the result. Even if you use Blues Hog, there are no guarantees, as not every rub will work with it well.

Well I was trying to keep out of this but no one will let it this thread die. My opinion and only my opinion is.
I can not lay claim to a recipe or formula somebody else made whether or not I twink it.
I also Like to know that I can repeat recipes for as long as I want. Can't do that if some one quits producing that product.
I enjoy designing my own and take a lot of pride in it. I also believe Im as cook a cook or better then some. Just dont need to compete to prove it.

Now some under stand and for those that don't. I commented with out meaning no harm or foul! But some took it personal. Im at a point now I fell "Too BAD!" It was not a personal attack just a statement. I dont care how you read it. I'm a hunter and lots of people dont like or agree with hunters. I dont take it personal. I now know you guys do this in my opinion as sort of a sport. And do what it takes to win. There is nothing wrong with that! And the tools you use is your choice. I hope you have fun and enjoy! But trying to pound your beliefs no matter what they are into a 59 year old's head is a waste of time. I love curing,smoking,grilling and cooking. Just dont understand why people have to read more into a comment these days then what was meant. Its not like I didnt explain my self!

 

[CBQ]

I commented with out meaning no harm or foul! But some took it personal.

I don't think anyone took it personally. If you offer an opinion, it's pretty much a sure thing that someone will offer a contrary opinion. It's expected and even encouraged here, but the moderators will take a pretty strong stand against personal attacks

I do think using commercial products is still cooking. As I always tell the general public, the big barbecue secret is that there is no secret ingredient. There isn't that one special something that makes you win, but it's paying attention to all the little details. You are, of course, free to disagee. :tape: