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And still doesnt really cover how the parsley or garnish should be removed from the meat. Removing it could mean tweezers and gently removing the garnish or it could mean taking a napkin and wiping all the sauce off...wiping the sauce off could greatly affect the score.

While true, I wish I had a nickel for everytime the instructor told us that BBQ is a finger food. Utensils are only to be used to take your sample out of the turn in box and napkins are to be used between samples to clean your hands and face between samples.
 
Isn't that what we've (most all of us) been saying? :biggrin:

just wanted to put up an 'quasiofficial' word directly from a CBJ instructor.

And still doesnt really cover how the parsley or garnish should be removed from the meat. Removing it could mean tweezers and gently removing the garnish or it could mean taking a napkin and wiping all the sauce off...wiping the sauce off could greatly affect the score.

I think it means pull the piece of parsley off with your fingers and remove it. Appearance scores are already done, and i doubt a piece of parsley is gonna pull off any substantial amount of sauce/seasoning.

Its BBQ Judging...... PLAY WITH YOUR FOOD!!!! :razz::razz::razz:

Then lick your fingers. :mrgreen:
 
Okay Jason F. here is a pic of chicken with all parsley. This was from Clovis (15th place) I took 4th in Fairfield with this same presentation.

We'll collaborate more at Backyard at the Lake.
 

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i am fairly new to this, but is this about the color chicken should be? Every time i have done it it turns out much darker than this.
 
Thanks Bob. I can't wait to see what Mike comes back with. I'd be happy to change my judging style if he comes back with something different than I was told in class. He's the top dog in my book on this topic. As it is, I judge it as I get it. 9 times out of 10 if something is stuck to it, it is not where I am going to bite... so a non issue anyway. :cool:

Based on Linda's input - I'll ensure I remove it; Todd/Jeff - note I said I'd be happy adjust my judging. I have only judged two contests; but Cooking over 100+, it has never come up as an issue - until it was mentioned at CBJ class. A "literal" answer is what I heard. Now that I know it was incorrect, it will be a non issue 10 out of 10 times, instead of just the 9 out of 10 I noted:eusa_clap

I couldn't agree with you more. Surprised this obvious solution hasn't been mentioned more.
I did mention it - see above! :-D

i am fairly new to this, but is this about the color chicken should be? Every time i have done it it turns out much darker than this.
My chicken is usually much darker than that. See pic below - that was my GAB 1st Place Chicken box.
chickweb.JPG
 
With chicken like that, you get one of these...

T&A.JPG


Wow, I've gained weight since the GAB. :icon_smil
 
OK- Tops and Andy! Do you just fill around the edges of the box and between the thighs?

The boxes I've encountered had beds of Parsley on the bottom, and they were trimmed tight, no stem, almost all leaf. I'm not whining about picking off a piece of garnish, these were pasted to the thighs when picked out. It had to be wiped off.

BTW - those are very nice looking turn ins!
 
Brisket pants....my eyes still tear at the thought.

I've only been competing this year, but the time and intesity that everyone puts into this sport/hobby, the judges should be optimisitic not pessimistic in their scoring. Parsley appears to be a necessary evil and my head still aches after trimming parsley :)
 
OK- Tops and Andy! Do you just fill around the edges of the box and between the thighs?

The boxes I've encountered had beds of Parsley on the bottom, and they were trimmed tight, no stem, almost all leaf. I'm not whining about picking off a piece of garnish, these were pasted to the thighs when picked out. It had to be wiped off.

BTW - those are very nice looking turn ins!

I doubt there was no stem. May have seemed that way but the way you do it is you chop green leaf lettuce up and put a layer in the bottom of the box then use that to poke your parsley stems down into to hold them in place. We do not start poking extra parsley in so that it covers any of the meat between pieces either. Might need to put a few in for the purpose of filling in small gaps made by placing the meat on top of the bed though. I'd post a photo of our chicken boxes as we altered and began using late in '07 to rebound from a bad bird year but then I'd just hafta kill ya! :lol::wink:
 
OK- Tops and Andy! Do you just fill around the edges of the box and between the thighs?

The boxes I've encountered had beds of Parsley on the bottom, and they were trimmed tight, no stem, almost all leaf. I'm not whining about picking off a piece of garnish, these were pasted to the thighs when picked out. It had to be wiped off.

BTW - those are very nice looking turn ins!

Trimmed lettuce, with short stems... to keep them in the box and off the meat. Kim has taken over doing the boxes, so she has it down to an art. You'd be more than welcome to watch the process if you make it to any midwest comps.

All I can say is... take out a 9" styrofoam tray, and practice at home. try different variations, and see what you like best.
 
I doubt there was no stem. May have seemed that way but the way you do it is you chop green leaf lettuce up and put a layer in the bottom of the box then use that to poke your parsley stems down into to hold them in place. We do not start poking extra parsley in so that it covers any of the meat between pieces either. Might need to put a few in for the purpose of filling in small gaps made by placing the meat on top of the bed though. I'd post a photo of our chicken boxes as we altered and began using late in '07 to rebound from a bad bird year but then I'd just hafta kill ya! :lol::wink:
That would be the way Steph taught me back in 2006. Seems like a lot of other cooks doing classes do the same thing. We do the same thing. For others her's another little tip on parsley boxes. Think 300 or more individual stems in one box.

The idea is to lay the pieces of chicken on top of the parsley so that they sink in slightly and the judges can see the sides as well as the top when it's presented. Makes the meat jump out more. So the parsley is trimmed so the piece is about an inch long and it only has one head on it. Bad form to try to get 3 end stems on one piece although it's a lot easier. And pack them tight.
 
These were my first comp turn ins. I spent what I thought was a good deal of time picking out my lettuce and parsley from a farm stand, prepared my boxes the night before so I wouldn't be rushed. I tried to add parsley to fill in some spots but it looked out of place so I bagged it. I'm always studying others pics and know I need to work on this so if anyone cares to give me some feedback I'd appreciate it!

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8-6-6 8-9-9 9-5-6 8-8-8 9-8-7 8-9-9 19th place


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7-9-8 8-9-9 5-6-7 6-8-5 7-9-8 9-9-7 20th Place
 
i have gotten some great ideas from everyone in this thread, but have a few questions. several people mentioned using a bed of chopped lettuce as a base to stick the stems of the parsley into. How exactly is this done? do you do this all over the bed and then up on the side? ALso, this may be a dumb question but i am assuming you are all talking about using flat-leaf parsley. Is this a safe assumption?
 
i have gotten some great ideas from everyone in this thread, but have a few questions. several people mentioned using a bed of chopped lettuce as a base to stick the stems of the parsley into. How exactly is this done? do you do this all over the bed and then up on the side? ALso, this may be a dumb question but i am assuming you are all talking about using flat-leaf parsley. Is this a safe assumption?

Chris, in this method, you don't need or want it to go up the sides, so to speak. You want your meat to mostly be perched on top of this parsley bed but not so high to be touching the lid when the box is closed. Just put a thin layer of chopped lettuce (we just bunch up the leaf lettuce and cut across it, making strips, then chop the strips a bit. I'd guess around a half inch or so. Spread it out around the entire botton of the box and start working on yout parsley "planting" from one corner, outwade to the opposite corner. Remember to save your best looking parsley for edges and corners as the stuff in the middle will be almost entirely covered anyway. I know a couple of teams that just leave the chopped lettuce in the center and only put parsley around the edges because of this. We just prefer the parsley putting green. :wink:
 
Here's what I've learned from this thread - Jeff is right. We should all be subject to a CBJ refresher every few years. I took my class with Ed Roith and he was very clear about the garnish issue and the hair issue and the pieces not cut apart problem and all these other things we've talked about. The only thing I'd question is a basting brush bristle. To me, that's a foreign object. But if my table captain said no I'd pick it off and eat.

Yes you eat the skin. Yes I find it gross. But you are required to at least taste it.

And if I was allergic, didn't like something or otherwise whined about eating anything at a competition that was properly cooked, I'd expect to get pitched out on my pork butt. As a cook and CBJ I take this scoring stuff seriously and have a great appreciation for the work that goes in to it. I judge the way I'd wanting to be judged -- as fairly and objectively as possible and according to the rules.

On that note, I see very few people carry their CBJ booklets in to a comp, even to be signed. I find it very helpful to flip through and do a quick review of the rules since we don't judge as often as we cook. Dorky? Maybe. But at least when I leave I feel I've done my best.
 
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