Wood Smoking Flavor Chart: A Public Service Announcement

I have shared this link many times via e- mail, so I thought, why not share it with you?

Wood Smoke Flavor Chart

I have found this chart, provided by Dee Jay's Smoke Pit to be spot on.  So, if you are wondering what wood to use for your recipe, this is the place to go.  Enjoy!

Thanks for stopping by,

Bill

Oinktoberfest 2013, Open Grilling

As is standard for New York BBQ contest weekends, there was an open grilling contest.  This was not a sanctioned NEBS contest.  Just six categories for fun, trophies, and a little bit of money for the lucky ones.

The four main categories this weekend were:

Chicken, any thing but wings
Pork, anything but ribs
Beef
Chowder

Two ancillary categories were:

Anything Buffalo but wings
Wings, anything but Buffalo

Our weekend was mixed.  We came in fifth in the beef with our standard tri-tip recipe:

Pork was a tenderloin marinaded in a teriyaki sesame sauce, grilled to medium.  It finished middle of the pack:

We used the chicken as an opportunity to practice a bit for KCBS.  We did breasts in Oakridge Secret Weapon Pork and Chicken rub.  We loved the flavor.  It just might make it in to our KCBS recipe:

The chowder was a chicken, corn, bacon, jalapeno, Cheddar concoction.  We liked it.  The judges put it in the middle of the pack:

Wings were a smoked wing with Louisiana Licker sauce.  Again, middle of the pack:

Anything Buffalo but wings was Steelhead with a Buffalo sauce.  Middle of the pack as well:

In this category, I completely forgot about Beef on Weck.  One entry was a Beef on Weck pierogie.  There were also some Beef on Weck pizzas that rocked.  One thing that I did not know was that Loganberry are a "Buffalo Thing". The winner was a Loganberry cheesecake that scored a perfect 180.  Can't beat that.

Once I have some time, I'll be posting some of these recipes and trying out my own Beef on Weck pizza.

Thanks for stopping by,

Bill

Oinktoberfest 2013, KCBS Competition

Last weekend, we wrapped up the New York portion of our competition schedule by competing in Oinktoberfest in Clarence, NY.  As always, this was a great event and good fun was had by all.  Unfortunately, Saturday was a challenge.  We received three inches of rain, starting at 5:30 am and ending, ironically enough, right after the award ceremony at 5:30 pm.  After that, the place turned into a bit of a quagmire.  But there is nothing you can do about that.  I felt sorry for some of the teams that had their team sites right up against a barn.  The downspouts drained into their sites adding another layer of discomfort to an already miserable weather day.  Here are some pictures from the weekend:

Illicit BBQ dealings concerning top secret brisket rub...

Cooks meeting.  It is tough to cram 71 teams in a garage...

Guest of honor...

Niagara Falls, at least a smaller version.  I wanted to ride the Ferris Wheel...

Our good friends from Locked and Loaded BBQ trying to keep dry...

When you don't have a regular umbrella, a beach umbrella will do.  One of the guys from Buckner Brothers BBQ with a moment of lucid ingenuity...

Lets review our scores.

I am happy to report that the upward trend has continued and we couldn't be happier.

The chicken scored a 167.4400, good for 10 out of 71

Our ribs continue to kill our overall scores.  The ribs scored a 145.6456, good for 49 out of 71.  Our taste and tenderness are off.  I suppose we have to do more time in the foil and take some of the spice out of the rub.  I have some ideas for our last competition this year.

Our pork scored a 161.1200, good for 25 out of 71.  Frankly, I am surprised it did that well.  It was a bit on the dry side, but we'll take it and say thank you.

Our brisket was the shock of the weekend.  It has always given us trouble.  But, we changed a few things in the injection and made sure to cook a bit longer.  When we were tasting, we knew it was the best we had ever made.  But, it doesn't matter what we think.  How did we do?  172.5828 and 5th out of 71.  We didn't even win our table!  I just hope we can keep the brisket quality this good.

Overall, we came in 17th out of 71.  That was a point total of 646.7884 again improving over our last competition in Hudson Valley.  Full contest results can be found here.

For the year, Three Dogs finished 34th in the Empire State BBQ Championship.  Hopefully we can keep improving next year.

Congrats to Smokin' Hoggz BBQ, our Grand Champion.  I'll say it again, they have been on a tear since winning the 2011 Jack.  Keep up the good work.  Congratulations are in order for Fatty MacBarbeque, our Reserve Grand Champion.  You have been on a bit of a tear since winning Boston Hills.  Keep it up!

Also, we would like to thank the contest organizer, George Booth, for putting together a great contest at a great venue.  How about we skip the rain next year?

Thanks for stopping by,

Bill

Copeland's New Orleans Restaurant and Bar - Kenner, LA

Well, it has been a busy few weeks around here.  Two work trips sandwiched around a competition.  Time to catch up on some posts.  First, we'll start with a visit to Copeland's New Orleans Restaurant and Bar.

I usually end up in Louisiana every so often for work.  Cajun and creole food are one of my favorites.  What is not to like about butter, cream, and seafood cooked up in a Cajun style.  Copeland's has a diverse menu of Cajun and creole classics.  Seafood, fried and broiled, raw bar, crayfish, and lots of creamy pasta meals.  I started with their Crayfish Bread appetizer.

This plate is a half of a French loaf, sliced in half, and topped with a thin layer of Alfredo sauce, spinach and artichoke dip, Monterrey Jack cheese and sauteed crayfish, all baked until hot and bubbly.  The flavors are great. But, the texture reminds me a bit of frozen French Bread pizza.  Also, it is a bit light on the crayfish.  I think an improvement to the dish would be to use sliced baguette rounds to add some crispiness to the dish.  Overall, this appetizer gets a B.

My main course was Sauteed Tasso Ham and Shrimp with Cajun Parmesan cream sauce served over bow tie pasta.

This dish was outstanding.  The perfect ham to shrimp ratio.  Cajun spices made a perfect Parmesan cream sauce even better.  The pasta was a perfect al dente.  I ate every last bite.  The surprise on this plate was the drop biscuit you see at the top.  It was light and airy with a great biscuit flavor, perfect for sopping up the remains of that great cream sauce.  This dish gets an A in my book.

One great aspect of this meal was the price.  Usually, you pay top dollar for this quality in the Big Easy.  But, this dinner, with two Abita Amber drafts and tip was only $35.  You can't beat that!

Overall, Copeland's gets an A.  I will be back for sure.

Thanks for stopping by,

Bill