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BBQ comp.

muttinmuttin Posts: 45
in EggHead Forum


i
am entering a BBQ competition in august and last year for the BBQ we did a
really really good blueberry bbq sauce but the judges didn't like it they liked
something that was more like off the shelf. so i am asking anyone that has experience
in competition  what kind of rubs and sauces
do the judges prefer? we are cooking pork butt, Ribs, chicken thighs<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />



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Comments

  • BYS1981BYS1981 Posts: 729
    I have zero experience in competitions, but I have noticed on BBQ pittmasters season 1 they say the judges go with what they like. This means that most judges will like what the region is known for. I would check region and then go from there to help narrow your search and flavor profile.
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  • ChokeOnSmokeChokeOnSmoke Posts: 1,431
    Depends what kind of competition you're doing.  If you're doing a KCBS competition, they look for traditional sweet sauce - nothing out of the ordinary.  Did one last summer and we thought we'd kick it up a notch and spice things up and paid dearly in the judging (beginners mistake).
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  • seanwileyseanwiley Posts: 18
    I'm a relatively new certified KCBS judge and I have to agree with ChokeOnSmoke. I was surprised at how "traditional" all the judges seemed to be. There's always a few master judges at the contests and I would make an effort to sit with them and pick their brains. After all the scorecards were turned in we would discuss opinions and the very middle of the road, smooth sauces were consistently ranked the best. I'm from Texas and also like and cook a spicier sauce, but am clearly in the minority. An explanation given to me is that it can pollute your palate for the next entry.

    In any case, go for rich / sweet / savory. Not fruity, spicy or anything too unique. Save that for your friends. Good luck!
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  • ChokeOnSmokeChokeOnSmoke Posts: 1,431
    I'm a relatively new certified KCBS judge and I have to agree with ChokeOnSmoke. I was surprised at how "traditional" all the judges seemed to be. There's always a few master judges at the contests and I would make an effort to sit with them and pick their brains. After all the scorecards were turned in we would discuss opinions and the very middle of the road, smooth sauces were consistently ranked the best. I'm from Texas and also like and cook a spicier sauce, but am clearly in the minority. An explanation given to me is that it can pollute your palate for the next entry.

    In any case, go for rich / sweet / savory. Not fruity, spicy or anything too unique. Save that for your friends. Good luck!
    Thanks for the confirmation.  This is exactly what we were told AFTER the competition was over by a couple of judges hanging around when teams were packing up for the day.
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  • SqueezySqueezy Posts: 1,098

    I've been certified KCBS for several years and agree with most stated above. For me, I like spicy and I will score the brave souls that did it a bit higher, same as when it is too sweet, I score a bit lower. Helps even it out. It's true that it is hard to cleanse the palette after a spicy entry and it will affect the next entry. Cherry seems to be getting popular in the north (New York). Personally, I wish the teams would mix it up, I'd love some Carolina or Texas style thrown into the mix ...

    Good luck and where abouts will you be competing?

    Never eat anything passed through a window unless you're a seagull ...
    BGE Lg.
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  • Rich_ieRich_ie Posts: 268
    I'm a palate polluter!!! And I love it... 
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  • muttinmuttin Posts: 45

    Thank you for all the info that is kind of what i was thinking just middle road. I love to try different things and be out of the box and the team i am on did that last year on there ribs and got 4th(i am just joining them this year) . and the team that won was strait middle road traditional bbq for the area. the comp. is just a small town thing in northern Minnesota

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  • B&amp;BKnoxB&BKnox Posts: 137
    Give blues hog a shot on ribs, to die for.
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  • muttinmuttin Posts: 45


    Also
    in this comp. it is a 1 day event so what they do on the pork but is have a rotisserie
    guy cook everyone's butt so you are just judged on rubs and sauce. my question
    is does anyone ever inject your porkbutts? if so with what? and do people like
    it ?    <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />



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  • bigguy136bigguy136 Posts: 626
    I just did one and the top 3 places were a heavy BBQ sauce on the ribs. That was in Little Canada, MN (a little south of you).
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  • muttinmuttin Posts: 45


    Also
    in this comp. it is a 1 day event so what they do on the pork but is have a rotisserie
    guy cook everyone's butt so you are just judged on rubs and sauce. my question
    is does anyone ever inject your porkbutts? if so with what? and do people like
    it ?    <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />



    Flag • Off Topic Disagree Agree Like
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