A little Monday morning inspiration…
Filed under: 'Cue Culture | Tagged: Logos and signs, Wood-cooked | Leave a comment »
Hillsborough Hog Day Tonight & Tomorrow
Posted on June 18, 2010 by Porky LeSwine
The 28th annual Hillsborough Hog Day festival takes place tonight and tomorrow in historic Hillsborough, but I guess 
you figured that much out from the title of this post.
Hog Day is a fun, free event that I have been to many times over the years, and the 2010 version of the event promises to be better than ever with the addition of the Hog Day Invitational People’s Choice competition. Last year’s top finishers from the festival’s shoulder cooking competition will serve their barbecue (cooked fresh this year, let’s hope!) direct to attendees, who will then vote on who has the best ‘cue. This is an improvement over the usual festival format where only judges get to sample competitors’ pork before it is lumped together to serve to the public.
Other Hog Day attractions include live music, a car show, a pig calling contest, arts & crafts for sale, and copious amounts of BBQ sandwiches plus various carnival foods (giant turkey legs, gyros, etc. etc.).
Oh, and did I mention that this year’s event also features a beer garden featuring Durham-based Fullsteam Brewery’s beer? Get thee to Hog Day!
Filed under: Hog Happenings | Tagged: Contests, Events, Hillsborough, Orange County | Leave a comment »
Judge Ribs Not Lest Ye Ribs Be Judged
Posted on June 16, 2010 by Porky LeSwine
This past weekend I was lucky enough to help judge the Texas Pete Twin City RibFest in Winston-Salem. Although ribs don’t hold a place of any real importance in North Carolina barbecue culture (sorry Rib Rabbi, but it’s true), I still didn’t hesitate to sign up when offered a coveted judge’s seat. And the fact that 60 MPH winds and heavy downpours were forecast didn’t dampen my enthusiasm. (Luckily, only the rains materialized while I was at the event.) I was ready to make my first appearance as a bona fide, albeit not certified, barbecue judge.
Receiving instructions from festival organizer Allen McDavid (Photo by Ben "Boss Hog" Pressgrove)
I can attest that the six-person judges panel took its job as seriously as one would expect (i.e., at least somewhat seriously). We were focused on the task at hand, especially since Ms. Texas Pete 2010 no-showed for her judges gig, leaving us menfolk with nothing to ogle besides the ribs on the table in front of us.
Festival organizer Allen McDavid spent upwards of three minutes preparing us for our roles as judges. He paced back and forth in front of the judge’s table and explained… The ribs would be served one at a time on a numbered plate to protect their identity (lest any of the judges be on the take and working for a contestant). Each rib was to be judged on four categories–taste, texture, tenderness and appearance. Each category should be rated between 2 and 9, with 2 being the worst score we could dole out and 9 being the best. (Apparently barbecue judges cannot count to 10.) A score of 1 would be assigned only if a contestant broke a rule related to the category, such as garnishing with something other than lettuce or parsley. After tasting the first rib, we should write down our scores, take a drink of water to cleanse the palate, and wipe our hands if we so desired. And then we were to taste, rinse, wipe and repeat until each contestant’s ribs were sampled.
Nothing too it, right? Anyone could be a barbecue judge. Piece of cake. Or so I thought until the tasting began. Continue reading
Filed under: 'Cue Culture | Tagged: Contests, Forsyth County, Ribs, Winston-Salem | Leave a comment »
BBQ&A Interviews: Now 73.7% Easier to Read*
Posted on June 14, 2010 by Porky LeSwine
Good news for everyone who hates scrolling down or reading a narrow middle column–i.e., those who think the blog format is a bit less than ideal for the type of hard hitting, in depth whiny, long-winded reporting BBQ Jew specializes in…
We recently updated all of our BBQ&A interviews to include a link to .pdf versions of the interviews. For example, see our BBQ&A with Sean Wilson of Fullsteam Brewery here. Or see our BBQ&A with the authors of Holy Smoke here. Want to see more? Just click on “BBQ&A” in the right hand column under the “Categories” heading, choose the interview you want and then find the .pdf links at the top of each post.
*According to unverifiable claims by the unreliable authors of this website.
Filed under: BBQ & A | Leave a comment »
Blues, Brews, (Jews) and Ques
Posted on June 11, 2010 by The Rib Rabbi
Volunteering at a barbecue fundraiser? You had me at barbecue.
The event was a chance to help the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina, which is always a good thing. Even better, Porky, Ol’ Hickory and I were slated to help with the food prep.
The food bank site billed the event as Blues, Brew & Que, but we preferred the plurals in Blues, Brews and Ques, as the logo had it, since both of us BBQ Jews were in attendance. By any name, it was a pretty cool scene.
still life with barbecue
We got to chat with the competitors taking part in the morning ‘cue competition. That included the winning chef, Fred Woodard of Smokey W’s, who specializes in whole hogs.
Orange County Cookers and Mark Johnson were the runners up and we were excited to learn that they’ll be taking part in the shoulders cooking competition at Hillsborough Hog Day next weekend.
FWIW, both smoked on BQ Grills, the Rolls Royce, er, F-250 of the barbecue world. Speaking of which, that was the truck of choice in the DAP parking lot.
The competition was officially sanctioned by NC Pork Council, who provided the hogs. Unfortunately, all but one team cooked with propane. All of the competitors’ barbecue was sold as fundraising sandwiches, and I’m guessing the lack of wood might have had something to do with the quality of the ‘cue I had at the event.
Still, it was a good time. When we left, the renovated Durham Athletic Park was bumping, as the the blues were in full swing. But one thing that gave me the blues was the startling discovery that ribs are deemed superfluous at these events.
Given the time constraints, contestants didn’t bother with the ribs. Some competitors gave them away and some–shockingly–even tossed them in the trash. That was especially upsetting for this Rib Rabbi.
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Bonus Question: How many contestants does it take to shred pork?
Answer:
Filed under: Hog Happenings | 7 Comments »
Father’s Day Merch Sale
Posted on June 10, 2010 by Porky LeSwine
Don’t you want dad to be happy after all the years of headaches you brought him? Now’s your chance to finally make him proud of you. In honor of Father’s Day, you can get free shipping for orders of $35 or more through tomorrow afternoon. Just enter the “DADDYFREEGRD” coupon code at the BBQ Jew store.
Dad sure would look nice in a “Devout from Tail to Snout” t-shirt. And you’d better believe he’d enjoy his next cup of coffee even more if he had a BBQ Jew logo mug to drink it from (oh, and don’t forget, dad always likes his coffeee with a shot of whiskey). Or maybe all dad wants for Father’s Day is a “Pork is Kosher, Right?” bumper sticker for his F-150. Heck, get him one of each to make up for all the pain he’s endured since you were born…
Filed under: Swine Swag | Tagged: Consumerism, Shameless | Leave a comment »
Texas Pete Twin City RibFest & Blue Ridge BBQ Festival This Weekend
Posted on June 9, 2010 by Porky LeSwine
RIBFEST
Looking for something ribtastic to do this weekend? You could do a lot worse than heading over to Winston-Salem (the city so nice they named cigarettes after it twice) for the Texas Pete Twin City RibFest. RibFest is in its sixth year and features music (Cyril Neville, Yo Mama’s Big Fat Booty Band, and more than 20 others), beer (Foothills Brewing, which is one of the state’s best, among others), activities for kids (highlighted by a pirate-themed magician named Captain Jim who is every bit as creepy looking as you might imagine), and plenty of slow-cooked ribs and other good eats.
But wait, there’s more… this year RibFest features a special appearance by none other than the one and only, everybody’s favorite, the man with the master plan, your’s truly, Mr. Porky LeSwine. Yes, in a rare lapse of judgment, otherwise lucent festival organizer Allen McDavid invited me to help judge the cooking competition on Saturday. Roughly a dozen cooking teams from all over the eastern half of the country, including two hometown teams, will compete for the judges’ favor.
And speaking of judges, Miss Texas Pete herself decided to join the judge’s panel, presumably because she heard I was going to participate. Needless to say, her presence puts a dent in my chances of winning the coveted title of prettiest judge but I still think I can win. And I’m sure Miss Pete will be awed by my dashing good looks and the fact that I carry a bottle of her namesake sauce with me at all times… it’s like expensive cologne for the barbecue set.
Enough of me rambling, go visit the festival website for more details on RibFest or to order advance tickets. I hope to see you in Winston-Salem this weekend. Oh, and if you need a “celebrity” judge for your upcoming BBQ event, you know how to reach me…
BLUE RIDGE BBQ FESTIVAL
Winston-Salem too flat for you? Head for the mountains of Tryon, where the Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival will be taking place. See this article or the BBQJew.com events page for more details.
Filed under: Hog Happenings | Tagged: Contests, Festivals | Leave a comment »
Mama Jean’s: BBQ Shack on Wheels
Posted on June 7, 2010 by Porky LeSwine
Over the weekend The Rib Rabbi and I, along with our accomplice Nate “Ol’ Hickory” O’Keefe, volunteered at a barbecue-themed fundraising event. More on the event soon, but that’s a separate post. While at the event, we “discovered” a local BBQ joint we’d never heard of: Mama Jean’s Bar-B-Que Shack (as is common with barbecue joints, alternate spellings abound, with “Mama Jean’s BBQ Shack” and “Mama Jean’s Bar-B-Q Shack” also featured in their marketing materials). Better yet, Mama Jean’s operates out of a truck, which as far as we know is unique for BBQ in food truck-rich Durham; other examples exist elsewhere in NC, such as Fatback’s BBQ & Rib Shack in Fayetteville.
Despite being set up squarely in the middle of a long row of BBQ cooking teams, the guys from Mama Jean’s caught our attention because they were the only ones using charcoal and wood instead of propane. Of course, they also had that BBQ/Bar-B-Q/Bar-B-Que truck of their’s doubling as a hard-to-miss billboard.
Alas, we arrived at the event too late to sample Mama Jean’s cooking but we vow to check it out soon and report back. We did get a chance to chew the proverbial fat with the Mama Jean’s crew. They were nice guys who clearly care about ‘cue and were proud to be cooking over wood/charcoal. They told us that they are working on opening a permament brick and mortar location soon, but for now you should be able to find their bar-b-bus parked near the corner of Angier and Driver Streets in Durham a short drive east of downtown. They also would be happy to help you with catering your next event. See their website for details and stay tuned for our patented BBQ Jew’s View review coming soon.
Filed under: Restaurants & Reviews | Tagged: Durham, Durham County, Mobile food truck, Wood-cooked | Leave a comment »
Ooh…That Smell!
Posted on June 4, 2010 by The Rib Rabbi
image by obswhatsinstore.blogspot.com
While Triangle residents have battled against digital billboards, the Charlotte-area now has a slighly more interactive kind of roadside sign: A scented one.
Drivers in Mooresville, near Charlotte, are currently getting a whiff of hickory and steak, thanks to a Bloom supermarket billboard promoting a new kind of beef. With fans wafting its aromas 30 to 50 yards down to the roadside, sign maker ScentAir Technologies just might be onto something.
The news has even gone national and international. Of course, they have the wrong kind of meat.
We here at BBQ Jew can’t help wondering what it would look like if this technology were applied to the sacred swine. For instance, as cars approached the hypothetical NC Barbecue Museum, a scented sign could signal your arrival.
Then again, we’re prone to think that real wood-smoked barbecue needs no aromatic assistance. But, I’d enjoy having a ‘cue scent piped into my home (you can keep the billboard). And I’d even settle for barbecue poutpourri.
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And yes, this post’s title is our first, but hopefully not last, Skynyrd reference.
Filed under: 'Cue Culture, Miscellaneous, Rabbi's Rants/Raves | 1 Comment »
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