View Full Version : It wouldn't be Dixie without
Professur
11/05/07, 10:28am
B-B-Q. Pulled pork, however you want to call it. The gauntlet has been thrown, the die cast. There's a recipe in one of my "Barbecue Bible" cookbooks, with the sauce basically being a vinegar. I believe they referred to it as a S. Carolina BBQ. Now, I know I can do better than that. I've had better already. So I need you good Southern folk, or even Northerners who want to step up to the challenge, to dust off the old family recipe. I will, over a progress of time, be cooking all of them. There's a butcher near at hand who regularly has large hunks of pig meat at good prices. And given that I've yet to see a recipe that calls for less than 4lbs of good, off the hoof protein, good leftover ability is definitely one of the categories for judging.
Who's brave enough to step up? Who's willing to lay family honour on the line? Who's so sure of their recipe that they believe even a fumble fingered Super-Northerner can't screw it up?
SouthernN'Proud
11/05/07, 11:04am
Southron BBQ is very regional. What is standard in western NC won't fly in central NC. Memphis BBQ uses a lot of dry rubs. Some places use mustard sauce, others use tomato based. We had a good throw down about this a couple years ago when Inky wanted to try and convince us Southroners that some place in Cali made the world's best. His ears might still be swollen from the boxing they took.
That being said, BBQ was not a huge favorite in my family when I was a child. What BBQing I do I have taught myself and learned from friends. I don't have a homemade sauce recipe. Depending on the cut of meat, the tastes of my intended diners, and other factors I will use as many as four different purchased sauces in varrying combinations. I tried dry rub once and screwed up a nice rack of ribs, haven't been brave enough to try again.
I'd be more than happy to supply you with the purchased sauces I use, but I somehow don't think that's what you're after. Go by racebuds and ask abooja though. She has a few that sound fantastic. They might even be posted in the kitchen sink forum there.
paul_valaru
11/05/07, 11:09am
look for molasses based sauces.
I have a receipe, but it is asian biased, I liked it on pulled pork, don't know if you will.
molasses
Concentraited OJ
Ginger
Pepper flakes
soy
pinch of 5 spice
rice wine vinegar
seasame oil
chopped shallots
garlic
applesauce
unclehobart
11/05/07, 11:13am
5 spice and applesauce do not a BBQ make. That is a mere 'sauce'.
paul_valaru
11/05/07, 11:15am
5 spice and applesauce do not a BBQ make. That is a mere 'sauce'.
Prof started with vinegar based sauces, and I cook mine in the oven or crock-pot anyway.
I am smoker-less.
Maybe next year.
The most important thing about barbecue (pulled pork, beef brisket or ribs), IMO, is not the sauce. Cook it slow over a wood fire. I like hickory myself. The sauce is a condiment. To each his own. That's why there are so many regional differences but any time you find good barbecue, regardless of sauce, you can bet it's been cooking since yesterday.
BTW Prof, you wouldn't like the sauces I make since an important ingredient is always Tobasco or some other hot sauce. As far as mild sauces go, I usually take a recipe I have from TGI Friday's and season it up some. I rarely make any sauce the same twice, I taste as I go. Stay away from the really tomato-y ones though. Might as well just use ketchup.
I'll dig up a base recipe when I get home if I think of it.
Almost forgot: The sauce you mop your 'cue with while it's cooking is different (and much thinner) than what you put on when you're about to eat. I generally use the second stuff sparingly myself.
BTW Paul, you know you can by "smoke" flavoring, right? I've got a beer and cayenne pepper recipe that works pretty good in the crock pot if you're interested. A little piquant, but tasty. :D
paul_valaru
11/05/07, 11:34am
Liquid smoke?
Had something with that once, and it was HORRIBLE (I think they used half a bottle.
Now it is one of those foods that I can't think about without being nausiated.
But send me the sause receipe.
and I can and do slow cook in the oven, lowest setting for many hours, with dry rubs too.
Professur
11/05/07, 12:04pm
I've got two bottles of liquid smoke at home. I use it in the jerky marinade. Had to buy it south of the border. Nowhere, and I mean nowhere in the area carries it.
paul_valaru
11/05/07, 12:11pm
I saw it around 10 years ago, then it disappeared
unclehobart
11/05/07, 12:33pm
Using half the bottle was the problem. Its quite powerful. Youre supposed to only use a few drops in a whole batch of marinade or sauce. The flavour imparted is supposed to be a gentle aside... not a punch in the mouth.
We had a good throw down about this a couple years ago when Inky wanted to try and convince us Southroners that some place in Cali made the world's best. His ears might still be swollen from the boxing they took.
I'll answer that by saying I've tried a lot of different Southern barbecue. Have you tried true Santa Maria-style barbecue?
SouthernN'Proud
11/05/07, 01:24pm
Yeah, we got a little place right down the road that specializes in it...
paul_valaru
11/05/07, 01:26pm
Yeah, we got a little place right down the road that specializes in it...
right next to the starbucks, and the yankee souvenir shop, right?
SouthernN'Proud
11/05/07, 02:48pm
No, those are on the GOOD side of tow...um, the road. :evilgrin:
Yeah, we got a little place right down the road that specializes in it...
With the right type of grill and the red oak firewood and everything? If the OTC BBQ ever makes it to your area, I'll have to make a stop there and see if it's any good.
woodman19_99
11/05/07, 05:37pm
With the right type of grill and the red oak firewood and everything? If the OTC BBQ ever makes it to your area, I'll have to make a stop there and see if it's any good.
Is your sarcasm meter broken, or is mine???
Unfortunately, nothing really to contribute here being a northen boy. I gets my BBQ from Corky's via FedEx, or via a few local places in NYC and in Boston that have what I think is mighty tasty BBQ. And after all, it's about ones own opinion of what tastes good (though I still want to make it to true BBQ land and try the real stuff. NC, Memphis, KC, Texas)
Well, not knowing his area, there very well could be a mom-and-pop place in a converted house on the corner or something.
I guess I should confess my southern barbecue tasting was in Dallas. I wish I could remember the name of the place.
Gato_Solo
11/06/07, 05:05am
I've said it before, and I'll say it again. The secret to any good BBQ is in the marinade, and the wood you cook over. If you have a good marinade, and some wood from a nut-bearing or fruit-bearing tree, you can makethe most undesirable cut of meat a taste adventure. I've posted my home-made marinade here before(uses bourbon), and my choice of wood (pecan), but I've always said that you spice your meat how you like. If you're not sure, try several different types of marinades on smaller, individual 'kebabs' until you find the flavor you like. Just make sure you marinate at least 24 hours before you BBQ...
Santa Maria-style BBQ has a really good marinade. It's called "using a good cut of meat that already has a good flavor."
:D
Gato_Solo
11/07/07, 12:04am
Santa Maria-style BBQ has a really good marinade. It's called "using a good cut of meat that already has a good flavor."
:D
All meat has good flavor. Some just has better than others. Besides...no meat can go near my grill without being marinated. Period. Even Kobe beef gets its time in the bourbon, rosemary, and thyme bath. Anything else is laziness. :P
...no meat can go near my grill without being marinated. Period. Even Kobe beef gets its time in the bourbon, rosemary, and thyme bath.
HEATHEN!!!!
paul_valaru
11/07/07, 05:54pm
All meat has good flavor. Some just has better than others. Besides...no meat can go near my grill without being marinated. Period. Even Kobe beef gets its time in the bourbon, rosemary, and thyme bath. Anything else is laziness. :P
Tough meat is marinated.Tasteless meat is marinated. A good steak is maybe touched with salt and pepper to bring out the flavour. Marinade should never ever touch a good quality cut of well marbled (and preferably aged) beef.
SouthernN'Proud
11/07/07, 06:46pm
Tough meat is marinated.Tasteless meat is marinated. A good steak is maybe touched with salt and pepper to bring out the flavour. Marinade should never ever touch a good quality cut of well marbled (and preferably aged) beef.
I pretty much concur. I have a mix of spices that I apply to most every cut of beef I grill, from hamburger to filet. I'm more likely to marinade chicken than beef. Pork....it depends on what I'm doing with it. Fish gets lemon juice usually and maybe some paprika depending on cooking method. Pan fried fish gets a buttermilk bath.
The secret to grilling beef, and again it applies to any cut from hamburger to filet: Turn it over once, only once, and no more than once. Twice shalt thou not turn it. Thrice is right out. Know how you want it cooked, know what each side looks like for that degree of wellness, and flip it and leave it the hell alone. Turn it twice and it's tough. Every time. Yes, even the way you do it, and I don't know who you are or what you do.
TexasRaceLady
11/07/07, 07:42pm
The secret to grilling beef, and again it applies to any cut from hamburger to filet: Turn it over once, only once, and no more than once. Twice shalt thou not turn it. Thrice is right out. Know how you want it cooked, know what each side looks like for that degree of wellness, and flip it and leave it the hell alone. Turn it twice and it's tough. Every time. Yes, even the way you do it, and I don't know who you are or what you do.
Oh, you hit it right on, SN'P. NEVER turn a second time.
Tough meat is marinated.Tasteless meat is marinated. A good steak is maybe touched with salt and pepper to bring out the flavour. Marinade should never ever touch a good quality cut of well marbled (and preferably aged) beef.
I pretty much concur. I have a mix of spices that I apply to most every cut of beef I grill, from hamburger to filet. I'm more likely to marinade chicken than beef. Pork....it depends on what I'm doing with it. Fish gets lemon juice usually and maybe some paprika depending on cooking method. Pan fried fish gets a buttermilk bath.
The secret to grilling beef, and again it applies to any cut from hamburger to filet: Turn it over once, only once, and no more than once. Twice shalt thou not turn it. Thrice is right out. Know how you want it cooked, know what each side looks like for that degree of wellness, and flip it and leave it the hell alone. Turn it twice and it's tough. Every time. Yes, even the way you do it, and I don't know who you are or what you do.
Two correct posts in a row. That must be a record.
Two correct posts in a row. That must be a record.
Any room left on this bandwagon? Include me in. :cool:
And I agree with Gato re: using the right wood for smoking. I like to use a mix of oak and pecan. And I put pans of beer in the smoker.
Smokin' at Armadillo Ranch (whole baby pig, a turkey, and sausage):
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r38/captroberto/cookout.jpg
SouthernN'Proud
11/08/07, 02:36am
I am years overdue for a good ol' pig roast. The spouse of the house has never attended one. My best buddy, who lives hundreds of miles away now (I moved, he didn't) had one every summer. Roast a pig, fry about 75 pounds of fish (catfish, walleye, perch and bass caught locally, whitefish and cod store bought), tappa keggertwo o'brew, grill up some brats, and have at it. Man I miss him.
I usually had a big cookout every summer also, but I didn't have the big smoker to work with. I'd line up three or four grills, one each for brats, chicken, and burgers with the extra catching the overflow. Throw in the staples of a Southron cookout (tater salad, baked beans, grilled roastin ears, cole slaw, 'nanner puddin, spiked watermelon, and Lord knows what all else would get brung) and the keggertwo o'brew, add horseshoe pits and all the guitar pickers you know, and call it a weekend. Times like that are what make life worth the trouble.
SouthernN'Proud
11/08/07, 02:38am
I need to mail you a flag too it seems...:evilgrin:
I am years overdue for a good ol' pig roast. The spouse of the house has never attended one. My best buddy, who lives hundreds of miles away now (I moved, he didn't) had one every summer. Roast a pig, fry about 75 pounds of fish (catfish, walleye, perch and bass caught locally, whitefish and cod store bought), tappa keggertwo o'brew, grill up some brats, and have at it. Man I miss him.
I usually had a big cookout every summer also, but I didn't have the big smoker to work with. I'd line up three or four grills, one each for brats, chicken, and burgers with the extra catching the overflow. Throw in the staples of a Southron cookout (tater salad, baked beans, grilled roastin ears, cole slaw, 'nanner puddin, spiked watermelon, and Lord knows what all else would get brung) and the keggertwo o'brew, add horseshoe pits and all the guitar pickers you know, and call it a weekend. Times like that are what make life worth the trouble.
Oh hell yes. There's nothing like a day spent with friends cooking, eating, drinking, and having a good time. This one was week before last - kind of an End of Summer deal. Only about a third of the people are in that photo. There was a bunch down in the woods shooting guns, and a few were on the creek canoeing. The kitchen was packed with wimmenfolk cooking, and a motley crew was on the lanai working on running my bar dry. They looked like this: :cocktail: :toast: :drink2: :drink: :beerbang: :beerdrnk:
The pig was provided by that giant standing next to the smoker - he catches them wild on his land and fattens them up. We smoke 'em for 8 to 10 hours, and they are incredibly tender and juicy. Sorry, Prof - there's no recipe, other than put the pig or turkey in a pan and cover loosely with foil and baste frequently.
I need to mail you a flag too it seems...:evilgrin: LOL! I have a battle flag somewhere, and a Florida state flag. The flag in the pic is a
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r38/captroberto/erin.gif
in honor of my Ma, and there is a
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r38/captroberto/Scotlandflag.gif
flying out front of the house in honor of me Pa.
Gato_Solo
11/09/07, 03:24am
HEATHEN!!!!
Charlatan. :P
Tough meat is marinated.Tasteless meat is marinated. A good steak is maybe touched with salt and pepper to bring out the flavour. Marinade should never ever touch a good quality cut of well marbled (and preferably aged) beef.
Hmmm..Salt and pepper...spices...vs bourbon and...well...spices. :rolleyes:
BTW...if you can't get pecan wood, pecans in the shell work just as well. Just be sure to soak them in water longer before tossing them in the firebox.
Professur
11/09/07, 09:24am
30 posts .... and the only recipe came from a flammin' Canadian. You suck.
paul_valaru
11/09/07, 10:49am
30 posts .... and the only recipe came from a flammin' Canadian. You suck.
;)
I have more I can send you, some of them are genuine ones I remember from my nonstop watching of the food network.
unclehobart
11/09/07, 12:31pm
Family honor makes it job 1 to keep such sacred formulas a secret unto the grave.
Professur
11/09/07, 12:43pm
I'm hardly gonna show up at the local cook-off and beat the tar outta anyone with their own recipe
paul_valaru
11/09/07, 12:49pm
Rub meat with brown sugar, paprika garlic powder onion powder and salt (the base for a dry rub, add other spices you like, anything really as long as it is dry, cinnamon cloves nutmeg, go nuts)
sauce
Tomato based
tomato paste
some kinda vinager
sugar
spices
Molasses based
molasses
some kinda vinager
sugar
spices
add some bourbon if you like.
no matter what you come up with it's GOTTA be better than store bought.
unclehobart
11/09/07, 02:06pm
I've always been a fan of the paprika, sugar, apple cider vinegar route for pig, tomato and dry rub for beef.
Prof, the truth of my family is that my elder generations were a bunch of highly educated city folk from the mid-Atlantic with little roots tied in proper BBQ. I have no secret formula to divulge. We either make it up, borrow a mason jar of the good stuff from a friend in the country, or visit one of the 200 local joints claiming to have A-#1 BBQ.
Frankly, I've always been a fan of what a meat becomes after umpteen hours of careful smoking instead of actually zeroing in on the perfect sauce.
200 local joints claiming to have A-#1 BBQ.
A- is pretty decent, I guess... but if you can find A, even better... A+ is best, of course.
unclehobart
11/09/07, 05:22pm
Well... they do save the best for family. Common folk don't deserve the A+ stuff. You might mess up and actually serve a yankee perfectly good food and watch their face contort because it doesn't taste like the tripe that the deli sells on the lower east side of Binghamton, NY.
Cook it right. Everything else is secondary. This sauce (http://www.sweetbabyrays.com/) is pretty damned decent for store bought.
SouthernN'Proud
11/10/07, 09:34pm
I had to post because I couldn't stand looking at the main board and seeing it say, "It wouldn't be Dixie without Gonz"...
SouthernN'Proud
11/10/07, 10:09pm
Dammit, knock it off.
unclehobart
11/10/07, 10:12pm
Would it be better if my name were at the bottom of the thread? I qualify as a suthn'r. I even nod my head in recognition when I pass the local Confederate cemetary.
SouthernN'Proud
11/10/07, 10:15pm
Oh, you got your Dixie card all legit, dude. We just gotta keep an eye on the interlopers and wannabes.
You want me on that wall...you NEED me on that wall!
unclehobart
11/10/07, 10:19pm
*waves his fishing license with the additional trout stamp*
Almost as important as having a knife and your car keys on you at all times.
Ok, I've been here for 10 years now... am I still a Damn Yankee? *handonhip
SouthernN'Proud
11/10/07, 10:29pm
Would you like to take the quiz and find out?
SouthernN'Proud
11/10/07, 10:30pm
*waves his fishing license with the additional trout stamp*
Almost as important as having a knife and your car keys on you at all times.
:manhug:
unclehobart
11/10/07, 10:35pm
Ok, I've been here for 10 years now... am I still a Damn Yankee? *handonhip
You've got a good heart... and you mean well... but you still have a Buffalo accent and make yankee snacks for your downtime. The yankeeness still bleeds from your pores in little ways.
Fishing license? Trout stamps?To think, you call yerselves rebels.
You've got a good heart... and you mean well... but you still have a Buffalo accent and make yankee snacks for your downtime. The yankeeness still bleeds from your pores in little ways.
I'm from Buffalo, I make WINGS. (its the law):beardbng:
Would you like to take the quiz and find out?
I'm ready, just let me get a Po....er Soda first.:eek5:
SouthernN'Proud
11/10/07, 11:30pm
I'm ready, just let me get a Po....er Soda first.:eek5:
Strike one before you even start...
See thread in LL.
Gato_Solo
11/11/07, 02:03am
Strike one before you even start...
See thread in LL.
From a man who advocates cornbread over biscuits...:P I kinda like both, though. Mom's family was from Georgia, and Dad's family was from Virginia. Is it any wonder I've got too much time on my hands...:devious:
Slim Pickens
11/11/07, 03:25am
keys...check
knife...check
license...we don't need no stinking license!
would not know where to find trout around here, and I ain't driving that far to fish, not when there are so many other wonderful places around here:beardbng:
Slim Pickens
11/11/07, 03:26am
BTW, SnP, pass me a Coke...Dr Pepper, IYP
Slim Pickens
11/11/07, 03:27am
Ok, I've been here for 10 years now... am I still a Damn Yankee? *handonhip
yes
Gato_Solo
11/11/07, 05:29am
Keys...yep
Fishing license...yep
Challenge coin...yep
knife...yep
Gerber multi-tool...yep
CCW for my job in the AOR...yep
Ok, I've been here for 10 years now... am I still a Damn Yankee? *handonhip
I've been here 15 and I am too. I done learnt to call it "The War of Yankee Aggression" though. ;)
BTW Kruz, did I ever mention that I grew up just north of Ithaca.
SouthernN'Proud
11/11/07, 10:37am
From a man who advocates cornbread over biscuits...
Both have their place. Sausage gravy on cornbread is just wrong. Apple butter on cornbread is just wrong. Any true Southroner knows the difference before they learn to walk.
TexasRaceLady
11/11/07, 03:30pm
Sausage gravy on cornbread is just wrong. Apple butter on cornbread is just wrong. Any true Southroner knows the difference before they learn to walk.
Oh, SN'P, it's not just wrong --- it's a cardinal SIN !
Ain't nothin' better than day-old cornbread and a glass of cold buttermilk. :banana:
*can't imagine the horror of apple butter on cornbread*
TexasRaceLady
11/11/07, 07:22pm
And you can't sop up good gravy with cornbread. no, no, no
SouthernN'Proud
11/11/07, 07:25pm
Nope. But then, who wants white beans, onions, and biscuits together? I can't imagine trying to eat meat loaf or pot roast with biscuits either.
Gato_Solo
11/12/07, 02:10am
I can agree with everything you've said so far. I just wanted to give biscuits their due...
Here's a couple of my favorites, both from the Barbecue Bible Cookbook by Steven Raichlen:
Basic Barbecue Sauce
2 cups ketchup
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons molasses
2 tablespoons prepared mustard
1 tablespoon Tabasco sauce
1 tablespoon barbecue rub
2 teaspoons liquid smoke
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Combine all the ingredients in a nonreactive saucepan (no bare metal) and bring slowly to a boil over medium-high heat.
Reduce the heat to medium and simmer the sauce until dark, thick, and richly flavored, 10 to 15 minutes.
Transfer the sauce to clean (or even sterile) jars and store in the refrigerator.
It will keep for several months.
Basic Barbecue Rub
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup sweet paprika
3 tablespoons black pepper
3 tablespoons coarse salt
1 tablespoon hickory-smoke salt (or more coarse salt)
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons onion powder
2 teaspoons celery seeds
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Combine all the ingredients in a mixing bowl and stir to mix.
(Actually, your hands work better for mixing than a spoon or whisk does.
Use your fingers to break up any lumps of brown sugar.)
Store the rub in an airtight jar away from heat or light;
it will keep for at least 6 months.
More:
Cajun Rub
1/4 cup coarse salt
1/4 cup sweet paprika
1 tablespoon garlic flakes
1 tablespoon onion flakes
1 tablespoon dried thyme leaves
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon black pepper
2 teaspoons white pepper
1 to 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon ground bay leaf
Same preparation method as Basic Barbecue Rub.
Basic Barbecue Mop Sauce
2 cups distilled white vinegar
1 tablespoon coarse salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes
1 small onion, thinly sliced
1 jalapeno pepper, thinly sliced
Place the vinegar, salt, black pepper and hot pepper flakes in a
nonreactive bowl and whisk until the salt dissolves.
Stir in the onion and jalapeno.
Taste for seasoning, adding more black pepper or hot pepper flakes
as necessary.
Brush on grilled chicken or pork once the outside is cooked.
The mop sauce can be made several hours in advance but use it the same day.
Makes enough for two chickens or 4 to 5 pounds of ribs or pork.
While thin, clear vinegary sauce sure doesn't look like your typical American barbecue sauce, North Carolina pulled pork would be sorry stuff without it. Mix this sauce with shredded or chopped meats after they are cooked (you don't really use it as a slather).
North Carolina Vinegar Sauce
2 cups cider vinegar
3 tablespoons ketchup
2 tablespoons brown sugar
4 teaspoons coarse salt
1 tablespoon Tabasco or other hot sauce
1 to 2 teaspoons hot red pepper flakes, or more to taste
1 to 2 teaspoons black pepper
Combine all the ingredients in a nonreactive mixing bowl and whisk
until the salt and brown sugar dissolve.
Taste for seasoning, adding hot pepper flakes as necessary.
Transfer the sauce to clean (or even sterile) jars and store in the refrigerator.
It will keep for several months.
If anybody wants the recipe for North Carolina pulled pork, just axe me. It really is outstanding.
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