Slap Yo Daddy BBQ Blog

September 6, 2010

Slap Yo Daddy – 2010 Jack Daniels Invitational Seven Wins Automatic

Filed under: BBQ Articles ALL, BBQ Misc, BBQ Pitmasters on TLC, BBQ contests — harry @ 12:15 am

2010 Jack Daniels Invitational Automatic Draw

Woo Hoo! We were ecstatic to learn on Friday, September 3, 2010 that we made it to the 2010 Jack Daniels Invitational in Lynchburg, Tennessee, with our seven Grand Championship wins.

It’s been a three year journey to get to this milestone beginning in 2008 when we won the California BBQ Association Best New Team and Rookie Of The Year (ROY) .   In 2009, we won three Grand Championships and even though we had the most GCs for our state, we didn’t make the lottery draw for the Jack.   One of our 2009 GCs was history making because we were the first team in America to win four 1st places at a state championship contest at the California State Championship in Stockton on July 4, 2010.

For 2010, I decided that the only sure way to get to the Jack was to win seven GCs.  It’s an honor which only a handful of teams are able to accomplish every year.  For 2010, we were among four teams out of 4,500 who accomplished this Herculean feat (Jack Draw results).  We also had six instead of 12 months to do so during the qualifying period from September 1 to August 30 because I was on TLC’s BBQ Pitmasters Season One from September until December 2009.

As expected, our auto has not been without myriad challenges, including being flamed on the Internet forums.   I was reminded by numerous BBQ greats past and present that that’s par for course once you start winning.  Boy, were they right!  Thank you to all of the teams, officials, and judges who stood up for our side of the story.  Nevertheless, it amazes me that people who were not there, who live in glass houses, have not read the 2010 Jack rules, seen the forms, investigated the official results, etc., have decided that their personal vetting and gossiping of who gets to the Jack is correct, instead of relying on the Jack Daniels officials who made the call after thoroughly researching and investigating all applications received.  Too much Monday morning quarterbacking IMHO.

To my close friends and BBQ brothers, I’ve told the story of how I found a brand new Jack Daniels baseball cap while I was biking in Huntington Beach one weekend in July 2009. I was loading my bike into my van and noticed what looked like a navy blue jacket in the middle of busy Brookhurst Avenue.  I thought I would run over to pick it up and leave it on the sidewalk so the owner could get it later.  When I got closer, it wasn’t a jacket but a baseball cap.  I picked it up and turned it over.  I felt goose bumps when I realized it was a brand new baseball cap and it had Jack Daniels on it.  Yes, and I swear I did not make this up.  I have witnesses.

Here's the cap I found!

It took it home and threw it on top of one of my trophies and forgot about it.  When I did not get the draw in September 2009, I remembered the hat and told myself I just found a lost hat and it was nothing related to me going to the Jack and not to get my hopes up.

In October 2009, I was treated to a birthday lunch by my co-workers at the Mayflower Chinese restaurant in downtown Los Angeles Chinatown.  There were seven of us (again the Jack #7 shows up) and we each picked up a fortune cookie at the end of the meal.  Mine said the following: “Use your abilities at this time and stay focused on your goal. You will succeed.”  I interpreted staying focused on my goal was related to the Pitmasters show I was on at that time and when I won the season finale and took $500 each from Johnny, Myron, Tuffy, et. al. I thought that was what it meant.  I now wonder if the baseball cap and fortune cookie was trying to tell me something else.

Oct 2009 Fortune Cookie Message

On June 4, 2010, another Ripley’s Believe It or Not fortune cookie said: “Remember three months from this date.  Your lucky star is shining.”  Wow, the news for our Jack Automatic was on September 3, almost exactly three months later.  I’m not a person who believes in mumbo jumbo.   I believe I chart my own course in life.  However, it’s hard for me to ignore these incidents especially the brand new Jack cap.  So, whomever you are out there who left it on the street for me to pick up and who’s been sticking messages into my fortune cookies, please call me to tell me I’ve been punked!

From June 4, 2010

In summary, I’d like to recap the life philosophy which got us to the Jack.  We never cook with expectation to win.  We cook from our heart with intention to do our best.  That way, we are never disappointed when we don’t win which is often.    This also applies whether we get to the Jack or not.  It’s the camaraderie and the friendships we’ve fostered that brings us back every weekend.  BBQ is not just about getting on stage and winning awards but cheering your friends when they win.

We share our competition BBQ samples with our neighbors at every contest and leave our booth open to all who want to see our prep.  BBQ is the only true American cuisine and we are proud to cook it and pass on our knowledge.  That’s why we conduct free clinics whenever we compete to teach Ribology 101 and Slap Yo Daddy Lazyman presentation boxes (which have been used by dozens of teams including BBQ legends like Johnny Triggs and Jaime Geer).  We’ve mentored dozens of new teams and shared BBQ secrets, and answered 279 posts on the Virtual Weber Bullet Forum making history as the post popular guest on the world’s largest online community of Weber Smokey Mountain (WSM) BBQ-ers.

Additionally I’ve trained 200 Paduan students who have gone on to win GCs and RCs (including Dave Malone from All Sauced Up, Gary Notley from Notley Que, Jennifer Duncan from Smoked To The Bone, and many others).  I consider myself a lifelong learner of BBQ and am happy to share what I know because it’s not mine to keep anyway.  We’ve even caused a run on chicken hats after I wore one on the show. You can’t be serious when you wear one and that’s struck a chord with many.

During our journey, all the funds we’ve received, we’ve used partly to help worthy charities including Operation Homefront for the troops, veterans, and families; and Save The Children.  This month, we’ve started to teach $40 BBQ classes once a month at the Rowland Adult Community Education in Hacienda Heights, California.  We want to pass on our love and passion for American BBQ to as many people who want to learn this true American cuisine.  We were fortunate to end up on TLC BBQ Pitmasters Season One which continues to inspire and touch people including 6-year old fans to 70 year-old grandfathers which I’ve blogged about in the past.

While it’s good to have BQ (BBQ intelligence) and IQ, it’s far more important to have EQ (emotional intelligence) which is the ability to relate and cultivate rapport with your fellow humanity.   Our grand adventure continues and my head is brimming with all the possible ways to make a positive difference in our world through BBQ.   I speak from my heart when I say that BBQ equals happiness.  Thanks to you, my 80+ blogs the past 3 years have become a popular BBQ blog destination as ranked by Alltop.com.  Thank you for joining us on our journey.

September 5, 2010

2010 Konocti, Lakeport, and Mesquite, Nevada Contests

Filed under: BBQ Articles ALL, BBQ contests — harry @ 12:12 am

Dishing out People's Choice in Konocti

This is a combined blog for our Konocti Vista Casino contest in Lakeport, CA, and our Smokin in Mesquite contest in Nevada.  In Konocti, we finished in 8th place of 36 teams with 4th Chicken, 12th Ribs, 21 Pork, and 8th Brisket.  In Mesquite, we finished 19th of 47 teams with 22nd Chicken, 27th Ribs, 16th Pork, and 27th Brisket.  So the burning question is what happened?  Well, we’ve hit a funk as all winning streaks inevitably come to an end.  7 GCs and 3 RCs the past 5 months is a pretty darn good run.   I take full responsibility for our performance and the errors and sloppiness that has crept in our cooking.  I suspect the pace of driving hundreds of miles and cooking every weekend without any breaks that past 5 months has taken its toll on our ability to execute flawlessly every time.  Be assured, we fully intend to rest, regroup, and recover with gusto.

I’m ecstatic for my former BBQ 101 student Jennifer Duncan from Smoked to the Bone for winning GC at Mesquite.  Jennifer beat out 40 of the best teams (all male) for this tremendous honor.  Kudos to Jennifer for her success and her second GC.    For Tommy, her husband, who is also a former student, I’ve got to work with him so he can someday score higher than Jen to get out of the pink outfits he has to wear if he can’t beat her!

SYD BBQ 101 student Jennifer Duncan wins her 2nd GC

On Saturday morning at the Clearlake contest, Benny and I conducted a free clinic on how to do our Slap Yo Daddy Lazyman boxes.

Lazyman Box Class - $4.00 for 1 head lettuce and 3 parsley; 4 boxes done in 20 minutes

We got a chance to hang out with old friends at Mesquite

Our good friends and BBQ Legend Johnny Triggs and his wife Trish

David Bouska, of Butcher's BBQ Injection and Rubs, our friend and sponsor

A BIG congrats go out to all the teams who participated and to Larry Hill for GC and Al of Big O’s for RC at Lakeport.  Congrats to Scotty from cancersucks.com for RC at Mesquite.   A big thanks goes to all the organizers, judges, hosts, and helpers for organizing both events.  We’d like to thank our terrific Sponsors:  Rocks BBQ System for our Stoker temperature control system, T&H Meat and Sausages for our meat products, TheSlabs.com for our rub products, Cajun Bandit for our Weber stainless replacment doors, Smokin Guns for our rubs , Butcher BBQ for our injections, and Snake River Farms for our Wagyu meat products.

August 30, 2010

Slap Yo’ Daddy BBQ on KTLA-5

Filed under: BBQ Articles ALL, BBQ Catering, BBQ Classes, BBQ Misc, BBQ Parties — harry @ 11:40 pm

KTLA-5 Live Morning Show on Aug 30, 2010

Allie Mac Kay, Features Reporter, invited Big Mista and Slap Yo’ Daddy BBQ back on KTLA-5 for a live 5-hour shoot during the morning show on Monday, August 30.  This was a special feature a week before the big Labor Day bbq season.  The last KTLA-5 shoot we did was a week before the July 4 weekend and it was in the Fresh and Easy parking lot in Eagle Rock, California.   Apparently, the studio crew wanted to taste our BBQ this time so we showed up bright and early at 4  am at the KTLA-5 studios on Sunset Blvd.

Sponsored by Fresh and Easy grocery stores

Set for the live shoot

Neil from Big Mista made Pork Loin with Orange Mustard Glaze and Bacon Monkey Muffins.  I made my signature Seared Ahi Tuna w Maui Onion Dressing, world-famous Bacon Turtle, and tri-tip BBQ spaghetti.  We were on every hour for the tease-segment lasting about a minute and in the main segment which lasted about 3 minutes.  Doing live TV is hectic because we had to be on our toes for 5 hours because the cameras could be hot without advance warning.  We had to keep changing the garnish to keep it fresh and to keep cooking food so they would be ready for their close up.  A couple of Fresh and Easy PR folks Tatum and Allison were also there to ensure we inserted the Fresh and Easy sound-bite into our short monologues.  I think I said mentioned F&E six times on one of my segments!  Hey, you do what you can for the sponsors!

Fresh and Easy Seared Ahi Tuna w Maui Onion Dressing

Slap Yo Daddy's World Famous Bacon Turtle

All these BBQ dishes were a hit with the KTLA-5 morning show crew.

After the shoot, we wrapped up around 10:30 am.  I went back to work and tried not to smell like BBQ smoke all day long!  :-)

Many thanks to Benny for helping out and to KTLA-5 and Fresh and Easy for inviting us

August 15, 2010

2010 Harrahs Casino Annual Blues and BBQ Festival

Filed under: BBQ Articles ALL, BBQ contests — harry @ 5:56 pm

Grand Champions - Benny, Ganon (Gary Notley's son), Harry


It was awesome to win a GC Gibson guitar autographed by BB King and Buddy Guy, two Blues legends, when Slap Yo Daddy BBQ won its 7th Grand Championship for 2010 at the Harrahs Casino Annual Blues and BBQ in the city of Valley Center, half way between Los Angeles and San Diego, on August 14. We finished 1st Chicken, 2nd Ribs, 3 Brisket, and 9th Pork amid amid a field of 29 teams from California and Arizona. <Results>


With 7 GCs and 3 RCs since April 2010, we’re definitely on a roll. We may need one more GC to get an automatic invitation to the Jack Daniels in October. That is, we may need 8 instead of 7 as our New Mexico GC might be short the minimum 25 teams. We have a do-or-die chance at the Clear Lake contest on Aug 28 to get our 8th before the Aug 31 Jack eligibility deadline. [Correction 8/31/10: I was incorrect.  The IBCA official results web page shows 27 teams so we've have 7 qualifying GCs]

At the national level, we’re currently ranked 6th out of over 4,000 teams. We’re currently in 1st place in the nation’s Ranchers Reserve Vons Beef Brisket Challenge and 1st place in the CBBQA California Team of the Year contest.  There’s a ways to go so we’ll see what happens by year end.

My Good Friend, Paduan, and Roadie from Season One, Gary Notley with son Ganon

It was great to see Gary Notley, my old paduan on the TLC BBQ pitmaster season one show who was my roadie and assistant cook. Gary brought his son Ganon along and Ganon was our team mascot during the awards ceremony. It was also great to see many new teams competing and share camaraderie with the old teams who are our good friends. It was super nice of Harrah to provide complimentary seafood buffet ticket to teams as well as two free tickets to the BB King performance.

There was spirited discussion about the season premiere of TLC’s BBQ Pitmaster Season Two which debuted on August 12. Many teams voiced their opinion about the format change. The Internet forums and social networking sites were abuzz with spirited comments. My take on it is that give it a couple more episodes to see how the new format shakes out. When we were featured in Season One, there were those who didn’t like it; however, as the season wore on, the ratings and viewership started to grow.

A BIG congrats go out to all the teams who participated and to Vince and Alexa from Rhythm n Que from Phoenix, Arizona, for Reserve Champion.  RnQ and Slap Yo Daddy have been challenging each other to new heights in the quest for the Jack the past 4 months.  Vince and Alexa previously accomplished their 7th GC in Boise, Idaho, and have their tickets to the Jack.  We intend to follow them there after the Clearlake contest on Aug 28!

A big thanks goes to Carla Miller from Harrahs for an amazing job organizing this event; Kelly and Kathleen Macintosh, Gene Goycochea as officials; and all the volunteers, judges, and helpers.  We’d like to thank our terrific Sponsors:  Rocks BBQ System for our Stoker temperature control system, T&H Meat and Sausages for our meat products, TheSlabs.com for our rub products, Cajun Bandit for our Weber stainless replacment doors, Smokin Guns for our rubs , Butcher BBQ for our injections, and Snake River Farms for our Wagyu meat products.

August 12, 2010

2010 Honokowai BBQ Throwdown, Maui, HI

Filed under: BBQ Articles ALL, BBQ Misc, BBQ Parties — harry @ 12:27 am

Beef Short Ribs and Chicken

Kiawe Grill Ribs w Lilikoi BBQ Sauce

I’m drawn to Hawaii every year like the giant Pacific green turtle returning home to coral sand beaches and emerald blue waters. BBQ and grilling flows like the soul of a volcano in these paradise islands where the multi-ethnic cultures create a symphony of fusion flavors from the Philippines, Japan, Samoa, French Polynesia, Hawaii, New Zealand, Thai, Chinese, and The Mainland.
I love to indulge in these exotic island cuisines which always rejuvenate and inspire me to create extraordinary new sauce and rub recipes to tantalize the BBQ judges for the next contest year.
I’m very passionate about the nuance of local ingredients and how its flavors blend with my existing repertoire of secret BBQ sauces, rubs, injections, marinades, and dusting powders.
My goal is simple . . . to take my competition BBQ to even higher levels of excellence.
This year was no exception as I sampled every BBQ joint on the island, grocery store, farmers market, and even sniffing at BBQ which locals and visitors were grilling in the parks and beaches.  Even did a little throwdown contest with my son Brian with juding provided by family members.  Among the wet ingredients which caught my attention was Huli-Huli sauce (a Ponzu hybrid), Tigers Blood (Coconut and Cherry syrup), Lilikoi jam (Passion fruit), and Aloha Soy Sauce. My mind was racing with possibilities when I was smitten by the exotic saltiness of Ling Hing Mui powder. This crimson powder will add a unique fruity and floral note to my next year’s rub formulas. I plan to recluse myself to my Jekyl and Hyde lab during the winter contest break to devise some amazing new sauce and rub concoctions. Stay tuned . . .

Spam Misubi Tempura

August 9, 2010

2010 Nickelodeon Animation Studios – Team Building and BBQ Class

Filed under: BBQ Articles ALL, BBQ Catering, BBQ Classes, BBQ Misc, BBQ Parties — harry @ 11:19 am

Nickelodeon Studios on Olive Avenue, Burbank, Calif.

It was awesome to share our love for BBQ with the animators at Nickelodeon in Burbank, California. In June 2010, Slap Yo Daddy BBQ conducted a special evening event in Nickelodeon’s rear parking lot for forty talented Nickelodeon animators, staff, and management from hit series such as Kung Fu Panda, Sponge Bob, Penguins, and others. Spots for this event quickly filled up. Anticipation and buzz had been building in the studio for several weeks that there would be a celebrity Pitmaster coming to personally show them how to prepare championship BBQ followed by a BBQ dinner with all the trimmings.

Sponge Bob - one of the many Nick characters

Representatives from the various animation groups got a chance to put on gloves to prepare an award winning BBQ rub, secret BBQ sauce, baby back ribs, and half chickens. Everyone had fun especially when it came to dusting the meat with the proper amount of rub and pulling off the rib membrane. They were shown the safe method to light briquettes and how to set up a Weber kettle properly for low and slow cooking. Everyone was fully engaged and asked many questions.

Nick animators, staff, and management

Hands on activity in class

Animation teams showing off what they could do better!

Class was followed by a BBQ dinner with ribs, chicken, coleslaw, beans, cornbread. As a special treat, they also had our Slap Yo Daddy signature appetizer: Seared Ahi Tuna w Maui Onion Dressing. The BBQ was accompanied with beer pairings for each of the individual meats including the ahi. A dessert wine topped off the menu.

Specially developed beer pairings with each meat

As the sun set, everyone had full tummies and were beaming from ear to ear from from the awesome time they had.  They learned BBQ secrets and commented that it was the best special event they had ever attended. That means we’re likely to be invited back in the future. More pitmasters to train to spread BBQ happiness!

Many thanks to Nickelodeon and to my assistants Chris Rocke and Benny Adauto who joined me in this fun event.

————- o ————

EPILOGUE:   As I’m having my morning coffee in Maui writing this blog entry (I’m here for the Honokowai BBQ Throwdown) , it dawned upon me that my love-child Slap Yo Daddy BBQ has crossed yet another milestone.  We’ve grown from catering events into designing corporate training sessions which embed corporation messaging.   In this case, it was for Nickelodeon University which is an internal program to develop staff and build camaraderie.

Corporate training and high-performance team building is another discipline I love.  I enjoyed Organization Behavior and Team Dynamics classes while I was in the MBA program at Cal Poly Pomona.   In my day job as a Program Manager, I oversee a team of certified project managers who work on a $35M portfolio of IT infrastructure and information security projects.  With a burn-rate of $100K per week, things can go wrong and they go wrong fast; and I’m the one first in line for the rolled-up newspaper when things go awry.  It takes a lot of energy to build high performance teams and take the team through the four phases of team building: 1) teaming when they first come together, 2) storming where internal fighting often occurs, 3) norming where relationships are normalized and tension is defused, and 4) performing where everyone gets along and focuses on delivering results.

BBQ is an ideal pressure cooker to put corporate teams through the paces.  Imagine twenty team members convened for a special BBQ event where they are given BBQ instruction and then asked to deliver BBQ for judging in a white styrofoam box.  They are split into five-person teams and have to develop roles and responsibilities, strategy, sales pitch for their product, timelines (product is due in 5 hours), budget, scope, risk management, and quality management.  The learning and team building potential is going to be awesome.  Conflict resolution, project management, stress, EQ v IQ, team building, and many organizational dynamics topics could be covered within a day-long training session (especially if the CEO is on the judging panel).  The big plus, of course, is everyone has fun and it’s not another death-by-Powerpoint training seminar which many of us can relate to.  Stay tuned as I develop the course summary, detailed description, and pricing for these type of events.

Gorgeous Maui Sunset

July 31, 2010

2010 Vista Smokin Classic California State Championship, Vista, CA

Filed under: BBQ Articles ALL, BBQ contests — harry @ 11:19 pm

Grand Champion amid 45 teams

After being bridesmaids and Reserve Champion twice in our last two contests in Arizona and in Idaho, we snagged our 6th Grand Championship amid 45 teams at the 2010 Vista Smokin Classic contest with 2nd Brisket, 5th Ribs, 9th Chicken, and 12th Pork <Results>.  Vista is a beautiful city near the coast about half way between Los Angeles and San Diego.  We’re doing a full court press to win 7 GCs so we could get an automatic entry to the Jack Daniels Invitational in October.  The Jack, as it’s commonly called, is the Mount Everest of BBQ competition and 5,000 teams in America battle hard during the  April – August competition season to vie for this honor.

Typically one GC team is drawn by lottery from each state.  With over a dozen contests in California, the only sure way of getting there is to win 7 and obtain an automatic entry.  Only a very small handful of teams are able to do this every year so Benny and I are trying our best to earn our spot in the Jack through hard work.  For us, we have to do one better with 8 wins as we recently heard that that our 4th GC in New Mexico may not count if there were less than 25 teams which is the Jack qualifying minimum. If that were so, it would be heart-breaking to drive 2,000 miles to win and have the win not count towards the Jack.  Benny and I have two more contests before the August 31 deadline so we HAVE to win the last two for the automatic: Harrahs on Aug 14 and Clearlake on Aug 28.  [Correction 8/31/10: I was incorrect; the IBCA official results web page shows 27 teams so we've have 7 qualifying GCs]

It was wonderful to see many new teams in Vista.  The popularity of TLC’s BBQ Pitmasters Season One, which we were featured, continues to attract new enthusiasts to BBQ. With Season Two premiering on Aug 12, BBQ will continue to grow which is good for all of us in this sport.  I had over a dozen new pitmasters and assistant cooks at my Saturday 7:30 am free clinic where I teach how to make our Slap Yo Daddy Lazyman presentation boxes with one head of lettuce and 3 bunches of curly parsley.  Box making is my least favorite part of a contest and many teams purchase a case of lettuce and parsley, and spend hours making their presentation boxes.  I developed a technique to do ours in 20 minutes and spend less than $4.00.  I’ve taught our technique to Johnny Triggs and Jaime Greer, two world renowned BBQ champions who were in Season One and they are using this technique today.  I told all those who attended to learn it, and then teach it to the next newbie they meet who wants to compete.  That way, people don’t have to intimated or nervous about entering BBQ contests because they fear the box prep.

Benny getting ready the Slap Yo Daddy Lazyman Box class

Benny and I were able to help some first time competitors including Mak and his wife from Smokaholics, San Diego.   Mak cooked his contest on one 18-inch WSM!  Wow!  What a tremendous feat to do the four contest meats and people’s choice meats on one smoker even though it was tricked out with 4 cooking grates. Needless to say, Mak was stressed out trying to juggle everything.  Mak bought Italian Parsley instead of curly parsley so luckily I noticed it when I stopped by to check on how he was doing with our box technique.   Within five minutes, three teams: Rusty Barrel, All Sauced Up, and Rub Co. donated their extra parsley to Mak so he would not get disqualified for using the wrong garnish.  This shows how BBQ teams look out and take care of each other even though we’re competitors. Mak even took a walk for chicken on this first outing.  Way to go!  <Correction: after I posted my blog, a CBJ informed that Italian Parsley is legal for KCBS; Duh!  me bad for not knowing that.  Sorry; someone please tell Mak!>

Mak and Wife from Smokaholics cooking on one 18-inch WSM

It was great to be beside Jennifer and Tommy from Smoked To The Bone and Whiskey Ranch team, respectively.  Tommy is still Jen’s pit bitch from their last husband and wife tangle in Prescott, Arizona (see my prior blog article).  Tommy is still receiving pink accessories, now from teams in California in addition to pink items he received from the AZ teams.  Thanks for the wonderful breakfast and tasty samples.

Jen and Tommy from Smoke to The Bone, AZ

Jen and Tommy from Smoked to the Bone Team, Arizona

Tommy's still Jen's Pit Bitch from the previous contest

Thanks for the breakfast goodies from Tommy and Jen

A BIG congrats go out to all the teams who participated and to Vince and Alexa from Rhythm n Que from Phoenix, Arizona, for Reserve Champion.  RnQ and Slap Yo Daddy have been challenging each other to new heights in the quest for the Jack the past 4 months.  Vince and Alexa accomplished their 7th GC at our last contest together in Boise, Idaho, and have their tickets to the Jack.  We intend to follow them there!

Thanks to Ranchers Reserve for sponsoring the event and extra cash prize.  A big thanks goes to Dale Gino for a wonderful job organizing this event; Kelly and Kathleen Macintosh as officials; and all the volunteers, judges, and helpers.  We’d like to thank our terrific Sponsors:  Rocks BBQ System for our Stoker temperature control system, T&H Meat and Sausages for our meat products, TheSlabs.com for our rub products, Cajun Bandit for our Weber stainless replacment doors, Smokin Guns for our rubs , Butcher BBQ for our injections, and Snake River Farms for our Wagyu meat products.

We'll be back next year!

July 25, 2010

2010 Boise Music Festival State BBQ Championship, Boise, Idaho

Filed under: BBQ Articles ALL, BBQ contests — harry @ 12:57 pm

We won our third Reserve Champion for 2010 at the Boise Music Festival State BBQ Championship in Boise, Idaho, on July 24, 2010, amid a field of 27 teams from Idaho, Oregon, California, and Arizona. This was our first contest in Idaho as we were chasing the Jack Daniel Invitational draw in the state of Idaho which has only two grand championship contests so the winner would have a 50-50 chance for the Jack.

The big story was that our friends and fellow competitors from Arizona, Vince and Alexa from Rhythm n Que won GC by a wide margin with 3 first places in chicken, ribs, and pork. This would be RnQ’s 7th GC which meant they would get an automatic invitation to the Jack. In the process, three other teams (R&R BBQ from Idaho, Jennifer Duncan of Smoked To The Bone and my BBQ 101 student from Arizona, and Sweet Peppers from New Mexico) also obtained automatic Jack invitations as they were the only remaining Grand Champions for their states after RnQ exited the race. Unfortunately, for us, with 12 contests in California, we would not be so lucky to get in under these special conditions for those states with only two grand championships where RnQ already won one of the two.

R&R BBQ (left) and Vince & Alexa from Rhythm n Que (right)

We’ve edged out RnQ the last three contests so this was their turn to take top honors. We finished as Reserve Champion with 2nd Brisket, 2nd Ribs, 9th Chicken, and 10th Pork. With 5 GC’s and 3 RC’s under our belt, we’re still short of the 7 GCs needed to get an automatic Jack invitation without going through our California state lottery draw. With three more contests to go before the August 31 deadline, Benny and I will have to win all three as one of our five GCs, the New Mexico contest, may not count if it did not meet the minimum 25 teams to quality for the Jack. We’re determined to stay focused and push forward with a full-court press until the Aug 31 deadline.  Hey, we know it’s not easy to win 7 GCs and that’s why only a very small handful of the 5,000 teams are able do it each year! [Update: 8/31/10: I was incorrect; the IBCA official results web page shows 27 teams so we've have 7 qualifying GCs]

Lots of butterflies at the contest

Jeff (right) of Rub Em Raw BBQ

Aside from the intensity of competition, we had a chance to also relax a bit and enjoy the butterflies as we were able to fly in to cook this event thanks to the generosity of Jeff Selle of the Rub Em Raw BBQ team from Idaho. Jeff went out and bought two new 18-inch WSMs so he could loan them to us together with all the bulky items (canopy, igloos, etc.) so we could fly in and cook out of three suitcases. Jeff and his crew, and family, really took care of our every need. This is tantamount to a competitor lending you their race car so you could race against them. You won’t find this camaraderie in any other sport. All we did was post on the Internet forums and Jeff graciously stepped up to the plate. We owe Jeff and this team a debt of gratitude. I had the pleasure of engraving some BBQ wisdom on the WSMs which Jeff let us use as a small gesture of thank you.

Engraving BBQ Wisdom on Jeff's WSMs which he loaned us

Sage advice from www.BBQWisdom.com

Engraved WSMs lids

The influence of BBQ Pitmaster Season One continues to surprise me as Meghan, Jeff’s daughter, showed us a photo and hand written note from Jessica, a 10-year old, who’s a fan of the show. It really touched my heart to know that our Cinderella story inspired so many persons even though Jessica was too shy to come to the event to meet me in person. Perhaps, in the future, I’ll get to meet her. Read the note and you’ll know what I mean. I’m glad I was able to pack some leftover BBQ for Jessica and her family to enjoy. It’s moments like this that transcend the competition aspect of BBQ to take you to the essence of BBQ with is the human relationships you build with total strangers whom you’re united via a common passion and love for BBQ. The community and camaraderie of BBQ is amazing and this is an Exhibit A testament to that fact. So if you’re reading this Jessica, I want know that BBQ equals happiness!

Jessica's picture and hand written note

What a touching note from Jessica

Yes, my fav is also ribs!

It was a pleasure to also cook beside Kim Glineski from Snake River Farms who is our sponsor for our Wagyu meat products. Kim is a new cook but don’t let that fool you. Her team The Smokin’ D and the Wagyu took 4th. She placed 1st in brisket and we took 2nd by a scant 0.0004 points behind her!  The Boise contest was nicely represented by several women pitmasters including Kim, and a couple of Grand Champion women pitmasters from the Northwest: Lynnae Oxley of Sugar’s BBQ, and and Cindy Hayter of Ella’s BBQ.   It was great to see diversity amid the all-common all male field.

Kim, our sponsor from Snake River Farms

A big thanks goes to Olga and Vern, Benny’s sister and brother-in-law for hosting us; Jim Monihan as organizers; Mark Silver and Gene Goycochea as officials; and all the volunteers, judges, and helpers.We’d like to thank our terrific Sponsors:  Rocks BBQ System for our Stoker temperature control system, T&H Meat and Sausages for our meat products, TheSlabs.com for our rub products, Cajun Grill for our Weber stainless replacment doors, Smokin Guns for our rubs , Butcher BBQ for our injections, and Snake River Farms for our Wagyu meat products.

Olga, my team mate Benny's sister

July 18, 2010

2010 Prescott BBQ Days, Prescott, AZ

Filed under: BBQ Articles ALL, BBQ contests — harry @ 6:11 pm

Jennifer Duncan, Grand Champion, and BBQ 101 Student

July 10, 2010 BBQ 101 Class - Jennifer is in the middle

We won our second 2010 Reserve Champion at the IBCA sanctioned Prescott BBQ Days State Championship in Prescott, Arizona, on July 17.  The big story was how my BBQ 101 student from my July 10th class, just a week before, won her very first Grand Championship!

Reserve Champions - Harry and Benny

A HUGE congrats goes out to Jennifer Duncan of Smoked To The Bone team out of Arizona. Jen took Grand Champion and blew away 33 male teams, including 2 top 2009 Jack Daniels teams,  with THREE first places: 1st Chicken, 1st, Ribs, 1st Brisket, and 6th Pork.

Cool trophiies which puff real smoke

I’m ecstatic for Jen as it’s well deserved and long time coming.   I’m so proud of her.  Of course, I wouldn’t imply that Jen won just because she took my class but I suspect it helped.  Jen joins a growing list of my students and mentees who have won:

  1. Dave Malone of All Sauced Up – whom I mentored during his 2009 Rookie Year and who was my assistant cook at Wildomar 2010 has won two GCs in 2010 – Stagecoach and Bakersfield
  2. Jennifer Duncan of Smoked to the Bone – July 10, 2010 BBQ 101 student and GG at 2010 Prescott
  3. Gary Notely of Notley Que  – my roadie and assistant cook on the TLC BBQ Pitmasters show has won a Reserve Champion at Wildomar 2010
  4. Greg of a California team who remains anonymous – 2009 BBQ 101 student won Reserve Champion two weeks later after my class
  5. Others – BBQ 101 alumni who have placed in the top 10 in various contests

Gorgeous Day in Prescott, AZ

Our scores were good for Reserve with 2nd Brisket, 6th Pork, 6th Pork, and 11th Ribs.  Tommy who is Jen’s husband are both well known as the BBQ power couple who love to cook against each other.  Whenever Tommy looses, he has to wear pink.   Well this time, many teams brought pink accessories for Tommy should Jen kick his behind (again).  Tommy is a great cook himself of Whiskey Ranch BBQ and was a great sport to support his wife in her fabulous first time GC win.  Tommy was at my class also so I should give him a refresher!  A picture is indeed worth a  thousand words!

Tommy loses bet and wears pink!

Tommy's a good sport!

AZ students at BBQ 101

A big thanks goes to The Rotary Club, Mike Reimann, and Tommy Duncan as organizers; Kelly and Kathleen Macintosh as officials; and all the volunteers, judges, and helpers.  We’d like to thank our terrific Sponsors:  Rocks BBQ System for our Stoker temperature control system, T&H Meat and Sausages for our meat products, TheSlabs.com for our rub products, Cajun Grill for our Weber stainless replacment doors, Smokin Guns for our rubs , Butcher BBQ for our injections, and Snake River Farms for our Wagyu meat products.

Thanks to all our sponsors!

July 4, 2010

2010 Way Out West State Championship, Stockton, California

Filed under: BBQ Articles ALL, BBQ contests — harry @ 1:23 pm

We get lucky again, the second time, winning another GC at Stockton

We won our fifth 2010 Grand Championship, 1st Brisket, 4th Ribs, 8th Pork, and 11th Chicken amid 40 teams at the Way Out West California State Championship in Stockton, near San Francisco.  This was especially sweet because we also won this event last year and made KCBS history in 2009 as the first team ever to win 1st place in all four meats: chicken, ribs, pork, and brisket since KCBS began over 25 years ago.  The bonus check from the folks at Ranchers Reserve was welcome gas money since we drove 7 hours to reach Stockton.

KCBS Officials: Kelly and Kathleen Macintosh and their mascot Justice

Benny Adauto, my team mate, who joined Slap Yo Daddy in May 2010, and I have been driving and competing like madmen across America.  We’ve been on the road almost every week and have traveled to Kansas City, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, and up and down California in a bid to win 7 grand championships to make it to the Jack Daniels Invitational in October.  We have until August 31 to get our 7 else we’ll have to take our chances in being drawn by lottery as only one Grand Champion team is drawn from each state.  Last year, we scored 3 GCs but did not make the draw so this year, we’re shooting for 7 GCs which will result in an automatic Jack invitation.

Benny is the head cook for Fun Time BBQ team and we met in 2008 when I just started competing.  We’ve cooked against each other and helped in KCBS certified judging classes in Orange County.  When my regular team mate Mark had to take a hiatus in March 2010, Benny stepped up to the plate to help and he’s been a great team mate and assistant cook.  We’ve won four GCs together and Benny is now very familiar with the myriad of steps and details we have to execute flawlessly in order to produce grand champion level BBQ.  He does a good job keeping me in check should I get distracted with fans at events.   Additionally, since he’s retired and has time on his hand, he helps me purchase meat and supplies during the week while I have to work.  I couldn’t have asked for a more dedicated team mate than Benny.  He has the same dedication, focus, and commitment to excel in BBQ as I do.  We will keep bringing our A-game to contests until we succeed in our mission to make the Jack.

Seared Ahi Tuna w Maui Onion Dressing. Prawns, Corn, Potatoes in She-Bang Cajun Sauce

Since we were not doing Peoples Choice at Stockton, I decided to make a couple of tasty treats for the Friday potluck.  I prepared my classic Seared Ahi Tuna w Maui Onion Dressing and paired it with some Prawns cooked with Corn and Potatoes in a Spicy Cajun Broth which I dubbed She-Bang sauce.  Both dishes went fast at the potluck!

The legendary John Jackson, inventor of our Stoker System, and his team mate Kenny

Our good buddy Chris Juencke of the Smokin Yankees BBQ team

It was great to spend time with our NorCal friends John Jackson, Kenny, Chris, Tim Mar, Howard Chi, and others.  One of the greatest rewards of competition BBQ is not the awards nor prize money but the friendships and camaraderie you develop with your BBQ brothers and sisters.  We’re all, by day, from different walks of life.  On weekends, we come together as BBQ competitors and BBQ friends.  We cheer as loudly for our fellow BBQer as they cheer for us when we win.  This is a side of the BBQ world that outsiders seldom know about nor see unless they spend time in the smoke and fire of a contest.  It’s these friendships that keep us coming back week after week, driving long distances, to experience the humanity and community as fellow pitmasters.

Benny and I get a week off as there is no contest next Saturday so I’m teaching my monthly BBQ 101 class.  My class has been filling up three months ahead and proceeds from contests and class helps us fund our two favorite charities: Operation Homefront (troops, veterans, and their families) and Save The Children.  I want to give a BBQ shout out to Major Brian Clark and his crew who are serving in a classified location in the Middle East.  July 4th is a special day to give thanks for the many who have sacrificed to protect the freedom and liberty we enjoy, including the freedom to cook and enjoy BBQ.

Congrats go out to Larry Hill of BLQUE for Reserve Grand Champion (long time coming and well deserved) and to all who competed.  A big thanks goes to Ben Lobenstein and Ric Gilbert as organizers; Kelly and Kathleen Macintosh as officials; and all the volunteers, judges, and helpers.  We’d like to thank our terrific Sponsors:  Rocks BBQ System for our Stoker temperature control system, T&H Meat and Sausages for our meat products, TheSlabs.com for our rub products, Cajun Grill for our Weber stainless replacment doors, Smokin Guns for our rubs , Butcher BBQ for our injections, and Snake River Farms for our Wagyu meat products.

We hope to be back for our 3rd year in 2011 and a Three-Peat!

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