1st comp. soon


 
A

Al S.

New member
Hi everyone,
I will be in my first comp in a few weeks (amateur division) in the suburban Chicago area. How do I know or find out what flavor profile the judges are looking for? We will be doing ribs. I have 2 sauce recipes of my own, 1 mild/sweet and 1 sweet/spicy/peppery. I would appreciate anything you guys that have been there have to say.
Thanks,
Al
 
Al.... Wishing You and Your Team, BBQ Excellence at your first comp !
Whatever flavor 'profile' (sauce / rub / etc) you go with, try to make it balanced. A little heat (if you like), a little sweet (if you like), a little salt, etc...
You are cooking for the judges, not yourself, your team mates, nor your friends and family.

And the best suggestion I can give is... Have Fun ! Make it an enjoyable experience. Meet new bbq friends.

Also... Don't be afraid to ask questions of your fellow teams. Everyone is in it for one common thing... BBQ !
 
Bob you nailed it! Just have fun! Since this is your first comp, set your expectations low, like make sure you turn in your box in time, and also make sure you don't get DQ'd.

Have fun, and if you have questions, don't hesitate to ask the forum here. Lots of great people here to help!

Good luck!! We want pictures! :)
 
One bit of advice, OK maybe two. As far as your flavor profile goes; 1. DO NOT OFFEND....not cloyingly sweet, not too spicy. A nice balance. Don't drown the meat in sauce, you just want a nice glaze on it. 2. Have fun, the first comp I did many years ago I considered it a success when I didn't come in last!
 
The three above nailed it. Just keep the sauce safe and your box clean and tight. You can ask the meat inspectors or who ever takes your entry fee for feed back from the judges. Just let them know it's your first comp. Good luck and let us know your results
 
Thanks everyone for the advice/heads-up! I'll post again with the results, & pics if possible.
Al
 
Did the comp. last week. Not the results I hoped for but had a great time. We finished mid-pack out of 48 teams. The comp was for ribs only. Our scores were opposite of what we wanted; highest for appearance, then taste then tenderness. I was really disapointed at the mid range scores for tenderness since the ribs we tried had a clean bite thru with just a little chew, not fall off the bone at all. I guess the judges wanted them cooked a little longer. We didn't foil the ribs for fear of them being too mushy. Anyone have any suggestions on how I can tell if the tenderness is where it's supposed to be, or is it possible another table of judges would have scored them a lot differently.
Thanks,
Al S.
anted
 
Al S. said:
Did the comp. last week. Not the results I hoped for but had a great time. We finished mid-pack out of 48 teams. The comp was for ribs only. Our scores were opposite of what we wanted; highest for appearance, then taste then tenderness. I was really disapointed at the mid range scores for tenderness since the ribs we tried had a clean bite thru with just a little chew, not fall off the bone at all. I guess the judges wanted them cooked a little longer. We didn't foil the ribs for fear of them being too mushy. Anyone have any suggestions on how I can tell if the tenderness is where it's supposed to be, or is it possible another table of judges would have scored them a lot differently.
Thanks,
Al S.
anted
Click to expand...

Welcome to the world of comps. You have x number judges trying 48 different sets of ribs giving there personal opinions. It's hard not to get lost in the pack sometimes. It sounds like your ribs were a little tight. For comps I would always foil. That's the best way to control your tenderness. Mushy ribs is usually a result of over cooked,foil being to lose or to much marinade in your foil. My best suggestion is. Don't worry about the score. Mid pack for your first comp means the judges agreed that your ribs were better then 20+ other teams. That's not a bad result at all. Just worry about improving your cook and the best way to do that is seat time. Cook a couple racks a week if possible. You half to make some notes and get a base line on were you want to be. Stay consistent. Then do small adjustment from there. Hope this helps.
 
Al,

Congratulations ! You did Extremely well !!!
First comp and already mid-pack. That, my friend, is an accomplishment.

To help you gauge your rib tenderness, here is what I look for in an Excellent rib...
1. Rib meat pulls cleanly away from the bone with very little energy.
2. Bone is wet, but drys almost immediately.
3. Bite produces a clean bite through.
4. When the meat is pushed up into the roof of my mouth, it does not turn to mush.

Hope that helps. (Judged my 27th KCBS contest yesterday)
 
Are all KCBS competitions all the same? Meat wise seleciton... Ribs, Chicken, Brisket and Butts? Only things I've cooked in competition is Chicken and Ribs... I have cooked Butts, not never a Brisket.
 
Thanks Todd,
I guess you're right, to get to there from here, it's practice, practice, practice!
 
Thanks for the kind words, Bob. The ribs I turned in passed all the criteria you stated; but what is the significence of the dry bone? Our bones turned bleach white almost immediately after taking a bite. I have heard of this qualifier, but noone ever explained why it's important.
Sincerely,
Al
 
Yes. They all follow the same 4 categories and scoring. And for the most part the same turn in times. They will have bonus categories that are up to the promoter thou. My last comp I did all three bonus plus the main four. Talk about wore out. Bonus categories do not effect your scoring or over all placing. They are just for fun,bragging right and the wives or buddy's who help out at times.
 
Al...

Good question. Would expect it has to do with what water moisture is available on the rib bone surface. Never really broke that process down to see exactly why it works. It's just something that we are instructed to use. HTH

Bob
 
Hi Todd...

What is fascinating is that when the wet bone thing happens, one does indeed have a 'properly' cooked rib. They just go together, for whatever reason.
It might be just along for the ride, so to speak ;)
 
Bob Bass said:
Hi Todd...

What is fascinating is that when the wet bone thing happens, one does indeed have a 'properly' cooked rib. They just go together, for whatever reason.
It might be just along for the ride, so to speak ;)
Click to expand...

lol. It just never made sense to me. Since they are not eating the bone. I don't worry about it. I've gotten dry bones when I would break a rack and over cook it. I cooked what I feel was my best tasting ribs ever the other week at a comp. Hit all my marks as far as taste, tenderness, the pull and chew. The bones were soaked. Even a heavy hitting team that we all know said dam! You need to charge people to eat those, but it's to advanced. Judges won't get it. And he was right. The rack itself just came out looking like a kicked mud hen. it was the ugliest rack and meat color I've ever seen. I think it had to do with my injection. It even crawled up the bone funny. Oh well, on too the next.

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