I love Texas. Hopefully this year I will be able to go back and eat at some of the legendary BBQ joints. For now though I spend a lot of time over at Full Custom Gospel BBQ reading his reviews and experiences.  These ribs were inspired by my last trip there.

One of the challenges that I always have is finding beef ribs that have enough meat on them. It seems that outside of a few locations this is quite a daunting task.  A friend of mine Mike the owner of Big Bone BBQ came to my rescue. His restaurant serves up BBQ Beef ribs once a week at Big Bone BBQ Barrie. I got some from him and I was all set.

Removing the membrane was easy with a clean bar towel. Better grip than a paper towel for this tough membrane.

I also used a spoon to scrape off the large pockets of fat. Whatever you do though don’t discard the fat. Put it aside into a small saucepan and Ill get to it in a bit. After a bit of trimming I had about 2 cups of fat and beef bits.

Decided to keep the rub super simple only 4 ingredients. Granulated garlic, granulated onion, Morton’s Kosher salt & freshly cracked black pepper.

3/4 c Salt

3/4 c Pepper

1/2 cup garlic

1/2 onion

Generously rubbed (I used about half of the rub and stored the rest for future use) they headed to the grill at 225F . I used mesquite pellets for these.

Then I got around to making the mop. The first step was to render out some beef fat from the trimmings. This measured out to be 1/4 cup when finished.  You could also add 1/2 bottle of beer to this Mop if so desired. In addition pay attention to the sodium levels on the beef broth. Some are horrendously high. I used a reduced sodium broth and opted not to use Soy Sauce in this recipe.

Mop Ingredients

2 c beef broth

1/2 c  Worcestershire sauce

1/4 c Apple Cider vinegar

1/4 c Rendered Beef fat

1/2  bottle BV beef upper  ( approx 1.5 oz – you can also substitute Kitchen Bouquet)

4 tbsp Tiger Sauce

2 tbsp Mustard powder

2 tbsp dried onion flakes

Bring all of the Mop ingredients to a simmer. Set aside.

About 4  hours in I started Mopping every 15 minutes. I wanted to wait until the ribs had developed a very thick bark (crust).

Before Mopping:

After mopping:

After two additional hours mopping every 15 minutes the ribs were done.  Rested them covered tightly in foil for 15 minutes.  They were dark and crusted over and absolutely delicious. Some of the ugliest ribs I have ever made and it just didn’t matter. Paired with cornbread, cheesy pasta casserole and green beans they made an excellent meal.

Bacon apple chestnut stuffed pork loin

Ingredients

3lb pork loin
10 slices bacon

For the stuffing

3 c large seasoned croutons
2 ½ c diced apple
1 c reduced sodium chicken stock
1/3 c chopped parsley
¾ c chopped roasted chestnuts
6 slices bacon chopped
2 onions diced
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp dried thyme
¼ tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp black pepper

In a medium sized pan on medium level heat fry bacon until crisp. Using a slotted spoon or bamboo strainer remove the bacon and set aside.

Add chopped onion, thyme, salt, pepper and garlic to the residual bacon fat. Stir often scraping any bacon residue from the bottom of the pan. Sauté until the onion has softened. Add the diced apples and reduced sodium chicken stock. Bring to a simmer and add the croutons. Mix thoroughly cover and remove from heat.

Butterfly the pork loin using 3 cuts to open like a book. See this video for instructions -

Cover the pork loin with plastic wrap. Pound the pork with a mallet to make it a uniform thickness. Remove cover from the stuffing and fluff with fork. Add parsley to the stuffing mixture.

Spoon the stuffing mixture onto the pork loin leaving a 1 inch frame around all of the edges.
Starting at one end – roll the pork and stuffing together to make a tight roll.
Wrap pork with bacon lightly overlapping each layer. Secure with butchers twine.

Grill indirect at 275F until a digital thermometer reads 155F. I used oak and hickory wood pellets. Rest for 10 minutes then slice. Feeds a crowd.

Yesterday was the cutoff date for submissions of videos for BBQ Pitmasters Season 3 !

The competition is really heating up for a spot on the hit show. Lots of great audition tapes posted to Youtube and Vimeo. Some are new faces and some are people you may have just seen before. Good Smoking Luck to all who applied!!

BBQ Pitmasters 2012 from chris hart on Vimeo.

Pitmaster’s Audition from Bourbon Barrel BBQ on Vimeo.

Rod Gray Pitmasters Audition from Scott Jolley on Vimeo.

I love the balance of the rich pork with the tang of vinegar and red pepper flakes. I love the texture of chopped pork as well.

Ingredients

2 8lb boneless pork butt

For the Rub

1/4 cup butcher grind tellicherry black pepper
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup smoked paprika
1/4 cup Morton’s kosher salt
1/8 cup Chipotle powder

For the Sauce

4 cups Apple Cider Vinegar
1 cup ketchup
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup finely ground tellicherry black pepper
1/4 cup Smoked Chipotle Tabasco Sauce
1/4 cup Morton’s kosher salt
2 tbsp Thai Red Pepper Flakes
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Combine all rub ingredients thoroughly rub on all sides of the pork butts. Set aside in fridge for 2-3 hours.

Set your grill up for indirect cooking at 250F.
I used hickory wood pellets for this pork. Use hickory chips or chunks depending on your grill.

Place the meat on the grill and BBQ indirect until the internal temperature has reached 200F Approx 6-7 hours depending on your grill. Wrap the butt in foil lightly and set aside for 1/4 hour.

While the pork has been cooking assemble the sauce ingredients in a non reactive pan or bowl. Whisk thoroughly to incorporate the ingredients completely. Set aside covered in the fridge.

Chop or pull the butts. Make sure to incorporate any pork juices that accumulated from foiling back into the the chopped pork.

Add sauce until desired moisture and flavor is achieved. The remaining vinegar sauce keeps well in the fridge for at least a month.

Piled high on a soft hamburger bun with a crunchy coleslaw this pork is awesome. The leftovers freeze well too- Enjoy!

You may just might recognize a few folks in the following video clips from TLC BBQ Pitmasters Season #2

http://tlc.discovery.com/videos/bbq-pitmasters/

Fun times with alligator. Believe me.

I had to define who what where and when all about Diva Q. I had to figure out where I was going to go with the logo.  That lead me to having a couple of conversations with some folks who have logos I really like- Ray Lampe (Dr. BBQ) Jason Day ( Burnt Finger BBQ  + BBQ Addicts), Darren (Smokey D’s) Joey Mac’s Smoke Stax, Dave Raymond (Sweet Baby Rays) and a few others.  In addition I contacted some terrific people I know who excel at marketing in BBQ and other areas.

The entire process has been really all encompassing. Jason Day recommended  a site called 99designs.com.  It is a really interesting concept where you run a design contest.  You decide how much your budget can handle. You write an entire summary about yourself or your Company and what your requirements are. Some of the designs were really out there. Some I wish I liked more because the designer put a lot of thought into the process. I made the decision to post some of the 240 design submissions I received on my facebook fan page. Some of the feedback was really helpful. I wanted to ensure that whatever logo I picked would be well received by both males and females. My target audience has always been both however at the end of the day Men are still the primary purchasers of BBQ items .

Also taking a look at myself I would never ever want to put a tiara or bling on anything. Thats just not me. I think of the Diva part of the name as being a woman that is really determined. That is me- determined to get better at BBQ.  I never really associated it with the pink crown and tiara program.  Also I wear black 100% of the time on the circuit and a lot at home too.

So here it is the new Diva Q logo. Its pretty straightforward. Simple, easy to read, recognizable and with just a bit of sass.  Just like me.

Over the last two weeks I have received tons of emails and talked to lots of BBQ folk about the new season. The responses are really varied. Some are very cynical and state they think JM already has his picks and he is doing this to keep people off his back. Others say this is just a ploy to get more attention. Personally I don’t really care one way or another. I think its a good idea to ask for submissions. Makes sense to me.

Additionally some people have stated they hate the new format already. Um I am not sure I understand this since none of use really know what exactly the new format is. Right now its just a bunch of talk. A bunch of guesses.Seriously Ill reserve judgment for when I actually see the new format.

This is what was posted from John Markus Exec Producer BBQ Pitmasters:

It’s official. Our new format features FOUR different pitmasters competing in EACH episode. We are looking to augment our cast from last season and welcome all interested cooks to throw their aprons in the ring. Send your audition tape/DVD, selling us on why you should be picked to compete against the best. To: Lindsay Freed c/o Original Media, 38 E. 29th St., 8th FL, NY, NY 10016. Or, you can email a file of your audition to bbqpitmasters@originalmedia.com. Send your ?’s there as well. Shooting schedule April 30th – June26th. Good luck and see you on the trail!

Then there are a few posts from JM on Twitter:
It’s official. BBQ Pitmasters Season #2 picked up by TLC. Will be posting info on casting within the hour here and on various BBQ forums.
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Audition tapes/DVDs, under 5 min! Sell us on you/your team! Lindsay Freed c/o Original Media, 38 E. 29th St. 8th FL. NY, NY 10016. GetGoin’!
**
Or, send a file of your audition to bbqpitmasters@originalmedia.com Shoot schedule runs from April 30 – June 27. Send ?’s there as well.
**
Going over the schedule for Pitmasters 2. Dammit man, we’re putting the miles on. But I can truly say, we’ll be at an event near you!
**
To all those hopefuls vying for a place on Pitmasters 2: BBQ Skills + Personality + Showmanship + Authenticity. In under five minutes!
**
Submissions for Pitmasters now arriving in waves. You ladies who ‘Q, & I’ve seen all y’all, jump in already! Starting to screen tomorrow.
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Screened all day. To all you cooks about to make audition tapes–ladies, ya listenin?–Don’t just tap the bell. RING the bell! (Mel Brooks)
**
Saw some real keepers 2day. Hate 2 B a tease, ‘Q’rs, but a few of U hit it outa the park. (Okay, I luv the tease part–sorry). Want more!
**

There was even a mention of the new format here:

TLC To Revamp `BBQ Pit Masters’ Series

Network To Knead Reality Show Into Competition Format

by R. Thomas Umstead — Multichannel News, 3/15/2010 12:11:53 PM

TLC is hoping to add some sizzle to its freshman cooking reality series BBQ Pit Masters by changing its programming recipe from a docu-reality show to a competition-based series for its second season.

The series, which followed the exploits of several barbeque cooking experts, averaged 900,000 total viewers and posted double digit increases for the network among male viewers during its first season, which ended last month.

The new season will feature a weekly competition between several chefs, with each weekly winner eventually squaring off against each other in the final episode, according to TLC officials. The show will feature BBQ Pit Masters stars such as Myron Mixon and Le Ann Whippen in “some capacity” on the show, said TLC officials.
BBQ Masters joins Cake Boss, Ultimate Cake Off and Cupcake Sisters as cooking-related shows on the Discovery Communications-owned network this year.

Overall I think no matter what its just more exposure for competition BBQ and really I think thats whats most important. Get it out there to more of the public. Let them know how much fun it is. How great the people are.

Yesterday we started driving from Barrie Ontario Canada and we pulled up here in Memphis about 25 hours after we started. Now its only a couple more hours till we get to Little Rock Arkansas.

Yesterday being St. Patrick’s Day it was fun to see the festivities at Silky O’ Sullivan’s on Beale St. It was a lot of fun to watch the festivities.Then we headed back to Pig On Beale. Still terrific food, fun staff, and great atmosphere.  If you go to Memphis make sure you go eat there.

My husband really wanted some Memphis BBQ since he didn’t come on the trip last month. I was craving a steak. Had to cave to his request. Really it wasn’t much of a cave. Vlad is one of the most incredible people on the planet. He goes out of his way to do everything he can to support my BBQ habit/obsession/career.  He really enjoyed his BBQ feast. Plus he had enough leftovers to do at least 2 more meals today LOL.

One of the highlights of this trip besides seeing everyone will be seeing  My Sister in Smoke Angie Quaale.  She is flying in today from BC to hang with us this weekend. That is awesome. So happy she is coming. Last year my friend Tim Brown from Can’t Stop Grilling came with us. His team is the only other Canadian team that will be in Little Rock this year. I plan on doing everything I can to beat him.

So we are off to do the final leg of our journey to compete in Little Rock Arkansas. There are 225 teams that are competing for $100,000.00 in prizes. I sure hope the Olympic Own the Podium program applies to Competitive BBQ’ers as well. I believe. LOL I can barely type that without cracking up. OK in reality I believe that I will do my best. I believe that- if I can- out of this entire trip – be proud of my turn in boxes, and get a call that would be cool. But I can dream. Hell yeah. I can dream.

Every Tuesday you can listen in on the BBQ Central Radio show part of the BCRN (BBQ Central Radio Network) . This weeks episode is a round table discussion with three of the top Chicken Cooks on the KCBS circuit:

Kelly Wertz – 4 Legs Up BBQ, previous winner of the Jack Daniels Invitational and in 2009 ranked #4 overall in Chicken and #6 Overall on the KCBS TOY Listings.

Joe Amore – Smokey Mountain Smokers, ranked #5 overall in Chicken and # 19 overall in the KCBS TOY listings. They also manufacture one of my favorite products disposable cutting boards.

Troy Black - Learn2Q.com, ranked #7 overall in Chicken and #15 overall in the KCBS TOY Listings. He also has a brand new DVD out Real BBQ Know How

Also tonight on the BBQ Central Show Mike Lake President of KCBS will be on at approx 10:05pm EST on the after dark segment of the show

It should be a great show! Make sure you tune in tonight at 9pm EST.