On Oct 29, 5:11 am, "frohe" > wrote:
> wrote:
> > Did something I hadn't done in a long time this weekend, I went to one
> > of the many parties/fairs/celebration/national pride things we have
> > here in Texas, usually about two month.
>
> > This was the meeting of the Czechs/Germans/Mexican cultures, and this
> > particular event has been going on for about 30 years, so as far as
> > these things go, not too long. Apparently it is a revival of an old
> > tradition that was started up again in the 70s.
>
> > There was a bbq competition (non sanctioned), a chili cookoff, a pie
> > judging (top pie went for $1000!!), lots of sausage, beer and curly
> > potatoes. And with the Shiner brewery about 40 miles from the
> > shindig, there was a lot of cold Shiner. They even had an Elvis
> > impersonator there, too! The town of Flatonia is literally shut down,
> > the main streets blocked off, and the affair is flanked by the main
> > street buildings that are maked by their owners names, with dates like
> > "1876" and "1884". All proceeds for the event go to the High School
> > as they don't have enough folks there in the city to generate the
> > taxes they need to stay afloat.
>
> > It was a step back in time as there was so much bullshit flying
> > around, and it was obvious most of the folks there knew each other, at
> > least in passing. There were about 35 entrants on the chili, and
> > almost 50 on the barbecue. There were some barbecue team names I
> > recognized as well as many of their sponsors. Quite a few competed
> > regionally and were from as far away as Florida.
>
> > I don't want to start any crap here or have a call to arms to defend
> > anyone's personal preference on how they cook their meats. It isn't
> > and editorial, just observations from a step back in time.
>
> > This was a traditional Texas BBQ, and I noticed several things that
> > took me back 30 - 35 years when I started burning stuff on the grill.
> > Long smokes came later, but in my younger years I just didn't have the
> > patience for large pieces of meat to sit for hours on the pit.
>
> > The first thing I noticed was NO charcoal. No one was using it. Not
> > a soul. I did see the old traditional burn pits where we used to
> > preburn the wood to get coals and shovel them into the pit as needed.
> > Not too many of those either though, as most now have large pits with
> > an end made for 24" logs, but most just had really large fire boxes.
> > I saw the biggest pits have ever seen in my life there, and some of
> > the ugliest, too, but no one even spoke of charcoal or had a charcoal
> > burner going.
>
> > Second thing, was no sauce. One of the sponsors there had a booth
> > (and a great pit and pitmaster) that was showing taste testing the
> > sauce, but he didn't put any on his meats. I haven't put sauce on
> > beef since I can remember, but it was nice to find fellow smokers
> > that don't put it on anything. And very little rub was used, some
> > just with a basic salt/pepper/garlic powder mix. That's it. Some had
> > their favorites to be sure, but most powedered with some storebought
> > stuff, or something they bought from one of their friends on the
> > circuit.
>
> > Third - this is Texas. Brisket is king, here. I went to every single
> > pit, and not one had anything but brisket. Nothing went to the judges
> > table except brisket. They held back and put on some chicken and
> > sausage for themselves, but that was only a few. Most smoked
> > briskets, made egg/sausage tacos off the side in the morning, and
> > threw chicken on after the briskets were done and resting.
>
> > But no pork at all, no ribs, butts... nuthin'. Just Texas brisket.
> > When I was a kid growing up in the 60s early 70s, I actually didn't
> > know there was anything else but brisket and sausage, and the only way
> > we ate chicken was grilled (rarely) or fried (mostly). Guess these
> > small towns didn't get the memo. I admitted that I sure liked a good
> > rack of spares while enjoying a cold one with some of the pitmasters,
> > and they allowed that they did to. But as they said, "there ain't no
> > place for that stuff here at a barbecue competition."
>
> > And maybe it's a Texas thing. Not one person foiled, timed, rested,
> > wrapped in towels, or used remote thermometers. About half had therms
> > on their pits, but NO ONE had them in the meat while cooking. They
> > weren't stupid, they all had 12" instant read therms with them, they
> > just didn't fuss or fidget like so many do these days. They learned
> > the way I learned, know your pit, know your fire, enjoy cooking and
> > drinking beer.
>
> > Here's the best part, though. I am not sure why they would do this,
> > but apparently it is another tradition. Many of the teams that show
> > up do 3 -5 (some more!) briskets, the optimal size being 12 - 15
> > pounds. They cooked up sausage for themselves, and if they are in the
> > competition chili as well. They eat that stuff all day, washing it
> > down with a cold one when thirsty so they are literally eating all
> > day. So at the end of the day after they have turned in their
> > competition brisket, they have tons of beef left, as they only turn in
> > a few slices off the best brisket. Them good old boys are full of
> > beer and good times, and want to get rid of all the brisket they can
> > so they can sit down and do some serious drinking and wait for the
> > dance to start. They slice up whole briskets (and whatever else they
> > may have) and put out the pieces with toothpicks and paper towels for
> > everyone to try.
>
> > So... I must have eaten a pound and a half of samples. Some of just
> > OK, but some of it defies any description it was so good. And the
> > variety was incredible; there were briskets with almost no bark at
> > all, but an excellent, mild, penetrating oak tang to the meat. It was
> > sliceable, but still fork tender. Then there were the big taste guys,
> > lots of bark, heavy smoke, and just a tiny bit of heat. The meat was
> > a little more chewy, but still quite tender.
>
> > I guess I am posting this to remind folks to have a good time when
> > barbecueing. What could be better than a some well smoked meats, a
> > cooler full of iced beer (or a pitcher of margaritas) and having all
> > your friends over to enjoy the day?
>
> > I think too many (I fall into this category myself to some extent)
> > worry too much about temp gauges, the perfect rub, the perfect lump,
> > foiling/no foiling, and on and on. All kinds of fiddly little
> > things. I saw so many out there this last weekend that did nothing to
> > conform to the group's collective wisdom it was hilarious.
>
> > And after this last weekend, I will probably snicker when I read about
> > how much some obsess with making sure that they conform to the group's
> > expectations or guidelines ("I wanted to pull the meat at 187.65
> > degrees, but it got away from me so I pulled it off at 188.326
> > degrees, so I am wondering if I should eat it or pitch it" type
> > thing. I have to smile now when I think of those guys out there
> > cooking away to the sound of their own drummer, doing as they please
> > without a second thought. And turning out some outstanding product
> > along the way, too.
>
> > As far as I am concerned, I think a lot of folks have probably missed
> > one of the best parts of the traditional barbecue, and that is the fun
> > of it all. I think this style of cooking is supposed to be fun,
> > shared with others, and when I was out there this last weekend I
> > remembered WHY I actually started barbecueing.
>
> > Smoked meats, ice cold beer, good friends. No particular order.
>
> Bub, you've hit the nail on the head with this post. I'm sure there are
> some who could care less about how we do BBQ down here in Texas but who
> cares. Your message of cooking simplicity and having fun while doing it is
> the one that should sink in for all.
>
> Good post!
>
> -frohe- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

Nail: Great post. It brought back memories of the event; I went to
Chilizpiel in 1979; there was no bbq, just chili; too many cooking
teams to count. The crazed Texans do know how to party. Texas flags
abound, music everywhere, and anything goes.


Pierre

Fun part, was the crownation of "Chili Queen". Here they "promenade"
around the stage, all in a costume of sorts, (points for shomanship
are the norm) from a caldron of chili called fuzzy tongue, to an 80
year old great-grandmother. Granny won, b t w. Her sole
qualification being that she'd born 13 children. I still have the tee
shirt.