Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Barbecue Heaven
Recently on this very blog, I mentioned my deep devotion to Kansas City barbecue. So what's the perfect job for a barbecue fiend like myself? How about judging the world series of barbecue, the American Royal barbecue contest? I had that very honor over the weekend.
The Royal is actually two different competitions. The invitational is held on Friday, which, as its name implies, is for invited barbecue teams only. That's followed by the open competition on Saturday, which featured more than 500 teams this year. I judged the open competition so on Saturday morning, I sat down to eat and judge some of the best barbecue around.
Being an American Royal judge is quite an experience. While the atmosphere is fun, it's also serious. The teams spend thousands of dollars to take part in the contest, so the judges need to take their role very seriously as well. In fact, all the judges stand up before they eat, raise their right hand, and take the Kansas City Barbecue Society pledge. It's similar the pledge of allegiance and the oath witnesses take before testifying in court. Did I mention this is pretty serious?
After the oath, it's on to the eating. The key here is moderation and pacing. Judges taste six samples in five different categories (six if you count dessert), so if you eat too much at the beginning, you'll be stuffed by the time you get to the pork and brisket. It's not easy taking only a small bite or two of the delicious chicken and ribs, but believe me, you'll feel much better at the end. I've judged enough contests to know that if you don't pace yourself, you'll be mighty uncomfortable after it's all over.
It's a blind taste test, so I have no idea which teams I judged, but there were delicious entries in every category: chicken, ribs, pork, brisket and sausage. So what happens to the rest of the barbecue if the judges only eat a bite of each sample? Leftovers, my friends. I've been eating barbecue every day this week. Judging the American Royal is the gift that keeps on giving.
When it was all said and done (after several delicious desserts), I was happy and full and amazingly, could even walk out of the arena on my own. For a barbecue lover, it doesn't get any better.
The Royal is actually two different competitions. The invitational is held on Friday, which, as its name implies, is for invited barbecue teams only. That's followed by the open competition on Saturday, which featured more than 500 teams this year. I judged the open competition so on Saturday morning, I sat down to eat and judge some of the best barbecue around.
Being an American Royal judge is quite an experience. While the atmosphere is fun, it's also serious. The teams spend thousands of dollars to take part in the contest, so the judges need to take their role very seriously as well. In fact, all the judges stand up before they eat, raise their right hand, and take the Kansas City Barbecue Society pledge. It's similar the pledge of allegiance and the oath witnesses take before testifying in court. Did I mention this is pretty serious?
After the oath, it's on to the eating. The key here is moderation and pacing. Judges taste six samples in five different categories (six if you count dessert), so if you eat too much at the beginning, you'll be stuffed by the time you get to the pork and brisket. It's not easy taking only a small bite or two of the delicious chicken and ribs, but believe me, you'll feel much better at the end. I've judged enough contests to know that if you don't pace yourself, you'll be mighty uncomfortable after it's all over.
It's a blind taste test, so I have no idea which teams I judged, but there were delicious entries in every category: chicken, ribs, pork, brisket and sausage. So what happens to the rest of the barbecue if the judges only eat a bite of each sample? Leftovers, my friends. I've been eating barbecue every day this week. Judging the American Royal is the gift that keeps on giving.
When it was all said and done (after several delicious desserts), I was happy and full and amazingly, could even walk out of the arena on my own. For a barbecue lover, it doesn't get any better.
Posted at 7:20 AM
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