Let’s dive right into the reviews of  the authentic barbecue sauces that are made with real sugar:

• Original Recipe: I have reviewed a lot of great barbecue sauces over the past three years, and many have claimed to be an amazing barbecue sauce and more specifically authentic barbecue sauce. While I still haven’t found what specifically makes an “authentic” barbecue sauce, but if I had to define “authentic” barbecue sauce then I would put a picture of Garlands Original Recipe right next to the definition. What I really enjoyed about the sauce was the complex and great flavor profiles that you experience with this sauce. I even love the thickness of the sauce which is perfect for your brisket or even barbecue chicken. In addition to both the complex flavor profile and also the perfect thickness, I loved the smokiness of the barbecue sauce, overall the sauce was amazing.
• Country Honey:  Barbecue sauce and honey are two great combinations we all know that, so it wasn’t a surprise to see that this type of barbecue sauce had some amazing flavor profiles and had the perfect combination of everything that you would want in a sweet barbecue sauce from the perfect amount of sweetness to the perfect thickness of the sauce this barbecue sauce has to be one of my new favorite types of sauces. I think that this would work perfectly with some perfectly smoked barbecue chicken, I guess I am going to have to use this barbecue sauce this upcoming weekend when I do another practice on my barbecue chicken.
• Sweet Brown Sugar: The Sweet Brown Sugar barbecue sauce had a lot of the same flavor profiles as the country honey barbecue sauce that I also reviewed but instead of having a deep sweet taste that came from the honey, the brown sugar had a bit more of a tang to it which in my opinion was a perfect addition to the sauce. I also enjoyed the perfect combination of sweetness and the smokiness in the barbecue sauce. 
• Overall Review of the Product:  Overall, I loved the three barbecue sauces that I reviewed. Not only did each barbecue sauce have its own flavor profiles, they were all complex and also worked perfectly together. I really couldn’t find anything that was wrong with the sauce, only that I didn’t have a lot of it in my fridge for the summer! I know that I am going to have to use the sauce sparingly moving forward which is going to be a hard task to do.

So as I was sitting at my sister’s Memorial Day party and relaxing on the deck, she brought out a bag of chips – and they just so happen to be the Lay’s KC Masterpiece BBQ potato chips. Now not only did I get the enjoyment of relaxing and letting my sister and brother-in-law do all of the grilling, but I also got to enjoy some good old fashion Stubb’s BBQ Sauce on my chicken. AND I got BBQ potato chips! Can you say, ‘heaven’?!?!

Before I got into reviewing BBQ sauces, I never really thought about the Lay’s KC Masterpiece BBQ potato chips or how they were even a factor in my life. I ate them nonstop and I have always eaten BBQ potato chips compared to regular, no matter the brand. But then it really started to make me think even more about the combination of BBQ sauce and chips. These are just some thoughts or kitchen ideas that you come up with all of a sudden. This takes some time.

Chips are made to be dipped in French onion sauce. They are supposed to be used as regular supplements with any picnic or luncheon. They weren’t intended to be mixed or made with BBQ sauce. That wasn’t the plan. That wasn’t how it was all supposed to go down. However, things change! And boy did they change for the good.

Imagine if you had BBQ sauce used in everything you use. BBQ pickles. BBQ mustard. BBQ Pop-Tarts. BBQ eggs. Oh how my mind wonders once you put BBQ-flavored chips in front of me with a few cold beers. It is great though.
That’s why having the Lay’s KC Masterpiece BBQ potato chips has been, and always will be, a huge hit in my family. If you haven’t been able to tell by now, we are HUGE BBQ sauce fans in my household and this just adds to my addiction. I just wish that every other food item out there would follow suit! BBQ-flavored lemonade anyone for the next picnic?

For this week’s Barbecue and Grilling Sauce review, I am going to be reviewing Memphis BBQ Restaurant BBQ Sauce Review & Rating: Corky’s Sauce & Rub.

Like I always do with barbecue product reviews and also our barbecue sauce review and ratings I am going to give some background on this Memphis Barbecue institution:

Corky’s BBQ lives and breathes in the BBQ CAPITAL OF THE WORLD….MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE! Home to over 100 BBQ specific restaurants, Corky’s has been Voted the #1 BBQ in Memphis by Readers Polls over 22 times! Don Pelts made a decision almost 30 years ago to open Corky’s BBQ with the following requirements:

1. Buy the very best raw products

2. Cook the old fashioned way over hickory and charcoal

3. Hire the best team to support his ‘vision’ for Corky’s

4. ‘Do it right EVERY TIME!’

The success of Corky’s dining room business led to a booming drive-thru / take out business that had never been done before in Memphis BBQ. Within a year of opening, Corky’s started taking its great BBQ to peoples homes, businesses and picnic facilities with its full service Catering Team. They arrive, set up, serve and let the customer just have fun! Corky’s has catered events as large as 18,000 people and served them all in 2 hours! So many out of town customers would enjoy a ‘Taste of Memphis’ while at Corky’s in the early years that we opened a USDA inspected processing facility in 1991. That original 900 square foot space has been improved over the years to now 53,000 square feet! Our BBQ is shipped overnight to sports stars, Hollywood celebs, and folk just like you and I. This facility also cooks all the food that Corky’s ships to Supermarkets including Wal-mart, Kroger, Publix, Costco, and many others.

Now that we have gotten the history of this famous Memphis Barbecue institution it is time for the review of the barbecue sauce and also the review of their rub.

Corky’s Barbecue Sauce: As many of you know I am a big fan of tomato based barbecue sauces. After reviewing a lot of barbecue sauces I have realized that if I was stuck on a deserted island, I would only need and would like tomato based barbecue sauce as one of the items that I would want on the island. I knew that after visiting Memphis that they also like their barbecue sauce with tomato’s and a lot of it, so when I received Corky’s barbecue sauce I knew that I would like this sauce a lot and I was right. I really liked the barbecue sauce, actually I loved the sauce because not only did it have some great flavors but it also had a really nice hint of spice. After looking at the ingredients of the sauce I feel in love with the sauce even more and realized that even though it had some vinegar in the ingredients it worked perfectly with the sweetness of the brown sugar. The spice of the sauce was not at all overpowering but really enjoyable.

Corky’s Barbecue Rub: There are two characteristics of a barbecue rub that I look for is sweetness and also a very small hint of spice at the end of the rub, so that you get a layered flavor profiles. Corky’s barbecue rub was something that hit both of these requirements. I was wondering to myself what were the ingredients that helped make this perfect barbecue rub, and then I was disappointed.  I am huge believer in using natural and fresh ingredients for rubs and sauces, and I was completely disappointed to see that Corky’s didn’t use natural ingredients. If they used natural ingredients I think that I would loved the rub a lot more.

Overall Impression:  Overall, I really enjoyed the barbecue sauce and rub really disappointed me. I only wish that the rub used natural ingredients.

You know the sauces I’m talking about – the ones that come out of the bottle thicker and chunkier than you could even imagine, but they sure as heck do the job on the grilled chicken! One pet peeve of mine is when I try to soak chicken that I’m grilling with some BBQ sauce and 90 percent of it ends up on the charcoal at the bottom of the grill rather than on the food. So annoying.  Or when I am creating a potato salad recipe and it’s thin as water.

That being said, here a few of my favorite actual ‘grilling’ BBQ sauces, ones that are thick and stick right to the meat:

BULL’S EYE BBQ SAUCE
Bull’s Eye BBQ sauce is a chain BBQ sauce that most everyone has tried once or twice, but in terms of its thickness and the way it sticks to the meat, it is in the upper echelon of name-brand sauces. We reviewed it and gave it a 4 out of 5 on thickness, and it truly is perfect for any time you put chicken, meat, pork loin or whatever else you could think of, on the grill. This sauce will allow you to slow cook the meat and it will soak into it as well, leaving you with a perfect meal to serve your family and friends at any picnic!

JACK DANIEL’S NO. 7 BBQ SAUCE
Another name brand, but still yet another perfect sauce that will allow the rich taste soak into any meat you might want to try it on. This sauce also has a great taste that rivals any of the standard BBQ sauces that you can buy at any of your local grocery stores. Put that together with its thickness and ability to withstand the sloppiness of grilling, and you got yourself a sauce that you will keep pulling out for every grilling experience!

MONTGOMERY INN BBQ SAUCE
One of my all-time favorite BBQ sauces, Montgomery Inn BBQ sauce will not do you wrong when you light the grill. This goes especially well when you are grilling ribs – it sticks to the ribs, soaks into the ribs, and leaves you with an amazing meal. I’ve tried Montgomery Inn BBQ sauce many times and even when you think that the sauce is burnt and won’t taste right after you leave it on the meat for so long, it never turns out bad. If you are ever in Cincinnati, make sure you try the original BBQ Sauce. Sure, you can buy it at a grocery store near you and grill it yourself, but trying it in one of the Montgomery Inn restaurants is an experience like no other! Trust me.

 Like we do for all our barbecue products and sauce reviews here is a little background on this week’s sauce:

Tastefully Simple is a dynamic direct sales company based in Alexandria, Minnesota.

They offer a wide selection of convenient, easy-to-prepare foods designed to help people spend less time in the kitchen and more time enjoying the rest of their lives. Our products are available through independent Tastefully Simple consultants primarily at home taste-testing parties nationwide. Though the company got its start in a small shed in Minnesota, Tastefully Simple has become a $100 million-plus enterprise with thousands of consultants nationwide. What’s the secret to this success? We believe that exceptional products, services and, above all, people have made it happen.

Now to the review of the sauce. I will start the review by saying I was a bit nervous about “gourmet barbecue sauces” and the various flavors of them. For this review I tried the Honey Apple Grill Sauce. I must say that this wasn’t a flavor profile that I would necessarily think would work well with the mixture of tomato based grill sauce, so I was very curious about the flavor profiles. Upon giving the sauce a taste I was a total convert actually. The flavor profiles worked perfectly together and this sauce was more on the sweet side of things rather than your traditional barbecue sauce which has a nice smokey flavor, but would work perfect with ribs and chicken for those who like their sauce nice and sweet. Another aspect of the grill sauce that I enjoyed was that the sauce wasn’t thick and was more of a thin sauce, which would make a perfect glaze for the ribs and chicken. I think that I am a total convert on “gourmet barbecue sauces,” as the people from Tastefully Simple have totally changed my mind. If you are looking for a non-traditional but great grill sauce, I would highly suggest giving this one a taste!

I love food and was excited to talk with Ira Pupko about his sauces and getting to try them.  Ira created the original Hog Heaven BBQ sauce in his kitchen over 20 years ago back in 1991.  Ira being a foodie wanted to step away from using other people’s sauces and create something his own and that was completely original.   Hog Heaven Barbecue Sauces sent me their 4 sauces; Smokehouse, Smokehouse Heat, Apple Chipotle and Apricot Jalapeno to try.  The bottles have some nice flashy labels that will stick out on shelf with some great catchy descriptions on the site. Here is my BBQ Sauce Review and Rating: Hog Heaven BBQ Sauce’s.

SEE RELATED: Grilling with Rich’s BBQ Sauce Reviews

Smokehouse

Described on the site as ‘Boss Hog – The original gunslinger of sauces” and suggests to be used as marinade, dipping sauce or basting sauce.  This sauce is thick with dark red, with notes of molasses and liquid smoke that hits you out of the jar followed by some good spice with only a slight heat.  I tried it as a basting sauce on some grilled chicken with provided it with a slight smoky flavor and tasted better than right out of the jar.  Next I dipped some pulled pork in it, which tasted sweet and the liquid smoke really comes out too much.  I found that mixing it into the pulled pork the taste was better and the smoke subsided.

Smokehouse Heat

This sauce is darker than Smokehouse with a noticeable heat on the back side which cuts the sweetness and smoky hints from the liquid smoke.  I enjoyed this beefed up version more, this is a good sauce with the extra spice is flavorful without being overpowering.  Again I grilled up some chicken breasts and used it as a basting sauce which still had the present smoky flavor from the liquid smoke but again tasted better than out of the jar. I dipped some pulled pork and this time it was good on top of the pork and a compliment for the smoke already in my smoked pulled pork.  I mixed some into some pulled pork for a reheat lunch for work and found that it was even better letting it sit in the pork.

Apple Chipotle

The description on the site is ‘Sweet. Tangy. Smokey. Kickin’. Bang! And that’s just the first bite,’which I completely agree with on the first taste out of the jar.  I did not mind the liquid smoke as the sweet and spicy tang made up for it.  Now one of the suggestions for use is with bacon so I had to try it first on this.  I made some bacon and a few pieces with the sauce right on top as it cooked in the oven.  Dipping bacon into it was okay but cooking the bacon with it on it made for some sweet pig candy that my son and I devoured up quickly.  I also grilled up some chicken legs and glazed them with the sauce as the end which my son and I devoured quickly.  I think this is my favorite of the 4 sauces.  Now he does not list pork in the suggestion but found it to be good mixed in with some pulled pork as well and heck better with some bacon on the pork.

Apricot Jalapeno

The description on the site is ‘One smoothe operator. Apricot Jalapeño is delicate, savory and full of life.’ Right from the jar fruity apricot with slight heat and mellow. Again I grilled up some chicken breasts and used it as a glaze and was a bit too sweet tasting for my liking. I decided to take the chicken and slice it up, put it on my salad with some balsamic vinegar and found to me a winning combination.

Ira’s glaze:

Mix a little Hog Heaven Apple Chipotle with a little Apricot Jalapeno, a little Smokehouse, add some honey and agave syrup, and a splash of pineapple juice, and finish your chicken and ribs with that as the glaze.

I received samples of these products to review and no other way compensated for my honest reviews. All thoughts and ideas expressed are my own. We are disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

For this week’s barbecue sauce review, I am going to be reviewing The Shed’s Latest Barbecue Sauces and Marinades: “The Junk Free” products. I just recently got these sauces in the mail and I figured that I want to get to the review right away.

I will start off the review in being very open and honest like I always am. I am a huge fan of the Shed and the Orrisson family and have gotten to know each one of them and I really think and believe that they are the future of the barbecue community, so I was hoping that these products would live up to its name. SEE RELATED: GRILLING WITH RICH’S TRIP TO THE SHED BBQ AND BLUES JOINT

The barbecue sauces and Marinades that I am going to be reviewing are:

Spicy Vinegar BBQ Sauce: For those who are frequent readers of the site, you know that I am not a big fan of vinegar based barbecue sauces. I am sorry to my friends and readers from the Carolinas, but I guess I like that tomato based barbecue sauces a bit more so I was a bit nervous about this spicy vinegar barbecue sauce. When I sampled the vinegar sauce I was actually really surprised that the vinegar sauce was more tomato based than vinegar based. You could even see it in how the sauce looks, you know what I mean. Most vinegar based barbecue sauces have that light coloring but not this one. In addition the sauce wasn’t so spicy, actually it was a perfect amount of spiciness.

Fowl Play Marinade: Out of the three sauces that I tried this was the most interesting one for sure. I wasn’t sure what to expect out of the marinade. As soon as I looked at the bottle and saw some of the ingredients such as apple juice, soy sauce, brown sugar and cider vinegar aren’t ingredients that you normally see on a bottle of marinade. After you opened the bottle of the marinade you can smell right away the soy sauce which again is an interesting.  The soy sauce is a perfect ingredient for a successful marinade because soy sauce is perfect to brine chicken or whatever protein you choose to use. As I mentioned the ingredients, I realized to myself that these aren’t ingredients that you would put together, but for someone reason they actually do. I think that the acid of the soy sauce and the apple juice works extremely well together.

Sliced tri-tip, blue cheese, grilled vidalia onions and The Shed Spicy Vinegar sauce via The Shed Barbecue and Blues Junk Free Products

Original Southern Sweet Shed Spread: This is just a re-branded original Shed Spread, but still just the same old amazing barbecue sauce. I didn’t remember how amazing it was until I put it on my turkey cutlet for dinner last night. I loved the perfect balance of flavor profiles between sweet and spicy. The sauce had The Original Southern Sweet Shed Spread also had a great constancy being nice and thick.

Label: I remember the first bottle and label, and I thought to myself where is the great picture of the Shed logo and that pig? I was happy to see that this new bottle had that infamous pig and the bottle really had the Shed feeling to it.

Overall Thoughts & Review: The Shed BBQ Junk Free Sauces and Marinades lived up to what I thought it should be. When you put the sauce and marinades on your protein I feel that you are magically transported to the Shed BBQ and Blues Joint in Ocean Springs. The flavor and passion of the Shed comes through the bottle of the sauces and marinades. If you ever get the chance to purchase one of these great barbecue sauces and marinades you will know what I mean and you will get transported to the Shed BBQ and Blues Joint…

If you don’t know exactly which type of BBQ sauce you are looking to purchase, you typically look for name recognition or something flashy that catches your attention. I think this is something small but some BBQ sauces are either ignorant to this fact or they don’t take the time and effort to put that much thought into the labeling. Then again, some BBQ sauces go all out and make their labels hilarious, easy-to-read, and purposeful.

Here are a few examples of BBQ sauces that we have tried at SauceAuthority.com that we are not only impressed with their labeling, but also with the sauce themselves:

“Just Leave The Bones”

• This label was tremendous on many different levels, but I think the thing I liked best was that it had a pig (go figure) with a chef’s hat holding just a bone with no meat on it, hence the name of the BBQ sauce. The label clearly spelled out what type of sauce it was and it didn’t make you look time after time to see if it was sweet or hot, or whether it was a name brand or a local company. Very well done label that catches your eye.

“Pig Of The Month – Love Me Tender Mild And Tangy”

• This series of labels from Pig Of The Month are great, but this one in particular is one of my all-time favorites. Pig Of The Month puts a ton of thought and creativity into their labels and this one has a pig’s head on what seems to be an Elvis body. It is funny, and it definitely makes you look to see what the sauce is all about. And to boot, the sauce is pretty damn good as well when we tried it on pork chops.

“All-American Hero”

• This isn’t one of the most flashy labels, but it possibly says more indirectly than any other one I have seen. John Magine, owner of this BBQ Sauce, is a Vietnam veteran, and produces individual labels for each branch of the military – Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard. What also makes it cool is the fact that he donates 50 percent of his profits to Veterans programs and organizations, which makes the sauce ‘that’ much better to use considering where the money goes to.

“Full Throttle”

• This one definitely caught my eye when I bought it at the grocery store because of how clever the labeling was. It has a pig on a motorcycle going full speed and it breathes of a bad-ass BBQ sauce. It is clearly labeled which type of sauce it is (mild or hot), and it says in big enough lettering that it is a Kansas City style BBQ sauce.

Scott Lindenhurst is the owner of Sauce Authority.  A website that offers tons of hot sauce reviews, BBQ sauce reviews, hot sauce recipes and more.

Fox Bros Bar-B-Q got their start back in 2000 when Jonathan Fox got tired of not finding any good bar-b-q in the city of Atlanta, that reminded him of what he grew up on back in Texas. Frustrated with all of the popular recommendations from people he asked, he started cooking bar-b-q on his own. In 2001 the brothers (Jonathan and Justin) had a party at their house for friends which featured all you can eat bar-b-q, sides, all you can drink and live bands. The event became a yearly tradition and grew each year with more elaborate menus and better bar-b-q each time! By 2004 the brothers were cooking for 200 plus folks all showing up to these events. At this point, Jonathan and Justin Fox started catering and Fox Bros Bar-B-Q was born! Jonathan handled the BBQ and Justin took over on desserts. This is the same sauce used at their signature Fox Bros. Restaurant location just outside of Little 5 Points in Atlanta. Locals flock to the restaurant weekly for some of the best BBQ in the city!

Review: I really enjoyed this barbecue sauce a lot. I liked the great balance between the sweetness and the spiciness which worked very well together. In addition, what was great with the sauce was the fact that it had a bit of stickiness to the sauce which is always a big plus with me. I l also really enjoyed the sauce constancy which was a great combination of thinness and thickness. Even though the barbecue sauce has a splash of vinegar, the tomato based barbecue sauce has a great balance of the southern sweetness which balances really well with the vinegar in the sauce.

Overall, the barbecue sauce was great and would work perfectly on a great piece of grilled chicken and also any sort of ribs. If this is a definition of what Georgia barbecue sauces taste like, then I better start looking for more Georgia style sauces, because they are amazing!

The barbecue sauce that I am going to be reviewing is from the great state of Georgia and is the brain child of Gary and Dionn Lanton. If that name doesn’t ring a bell they are part of the Holy Smokes Barbecue Competition Team, oh and they won the Georgia edition of Barbecue Pitmasters from last year.

While I was at the 2013 National Barbecue Association Annual Conference I had a chance to spend time with Gary and Dionn and their amazing three kids. I really enjoyed spending time with them talking about BBQ and more importantly just becoming friends. They sent me a bottle of their barbecue sauce to review. I had high hopes and expectations for the barbecue sauce, as they really have some serious barbecue chops.

Holy Smokes BBQ Competition Team in Georgia

Holy Smokes BBQ Sauce was described to me as a sweet and spicy BBQ sauce with a perfect blend of sweet and heat and after trying the sauce on a hamburger that I grilled last night I instantly feel in love with the sauce. Not only did the sauce have the perfect blend of sweetness and heat but the consistency of the sauce was perfect. The sauce wasn’t too thin or even thick as it came out of the bottle it really had that perfect balance. In addition to the perfect consistency of the sauce, I also liked the complexity of the sauce flavors. When the sauce first hits your tongue you are greeted with some nice sweetness and as the sauce hits your throat you get a perfect “shot” of spiciness.

Overall, Holy Smokes BBQ Sauce is a must try for both competition and also for just regular backyard grilling use. Gary and Dionn did an amazing job of hitting the correct BBQ flavor profiles with this sauce with the complexity of the barbecue sauce flavor profiles, consistency of the sauce and also the balance between sweet and spiciness.

I know that this barbecue sauce will quickly become a favorite of mine and I look forward to seeing what else comes out of the Holy Smokes BBQ Competition kitchen!

About Harry Soo and Slap Yo’ Daddy BBQ: Slap Yo Daddy BBQ is the love child of TLC’s BBQ Pitmasters Head Cook Harry Soo. Preparing a bucket list of wishes to do before kicking the bucket, he started competing in 2008. And the rest, as they say, is history.  Slap Yo Daddy BBQ, one of the top-ranked Kansas City BBQ Society teams in America, was chosen among over 5,000 professional teams to appear on TLC’s BBQ Pitmasters Season One in 2010.  

In the Season Finale, SYD stunned the nation by defeating all the teams in the show including two BBQ World Champions in the winner-take-all Rib Throwdown in Texas.Awarded California Team of the Year 2010 & 2011; Arizona Team of the Year 2010 and 2011; 2010 Grand Champion in Langley, Canada; 2012 Hawaii State Champion, 2012 British BBQ Champion at Cartmel, UK; 2010 3rd ranked Kansas City BBQ Society (KCBS) team in the nation; 1st KCBS Ranchers Reserve National Brisket Cup 2010; 1st KCBS Ranchers Reserve National Beef Cup 2011; winner of 27 Grand Championships including a history making 1st place in all four meat categories in the 2009 Way Out West BBQ Championship has proven this BBQ team knows their stuff.

He’s received many awards including Reserve Grand Champion in Kansas City in 2009 amid 162 of the best teams in the nation at the Great American BBQ and 75+ first place finishes in various categories and countless 2nd, and 3rd place finishes. Clearly, Slap Yo Daddy BBQ are masters at the grill, so you’ll just have to check Harry out for yourself.

The Slap Yo Daddy two-man team was formed in 2008 and is made up of Head Cook Harry (member KCBS, IBCA, and CBBQA, and certified KCBS BBQ judge) and Assistant Cook Mark. By day, Harry and Mark work at information technology jobs in a Dilbertesque existence.  On weekends, they love to cook and hang out with friends and family.  In 2010, Benny joined the team as Mark left to spend more time with his wife and family.  In 2011, Harry became a one-man team as Benny returned to cooking on his team as Funtime BBQ.

Product Description: It’s finally available and we are proud to be the only place in America where you can get some of Slap Yo Daddy BBQ’s award winning chicken rub! Harry Soo, headcook of Slap Yo Daddy BBQ partnered with Big Poppa Smokers to be the exclusive distributor on its inaugural release date of January 25.

This is the actual rub that he used to win the Kansas City Barbecue Society (KCBS) Team of the Year award for the chicken category in 2012. [Click here to hear straight from Harry some great BBQ Chicken Tips]

Now let’s get down to the review of the rub. As I mentioned in the introduction I really was humbled that I was able to try it and that Harry was interested in hearing my opinions of it. I must say that overall I really enjoyed it very much. Right off the bat when you take it from the box you get the great mix of great flavors of paprika hitting your noise.

Barbecue Competition Smoked Chicken Recipe

Upon, taking the chicken out of the smoker, you automatically see the effects of the rub and you get that nice mahogany color  that we all strive for and will have a big impact on your appearance scoring. The one thing that I realized when making the best barbecue chicken possible is that you must leave the rub on for about max 20 mins so that the rub really penetrates the skin of the chicken before you put the chicken in the smoker.

Overall, Harry Soo’s barbecue chicken rub was amazing not only by itself but also on the chicken. The rub added a lot of great flavors to the chicken but didn’t over power it at all. The ingredients in the rub really balanced out the chicken perfectly and also added additional flavors. I would highly recommend that you head over to this website and purchase your own bag of rub if you really want to take your chicken game up to a whole new level, you will not be disappointed with the results, I promise you!

For those of us that are in the field of grilling or cooking (uh, who isn’t right?), we all know who Emeril Lagasse is either by watching him on one of his many TV shows on Food Network, or if you have ever been to one of his restaurants he is always walking around greeting people and asking them how their food is. Pretty cool guy considering his fame and fortune. In fact, his restaurant in New Orleans was voted Restaurant of the Year by Esquire Magazine.

He has made a number of guest appearances on shows other than his own, and his fame has not gone to his head. He is as real as it gets – I met him on a trip to his restaurant a few months back – and this is relieving that he hasn’t let his fame make him something other than one of the best chefs around.

That being said, with his Sweet Molasses Bam! B-G Barbecue sauce, I was interested to see what avenue Emeril took since he is typically known for more of a steak or chop house style of food, rather than a backyard BBQ type of chef. The Sweet Molasses is light brown in color and it has a sweet (go figure) smell to, almost like a ketchup smell.  It has a rich texture to it and it is definitely a sauce that you would comfortably be able to lather on a chicken or ribs on the grill without it falling off.

When I tried it on some grilled chicken, it was even sweeter than I anticipated, but it had a special flavor to it – something that you would expect to set it apart from other sauces considering he is a master chef. This is a sweet sauce that would go well with ribs or chicken or brisket, but I don’t think this is a type of sauce for steaks. It also would be a great dipping sauce for chicken tenders, but I don’t think I want to knock Emeril like that by just saying it should be used in that content.

As for Guy Fieri, he is a more flamboyant chef that has been on many TV shows, but his signature series is “Diners, Drive-in and Dives,” which I am personally a huge fan of. I’m sure everyone has seen it at least once where he travels the country looking for the best little restaurants that have great recipes that the typical traveler may not know about – hell, even the locals in those towns might not know about some of these outstanding places.

He has also been the host of NBC’s Minute to Win It, but that pales in comparison to his food-eating shows. Some people aren’t a fan of his antics but whether you are or not, he has made himself into one of the top food specialists in the country by doing his food-critic show. That’s the facts, whether we like it or not.

So I tried his Kansas City Smokey and Sweet Barbecue sauce and it was similar to Emeril’s when opening the bottle as they both had a rich and smoky scent to them. However, Fieri’s sweet barbecue sauce was darker in color, more brown than what many typical sauces are like in this category. You could see the black pepper throughout this bottle and the molasses were evident by taking just the smallest of sniffs.
The sauce had a nice little kick to it, nothing major by any means or something you should shy away from, but I was a little surprised that it didn’t have that “go-to” taste or special flavor.

I also tried it with chicken and it was pretty good, tasting both the molasses and a hint of sweet vinegar. Again, it didn’t give me that “wow” factor that I would expect, even though it had a hearty taste to it. I would suggest this on brisket more so than white meat, but in the end it wasn’t too bad.

Overall I would actually go with Emeril’s over Guy Fieri’s simply because I was more impressed with the little extra taste and different flavor of Emeril’s. Not that either one is out of this world in flavor, but Emeril’s would get the nod in this circumstance comparing these two versions.

This week’s barbecue sauce and rub review is of the brand new barbecue sauce product from Kansas City Barbecue Pitmaster and legend Rod Gray “Eat Barbecue.”  For those who aren’t familiar with Rod Gray he is the Pimaster of Pellet Envy BBQ Competition team which is based in Kansas City. Rod Gray was also on the most recent Barbecue Pitmaster’s season that just ended and even won his episode.

Competing  since 2001, Gray and Pellet Envy have racked up more wins than any other team on the national circuit since 2006. Other claims to fame include:

• More perfect scores in competition barbecue than the next four teams combined
• 79 championships won out of 397 events from coast to coast
• 10 straight seasons as a nationally ranked team
• Following up as the national champion in 2009, Gray was the runner-up national champion in 2010 and has been named the best pork ribs cook and brisket cook in the entire country.

Additionally, Gray has competed in the Jack Daniel’s World Invitational Championship seven times in his short career.  All while teaching his exclusive BBQ classes, educating the public and promoting barbecue as America’s only true cuisine.

I have been looking forward to trying this barbecue sauce for the past couple of months, since  Rod Grey announced that he was going to be selling some barbecue sauce and barbecue rub.

I had a chance to review all four of the products: the “Next Big Thing Barbecue Sauce” (A Kansas City barbecue sauce through and through, on the sweet side with hints of smoke and spice); IPO Barbecue Sauce (a thinner sauce, sweet with a vinegar twang);   Zero to Hero Sweet Rub (on the sweeter side with just a touch of heat); and The Most Powerful Stuff Rub (the mecca of all-purpose rubs)

“Next Big Thing Barbecue Sauce”: I am going to start with my favorite of the four products that I reviewed. I think that after trying a lot of different types of barbecue sauces over the past couple of years, I feel that I have really developed what I really like in a barbecue sauce and what I don’t. The major aspect that I love in a barbecue sauce is if the sauce has a great balance between sweet and spicy. “The Next Big Thing Barbecue Sauce,” fits into this category perfectly. I loved how the sauce was perfectly balanced and had complex layers of great flavors. Being that the sauce has some tomato paste, the sauce has some great thickness and is perfect for adding it on to a brisket, or even some great smoked barbecue chicken.

IPO Barbecue Sauce: The IPO Barbecue sauce was my least favorite of the products, but only because I am not a big fan of the vinegar sauces.  BUT if you are a big fan of vinegar (yes I am talking to my great friends from the Carolina’s) then this Kansas City Barbecue pitmaster has put together a great barbecue sauce for you to try. I actually had to think twice about if the sauce had even vinegar as an ingredient as  the sauce had some sweetness to it, but much to my surprise the sweetness and the vinegar worked together perfectly.

Zero to Hero Sweet Rub: Just like the first barbecue sauce that I tried from “EatBarbecue.com,” the Zero to Hero Sweet Rub was my favorite of the barbecue rubs that I tried. The rub started out to have some nice sweetness to it and then it had a nice not overpowering heat at the end. In this rub you can actually taste the sugar crystals when it first hits your pallet. The rub had some great complex and layered flavor profiles which is perfect addition to your rack of ribs or even your pulled pork but.

The Most Powerful Stuff Rub: With an all purpose rub you get a lot of different flavors and ingredients to make sure that the rub goes well with different proteins and this rub does a great job with accomplishing just that. Again, the flavor complexity is perfect and also I can taste how this all-purpose rub would go perfectly with all different types of proteins.

Overall Impressions:  After a lot of thought about the barbecue sauces and rubs that I reviewed I came to the conclusion that “Eat Barbecue” products are some amazing products that everyone should purchase. From competitors to amateurs if you are looking to really improve your flavor profiles for your next barbecue competition. I highly recommend the product and you should quickly go and make a purchase even if you just want to try for yourself, it is worth it!

For this week’s Barbecue sauce review I am going to be reviewing another barbecue sauce that is based out of North Carolina: Smokin’ Skullies.

Like I do for all my barbecue sauce reviews, let’s get some background about the sauce.

The Smokin’ Skullies BBQ team has competed in KCBS and NC Pork Council events, winning awards in many categories, making some great friends, and spreading the love of BBQ one bite at a time. The “Just Leave the Bones” BBQ sauces were born out of a passion for the best barbecue that we could offer and a perfect sauce to compliment many different varieties of barbecued and grilled meats. Not only does it work perfectly with all types of grilled, smoked, and roasted meats, it is a perfect compliment for many side dishes and has become a standard condiment at our parties and tailgates no matter what food is on the menu. Please enjoy our line of sauces, and let your imagination and taste buds lead you to the best BBQ of your life.

Now that we got the background of the sauce out of the way, now it is time to review this North Carolina Barbecue Sauce: Smokin’ Skullies.

Unlike the previous North Carolina Barbecue sauce that I reviewed I really enjoyed Smokin’ Skullies barbecue sauce. This sauce had the perfect balance between tomato paste and vinegar. The sauce was not over powered with the vinegar flavor. In addition to the the perfect balance of bases, the sauce also had some great smokiness flavor which made this sauce one of my new favorite sauces. I can’t wait to try this barbecue sauce on that perfect smoked barbecue pulled pork. Because the sauce had some tomato paste, the sauce wasn’t too thick or even thin, it was perfect.

I really enjoyed Smokin’ Skullies barbecue sauce very much, with it’s perfect balance of flavors this barbecue sauce is what I think that North Carolina barbecue sauce should taste like.

In this version of “Sauce It Up” I took a look at a Bayou-style BBQ sauce compared to a Carolina-style BBQ sauce, figuring out how different BBQ sauces really could be in different parts of the country. The two are similar in the fact that they have both won awards for their respective sauces, but they are very different in the texture and taste throughout each.

This comparison matched up HongryHawg BBQ sauce against Dimples BBQ sauce, and in the end what each one would be like with a standard chicken wing. Both sauces are viewed favorably in each market – HongryHawg in the Bayou of Louisiana and surrounding areas, and Dimples throughout the Carolinas – and both have a different makeup to their production.

First I wanted to take a look back at HongryHawg BBQ sauce, which is owned by Hiram Davis, a hot wing aficionado and a former safety manager at a trucking company. Davis had an interesting start to making his sauce. In an effort to make his sauce thicker than normal, he wanted to be original by making the HongryHawg sauces with more “texture and mouth-feel as taste.”

Davis did an excellent job of thinking outside the box by making his sauce a little different than a typical BBQ sauce, making it very thick while the peppers, onions and garlic are evident throughout the bottle. There is a strong scent of garlic but the sauce isn’t as spicy as one may think by looking at the bottle. I figured it would be more of a thick hot sauce rather than a BBQ sauce, but I was wrong.

The Cajun Bayou taste was excellent, something different than I had ever had and something that I have quickly found is targeted in the Louisiana area. It had a nice kick to it, hints of a hot sauce, but it was even thicker than I anticipated. It had a special flavor to it, sweet taste but with a little bit of a burn. Hiram did an excellent job of coming up with a sauce that is standard, I presume, in only the Gulf Coast area near the Bayou. Regardless, I was impressed with the unusual look and taste to a typical BBQ sauce.

On the other hand, Dimples has Carolina-style BBQ sauce written all over it. It is very rich and red in color and you can smell the vinegar-base throughout, which is common for traditional Carolina sauces.

Dimples is a family business based in Raleigh, N.C. with a thick sweet sauce and a hint of tanginess. It has been sold primarily in North Carolina but it has also made its way to Michigan (Rockford) as well. Two years after the first recipe was put in place, the first bottle was produced. It was named after a reference to a male family trait of a dimple-the-chin.

Dimples is a little more thin and runny than I thought it would be as I anticipated it being thick and able to be lathered on chicken, ribs or brisket. It almost is needed to be used more as a dip than a pouring sauce, which is fine regardless, and I think that they did a good job to sell the local Carolina market to its sweet and tangy taste. I was highly impressed with the sauce and it had Carolina written all over it.

I would suggest using either sauce on the standard grilling items, but for this comparison I wanted to match them up for use on chicken wings. That being said, at the end of the day, I would go with the Dimples for wings over HongryHawg. Dimples would be a perfect dip for any wing and I think it would be great for any picnic or party on the deck. HongryHawg definitely has its up sides, but for this comparison I would go with Dimples on the wings.

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Like we do with all of our barbecue sauce reviews, it is time get some background on the barbecue sauce:

The roots of Scott’s Family Barbecue Sauce go back to 1917 when Adam Scott first got into the barbecue business in Goldsboro, North Carolina.  The recipe for the sugar free, fat free sauce was developed over a three-year period and remains a secret which is passed down through the Scott family. Adam, a local minister, said the exact ingredients in the sauce were revealed to him in a dream.

That original sauce recipe was served on Scott’s barbecue for nearly 30 years, until Adam Scott’s son, A. Martel Scott, Sr., spiced up the sugar free mixture a bit before obtaining a patent on the sauce in 1946.

If you are looking for a authentic North Carolina barbecue sauce then Scott’s Barbecue Sauce is exactly what you are looking for. The vinegar based barbecue sauce that is made with pork bits is that perfect addition to your pork shoulder that you have spent all day smoking. I really loved it, even though I am not a huge fan of vinegar based sauces in general, but this sauce made me re-think that. I could see how this sauce would be perfect to add to your pulled pork sandwich. The thinness of the sauce was perfectly balanced with the ingredients of the sauce such as the pork and also some brown sugar and some simple cider vinegar.

If you are just tuning into Grilling with Rich here is some background on the Montgomery Inn:

It all began on November 1, 1951, when Matula and Ted Gregory moved into and renamed the former McCabe’s Inn as the Montgomery Inn. Matula and Ted Gregory were expecting their first child and struggling to make their way. Little did anyone know Montgomery Inn would also become their “baby.” Everyone who came to work at the bar for the next few years became a part of the family. In the early 50’s, Montgomery, Ohio, was a “one-horse town.” But it was growing quickly, and soon wagon loads of folks looking for a safe and friendly place to live began settling there. Ted and Matula agreed it would be a great place to raise their family, which ultimately numbered four children: Tom, Dean, Vickie and Terry. In coming years, Matula blossomed into an excellent cook. With four kids at home and a husband working every night to build the business, Matula fixed dinner for the family then packed up the rest and took it to the restaurant for Ted to enjoy when he had a chance. Ted usually had a crony or two who would delight in having a bite at the bar with him. One night, Matula fixed barbecued ribs with her now-famous barbecue sauce; everyone who tried them raved. Soon they were on the menu and the Gregorys were running a bona fide restaurant. When a local restaurant critic dubbed Ted the “Ribs King,” history was in the making. As the four children grew up and joined the business, they expanded their little restaurant several times, and then ultimately opened the Montgomery Inn at the Boathouse in 1989. The Boathouse, overlooking the Ohio River, was Ted Gregory’s pride and joy. In 2001, a third restaurant joined the family in Ft. Mitchell, Kentucky. Then in 2009, their newest restaurant opened in the Columbus area in Dublin, Ohio. As the Gregory grandchildren have grown-up, some have entered the growing restaurant business. Montgomery Inn is, and will always be, a part of the family. We proudly welcome you as a member of the Inn Crowd. Enjoy yourself in our restaurants. We look forward to serving you for generations to come.

After reading the Sauce Authorities latest article comparing Montgomery Inn’s BBQ sauce with Sweet Baby Rays, I was really excited to try out the sauce myself and see if I agree or disagree with the comparison as I have also tried both.

I do agree with Scott when he stated that the Montgomery INN BBQ sauce is nice and sweet and that is one of the reasons why I really enjoyed it. The sauce was a perfect finish to the ribs. In addition to the sweetness of the sauce, the Montgomery INN BBQ sauce did also have a nice flavor profile of a hint of smokiness which is critical for any great barbecue sauce.  Another reason why I enjoyed the Montgomery INN sauce was because of the thinness of the sauce, which is always great when you are thinking about adding a light coat to your finished product of ribs or chicken, which I believe a thinner barbecue sauce might untimely be the best type of barbecue sauce for barbecue competitions.

After trying numerous barbecue sauces, I really think that this sauce is one of my favorites and I can’t wait to add this sauce to my next barbecue and grilling adventure!

In this edition of “Sauce It Up”, I wanted to take a look at two of the more well-known sauces that I have recently encountered to see what made each one tick. The two are very common and have been around for a long time, and both can be found in local grocery stores or in the actual restaurants.

The comparison pitted Montgomery Inn BBQ sauce against Sweet Baby Ray’s, both of which have enormous followings – evident by Montgomery Inn’s 33,000+ Facebook followers and Sweet Baby Ray’s huge following of over 66,000 on Facebook. This is the Muhammed Ali vs. Joe Frazier of matchups. The Pittsburgh Steelers of the 70s versus the Dallas Cowboys of the 90s. The Lakers vs. the Celtics. You get my point!

So when I recently sat down to review what exactly made Montgomery Inn one of the marquee BBQ sauces out there, I looked at the background of how it all started. Matula and Ted Gregory moved in to what used to be named McCabe’s Inn and renamed it Montgomery Inn just outside of Cincinnati, Ohio. As Ted handled the duties of trying to make ends meet by running the bar, Matula was at home raising their four children and providing dinner for the kids each and every night.

After Matula brought some of her soon-to-be famous barbeque sauce to the bar for Ted and some of the local patrons, people started raving about the sauce. It became a mainstay of every item on the menu and when a local restaurant critic first referred to Ted as the “Ribs King,” the Montgomery Inn Barbeque Sauce took off from there. Now they currently have a total of four restaurants in and around Cincinnati and the barbeque sauce is nationally known.