Dinner at American Glory BBQ in Hudson, NY

I wrote about a recent visit to American Glory BBQ, on Warren St. in Hudson NY.  I put that post up on North Country Rambler yesterday.  The full story can be read here.
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Bill Joe's Ribworks ~ Waterfront BBQ in Newburgh

We had dinner at Billy Joe's Ribworks on the Newburgh waterfront.  It's more "family restaurant" than "BBQ Joint", but barbecue fans will not be disappointed.  The full post can be found here

Summer BBQ, on the hoof.....

Macon Bacon

Our summer BBQ / Pig Roast is only four months away.  If they only new......

The McRib Sandwich - Is it BBQ?

You have asked- Is it BBQ?

My question is – Is it food?

One month ago I decided to never set foot in a McDonald's again. I had come to this decision after years of very infrequent visits to the golden arches for occasional “on the run” lunches . I usually go out of my way to avoid fast food restaurants, much preferring local family owned ethnic restaurants of pretty much any persuasion. My aversion to fast food is not specific to McDonald's. I feel the same way about Burger King and Wendys' and KFC. I avoid them, if for no other reason than that they do not serve alcohol.

Schroon Lake Fish & Game 2010 Chicken & Lobster Bake

 I love a good town barbecue, a culinary tradition as uniquely American as apple pie and jazz. It is a distinctly “rural” event, celebrated at firehouses and town centers across the country with racks of grilled chicken and hamburgers and hot dogs and corn on the cob. Beer and soda are the beverages of choice. A glass of wine or a cocktail may make a rare showing but a frosty bottle of something just seems to go better with barbecue sauce.

St Louis BBQ Ribs - It's not what you think!

Waiting to order at Pappy's Smokehouse

If you are expecting to find a recipe for St. Louis Ribs, or St.Louis BBQ sauce, you won't find that here. For the record, "St. Louis" ribs usually refers to the butcher's cut of the rib - the way that the a standard pork spare rib (not baby back) is trimmed of the breast plate and squared off to yield a St. Louis cut.  In St Louis the standard rib service is Memphis style - with no sauce on the ribs, just a squeeze bottle of sauce, typically a sweet tomato based sauce, on the side.  This is an article about eating BBQ ribs.  In St. Louis.  So I called it St. Louis BBQ Ribs.  

Timing is Everything - In Life, and In Barbecue

Last Sunday we had a Barbecue at the Seagle Music Colony in Schroon Lake. All of the thirty two Young Artists were invited, in addition to the staff, and a dozen or so patrons who earned the invite by contributing at the “Producers Circle” in 2009. I was hoping that it would be the first of an annual event. In the past we had held “Producers Circle” dinners at a restaurant, but it seemed that there wasn't enough time to mix and really enjoy everyone's company.  Seagle Colony social events always get the highest grades if the attendees have an opportunity to mingle with the singers. We were hoping that a barbecue would provide such a setting, staged at the “White House” on Charley Hill Road, with ample seating to sit down and eat, but with enough space around the grounds to mingle for an hour or two before we all sat down. I set up my BBQ cooker outside the White House, parked beneath a towering maple to provide some shade. It couldn't have been a nicer day to sit outside and cook (and type up a few blog posts). The menu included beef brisket, in a nod to the Texas artist's contingent including the Artistic Director, Darren Woods, who hails from Fort Worth. I did one picnic shoulder as a pulled pork, and eight racks of St Louis cut spare ribs. We added two hotel pans of potato salad, two pans of baked beans, and a pan of coleslaw. I had four dozen hot dogs left over from Saturday's Kids Fishing Derby so I brought them along for good measure. I had only two concerns – quantity, as I had never actually fed thirty opera singers before, and timing. Everything had to be ready to go at 6PM after the Sunday Vespers concert.

Essex County Toys for Kids Lobster Bake and BBQ

I love small towns. It is often said that people who live in small town are “nicer” as if they have some genetic predisposition to friendliness. I'm sure that some of those genes may be the reason, but I have a theory that the size of the community has more to do with it. If someone cuts you off in the market parking lot, you think twice before popping your cork at them, because you are going to see them again real soon. There's only one market. And then you'll see them at the Post Office, and then at the (only) bank, and probably this weekend at the Fish and Game Club. You just smile and forget about most small breaches of etiquette. That's my theory on why small towns are so nice. I spend most of my time in one such really nice small town - Schroon Lake, NY, whose year round population is less than my high school senior class at Brooklyn Tech. People are really nice here. Towns like this have sense of community that I find lacking in big cities. Its really easy to get to know most of the people in town, and one of the occasions to do just that is at the numerous summer barbecues that are held every year.

"Lobstah" Joe, Dave "Sporty" Beale, and Carl Russel

Big Tent Barbecue

Who doesn't like barbecue? Think about it. It's hard not to like. BBQ's appeal is universal. Just the sound of the word brings back wonderful memories - family get-togethers, sunny summer afternoons in the yard helping Dad start the grill or carry out a cooler of soda and beer. Barbecue is fun. The word itself brings a smile. Barbecue is social. No one barbecues for one. It requires a back yard full of friends or family, casual clothing, and coolers of thirst quenchers. What's not to like?

BBQ Dry Rub

Barbecue Dry Rub

The dry rub that is applied to a meat before it is cooked is possibly the most important component in the BBQ process. The difference between good cooked meat and great barbecue is the rub. Like barbecue sauces there are many variations on the theme, but if you Google barbecue dry rub you will find most if not all of the following ingredients in most recipes. Experiment! Barbecue is not a formal doctrine. It is not a concerto. BBQ is jazz. It should change a little very time you do it. Most of all it should be casual and fun!

Last month's Cook's Illustrated included a recipe for rub. In it the writer stated that they detected little or no difference in the finished product if you applied the rub hours before cooking, or immediately before. To this I say - Horse Feathers! Apply the rub the night before, or at least the morning of your get-together. I can most certainly tell the difference. The following recipe can be prepared in any quantity; the proportions are the same. You can use teaspoons, tablespoons, cups, or your favorite hat. Use five hats of salt for one hat of mustard. (If you do use a hat you might have more rub than you can use in six months and you shouldn't keep spices more than six months.) I buy my spices at Penzey's Spices. A link is provided on the sidebar.

Standard Dry Rub recipe:

5 parts Kosher salt,

3 Parts (each) freshly ground black pepper, light brown sugar, and sweet paprika

1 part (each) dry mustard, onion powder, garlic powder, cumin, cayenne pepper, dried oregano.

With a good rub as a base many BBQ cooks will forgo an additional sauce. Strictly from a flavor standpoint you really don't need one. Some will argue that the sauce adds moisture, and it certainly does, but I encourage you to at least once - Try Going Nekkid! There are numerous advantages to this "Memphis Style" (sauce on the side) BBQ, not the least of which is that your beer bottle will not slip out of your hands so much if they are not covered with sauce.