Backyard BBQ Battle : episode 5 - Beef

This episode was a lot of fun to film.  I was really glad with the way things turned out.  There are a lot of ingredients this episode, but each one helps to balance out the recipe.  Don't skip any of them..

Beef Taco (carne asade style) with grilled pineapple, pico and crema

Mexican Marinade

• ¼ cup of roughly chopped mint
• ¼ cup of roughly chopped cilantro
• 1/8 of a cup of roughly chopped parsley
• ½ cup of orange juice
• ¼ cup of tequila
• 1/8 cup of olive oil
• 2 tbsp of minced jalapeño
• 1.5 tsp of salt
• 1 tsp of ground cumin
• 2 tsp chili powder
• ¼ tsp of black pepper
• Juice of one lime

Mix all ingredients and place in ziplock bag.  Marinate hours or overnight if possible.   Grill beef over direct heat till internal temperature of 125-130F is reached. 

Pico de Gallo

• 2 large tomatoes, seeded, finely diced
• 1 jalepeno, minced
• 1 clove of garlic minced
• ½ of a red onion, finely diced
• Juice of 1 lime
• Salt and pepper

Combine all ingredients and refrigerate.  Serve on a taco or with nacho chips. 

Avocado Lime Crema

• 1 ripe avocado mashed
• ½ cup of sour cream
• 1 lime zested
• 1 lime juiced

Mix all ingredients

Beef Taco

• grilled beef
• tortilla shells
• grilled pineapple
• feta cheese

To assemble Taco : Warm tortilla shells on grill for 60 seconds.

Place sliced meat on taco.  Top with pico de gallo, grilled diced pineapple, feta cheese and avocado lime crema.

Backyard BBQ Battle : Episode 4 : Chicken

It was another great episode of BYBBQB.   Here are Rene's recipes from this week's episode.

Chicken 3 ways

Chick-Chick-Chicken Rub

• 1/3 cup paprika
• 3 tsp chili powder
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp ground coriander
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 3 tsp granulated sugar
• 2 tsp curry powder
• 1 tsp dry mustard
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp cayenne or chipotle powder

Combine all ingredients.  Store in airtight container for up to 3 months 

Maple Sriracha chicken wing sauce

 ½ cup of maple syrup

2 tbsp of sriracha or hotsauce

White sauce inspired by Chris Lilly of Big Bob Gibson BBQ 

• 2 cups mayonnaise
• 1 cup of white vinegar
• ½ cup of apple juice
• ½ cup of maple syrup
• 2 tsp horseradish
• 2 tsp of black pepper
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp salt
• ½ tsp of cayenne pepper

Can be stored up to 2 weeks in an airtight container in the refrigerator

Amped up BBQ sauce 

• 1 bottle of sweet bbq sauce (sweet Baby Ray's or other similar brand)
• ¼ cup of maple syrup
• 1 finely diced onion
• ½ tsp of chipotle powder or cayenne.
• 1 tbsp of Chick-Chick-Chicken Rub

Combine ingredients and bring to a boil.  Simmer for 15 minutes and brush on while still hot.

Backyard BBQ Battle : Episode 3 - Pork Tenderloin

Here are the recipes from Episode 3 of Backyard BBQ Battle on Eastlink TV.....  Battle Pork Tenderloin.  Bill took the win over me on this one, but my recipes are still pretty tasty.  Try the Mango Slaw... it's a great addition to balance out a spicy plate.

Jerk Marinade

• 1 tablespoon ground nutmeg
• 1 tablespoon ground allspice
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon stick
• 1 small red onion, chopped
• 3 green onions, chopped
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup fresh thyme sprigs
• 1 lime, juiced
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 or 2 Scotch bonnet peppers (seeded)
• 1 (2-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled
• Salt
• Pepper

Marinade pork 6-8 hours or overnigh in half the marinade.  Reserve the other half for jerk BBQ sauce.  Before grilling, dry off all of the marinade from the pork with a paper towel.  Grill over direct heat till pork reaches internal temperature of 135F.  Let rest for 10 minutes before slicing.  Serve with mango salsa on the side. 

Mango slaw

• 1 english cucumber diced
• 1 red mango diced (2 if they are small)
• 1 tablespoon minced ginger
• 2 green onions
• 2 tbs of brown sugar
• 3 tbsp of fresh lime juice
• 1/3 cup of pomegranate seeds

 Toss all ingredients together and refrigerate. 

Brussel Sprout and Bacon Skewer         

• 12 Brussel sprouts cut in half
• Sliced bacon
• Bamboo skewers

Soak bamboo skewers for an hour.  Insert end of bacon onto skewer and then insert a Brussel sprout.  Wrap bacon around Brussel sprout and skewer it again and keep alternating creating a wave pattern.  Try to get as many Brussel sprouts per skewer as you can adding bacon as you need it.  Grill them on indirect heat until the bacon has gone crispy.

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Backyard BBQ Battle - Episode 2 - Ribs

Here are the recipes from Episode 2 - Ribs Battle

Competition Style Ribs

4-3-2-1 BBQ Rub

• 4 tbsp of paprika
• 3 tbsp of brown sugar
• 2 tbsp of kosher salt
• 1 tbsp of pepper

Combine all ingredients. 

Sweet BBQ Sauce

• 1.5 cups of water
• 1 cup of white vinegar
• .5 cup of tomato paste
• 1 tbsp of yellow mustard
• ¾ of a cup of brown sugar (packed)
• 1.5 tsp of salt
• 1 tsp of liquid smoke
• 1 tbsp of Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp of onion powder
• 1 tsp of garlic powder
• 1 tsp of paprika
• Optional : To make it sweet and spicy, you can add 1 tsp of cayenne pepper or chipotle powder.

Combine all ingredients and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes before using. 

Cooking instructions

Remove membrane from back of the rack of ribs.  Generously rub both sides of the baby baby back ribs with the 4-3-2-1 rub.  Preheat smoker or grill to 250 F.  Cook ribs for 2 hours in the smoker or using the indirect cooking side on your grill.  You may add woodchips to your smoker or a foil smoke pouch to your grill for the first 2 hours of cooking.  For the first 2 hours, baste or spray the ribs with apple juice every 30 minutes.  After 2 hours, remove the ribs and wrap them in foil with about ¼ cup of apple juice or beer.  Put them back on the grill and cook them for another hour.  Remove ribs from the foil packet and return to smoker for one last hour.  During the last 30 minutes, baste them with the BBQ Sauce.  Remove from heat, slice into individual bones and serve. 

Perfect Potato salad

• 30-40 sliced baby red skinned potatoes
• ½ cup of miracle whip
• 3 tbsp of honey-mustard
• 2 stalks of celery finely diced
• 2 hard boiled eggs
• 1 carrot finely diced
• 2 tsp of fresh dill
• ¼ cup of green onions or fresh chive
• 1 tsp of paprika
• 1 tsp of olive oil
• 1 tsp of red wine vinegar
• Salt and pepper to taste

Par-boil potatoes.  Finish potatoes on grill in a veggie basket to give them a little bit of char and smokey taste.  While potatoes are mix your dressing by combining Miracle Whip, honey mustard and red wine vinegar and olive oil.  Remove potatoes from heat and dress them while still hot.  Add potatoes, hard boiled egg and celery to the salad and refrigerate till cold.  Mix in fresh dill before serving.  

Backyard BBQ Battle Schedule

Here is the schedule run-down for Backyard BBQ Battle.

The show will begin airing a new episode every Wednesday for 12 weeks but can be pre-empted by live council coverage.

Nov 25th - Appetizers
Dec 2nd - Ribs
Dec 9th - Pork Tenderloin
Dec 16th - Chicken
Dec 23rd - Beef
Dec 30th - Burgers
Jan 6th - Pork chops
Jan 13th - Street Food
Jan 20th - Pizza
Jan 27th - Beef Tenderloin
Feb 3rd - Kids episode
Feb 10th - Chef's Choice

Backyard BBQ Battle Episode 1

Our first episode aired tonight.  Here are the recipes from Episode 1 (Appetizers).

Appetizers

Stuffed Mushrooms

1 package of cream cheese

1 or 2 finely diced jalepeno’s

1 cup of shredded cheddar or Monterey jack cheese

3 tsp of 4-3-2-1 BBQ rub (see  Competition Ribs recipe)

12 medium sized mushrooms

1 lb of sausage (polish or Italian)

12 slices of bacon

To make cream cheese mixture : mix softened cream cheese, with jalepenos, shredded cheese and BBQ rub.  Insert cream cheese into a piping bag.  Hollow out the mushrooms using  a spoon or a small paring knife.  Pipe the cream cheese mixture into the mushroom.  Seal the top of the mushroom with some of the sausage.  Wrap the mushroom with a slice of bacon and hold it in place with a toothpick.  Cook over indirect heat till the bacon is crispy.

Pig Shots

12 pieces of polish style kielbossa (about ¼ inch in thickness

12 slices of bacon

Cream cheese mixture from recipe above

Brown sugar

Ground cayenne pepper

Wrap a piece of bacon around each piece of kielbossa and secure it with a toothpick creating a small cup.  Pipe some cream cheese mixture into the cup till it reaches the top.  Top Pig shot with a bit of brown sugar and a light dusting of cayenne.  Cook over indirect heat till bacon is crispy. 

Nutapeños

• 12 jalepeno peppers sliced down the centre and seeded. 
• 12 slices of bacon
• ½ cup of peanut butter
• ½ cup of hazelnut spread

Mix your peanut butter and hazelnut spread together.  Stuff the mixture inside each jalepeno.  Wrap bacon around each jalepeno making sure to seal them tightly or they will burst as they cook.  Cook over indirect heat until bacon is crispy.

Provincial Rankings

Just like hockey or soccer or baseball, I consider BBQ to be my competitive sport.

We also have provincial rankings through the Canadian Southern BBQ Association's BBQ amateur virtual BBQ circuit.

Results were posted today and I learned that Heart of Gold BBQ (HOG BBQ) is currently ranked 1st out of more than 30 teams in the CSBBQA.

Our fellow competitor Cory Wiseman from Cochrane and his one-man team Newfie Q is currently ranked third.

There is one competition left in October in Quebec and an Ottawa competitor of the team Boy meets Grills could still take the lead.  I will not be competing in that competition.

All the BBQ practice has paid off and Andrea and I are happy with our rankings, even if we do move down to 2nd place between now and October.

Timmins BBQ competition Results

What a great event we had in Timmins today.  It was a bit on the chilly side during set up (4C) but our smokers warmed us up and the warmth and friendliness of Timmins residents created a great day.

Thanks to the 7 teams listed below who participated in this first year event.  4 of the teams were local and 3 were travelling teams.

Here are the results.

Overall Results

Grand Champion : HOG BBQ

Reserve Grand Champion : Boy Meets Grill 

3rd : Newfie Q

4th : D-Dubs BBQ Grub

5th : Eastview Smokers

6th : Hot Diggity

7th : Super BBQ Bros

Chicken

1st - Boy meets Grill

2nd - HOG BBQ

3rd - D-Dubs BBQ Grub

4th - Super BBQ Bros

5th - Eastview Smokers

6th - Newfie Q

7th - Hot Diggity

Ribs

1st - HOG BBQ

2nd - Newfie Q

3rd - Boy Meets Grill

4th - Eastview Smokers

5th - D-Dubs BBQ Grub

6th - Hot Diggity

7th - Super BBQ Bros

Misery Box (oops. I mean Mystery Box)

1st - Newfie Q

2nd - HOG BBQ

3rd - Boy meets Grill

Mystery box ingredients were : Hanger Steak, Fruit Cocktail Mix, Capers, Vegan Cheese and Chicken Flavored instant ramen noodles.

Thanks to our sponsors 

Porcupine Hardware - TimberMart - Energymizers :  Broil King Keg

Cedar Meadows Resort : 500$ package

Canadian Tire Gas Bar - 200$ in gift cards

La Chaumiere Restaurant : breakfast for the teams

Eastview RV - Traeger grand prize for Northern BBQ Tour

Too many businesses to name who donated swag for the teams.

Thanks to CSBBQA reps for helping with the event : Sean Vodden, Tabitha Woodall, Bill Pudim, Barb Van Rassell, Mike Callaghan

Thanks to our organizers : Therèse Chartier and Phil Whissel

Thanks to the countless volunteers who helped out during the event.

Thanks to our judges : Tim, Jackie, Simon, Pierre, Andy, Lynn, Paul, MJ and Sean

Till next year.  

Last BBQ competition of the Season

Well this is it.... The Northern BBQ season wraps up this Saturday (sept 12th) with a competition here in Timmins.

I still have room for a few last minute teams, but it would be certainly easier to plan if I find out early.

Up for grabs is a 1000$ Broil King Keg compliments of Timber-Mart and Energy Mizers here in Timmins.

2nd prize is a love and Romance Package from Cedar Meadows Resort.

This is the first competition I ever attend where Andrea wants me to place 2nd!!

Prizes for 1st ribs and 1st chicken are 100$ gift cards from Canadian Tire.

Many other prizes and gifts to be won thanks to generous local sponsors.  

Should be a blast. Hopefully, Heart of Gold BBQ can smoke out the competition at this event. 

2 down, one to go!

Well, I've had the chance to compete in 2 BBQ competitions so far.

First up was Kapuskasing.

1st place ribs
3rd place chicken
2nd overall
1st place mystery box

Next up was Smoke on the Water in Cochrane

2nd place chicken
3rd place ribs
2nd place mystery box
3rd overall

Only Timmins event to go.  We'll see how things end up at the end of my season.