Porkmania- Franklin WI

This week, we are reviewing Porkmania, the double Rib competition that was held at the Polish Center of Wisconsin in Franklin on April 5th.

This competition was sanctioned by the Rib Cook Off Association, which is a fantastic organization that has just started its 2nd year. There were 3 categories for this competition: Wet (sauced) Rib, Dry (no sauce) Rib, and a breakfast ancillary cook. All of the meat for this competition was provided, which is always a great bonus, and the breakfast meats were provided by the event sponsor, Jones Dairy Farm in Fort Atkinson, WI, which is a place I am very familiar with as I used to be the head of security there, many moons ago.

I decided just to do the 2 rib categories this time as those are all that’s required for association points, and it saved a little bit of money. I liked this competition because it was only an hour’s drive there, which meant that it was one of my closer ones this year, at least at this time. Friday Night, I got the trailer all packed up and ready to go, so all we had to do Saturday morning was wake up and take off. We got there about 7am, found a parking spot, and started setting up. 42 teams were signed up to cook at this comp, so the competition was strong.

The cook’s meeting was at 8am, with turn-ins being at 12 for the breakfast cook, 1pm for the dry rib, and 2pm for the wet. As soon as I got the ribs, which was right after we got there, the rib prep started. It started with trimming them down to the even rectangular slabs of ribs that I like to compete with. This helps ensure that they are going to cook evenly and regulate the size. I injected each rack with Butcher BBQ Pork Injection and then seasoned it with my Lovely Jubbly BBQ The Everything all-purpose rub, and then again with my And Then Some BBQ rub. At 9:30, the first 2 racks of ribs went on, and at 10:30, the second set did. As usual, I won’t go into too much detail about my rib recipe, but I will link to my Ribs! Ribs! Ribs! post if you are interested in my technique.

For the dry rib turn-in, I pulled the ribs out of the wrap when they were ready and then used my sponsor this year, Weekend Bum BBQ’s Hot Bum rub in my fancy little thumb grinder to coat the top of the ribs before putting them back in the smoker. The thumb grinder is a fantastic tool I use to add more rub but have it not be as grainy, therefore making a nicer mouth feel. The trick to adding more rub is to do it while the ribs are still wet, that way, the moisture activates the rub, making it more effective. At that point, I put the ribs back on the smoker for 10 minutes to help dry that moisture and make them a true dry rib. After the 10 minutes were up, I pulled them off and started slicing with my Dalstrong brisket knife. I had plenty of good ribs between the 2 racks, but I found the best 7 and made the box. I really felt good about the dry ribs after they were turned in, great bite, great flavor, and plenty juicy.

The wet ribs were done about 45 minutes early, so I pulled them off, drained the wrap, and placed them in the resting bag. I had some issues with these racks, being that there were some weird crossbones in both of these racks, but I was able to pull out the 6 minimum good bones, sauced them, and put them back on the smoker to set the sauce for about 10 minutes. I made my turn-in box and turned them in, but I was not very happy with the second batch of ribs. they were very tight, and I feared that they weren’t going to be tender enough for the judges, but there was nothing I could do at that point.

Usually, it’s a standing joke within BBQ competitors that “if you don’t like them, usually the judges will.” That was my only hope with the wet ribs, but I was able to do something well, and that was to prove the old adage wrong. Awards started closer to 3 and while I didn’t win anything in the door prize raffle, I still won because I donated 1 bottle of each rub, and I really hope that whoever grabbed them really enjoys them! The awards were reversed compared to the turn-in times, so the wet ribs were announced first. I did not get a call in this category, which I expected since I wasn’t happy about them. I came 34/41 teams in the wet rib category.

The dry rib, on the other hand, I was really looking forward to because I was confident in that cook. 10th through 6th were announced, and my ticket number (448) wasn’t called yet. Then we get word that 4th and 5th place tied, which is always cool. As he started reading the numbers for 5th place, 4…….4……..8! BOOM!!! 5th place in the dry rib category! I was shaking with excitement as I walked up to the front of the room with a few fist bumps from others on the way up there and a hug from my good friend Ron Strohbusch. The entire walk, there was a huge amount of noise from where my family was sitting, and rightfully so! So I got my medal, check, and photo taken, and that was it, validation that I was doing it correctly, and I will never stop competing now. This is way too much fun, plus I can ride this high for a while. Onto the next! Which is Minnesota in May, May 9-10 for a fun KCBS Masters Competition.

Don’t forget to check out http://www.lovelyjubblybbq.com for our signature rubs and even more great BBQ products and accessories! Our rubs are also exclusively in store at Ava’s a posh boutique in Watertown, WI if you just can’t wait for shipping!

If you are looking for a Pit Boss pellet grill or other Pit Boss accessories for yourself or someone you love, follow the link below to the Pit Boss website where they have some fantastic deals on some even more fantastic products! As an avid Pit Boss user, I couldn’t be more proud to be an affiliate of Pit Boss Grills and I look forward to growing this partnership over time.

Specials

As always, keep cookin’ and Lovely Jubbly!

The MitchRib is Here!

This week I did the first of what is going to be a series of my version of fast food favorites. I decided to tackle the McDonald’s McRib sandwich.

The traditional McRib is always controversial among most, but is still always a big talking point whenever it makes an appearance. I can honestly say that I have never had one, but I have always appreciated the concept of it. We all hear the hype that nobody knows what’s in it, it’s not very good, etc., but I decided to make my own version of it, that I knew what would be in it, actual pork rib meat. I cannot say what is in the original or not as I don’t have any experience, but I can certainly control what goes in mine. For the most part, the way I cooked the ribs was about the same as I did in my Ribs! Ribs! Ribs! recipe, but with some small changes. The first change was the base layer of rub that I used.

I am sponsored this year by Weekend Bum BBQ, and I received my batch of his Rubs last week, so I decided to start using them right away. I used his Perfect Perfect All Purpose Rub as the base layer, and then used my Lovely Jubbly BBQ And Then Some BBQ rub as the primary. I had tried the Perfect Perfect on its own, so I knew it would be good, but man, these 2 rubs combined are a fantastic combination. I ended up doing 2 racks of ribs, and I did this for a couple of reasons. The first reason is I used my offset for this cook, and it wasn’t worth firing up the offset and the work associated with it for just one rack of ribs, and 2, my daughter loves ribs and didn’t want the sandwich, so I essentially made a rack of ribs just for her. Dad of the year, I know.

As I mentioned, I used the Old Country BBQ Pits G2 insulated offset smoker for this cook. I have it sitting in the backyard, and every time I look at it, I think to myself that I need to use it again. I started with a bed of Royal Oak lump charcoal and used hickory splits to maintain the fire. Because of the insulated fire box, it really holds temp like a champ and is able to maintain that temp with less wood, so it is very fuel efficient as well. I was able to get it up to 275 degrees, and it held perfectly with very minor adjustments throughout the entire cook. Even opening the lid to work on the ribs, it recovered nicely. Lately, I have had a revelation that pulling the ribs off the smoker around 195-198 internal makes for a much more solid bite and not falling off the bone. For this recipe, I wanted it to fall off the bone because it made it easier to pull the bones out for the sandwich.

After an hour in the smoke, I spritzed with Apple juice and again 30 minutes after that. At that point, it was 2 hours in, and I pulled them off to wrap. I didn’t do the full wrap that I do for competitions, but I used brown sugar, apple juice, butter, and a sprinkle of the And Then Some again, all on both sides of the ribs. They were then put back on meat side down and left for an hour before I checked them again. As you can tell from the pictures, they are slightly different-sized racks, so they did cook at different times. That being said, they both cooked until they hit about 205-208 degrees, and I pulled them off to rest. It took about 3.5 hours to cook in total.

To build the sandwich, I used a big $1 loaf of Italian bread from Walmart and sliced it open. Because these loaves can be pretty bready, I took the top portion of the bread and took out the interior of it to hollow it out. I then buttered each side of the bread with a solid layer and added a light amount of Garlic Salt to each side just to add some more flavor. I then put the bread halves and butter side up in the oven on the broil setting to toast the bread. I pulled the top out a little early, put a few slices of Muenster cheese in the bread, and then put that back in to melt the cheese. Being from Wisconsin, I had to add some cheese, so I went with my favorite. Once they were done, I pulled the rack of ribs like I would for pulled pork, tossed it in some Blues Hog Champions Blend BBQ sauce, placed it on the bread, and boom, the MitchRib sandwich was born.

Flavor-wise, it was fantastic. You got the hickory smoke, both rubs were singing in harmony, and you even got a little bit of the garlic salt flavor that really pulled it all together. I definitely will be doing this recipe again, and the only thing I would change is that the Muenster, while creamy, didn’t stand on its own with all of the other flavors going on, so I would change it to a sharp cheddar, or swiss, but other than that, I wouldn’t change a thing.

Recipe:

Ingredients:

  • 1 rack of pork spare ribs
  • Weekend Bum BBQ’s Perfect Perfect All Purpose Rub
  • Lovely Jubbly BBQ’s And Then Some BBQ Rub
  • Loaf of Italian Bread
  • Blues Hog BBQ Champions Blend BBQ Sauce
  • Sliced cheese of your choice
  • Garlic salt, for seasoning the bread- optional

Recipe:

  • Trim the rack of ribs up to fit the size of the loaf of bread
  • Apply the Weekend Bum BBQ Perfect Perfect Rub to both sides, evenly.
  • After 15 Minutes, Apply the Lovely Jubbly BBQ And Then Some Rub as the primary to all sides evenly.
  • Set up your smoker of choice for indirect cooking, and set it to 275 degrees
  • Place ribs on the smoker and let cook for 1 hour
  • After 1 hour, spritz with apple juice, and again 30 minutes later
  • Pull the ribs off and wrap in foil with brown sugar, Apple juice, butter, more of the And Then Some rub and apply to both sides of the ribs
  • Place back on the smoker until they are between 205-208 degrees internally
  • Pull off and rest the ribs when done.
  • Slice the loaf of bread in half, hollow out the top half, and butter both sides.
  • Add the garlic salt, if desired, and toast the bread halves under the broiler in the oven
  • Melt the cheese to the inside the upper half of the bread
  • Pull the rib rack apart, careful to remove the bones and any cartilage
  • Place on the bottom portion of the bread and make the sandwich
  • Enjoy!

Don’t forget to check out http://www.lovelyjubblybbq.com for our signature rubs and even more great BBQ products and accessories! Our rubs are also exclusively in store at Ava’s a posh boutique in Watertown, WI if you just can’t wait for shipping!

If you are looking for a Pit Boss pellet grill or other Pit Boss accessories for yourself or someone you love, follow the link below to the Pit Boss website, where they have some fantastic deals on some even more fantastic products! As an avid Pit Boss user, I couldn’t be more proud to be an affiliate of Pit Boss Grills, and I look forward to growing this partnership over time.

Specials

As always, keep cookin’ and Lovely Jubbly!

Wildwood Hills Ranch BBQ Contest

We are back, and we are talking this week about this past weekend at the Wildwood Hills Ranch BBQ Competition for Vulnerable Youth.

This competition was started by Joe Quick with Hawknut’s BBQ and hosted at the Wildwood Hills Ranch in St Charles, Iowa. This ranch hosts leadership events for the youth in the area and gives them a place to have a good time and learn some great life skills as well. This month, they wanted to host a BBQ competition class of sorts and asked pro teams to donate their time and equipment to help teach these kids how to do competition BBQ and have it be a fun competition between the kids.

It was set up as a KCBS Backyard Competition, which means chicken and ribs. Even though it is a fun competition for the kids, it was set up this way to act as a warm-up for us pro teams for the upcoming competition season. The biggest change to this event compared to how I normally compete is that we were using chicken legs instead of my usual thighs. The reason for this is that since it takes significantly more work to do thighs, they were worried that we wouldn’t have enough time to show the kids how to trim them properly. Turns out this was a blessing in disguise because I discovered how much easier it is to do legs, and I think I am going to do legs from here on out, especially since I can still get really good results. .

I had 2 kids on my team and both of them were really looking forward to competing against their friends, and also to learn, which made it that much more fun. We prepped the ribs in my normal fashion which you an read about in my Ribs! Ribs! Ribs! post from September, the only difference being that we also injected the ribs with Butcher BBQ’s Pork Injection, which was my first time doing this, and its definitely going to be done from now on, in the competition setting. Next was chicken leg prep. This being the first time, I had to look up some information online and see some techniques. The downside was that we had 1 week’s notice, and the weather last week wasn’t the best (check local listings). I went into it feeling confident either way.

We prepped the chicken by freeing the skin from the chicken so the fat would render better and injected it with Butcher BBQ’s Original Bird Booster on each side of the bone. I wanted to watch the salt content on the chicken, so I decided to only apply my Lovely Jubbly BBQ And Then Some rub and put them in the Masterbuilt 1050 with the ribs at 275 degrees. It smoked for about 1.5 hours before hitting 187 internal temp, which at that point we took them off, dunked them in Blues Hog Champions Blend BBQ Sauce, and put them back on for 7-8 minutes to set the sauce. They really turned out well, with the team absolutely devouring the leftovers.

After turn-ins, we got everything all cleaned up and waited for awards. Out of 7 teams, we came 4th overall, which is always a good feeling to get a call!

The best part about this weekend is that we got to help teach a new generation of BBQ cooks, and I got to meet in person some teams that we have connected with via Facebook, expanding our friends and giving us more to look forward to at more competitions. I absolutely cannot wait to do this event again next year and find other ways to help teach the word of BBQ too.

Don’t forget to check out http://www.lovelyjubblybbq.com for our signature rubs and even more great BBQ products and accessories! Our rubs are also exclusively in store at Ava’s a posh boutique in Watertown, WI if you just can’t wait for shipping!

If you are looking for a Pit Boss pellet grill or other Pit Boss accessories for yourself or someone you love, follow the link below to the Pit Boss website where they have some fantastic deals on some even more fantastic products! As an avid Pit Boss user, I couldn’t be more proud to be an affiliate of Pit Boss Grills and I look forward to growing this partnership over time.

Specials

As always, keep cookin’ and Lovely Jubbly!

Competition Chicken

This week is all about Competition Chicken, as my competition season starts in less than 2 weeks.

The various competition sanctioning bodies, unless it is otherwise specified, any part of the chicken can be turned in. Lots of competition cooks will say that while chicken is the quickest cook, it is the biggest pain. I personally cook chicken thighs, as most do, and I can vouch for the fact that it really is a ton of work and it is also more prep time than cook time. The reason for this is that if you are doing Kansas City Barbecue Society (KCBS) style chicken, you not only want to pack a ton of flavor into your single piece of chicken, but you also want to end up with bite through skin.

Bite through skin? So basically, you want to be able to bite into the chicken thigh (in my case) and have a clean bite through the skin and not have the skin come off the thigh as you pull away, you want the skin to stay in the same place. The way that competition chicken is cooked, crispy skin would leave you with overcooked chicken, and nobody wants to bite into a soggy piece of skin and have it slap against your chin as you pull away. The best way to accomplish the desired bite-through skin is to pull the skin off the chicken during prep and scrape away the fat to the point that it is basically translucent. In trimming the thigh itself, I square the thigh up and cut off the knuckle bone. Once the skin is scraped, you wrap it tightly around the thigh and turn it into a little chicken pillow.

For KCBS, you need to turn in a minimum of 6 individual pieces, and you always want to make sure you cook more than 6 so you have some backups and a good selection to pick your best 6 pieces. Once I have my tray of finished chicken, I inject the meat on both sides of the bone in order to increase flavor and juiciness within the meat as it cooks. I personally use Butcher BBQ’s Original Bird Booster because it really is the best (it’s also available in our store, https://lovelyjubblybbq.com/products/butcher-bbq-bird-booster!). I then use my Lovely Jubbly BBQ’s And Then Some BBQ rub on the bottom of the chicken and let it sit for 15-20 minutes while it sweats into the meat. Then, I flip each piece over and season the rest of each piece.

Up until this year, I would use my Pit Boss Classic pellet grill for cooking chicken because the air movement using the fan helps render the chicken very nicely. Now, I am starting to use my Oklahoma Joe’s Bronco drum smoker, and as with any new thing, there is a learning curve. One thing I liked about the Pit Boss is that you didn’t need to cook it as long because of the airflow, but as I discovered this weekend, it needs to run longer on the drum, but hey! that’s why we practice! It also means I am going to have to do another test run this upcoming weekend to get it down and ready for the season.

There are a couple reasons why this weekend’s test didn’t go as planned. The first is that I did not scrape all of the fat out of the skin, just the thicker stuff like I used to do with the Pit Boss, but since the drum is different, a lesson learned. I also added the rub under and on top of the skin, and it was a bit saltier than I had anticipated, again, another lesson learned. The final reason is that usually you want your competition chicken thighs to be higher in temp, like 195-200 degrees internal, and I just wasn’t there yet. All in all, these are easy things to fix, and it’s just another reason to fire up the drum!

Don’t forget to check out http://www.lovelyjubblybbq.com for our signature rubs and even more great BBQ products and accessories! Our rubs are also exclusively in store at Ava’s a posh boutique in Watertown, WI if you just can’t wait for shipping!

If you are looking for a Pit Boss pellet grill or other Pit Boss accessories for yourself or someone you love, follow the link below to the Pit Boss website where they have some fantastic deals on some even more fantastic products! As an avid Pit Boss user, I couldn’t be more proud to be an affiliate of Pit Boss Grills and I look forward to growing this partnership over time.

Specials

As always, keep cookin’ and Lovely Jubbly!

Chicken Bacon Ranch Wings

This week, we review my special recipe for the Super Bowl weekend, chicken bacon ranch wings!

Who doesn’t love a chicken bacon ranch sandwich, am I right? Well, thanks to food science, there are ways that people with gluten allergies can enjoy this sandwich without consequences. This is an option as well, and it has no bread at all, and its also Keto friendly if that’s your thing too!

When coming up with a new wings recipe, I really wanted to try something different and like nothing I had ever had nor seen before. With that in mind, I started thinking of flavor combinations that are popular, and chicken bacon ranch was one of my favorites. I won’t tell you any more, because you may see them soon! 😉

I got ahold of some bacon seasoning through everyone’s favorite online shipping platform and picked up 2 packets of ranch dip seasoning from the store. That makes up the bacon ranch portion, and obviously, the wing fills in the chicken part of the recipe as well. The preparation for these wings matched the preparation I did in my October’s Wing Recipe, so you can go back to that post if you want to see how I prepare my wings. After I pulled them out of the fridge, I sprayed them with Duck fat, and then I divided the wings into 2 batches. My wife requested that I do some with my Lovely Jubbly BBQ And Then Some BBQ rub, so dividing them in half made it easy.

I really enjoy dry wings, so I didn’t want to let any sauce cover up the seasonings, but you are absolutely welcome to do what you prefer. I fired up my Pit Boss Sportsman 1100 and set it to 300 degrees. I put the wings on, not directly over the fire pot, to avoid any potential burning. I like to take my wings to about 195-200 degrees internal so they fall apart better and are more tender, but they are safe after 165 degrees, I just like mine specifically a bit higher. If you haven’t cooked yours up to about 200 degrees internal, they are still plenty juicy, as I’m sure some of you will be wondering.

After about 45 minutes, they were all temping right about where I wanted them, and I pulled them all off to rest. After getting my pictures, I couldn’t wait any longer, and I just had to try them. Y’all, let me tell you, these chicken bacon ranch-flavored wings are absolutely fantastic. You get the different flavors like the smokiness and the savoriness from the bacon seasoning and the sweetness and richness from the ranch seasoning, all within a tender and juicy wing. If there is any of my recipes that you have been wanting to try, this needs to be at the top of your list.

Ingredients:

  • 3.5-pound whole chicken wings, or already separate if you wish
  • 2- 1 oz Hidden Valley Ranch Dips Mix packets
  • 2oz Bacon Seasoning
  • Some kind of Spray Fat, I used Duck Fat

Recipe:

  • Trim the whole wings down to drums and flats and place them on a baking sheet with a wire rack
  • Pat dry with paper towel and place in the fridge for an hour
  • Fire up smoker of choice and set to 300 degrees
  • After an hour, spray the fat of choice on the wings and transfer to a large bowl
  • Blend the seasonings together and coat the wings heavily and toss to make even
  • Place on the smoker and remove once they hit about 195-200 degrees, about 45 minutes
  • Remove from the smoker and rest for 10-15 minutes
  • Dig in!

Don’t forget to check out http://www.lovelyjubblybbq.com for our signature rubs and even more great BBQ products and accessories! Our rubs are also exclusively in store at Ava’s a posh boutique in Watertown, WI if you just can’t wait for shipping!

If you are looking for a Pit Boss pellet grill or other Pit Boss accessories for yourself or someone you love, follow the link below to the Pit Boss website where they have some fantastic deals on some even more fantastic products! As an avid Pit Boss user, I couldn’t be more proud to be an affiliate of Pit Boss Grills and I look forward to growing this partnership over time.

Specials

As always, keep cookin’ and Lovely Jubbly!

Flank Steak Tacos

This week, I am offering one of my favorites, Flank Steak Tacos. This recipe is balanced with a perfectly cooked steak, sweet salsa, and a grilled tortilla that is outta this world!

Who doesn’t love tacos, am I right? Your normal ground beef or chicken tacos are always good, but why not elevate it up a little bit and add some steak to it as well? Leaner cuts of steak make the best tacos because you end up with more meat than you do fat, but any steak would be good. Certain cuts like flank steak, sirloin, or flat iron are, in my opinion, the best cuts for tacos. With them being leaner, there is little forgiveness if you overcook it, but if you watch the steak and monitor the internal temperature, you will nail it every time.

Flank steak comes from the abdominal area of the cow behind the plate section. It is known for having a very bold flavor, but because it’s so lean, it can be chewy. It isn’t a cut that is very common to find, in fact, I haven’t seen it outside of some meat markets and Pick n Save. I also did a homemade salsa to go in the taco as well, which was sweet with a mild heat and added great flavor to the steak. I also found a Mexican Quesadilla pre-shredded cheese that I added to it as well and then topped it with some cilantro because, to me, it doesn’t taste like soap. The salsa is completely optional, and feel free to use any salsa you like, but I like the layer of flavor that it adds.

Preparing the steak is really easy because there is little to no trimming that is needed because it is so lean. I added a good layer of our Lovely Jubbly BBQ, The Everything all-purpose rub, and fired up the trusty Weber kettle. I used the classic Kingsford blue bag of charcoal and set the grill up for 2-zone cooking. 2-zone cooking means putting the charcoal on one side of the grill so there is a “hot” side and a “cool” side. It helps allow for indirect cooking so you can cook the interior of the meat without burning the outside. As you’ll see in the picture below, I placed a chunk of hickory wood over the coals just to add a small amount of smoke to the steak and more flavor.

I placed the grill on the “cool” side until it hit the internal temp of 100 degrees, then I moved it over to the “hot” side to get a nice sear on the outside of the steak. The nice part is that as the exterior is searing, you can smell the garlic in the rub, and it smells fantastic. This steak was only about 1.5 – 2 pounds, so it did not take long to cook at all. After the steak was done, I placed the tortillas over the fire to get some char on the outside, which helped the overall flavor of the taco. Quick tip, if you are going to grill your tortillas, do not walk away. They only take 1-2 minutes at that heat, and once they start to puff up, they’re done. While I was grilling the tortillas, the steak got its chance to rest.

Once everything was done, I sliced the steak against the grain, placed the grilled tortilla on the plate, added the sliced steak, salsa, and cheese, and then topped with the cilantro. All of these flavors combined made for a phenomenal bite, and the steak was perfectly tender and bite-through. If you wanted to, you could add a cole slaw or some sliced cabbage for some crunch and even more flavor, but like the salsa, it’s completely optional. This is one of my favorite recipes, and I hope you all enjoy it as well! Please let me know if you try it and tell me what you think!

Ingredients:

  • 2-pound Flank Steak; I got mine from Pick n Save.
  • Mexican style cheese
  • Salsa, homemade or store-bought. (optional)
  • Lovely Jubbly BBQ’s The Everything all-purpose rub
  • Cilantro for topping.
  • Soft shell tortillas

Recipe:

  • Rub the Flank Steak with The Everything BBQ rub.
  • Set up your grill of choice for 2-zone cooking
  • Place the steak on the “cool” side and let it come up to about 100 degrees internally.
  • Move the steak to the “hot” side, sear both sides and then rest the steak.
  • Grill the tortillas
  • Apply the steak, salsa, and cheese, and top with cilantro on the grilled tortilla.
  • Enjoy!

Don’t forget to check out http://www.lovelyjubblybbq.com for our signature rubs and even more great BBQ products and accessories! Our rubs are also exclusively in store at Ava’s a posh boutique in Watertown, WI if you just can’t wait for shipping!

If you are looking for a Pit Boss pellet grill or other Pit Boss accessories for yourself or someone you love, follow the link below to the Pit Boss website where they have some fantastic deals on some even more fantastic products! As an avid Pit Boss user, I couldn’t be more proud to be an affiliate of Pit Boss Grills and I look forward to growing this partnership over time.

Specials

As always, keep cookin’ and Lovely Jubbly!

Magnum Loads

Courtesy of Matt Pittman with Meat Church, I decided to try my hand at Magnum Loads, which are perfect for the upcoming Super Bowl and a must-have for your table.

I came across this video on YouTube of Meat Church making these and the backstory behind them which was enough for me and I had to give them a shot (no pun intended). If you are looking for ideas for Super Bowl Sunday, these Magnum Loads are very meaty addition to any spread. When I say meaty, I mean it, they are literally meat on meat on meat on meat and they taste as good as they sound.

An apple corer makes preparation very easy because you have to cut a smoked sausage into 1″ chunks and then hollow the pieces out. You then take the lil Smokies sausages and put them in the hole of the smoked sausage. Once you finish that, you then take a patty of Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage and completely encase the lil smokie and smoked sausage. Once that’s done, take a piece of bacon, and wrap the sausage again, and season liberally with our Lovely Jubbly BBQ And Then Some BBQ rub.

I cooked these on my Pit Boss Sportsman 1100 pellet grill with Lumber Jack Competition Blend pellets, which are my go to. I set the smoker for 300 degrees and they cooked for about 50 minutes. Once the ground sausage is 165 internal, they are safe to pull off and rest. I rested them under foil for about 10 minutes, took my photos and that was it, I couldn’t wait any longer. Let me tell you folks, these Magnum Loads are a life changing experience they are so flavorful and the different types of meat that are making this up really enhance the flavor even further.

That’s it! This week was a quick one but trust me, they are well worth your time.

Ingredients:

  • Lil Smokies sausages
  • 14 oz Smoked Sausage ring
  • 16oz Jimmy Dean Breakfast Sausage Log
  • 1 Pound Thick Cut Bacon
  • Lovely Jubbly BBQ’s And Then Some BBQ Rub
  • Apple Corer

Recipe:

  • Cut the ring sausage up into 1″ chunks and using the apple corer, hollow out 8 chunks.
  • Place a lil smoke in the hollowed out smoke sausage pieces
  • Cut the Jimmy Dean log into patties and encase each double sausage piece in the patty
  • Wrap in bacon
  • Season with Lovely Jubbly BBQ’s And Then Some BBQ rub
  • Preheat smoker of choice to 300 degrees
  • Place on smoker for about 50 minutes, or until the breakfast sausage hits 165 internal
  • Rest for about 10 minutes
  • Enjoy!

Don’t forget to check out http://www.lovelyjubblybbq.com for our signature rubs and even more great BBQ products and accessories! Our rubs are also exclusively in store at Ava’s a posh boutique in Watertown, WI if you just can’t wait for shipping!

If you are looking for a Pit Boss pellet grill or other Pit Boss accessories for yourself or someone you love, follow the link below to the Pit Boss website where they have some fantastic deals on some even more fantastic products! As an avid Pit Boss user, I couldn’t be more proud to be an affiliate of Pit Boss Grills and I look forward to growing this partnership over time.

Specials

As always, keep cookin’ and Lovely Jubbly!

Beef Party Ribs

For the NFL’s Wild Card Weekend, I decided to do something different a do a special recipe just for you all this weekend.

I decided to hop on board the party rib trend that is going around right now, but I decided to switch it up and use a rack of beef plate ribs I had in the freezer. The idea behind party ribs is to cut them up into individual ribs prior to cooking them, and then cooking the individual ribs. The upside to doing it like this is that you get to rub all 4 sides of the ribs rather than just seasoning the entire rack. Also, in theory, it should cook quicker too because each rib is coming to temp rather than the entire rack.

I had a 10-pound rack of beef plate ribs from the summer in the freezer and I had been trying to think of when to use them, I finally came up with the idea to do them party rib style. They are also called short ribs, and they usually come from the bottom part of the ribs and can come from the chuck, plate, or rib areas. I got mine from Wilsons Farm Meats in Elkhorn, WI via special order. Typically beef ribs aren’t something that a lot of butchers/ meat markets actually stock, so if you did want some, you would more than likely have to special order like I did.

To prep these ribs, I took my boning knife cut down the middle of each bone, and separated the rack into 7 individual ribs. I then sprayed them all with duck fat and heavily coated them with the Lovely Jubbly BBQ The Everything rub on all sides of each rib. I then let the ribs sit on the cutting board to absorb that rub while I fired up the smoker. I decided to use my Oklahoma Joe’s Bronco drum smoker for this cook because nothing cooks like a drum, and they also give great smoke and flavor from the meat dripping onto the coals. I used Kingsford charcoal and after about an hour, it was tuned in to 250 and ready to go. I put some hickory wood chunks on the coals, and I put the ribs on.

Maintaining the smoker throughout the cook was very easy because the drums hold temp very well with minor adjustments once it is dialed in. Once the ribs hit about 170 internal and I was happy with the color on the outside, I wrapped the ribs in butcher paper. Butcher paper helps to increase tenderness by creating steam within the wrap, but is also breathable so the bark can be preserved. I prefer using butcher paper with beef only, but I’m not opposed to using it with other cuts of meat as well. What I looked for with these ribs was probe tenderness over anything else, and some of the meatier ribs took longer, but that probe tenderness usually came after they hit 190 degrees.

Once the ribs were all done, I wrapped them in foil to let them rest and gave them at least 30 minutes. Since they were the individual ribs being cooked, they didn’t need as long of a rest, although there is no real limit as long as they stay above 140 degrees for food safety. After my pictures were done, I just couldn’t wait anymore and I had to have a bite. They were juicy, tender, had good smoke flavor, and the flavor from the rub made for an awesome bite. The nice thing about these ribs is that they are so big that usually, only one rib is enough per person, but I’m not here to judge.

Ingredients:

  • 1 Rack of Beef Plate Ribs
  • Duck Fat Spray
  • Lovely Jubbly BBQ’s The Everything all-purpose rub
  • Pink Butcher Paper

Recipe:

  • Separate the rack of ribs into individual bones
  • Spray on the duck fat to use as a binder
  • Heavily coat all sides of the ribs with The Everything rub, let sit
  • Fire up your smoker and dial into 250 degrees with hickory wood
  • Place ribs on the smoker and let cook until about 160-170 internal, then wrap in butcher paper
  • Start checking for probe tenderness after 190 degrees
  • Let rest for at least 30 minutes
  • Enjoy!

Don’t forget to check out http://www.lovelyjubblybbq.com for our signature rubs and even more great BBQ products and accessories! Our rubs are also exclusively in store at Ava’s a posh boutique in Watertown, WI if you just can’t wait for shipping!

If you are looking for a Pit Boss pellet grill or other Pit Boss accessories for yourself or someone you love, follow the link below to the Pit Boss website where they have some fantastic deals on some even more fantastic products! As an avid Pit Boss user, I couldn’t be more proud to be an affiliate of Pit Boss Grills and I look forward to growing this partnership over time.

Specials

As always, keep cookin’ and Lovely Jubbly!

Rib Cookoff Association World Championships

Happy New Year! We are back after a brief break for the holidays to review the trip this past weekend to Shawnee, Oklahoma for the Rib Cookoff Associations World Championships.

I found out I made the draw in a movie theater on December 3, 2024 (along with everyone else who went) and proceeded to miss most of the movie due to excitement and making phone calls. Definitely worth it in my opinion. I paid for my registration the same day because I knew I wasn’t going to miss it. I wanted to cook in all 4 categories which were Pork Steaks, Chicken Wings, Baby Back Ribs, and Spare Ribs, and then I proceeded to not practice at all because it is such a busy time of the year for work, and our personal life as well. Thankfully I cook wings pretty regularly and spare ribs are my normal competition choice, so I was pretty confident in those categories, not that it’s an excuse.

Normally, as I’ve mentioned before, our Lovely Jubbly BBQ Team consists of myself, my wife and daughter, along with my Dad and his girlfriend. Due to the time frame and location, my dad and his girlfriend were unable to come along, and because of some things at home, my wife and daughter stayed home, so this left me to make the trip and cook the World Championships on my own. I certainly like having the entire team at these competitions because it is nice to be able to delegate and have a fun time with family, but I did discover that I don’t hate running the show calmly by myself either.

I arrived at the Firelake Arena late Friday afternoon and got my cook site all set up and ready to cook pork steaks. I used my trusty Weber kettle and broke out my Grill Grate ceramic grill attachment to get a great sear on each side of the pork steak. I set up the grill for 2 zone cooking, so the charcoal was on one side of the grill, this way I could get it up to temp without burning the outside of the steak. Once I got a good sear, I placed the steak in foil wrapped it with some Blues Hog Champions Blend BBQ Sauce, and let it come up to just shy of 200 degrees internal temperature. At this point, I let it rest for about 10-15 minutes and then gave each side of the steak a brush of BBQ sauce and put it back on the grill for 5 minutes just to set the sauce. I wish I could have gotten a picture of the finished product, but it was dark and hard to get a good picture, but I can assure you that it was gorgeous.

The next morning I got back to the cook site and after everything was set back up, I got the chicken wings prepped and started brining them in a bag with chicken broth and a few tablespoons of my The Everything all-purpose BBQ Rub and let them brine for about 1.5-2 hours. After the cook’s meeting, I got back to the trailer and started prepping the Baby Back Ribs. This was going to be my first time cooking Baby Backs in over 3 years but I got the best ones I could find, Prairie Fresh Primes. I trimmed them, pulled the membranes off the back, and started the seasoning process. I wanted to give each side 15 minutes or so before flipping and treating the other sides, so in total, adding both layers of rub to both sides took about an hour. The Baby Backs went on about 10 am and smoked for an hour. I brought my Masterbuilt 1050 Charcoal Vertical Smoker for this competition because I wanted to get the best results I could, and none of my smokers cook ribs like the Masterbuilt does.

Before I put the Baby Backs on, I started prepping the Spare Ribs the same way that I did the Baby Backs and removed the wings from the brine so I could get them drying off to help the skin get crispy. I treated both sets of ribs exactly the same and the wings only received a coating of my And Then Some BBQ rub because I didn’t want to overseason them being a smaller piece of meat.

At 11am both the wings and the Spare Ribs went on the smoker and I basted the Baby Backs. I am not going to go into too much detail on the cook of the ribs because I followed my Ribs recipe from a previous post, and I’ll share the link here on how I cook my ribs. Ribs! Ribs! Ribs! The wings were on for about 45 minutes when they got to about 190 degrees internal. Some of them burnt on the bottom, but the ones that didn’t, I put in an aluminum tray and tossed them in the same Blues Hog Champions Blend I mentioned before, and put them back on to get the sauce set for only about 5 minutes.

Wings turn-in was between 12-1230 and I got mine in well within the time frame, and that includes after wrapping the Baby Backs first. Baby Backs turn-in was between 2-230 and one thing I noticed about competition Baby Backs is that the arch in the bones makes it very hard to stand up nicely, but that being said, they looked great and tasted even better.

I will share all of the turn-in boxes in order at the end.

The Spare Ribs came off right before Baby Back’s turn-in and rested for an hour. Spare Ribs were turned in from 3-330 and also were very good. Because of nasty weather coming in across the plains, I ended up cleaning up after the Spare Ribs turn-in and left right away to try and beat the weather, which I thankfully did. Congratulations to all of the winners and all of the other competitors who made it and had successful cooks as well!

Competition notes:

  • Unfortunately, both sets of ribs were a little more overcooked than I planned, despite being very juicy and tender anyway, for the competition was still more overdone than I wanted. It’s an easy fix that I have already figured out what to do.
  • I want to give a big shout-out to Mitch with Red Line BBQ who was kind enough to help me by giving me 2 racks of spare ribs to cook after I had a very hard time finding some.
  • I want to give another big shout-out to Tommy Woo and Bo Wilson on the site next to me for loaning me an insulated warming cabinet for resting my meats and also inspiring me to buy one as well.
  • It was a huge honor to be invited to the World Championships and I hope to capitalize on this and pursue competitions much more regularly.

My Results:

  • 22nd of 69 in Pork Steaks
  • 48th of 68 in Chicken Wings
  • 95th of 111 in Baby Back Ribs
  • 105th of 111 in Spare ribs.

Like I said, if my ribs hadn’t been slightly overcooked, I feel I would have done much better in those categories, but as mentioned, it was a World Championship, so being 95th and 105th in the invited World is good enough for me! I was very excited about the 22nd in Pork Steaks and I had the 5th-highest tenderness score among the 69 entries, so I’m also very pleased with that as well!

Don’t forget to check out http://www.lovelyjubblybbq.com for our signature rubs and even more great BBQ products and accessories! Our rubs are also exclusively in store at Ava’s a posh boutique in Watertown, WI if you just can’t wait for shipping!

If you are looking for a Pit Boss pellet grill or other Pit Boss accessories for yourself or someone you love, follow the link below to the Pit Boss website where they have some fantastic deals on some even more fantastic products! As an avid Pit Boss user, I couldn’t be more proud to be an affiliate of Pit Boss Grills and I look forward to growing this partnership over time.

https://pitbossgrills.77jaha.net/zxx49x

As always, keep cookin’ and Lovely Jubbly!

My 2024 Christmas Recipe

This week I am giving you my official Christmas recipe for this year. It is a delicious double-smoked ham with my own homemade glaze recipe as well, sure to make you the hero of your Christmas dinner.

I wanted to start a new thing for Christmas this year and start offering a signature recipe to you all for every major holiday to help give you new ways to be able to impress your family and friends. Since Christmas dinner is often associated with ham, that’s exactly what I did. I was able to find a 10-pound Sugardale ham shank from Pick n Save at $.89/ pound, so you can see why I went that route, it was a good price I didn’t want to pass up.

Since hams are mostly sold cured and pre-cooked, you are really just warming the ham up using smoke. They are usually cooked by smoking them, so that’s where the term “double-smoked ham” came from at the beginning, you are essentially double-smoking it. Because they are cured and pre-cooked, you only have to cook them to about 130-135 degrees internally, much like the instructions on the label said. There is nothing wrong with taking it past 140, but it could dry out, especially if it is a completely spiral-cut ham.

In preparing the ham, I pulled it out of the fridge and let it sit out for about 1-1.5 hours on the counter to bring it to room temperature. I decided to use my Old Country BBQ Pits G2 insulated offset smoker for this cook, so while the ham sat out, I got the charcoals lit and dialed the smoker to 275 degrees using hickory wood. Thankfully there was no trouble maintaining 275 in this weather due to the insulated fire box. I added a small piece of hickory roughly every 45-50 minutes.

Once the smoker was ready, I used a flexible boning knife and made slices at an angle to allow the ham to expand, and to also help get the rub down into the meat. Since it was cured, I decided to use only one rub instead of two because it didn’t need the added salt. I used the And Then Some rub heavily across the entire exterior and spread the meat apart at the slices I made to help that rub get down in there. I added one of my Govee meat thermometer probes into the meaty part, away from the bone, then put the ham in a disposable aluminum tray to help with cleanup and put it on the smoker.

Once the internal temp hit 130, I mixed up the glaze and added it to the outside of the ham so it had a little bit of time to adhere to the ham, take a little bit of smoke, and all without being on too long and burning. The glaze was a really simple mix of Blues Hog Championship Blend BBQ Sauce, Real Maple Syrup, and Pineapple Juice. I mixed them up and coated the outside of the ham and left it on until the internal temp of the ham was 135. At that point, I pulled the ham off the smoker, wrapped some foil over the top so the ham could rest in its own heat, took my pictures, and enjoyed. I can honestly tell you this was the best-tasting and juiciest ham I have ever eaten in my life. Much like the Thanksgiving turkey I did, this was a redemption ham for me because I have not had the best luck with double-smoking ham, but also like the turkey, I am redeemed.

I have the recipe below for you to remake on your own, and I can’t wait to hear how it goes!

Ingredients:

  • 1, 10 pound ham shank, not spiral-cut
  • Lovely Jubbly BBQ’s And Then Some BBQ Rub

Glaze Ingredients:

  • 1/2 Cup Blues Hog Championship Blend BBQ Sauce
  • 1/4 Cup Real Maple Syrup
  • 1/8 Cup Pineapple Juice.

Recipe:

  • Let ham sit on the counter and come to room temperature
  • Set up smoker for indirect cooking and set to 275 degrees.
  • Slice the ham to allow for expansion
  • Add the And Then Some BBQ rub heavily to the outside of the ham.
  • Place on the smoker until it reaches 130 degrees internally
  • Mix up the glaze and apply evenly to the entire outside of the ham
  • Once ham reaches 135 internally, or your desired temperature, pull off and allow to rest for at least 30 minutes.
  • Slice ham and enjoy.

Total time: 4.5 hours

Don’t forget to check out http://www.lovelyjubblybbq.com for our signature rubs and even more great BBQ products and accessories! Our rubs are also exclusively in store at Ava’s a posh boutique in Watertown, WI if you just can’t wait for shipping!

If you are looking for a Pit Boss pellet grill or other Pit Boss accessories for yourself or someone you love, follow the link below to the Pit Boss website where they have some fantastic deals on some even more fantastic products! As an avid Pit Boss user, I couldn’t be more proud to be an affiliate of Pit Boss Grills and I look forward to growing this partnership over time.

https://pitbossgrills.77jaha.net/zxx49x

As always, keep cookin’ and Lovely Jubbly!