"Only smoking is proper barbecuing." Discuss

[Davy]

I'm increasingly struggling to understand what point you are trying to make. I don't think we're all pretending we're from Kansas. Think most people are agreed on what you cook on your BBQs in your backyard is completely up to you. You seem to be ignorning that point and getting hung up on the use of smoke.

The competition circuit is different as I believe that one of its stated of the aims of the BBBQs was to try to get British teams placing higher up in the key American competitions than they have done historically - to do that you have to have a similar type of competition. If you don't like that then that's fine, don't engage with it.

Lets be blunt. The state of British BBQ is pretty poor. You have people who in a Kitchen are possibly reasonable cooks but stick them outside with a grill and they start doing criminal things to sausages and burgers using fuel that is soaked in all kinds of crap. The IQBN/BBBQs through its competitions is showing to people that BBQs can be better than that. Likewise Weber with its Weber Experience roadshow and Grill Academy. Plus you've got the Taste Of events, Laverstock farm etc. etc. Not all of these things revolve around American BBQ but if all that happened to British BBQ was that it got Americanised it would be in a damn site better shape than it is now.

I'm not going get too deep into this but I would largely agree with Robin. In simple terms I spent some time in Texas and the deep south and BBQ was a revelation to me. I had never seen anything like it and it extended well beyond backyards, from restaurants to competitions to tv shows. There was nothing like this in the UK and so I decided I wanted to recreate this style of BBQ and become more involved in the scene.

That's my personal choice and I'm quite happy to follow KCBS rules if it means I get to practice something which I enjoy and I have no burning ambition to completely re invent the British BBQ scene.

It could be worse though I'm from Dublin where comp BBQ is almost non existent and i sometimes have to bring ingredients home.

[keith157]

I'm now totally confused, which I assume was your idea. First you rail against smoke on another topic, then US BBQ (which is what this forum is designed to promote), then you want to swap UK to US style BBQ whilst denegrating anyone who cooks in such a style.
Again I'll emphasis you can't enter a soccer team in a rugby match. The forum is designed to promote and encourage teams to compete in US BBQ competitions so we follow the rules for that, scrums and all!
What we do in our own time is up to us, but on game days we play the right game according to their rules.

[RobinC]

Hi Robin. From your earlier replies I think you'ver pretty much got my point, and I think we largely agree - sorry if I've over-complicated it.

I agree thart, if we could just swap what we have now for the standard of American barbecues, we'd be immediately better off - no question about that.

But I think we'd become culturally impoverished in ther longer term.

We really should aim higher than just thinking that we should copy America. I know that's not what you're suggesting, but I really think it's a danger.

Culturally impoverished? Compared to what - a burnt on the outside, raw on the inside sausage? A piece of chicken that should be served with "eat at your own risk" notice?

I'm not sure what this lofty aim is you have for British BBQ. Edible food would be a good start. I'm not sure I feel the need to "aim higher". If my family and friends like what I cook then that's good enough for me.

There is plenty going on in the UK within BBQ that isn't a copy of what is happening in America, you seem to be ignoring that. It's not all brisket, ribs, pork shoulder and chicken thighs. Speaking personally overall those categories are probably in the minority of what I cook. I regularly cook lamb on the BBQ (as do others on this forum) you won't find a lot of that going on in the States. I've learned more about cooking since I took up BBQ than I ever knew previously.

[aris]

I think the point being made by Pecker is that many other cultures have their own style of BBQ. The Americans of course - but the Japanese have their own, the Chinese, the Koreans are famous for it too. South Africans have their Braiis and Potjies (and they too have national Potjie competitions), in West Africa they have Suya, and so on. Even closer to home, in continental Europe, the Italians, the Greeks, the eastern European countries all have a style of BBQ specific to them.

So the question I think being posed here - what is the British style of BBQ? Burnt bangers made on paraffin doused disposable BBQ's? Or do we have a BBQ style which has perhaps been forgotten? Surely once upon a time we cooked our meats somehow before the advent of electricity

I understand that the main thrust of this Forum is American style low-and slow - but I hope this is not to the exclusion of other styles too. Perhaps a British style needs to be re-discovered and possibly made an adjunct to the current BBQ competition circuit. Assuming of course there is anything to re-discover

[Pecker]

I'm now totally confused, which I assume was your idea.

No, not at all. Apologies if I've confused anyone.

First you rail against smoke on another topic...

NO, I'm not sure that's fair. I may be wrong, but I hope I've stressed smoked fdood can be good. I think I've just said I don't like it when people think only smoke is good, or who smnoke everything they barbecue, or say it's not proper barbecue if it's not smoked.

...then US BBQ (which is what this forum is designed to promote), then you want to swap UK to US style BBQ whilst denegrating anyone who cooks in such a style.

Again, that's definitely not my intent. I love the US style of barbecuing, as I thought I'd said. Again, I'm just l;ooking at promoting different methods alongside these.

...Again I'll emphasis you can't enter a soccer team in a rugby match. The forum is designed to promote and encourage teams to compete in US BBQ competitions so we follow the rules for that, scrums and all!
What we do in our own time is up to us, but on game days we play the right game according to their rules.

I really wasn't aware that this forum/site was designed just to promote US-style barbecuing. My apologies, I'll butt out (pardon the pun), as it wasn't my intent to come to a US-style barbecue forum and piss everyone off.

I thought this forum was about all types of barbecuing, so that's my mistake.

Just to repeat, I don't hate smoke, I don'ty hate American berbecues, and I think everyone should play by the rules of the competitions they enter.

Steve W

[RobinC]

I understand that the main thrust of this Forum is American style low-and slow - but I hope this is not to the exclusion of other styles too. Perhaps a British style needs to be re-discovered and possibly made an adjunct to the current BBQ competition circuit. Assuming of course there is anything to re-discover of course

I don't think other styles are excluded from this forum. For the record I don't compete and whilst I have an interest in those dishes that are cooked at competition I like cooking plenty of other stuff as well. My BBQ epiphany came when I decided not to cook sausages and burgers one day and instead when with an asian theme. If you want to discuss other styles or dishes then discuss them - I don't think you will get any resistance from anyone on the forum on that but likewise don't tell someone that they are lacking in skill cause they are spending their time honing their competition techniques.

[Pecker]

Culturally impoverished? Compared to what - a burnt on the outside, raw on the inside sausage? A piece of chicken that should be served with "eat at your own risk" notice?

Absolutely defi8nitely not. I hope that's not the impression I gave.

I'm not sure what this lofty aim is you have for British BBQ. Edible food would be a good start. I'm not sure I feel the need to "aim higher". If my family and friends like what I cook then that's good enough for me.

Robin, one minute you say I'm aiming for burnt sausages, next I have too lofty ideas. I think I'm the one who is confused by your comments.

There is plenty going on in the UK within BBQ that isn't a copy of what is happening in America, you seem to be ignoring that. It's not all brisket, ribs, pork shoulder and chicken thighs. Speaking personally overall those categories are probably in the minority of what I cook. I regularly cook lamb on the BBQ (as do others on this forum) you won't find a lot of that going on in the States. I've learned more about cooking since I took up BBQ than I ever knew previously.

Robin, I'm even more confused now. One minute I'm being told how we must aspite to the Americans and follopw KCBS rules. Next I'm being told I'm an idiot for thinking that's what it's all about at all.

I was certainly unaware that there was plenty more than American-style barbecues going in in competition, and I think that's excellent news. But the last page or so of posts, if you reads them, flip flops between '"It's not just Amarican style" and "We must stick to American rules".

Steve W

[RobinC]

Robin, one minute you say I'm aiming for burnt sausages, next I have too lofty ideas. I think I'm the one who is confused by your comments.

You say we would end up culturally impoverished if we only copied the Americans. My point is that fayre that is served at the typical British BBQ is already culturally impoverished.

Robin, I'm even more confused now. One minute I'm being told how we must aspite to the Americans and follopw KCBS rules. Next I'm being told I'm an idiot for thinking that's what it's all about at all.

I was certainly unaware that there was plenty more than American-style barbecues going in in competition, and I think that's excellent news. But the last page or so of posts, if you reads them, flip flops between '"It's not just Amarican style" and "We must stick to American rules".

Don't think anyone has called you an idiot. As mentioned one of the aims of the BBBQS was to improve the placing of British teams at the key american competitions. The forum is here to support that so it is going to be slanted in that direction. If you go in for those competitions then those are the rules you have to play by. Naturally given the reason that this forum exists and that a number of frequent posters on this forum compete there is going to be a lot of discussion on those areas.

Having said that I don't think discussion on other styles/recipes has ever been actively discouraged. The recipe section certainly includes plenty of recipes that would have no place in an american style BBQ competition. The fact is we have different ingredients/produce to the Americans so there is some discussion about this from time to time. I wanted a recipe for mutton earlier in the year and someone duly posted one - that's got nothing to do with competition BBQ.

As I've already mentioned I don't compete and have no plans to do so but I still get a lot of benefit from reading and contributing to the forum.

[RobinC]

And with those last few posts I seem to have gone up a fire on the post count

[keith157]

Well put, better than I did I think