I competed many years ago before all of the injections and stuff got popular, the emphasis was put on THE COOK making the meat tender, juicy and flavorful and it seems to me that competition cooks today spend a LOT of time and money, using artificial "enhancers" to make a piece of meat into something that it isn't supposed to be! I tasted a friends comp brisket not long ago and it didn't even taste like a brisket to me, he'd pumped it full of some commercial injection and coated it with some kind of complex, mega ingredient rub as well as a marinade and the result was a mushy, weird tasting piece of meat that only looked like brisket. After I gave him my brutally honest opinion about it he said "yeah,... but that's what wins these days".:shock:
I think that BBQ competitions should be about the skill of the cook and not the artificial crap that was used during the prep and cooking process,... the meat should be able to stand on it's own without the help of all that junk!:wink:
My friend BTW ended up placing near the top of the field with his brisket,... which further convinced me that I will probably never have any interest in competing again.:tsk:
I think that BBQ competitions should be about the skill of the cook and not the artificial crap that was used during the prep and cooking process,... the meat should be able to stand on it's own without the help of all that junk!:wink:
My friend BTW ended up placing near the top of the field with his brisket,... which further convinced me that I will probably never have any interest in competing again.:tsk: