Had an idea for a chef's choice entry Need just a little help

[Jason TQ]

You're really don't wanting people's honest opinions, you're wanting them to validate your ideas. So cook whatever you want, you're going to anyway. Good luck with the bacon wrapped stuffed wiener.

Exactly this.

Most of your threads read this way. And ITBFQ isn't the least worked up. You taking the offensive on being the first to say "don't get so worked up/calm down" to make it seem like you somehow are taking the higher road when you are in fact the instigator is obvious and one of the oldest internet games in the book.

You ask for help but never seem to genuinely want it. You just want a discussion about you.

 

[Rusty Kettle]

Exactly this.

Most of your threads read this way. And ITBFQ isn't the least worked up. You taking the offensive on being the first to say "don't get so worked up/calm down" to make it seem like you somehow are taking the higher road when you are in fact the instigator is obvious and one of the oldest internet games in the book.

You ask for help but never seem to genuinely want it. You just want a discussion about you.

Ok if that is how you feel then you are free to ignore me. I am not really trying to irk anyone. If that is how it comes across then sorry. I was trying to come across more friendly then I normally do and trying to not get worked up. I was trying to joke around this time. It obviously did not work. It just doesn't seem that I fit very well into the forum here. I am trying to just fit in and get along but I just don't fit very well. I thought maybe if I purchased a subscription that maybe that might help but it really didn't. I am sorry that I come across that way. I thought maybe a different approach would help me get along. I can obviously tell it made me come across as an arse again. So sorry to all the people I have bothered and I am sorry that it did not come across more friendly. Really I am trying to apologize not that it means anything to anyone. I think I am going to just stop coming here as it seems that I am just pissing everyone off. It is really not my intention. So apologies for everything and best of luck to all of you. I really mean that. I only hope the best for you all.

 

[Drh7003]

Kettle, That looks good. From a judges point of view, if chef's choice is the last category, a good desert is always appreciated and always makes me smile.

 

[Scottie]

If seeking advice,don't write off those that are giving it. Otherwise, don't ask for advice. As People are talking, but you aren't listening.

Here are my thoughts, take them or not. Cheesecake wins. Everywhere. If you do hot dogs, it will be up against plenty of desserts. If it is up against another protein, it will be up against lobster or filet mignon. Tube steak will not win against filet. If insisting on hot dogs. use the best. If using bacon, use the best. just realize if you are using the best of those hot dogs and bacon, it still wont beat a store bought cheese cake.

 

[tasterner]

Hey, at least the guy is trying to come with his own idea, nothing wrong with that. I got the opinion in his op that he was looking for tweaks to his idea, not throwing it out the window all together. And if it doesn't work out, well i was always told experience is the best teacher.

 

[tasterner]

What about using a sausage instead? Any thoughts on that?

Give it a try and let us know, that the best way to find out!

 

[MikeJ65]

I'm still hungry for cheesecake.

 

[Jason TQ]

Hey, at least the guy is trying to come with his own idea, nothing wrong with that. I got the opinion in his op that he was looking for tweaks to his idea, not throwing it out the window all together. And if it doesn't work out, well i was always told experience is the best teacher.

This is a valid point, but if I was starting out in comps and going to put straight thousand island dressing on brisket and asking what additional flavor I could add to compliment the thousand island I'd guess everyone would tell me to ditch the thousand island all together so I didn't head down the wrong road to begin with :-D.

When a lot of folks are saying ditch the hotdogs.........well...........this again goes back to do people actually want honest advice or just hear themselves talk..........or for us to simply pander them.......

 

[tasterner]

This is a valid point, but if I was starting out in comps and going to put straight thousand island dressing on brisket and asking what additional flavor I could add to compliment the thousand island I'd guess everyone would tell me to ditch the thousand island all together so I didn't head down the wrong road to begin with :-D.

When a lot of folks are saying ditch the hotdogs.........well...........this again goes back to do people actually want honest advice or just hear themselves talk..........or for us to simply pander them.......

I get what you're saying, I just think maybe he wouldn't have taken it so hard if someone would have suggested using something other than a hotdog, or another modification, instead of totally dismissing it and going with a dessert. I'm sure we'd all be upset if we put some time and thought into something and people just totally ragged on it.

 

[Jason TQ]

I get what you're saying, I just think maybe he wouldn't have taken it so hard if someone would have suggested using something other than a hotdog, or another modification, instead of totally dismissing it and going with a dessert. I'm sure we'd all be upset if we put some time and thought into something and people just totally ragged on it.

I actually did just that after he revealed what he was doing :-D. Said bacon wrapped seafood would do better way before the cheesecake discussion came in. So I tried......

Maybe there is a separate dessert so that won't be in the mix. If there is dessert my wife does that. If no dessert category and the chefs choice allows dessert then we'll enter that with her dessert.

 

[ITBFQ]

I get what you're saying, I just think maybe he wouldn't have taken it so hard if someone would have suggested using something other than a hotdog, or another modification, instead of totally dismissing it and going with a dessert. I'm sure we'd all be upset if we put some time and thought into something and people just totally ragged on it.

Putting time and money into something and having judges not like it is very frustrating - I've been there. I was just like him - thought I had a sure fire winner, and it tanked. I was just trying to help Rusty prevent that from happening. I figured he could learn from others' (namely mine) experiences that just because something has bacon wrapped around it doesn't make it any better. If he doesn't want to take the advice offered here, that's his choice - it's his time and money. Wouldn't be the first time.

 

[Dale Nichols]

You go Mr. Wilson!! Our should i you Tom!!

 

[gettinbasted]

Bacon wrapped cheesecake?

 

[Rusty Kettle]

Putting time and money into something and having judges not like it is very frustrating - I've been there. I was just like him - thought I had a sure fire winner, and it tanked. I was just trying to help Rusty prevent that from happening. I figured he could learn from others' (namely mine) experiences that just because something has bacon wrapped around it doesn't make it any better. If he doesn't want to take the advice offered here, that's his choice - it's his time and money. Wouldn't be the first time.

Ok now when you put it like that it makes a lot more sense to me. I appreciate that feedback a lot. Plus the more I think about it the more I realize it really is a terrible idea that has no wow factor to it at all. Fine for the backyard but not going to cut it in competition I more am just frustrated with myself and I am sorry if I took that out on you it wasn't right and I do apologize for it. Truthfully it is just very frustrating to suck so badly at something when I really want to be better. It is a completely different animal to cook for competition vs your friends and family who saying nothing but good things. I know you guys are always saying cook the way you were taught but the thing is I can't and its because I just can't replicate what 3 Eyez bbq does. I follow my notes on a lot of cooks that don't get posted here and I just can't get it right. It always looks like chit and I am trying to find something that works better for me that I can do. Although the chef's choice recipe of corn pudding I got is fantastic and really was great. Totally worth the class just for that. I eat that stuff every week. My point is plainly I know I am terrible at this and yeah I try to come up with other ideas because I just can't replicate a lot of what they do. Maybe it is just going to take a long time to get it right. It is not that easy to replicate something a truly great team does so very well. They make it look easy and it is not easy at all. It is really difficult. Maybe I need to take the class over again next time it is offered and try to really understand it and ask more questions. Again sorry for being a prick I am just very frustrated with myself because I have so much time and money invested into this and I am just not getting it.

 

[smoke ninja]

Rusty im sorry your not feeling the most welcome here sometimes. There are friends to be made on the forum, you just have to find your niche. Ive rubbed plenty of folks the wrong way and still managed to make some great friends. Why even me and the chicken king started out a little rough and now i consider the man a friend and look forward to meeting him person.

I ask seriously why competition bbq is important to you? I considered it at one time but when i figured out the cost was prohibitive to me and didnt like the idea of cooking food i didnt find appealing i rethought why i wanted to do it. I wanted to make friends who shared a passion and enjoy in that hobby with them. None of my friends would ever enjoy getting up at 4:30am to fire up the pit, it takes a special kind of weirdo for that. I got lucky and found the guys at michigan custom Q. They feed veterans and people in need. i got to help some people and make some great friends. i look forward to the times i get to see them. im not saying comp isn't fun or that they dont do good things (i know there are comp cooks who have done more good than ive even thought of doing, i mean who am i kinding here). you have to decide why you want to do it. There are cheaper and better ways to learn to cook.

remember secrets are not a good way to endear yourself to folks. I know you dont want to share the tips given in a class but don't even bring that stuff up then. if your looking to make friends around here just post up some pics of dinner, good or bad, fancy or not. Maybe include a picture of the dog (in my case its the cat). be sure to thank the folks who comment. Then go post some comments on someone elses cook, just find something positive to say about it, it makes folks feel good to hear a compliment. eventually youll find where you fit in.

 

[Rusty Kettle]

Rusty im sorry your not feeling the most welcome here sometimes. There are friends to be made on the forum, you just have to find your niche. Ive rubbed plenty of folks the wrong way and still managed to make some great friends. Why even me and the chicken king started out a little rough and now i consider the man a friend and look forward to meeting him person.

I ask seriously why competition bbq is important to you? I considered it at one time but when i figured out the cost was prohibitive to me and didnt like the idea of cooking food i didnt find appealing i rethought why i wanted to do it. I wanted to make friends who shared a passion and enjoy in that hobby with them. None of my friends would ever enjoy getting up at 4:30am to fire up the pit, it takes a special kind of weirdo for that. I got lucky and found the guys at michigan custom Q. They feed veterans and people in need. i got to help some people and make some great friends. i look forward to the times i get to see them. im not saying comp isn't fun or that they dont do good things (i know there are comp cooks who have done more good than ive even thought of doing, i mean who am i kinding here). you have to decide why you want to do it. There are cheaper and better ways to learn to cook.

remember secrets are not a good way to endear yourself to folks. I know you dont want to share the tips given in a class but don't even bring that stuff up then. if your looking to make friends around here just post up some pics of dinner, good or bad, fancy or not. Maybe include a picture of the dog (in my case its the cat). be sure to thank the folks who comment. Then go post some comments on someone elses cook, just find something positive to say about it, it makes folks feel good to hear a compliment. eventually youll find where you fit in.

You know I sit here and I am thinking about the question you ask about why it is so important to me. I can only think I don't have an answer to that and it makes me think why am I doing this to myself? I mean originally I got into it because I really thought my dry rub recipe was the best and I I thought my sauce was darn good. I just made my homemade sauce last night for the first time in a long time. I got away from it using my sauces and rubs. It doesn't win to use homemade sauces and rubs. It feels like to compete you have to compromise and become very cookie cutter and I just am not enjoying it like I thought I would. I got into it for other reasons than what I am doing now. I keep doing it now and compromise so much on what I want to do. I thought competition bbq would be more innovative and people would be more into creating their own sauces and rubs and cooking meat well. It probably is not for me. I got one comp scheduled in April and I probably just going to go as I made a commitment to compete and it wouldn't be right to not show up. I think after that I probably won't compete as it just isn't any fun. If it's not fun for me then I really shouldn't be doing it.

 

[Jason TQ]

Bacon wrapped cheesecake?

Or simply bacon cheesecake with bacon inside and out and served with carmel bacon covered cheesecake balls. Because.........you know......Merica!!

 

[Red Valley BBQ]

You know I sit here and I am thinking about the question you ask about why it is so important to me. I can only think I don't have an answer to that and it makes me think why am I doing this to myself? I mean originally I got into it because I really thought my dry rub recipe was the best and I I thought my sauce was darn good. I just made my homemade sauce last night for the first time in a long time. I got away from it using my sauces and rubs. It doesn't win to use homemade sauces and rubs. It feels like to compete you have to compromise and become very cookie cutter and I just am not enjoying it like I thought I would. I got into it for other reasons than what I am doing now. I keep doing it now and compromise so much on what I want to do. I thought competition bbq would be more innovative and people would be more into creating their own sauces and rubs and cooking meat well. It probably is not for me. I got one comp scheduled in April and I probably just going to go as I made a commitment to compete and it wouldn't be right to not show up. I think after that I probably won't compete as it just isn't any fun. If it's not fun for me then I really shouldn't be doing it.

Don't sell your rubs and sauces short. I have won using my rubs and sauces, and I have won using commercial rubs and sauces. Competition judging is subjective, so just because you didn't do well with a certain table of judges doesn't mean you wouldn't do well at the next table. There is also a bit of luck involved in competition BBQ. There is a learning curve that everyone has to go through so don't get frustrated. Once you finally get to hear your name called you'll be hooked.

At some point you must have thought you would enjoy competing, but you have to give it a chance. The fun for me is the friendships I've built with my fellow competitors. There are a lot of great people out there as there are here in this forum. It's those good people that will tell you what you need to hear, not what you want to hear. It's not done out of malice, but out of wanting to help. There is a lot that can be learned from the people that have learned the hard lessons. You will not learn everything you need to know from one class, and you will make mistakes. Being able to learn from those mistakes is the key. Keep your head up, and keep learning.

 

[Jorge]

You know I sit here and I am thinking about the question you ask about why it is so important to me. I can only think I don't have an answer to that and it makes me think why am I doing this to myself? I mean originally I got into it because I really thought my dry rub recipe was the best and I I thought my sauce was darn good. I just made my homemade sauce last night for the first time in a long time. I got away from it using my sauces and rubs. It doesn't win to use homemade sauces and rubs. It feels like to compete you have to compromise and become very cookie cutter and I just am not enjoying it like I thought I would. I got into it for other reasons than what I am doing now. I keep doing it now and compromise so much on what I want to do. I thought competition bbq would be more innovative and people would be more into creating their own sauces and rubs and cooking meat well. It probably is not for me. I got one comp scheduled in April and I probably just going to go as I made a commitment to compete and it wouldn't be right to not show up. I think after that I probably won't compete as it just isn't any fun. If it's not fun for me then I really shouldn't be doing it.

I've followed some of your threads. It appears to me that you need to slow down. You took a class from a great cook, and can't replicate what they did. I'd suspect that team cooked more contests in a year than a lot of cooks, cook in a year. They are good for a lot of reasons, and one of them is the work they put in.

Take your time and learn to cook the meat properly, whether you are using your sauce or a commercial product. Judge some contests get an idea of what's being turned in. And cook at home to gain experience.

Most cooks use commercial products, but there are some that are very successful that do use their own stuff. Maybe your stuff is that good today, but you just need some more experience to figure out the best way to use it. Maybe it's not that good today, but can be in time if you work at it. Maybe you'll get an idea from a commercial product that will help you improve your own.

Take it one step at a time, and understand that it will take time. If you can't get satisfaction out of improving this is a really expensive hobby to not enjoy.

 

[Pappy Q]

You know I sit here and I am thinking about the question you ask about why it is so important to me. I can only think I don't have an answer to that and it makes me think why am I doing this to myself? I mean originally I got into it because I really thought my dry rub recipe was the best and I I thought my sauce was darn good. I just made my homemade sauce last night for the first time in a long time. I got away from it using my sauces and rubs. It doesn't win to use homemade sauces and rubs. It feels like to compete you have to compromise and become very cookie cutter and I just am not enjoying it like I thought I would. I got into it for other reasons than what I am doing now. I keep doing it now and compromise so much on what I want to do. I thought competition bbq would be more innovative and people would be more into creating their own sauces and rubs and cooking meat well. It probably is not for me. I got one comp scheduled in April and I probably just going to go as I made a commitment to compete and it wouldn't be right to not show up. I think after that I probably won't compete as it just isn't any fun. If it's not fun for me then I really shouldn't be doing it.

If you're just going to cook a couple of backyard events per year, then cook however you want and using whatever you want. Let the chips fall where they will and have some fun. If you're going to compete on the pro level then you need to learn the game and play the game to be successful or you're not going to enjoy the experience. It's takes a special kind of crazy to regularly compete on the pro level. You have to have to realistic expectations and expect to be disappointed. The hope is that the highs outweigh the lows. If not, then you hit another level of crazy.