The Dark Art of Oven Pulled Pork

[Effendi]

I know it's done, and places like Morton's or Ted's in Texas will do it as a rule. But to be honest, I can't tell the difference. The quality of the meat to begin with, and the enormity of the cut, I would be just as happy with it un-hung, and grilled at home for a fifth of the price.

I do like a good steak, and if the company is paying, then game on. If I'm paying, I think it's a bit of an excess. In a place like Morton's, the meat is typically $50 and up per plate. The sides are $15 a pop, but you do get a lot of food.

Hell, I like Outback, which is a not-very-upmarket steakhouse chain with an Australian theme. About as Australian as Castlemaine XXXX brewed in Warrington. But I like their food, and it is cheap.

Outback ran away from the UK. I like the big 'bloomin onion'.

 

[Effendi]

So.. while we are on the subject of 'merican meat.. what is the jury's verdict on dry ageing beef?

I believe that some New York steakhouses keep their meat unrefrigerated for months...!

There is a go to place in NY where all the local foodery's go to for dry aged beef - they were on a documentary, they have shelves full of the stuff all slowly ageing away at controlled temperatures.

There is apparently a trick of wrapping beef in cheesecloth, or similar, for a few days to achieve the same effect.

The Food Lab: Can I Dry Age Beef At Home?

 

[Oddbod]

Every american recipe has a tin of soup added also, no idea why.

Don't forget the huge amounts of stuff they call 'cheese'.

 

[Effendi]

Don't forget the huge amounts of stuff they call 'cheese'.

Processed dairy paste.

Which is why I buy Kerrygold butter, and a couple of types of British and Irish cheddar.

They are getting better with the foodstuff's, the move to fastfood, microwave meals and ovenready food substitute seems to be slowing.

 

[Oddbod]

Processed dairy paste.

Which is why I buy Kerrygold butter, and a couple of types of British and Irish cheddar.

They are getting better with the foodstuff's, the move to fastfood, microwave meals and ovenready food substitute seems to be slowing.

I'll probably be in NC in February for an expo & no doubt the "joys" of consuming the stuff will be revisited (insert vomiting smiley here).

 

[ABNredleg]

I'll probably be in NC in February for an expo & no doubt the "joys" of consuming the stuff will be revisited (insert vomiting smiley here).

I've lived in NC for 25 years and have seen amazing improvement in the variety and quality of food in the state. Yes, there is still a lot mass produced crap, but the large cities in the state (Raleigh, Charlotte, Greensboro and Winston-Salem) are full of high-paid college educated professionals who demand great food. The "farm to table" movement is very big in the state, and good artisanal foods such as cheese are easy to find. (Not to mention the hundreds of micro-breweries). If you don't eat great meals during your trip then you didn't look very hard.

And since we are talking about BBQ, you're certainly coming to the right place. May I ask where in NC you're going to?

 

[Drivers_lag]

So.. while we are on the subject of 'merican meat.. what is the jury's verdict on dry ageing beef?

I believe that some New York steakhouses keep their meat unrefrigerated for months...!

Whadda ya mean, 'what's the verdict?'

There's only any 'debate' in Murcia. Civilised nations all hang beef at 2-4 'c for 2-6 weeks.

And no, there isn't a way to do it with a cheesecloth in five minutes.

 

[Oddbod]

I've lived in NC for 25 years and have seen amazing improvement in the variety and quality of food in the state. Yes, there is still a lot mass produced crap, but the large cities in the state (Raleigh, Charlotte, Greensboro and Winston-Salem) are full of high-paid college educated professionals who demand great food. The "farm to table" movement is very big in the state, and good artisanal foods such as cheese are easy to find. (Not to mention the hundreds of micro-breweries). If you don't eat great meals during your trip then you didn't look very hard.

And since we are talking about BBQ, you're certainly coming to the right place. May I ask where in NC you're going to?

Winston-Salem.

 

[Krazy_Ivan]

THE best BBQ sauce I ever tasted was made by an Army chef - he refused to divulge his secret recipe, despite bribe offer of huge quantities of beer and several fat women.

Mate they cheat like fück. One of our contract managers is an ex-ACC chef, according to him the best sweet and sour sauce you can make is half ketchup half brown sauce. God only knows what was in yer man's BBQ sauce, but they'll have been heavy on the readily available condiments!

 

[Effendi]

It doesn't have to be hung if slow cooking as per "pulled" beef!

I have not seen pulled beef, only pulled pork and pulled turkey.

Brisket is done in a smoker at around 14 hours plus, I have heard of some doing it for over 24 hours. The main menu offerings are: Brisket; pulled pork; pork ribs; beef ribs (not common); turkey; chicken; sausage.......burgers - mainly to turn a shilling.

If visiting a BBQ place the first and only benchmark standard question is: Do they have a smoker? If the answer is no, then leave.

Places, even some large theme parks and top eateries, pass off oven done stuff as BBQ, they slather it in (cash and carry bought) sauce and charge good money for crap. The worst I have heard about is the one's who boil racks of ribs, then fish them off under a grill to give a sizzled look, then spread on the not so homemade chefs special sauce.

It is a big time thing over here, there are local, regional and national championships*. There are even celebrity BBQ chefs who host telly programs similar to masterchef for the BBQ crowd.

Note* Early on over here I stopped off at a hotel on my way somewhere one day and found the carpark to be full of vehicles with BBQ smoker trailers in tow. Down for a drink that night I got chatting to a few of the blokes and they put me right about real BBQ. I had all the how's, why's and wherefores explained to me and dropping meat onto a charcol burning grill/griddle affair like we do in europe would get you kneecapped over here. You use a smoker and if you take your time more or less any numpty can produce a good acceptable BBQ. The competition blokes go for specific things with the meat, try and produce top notch sauces, taking anything up to three days to produce meat out of their smokers.

 

[devexwarrior]

Mate they cheat like fück. One of our contract managers is an ex-ACC chef, according to him the best sweet and sour sauce you can make is half ketchup half brown sauce. God only knows what was in yer man's BBQ sauce, but they'll have been heavy on the readily available condiments!

I'm sure, but it's getting the ratio right - one secret I did pick up was the best prawn cocktail sauce. Salad cream, ketchup, tabasco and a very healthy slug of brandy

 

[Effendi]

I'm sure, but it's getting the ratio right - one secret I did pick up was the best prawn cocktail sauce. Salad cream, ketchup, tabasco and a very healthy slug of brandy

I was bought up in Germany till I was 6, nice little German boy with some padbrat thrown in - we were one of the first to move into Wickrath when they built the MQ's in the early 60's.

Anyway, I was bought up expecting Mayo mit meine pomme's......imagine my disgust upon moving to the UK and finding that back then mayo did not exist. I was offered salad cream........boy, you should have heard six year old me whinge.

 

[devexwarrior]

I was bought up in Germany till I was 6, nice little German boy with some padbrat thrown in - we were one of the first to move into Wickrath when they built the MQ's in the early 60's.

Anyway, I was bought up expecting Mayo mit meine pomme's......imagine my disgust upon moving to the UK and finding that back then mayo did not exist. I was offered salad cream........boy, you should have heard six year old me whinge.

Salad cream is wonderfully english - i like it on cheese. the Belgians invented chips but it was the Germans who had the genius idea of chucking mayo on 'em - I love it, especially mit currywurst

 

[Effendi]

Mate they cheat like fück. One of our contract managers is an ex-ACC chef, according to him the best sweet and sour sauce you can make is half ketchup half brown sauce. God only knows what was in yer man's BBQ sauce, but they'll have been heavy on the readily available condiments!

Water, vinegar, sugar, dollop of ketchup, dollop of soy sauce, bit of cornflour to thicken.
I think yer man is swapping out the soy for brown sauce.

In singapore they add lumpy bits to it using pineapple, diced onion, diced carrot and any other handy veg.
I use the cook in sauce jars and always thrown in the contents of a small tin of pineapple chunks, juice too.

 

[Roadster280]

Whadda ya mean, 'what's the verdict?'

There's only any 'debate' in Murcia. Civilised nations all hang beef at 2-4 'c for 2-6 weeks.

And no, there isn't a way to do it with a cheesecloth in five minutes.

I've never thought much of Spanish beef either, to be honest.

 

[Effendi]

Salad cream is wonderfully english - i like it on cheese. the Belgians invented chips but it was the Germans who had the genius idea of chucking mayo on 'em - I love it, especially mit currywurst

Good thing I have a couple of packs of Aldi bratties in the freezer. Yes we have Aldi in the US, give me a Tesco and it would be fully habitable.

 

[Oddbod]

....give me a Tesco and it would be fully habitable.

Only if said Tesco stocked proper bread, butter, cheese & bacon.

 

[Effendi]

Only if said Tesco stocked proper bread, butter, cheese & bacon.

My local one used to have a very good bakery department..........couple of Polish wimmin running it.

 

[supermatelot]

Does sweet & sour sauce actually exist outside of western takeaways?

 

[ViroBono]

Does sweet & sour sauce actually exist outside of western takeaways?

Yes - but not the nasty sticky orange shite.