Posted by Mike Roberts on July 02, 1996 at 10:33:33:
In Reply to: Dry Rubs vs Basting posted by Smoky on June 21, 1996 at 17:48:34:
: Things look a little slow on the connection, so I thought I'd throw
: out a question or so. Dry Rubs vs Basting.
: Until 10 years or so ago, when I began judging in Memphis and, later,
: in KC, I had never conceived of barbecuing with only a d
ry rub. Even
: now, in my personal opinion, basting with an oil/water and seasoned
: mixture makes a more moist and tender outer surface. I use a dry
: seasoning, the equivalent of a dry rub, when I roast on the grill,
: for pork and beef. B
ut I have never achieved the end result that I
: anticipate when barbecuing with only a dry rub.
Funny you should pose this question. I have recently discovered
that my Q has taken a turn for the worse and I am beginning to
attribute it to
my stoppage of using a baste.
Formulating a likeable baste wasn't too hard. After a number
of tries from old family recipes and regional cookbooks, I
found just what I like in a baste for pork and beef.
To be honest, it became an expense an
d a time consuming thing
to do for each contest I entered. Well, I am now beginning to
see the errors of my ways and will be basting from now on.
: Second part is, why would a serious cooker want to buy a prepared
: seasoning mix? If you
are destined to be a good cook, you can use or,
: sometimes, just smell commercial mixes to tell what they have in them.
: Besides, 99.9% of what goes in you already have in your spice shelf.
: I don't use any commercial mixes, dry or wet, bec
ause they are so
: easy to make and so much cheaper to make. And, if you cook a lot, that
: 'mounts up. But the real reason is that, if you put it in, you know
: what it is and you can control it.
In contest, I think some people are trying to
jump on a winning band
wagon. They are looking for that "quick" fix, or win to be more
exact. I haven't stooped that low yet. I believe in taking the
time to develope my own. So far it is working out pretty well.
In everyday cooking, I don
't know why someone would buy prepared
seasoning mixes, unless they just loved the taste and weren't
blessed with a sense of replication buds like you and I. I too
have some difficulity in discerning the finer spices or herb in
a recipe. I ca
n usually pick up on the major flavors but it
takes a pretty developed pallet to pick out spices or herbs that
blend well. It also takes a lot experimentation, which may be
a lot of fun, but not possible for some people.
: Third part is, K
C area - midwestern barbecue - most often, has chili
: seasonings in it. This puzzled me when I first tasted it 10 years ago
: and it still does. I thoroughly enjoy TexMex and Mex. Grow the makings
: and do it from scratch to ouch! I cook authen
tic Tex or Mex. But, to
: my palate, the barbecue and Tex/Mex are two flavorings, different
: and distinct. (I will admit to developing a ChiliQue flavor for a
: sirloin tip roast that will make you slap your mama if she reaches
: too hard
- but it is roast, not barbecue.) I would no more put chili
: seasonings into my barbecue seasoning than I would screw up my chili
: with extraneous barbecue seasonings.
I have mixed feelings on this one Smoky. My home town flavors do
include
chili seasonings in bastes and rubs. However, many times
the chili used is the paprika form (mild chili pepper). I see a lot
of rubs which include stronger chili seasonings and I don't use
them, or even try them to be honest.
Your ChiliQue
flavor for sirloin tip roast, has me begging for more
information. Share the recipe? or if not how about a hint or two.
: Thanks in Advance,
: Smoky
I don't think I did much educating Smoky, but your welcome anyway.
Mike Roberts
Nuts About Smokin'