First habeneros of the year from the BBQB garden

I'm not sure what I am going to do with them quite yet. Most likely I'll turn some into a fiery salsa and the rest into a vinegar based sauce. As much as I love hot peppers I admit that every year I need to get a little creative when actually using them. I also have a batch of Bhut Jolokias that should be ready in about a week or so. I might turn those guys into a powder.

Pulled Pork - Reader Submitted

I got an email earlier this week from a new reader, John, with a Big Green Egg. I have thought a long time about picking up an egg and hopefully I'll pull the trigger soon. Here's what he wrote:

"I did this 6.5 lb boston butt on my large Big Green Egg for 16.5 hours with mesquite chunks - 220 degrees for 12 hours and 250 for the last 4.5. All I did to the meat was apply Bad Byron's Butt rub ahead of time.

(my friend) said you would dork out on this as much as I do - we were talking about his gas grill and I told him I still had my gas grill . . . . to store my excessories for my egg. I am totally a cult member of the BGE!"

LIVESTRONG 2009 PA

Yesterday I took time out of my busying Q'in schedule to ride in the Lance Armstrong LIVESTRONG bike ride in Montgomery County PA. The turnout was phenomenal with over 5000 participants. While I only did the 70 mile course many more did the 100 mile. I was part of a team consisting of 22 memebers including several cancer survivors. All in all I'm proud to say that we raised almost $10,000.

Above is shot of just a few of the hundreds of volunteers that made the event possible. This event will be back next year so if you are interested along with 100 and 70 mile courses there are also 45 and 20 mile rides as well.

And of course to stay on topic, above is a picture of the meal that the LIVE Strong folks provided at the end of the ride. The meal was awesome and I scarfed it down it minutes and even followed it up with a complimentary beer from Michelob.

Pulled Pork Sandwiches

I really hope I am going to get to my Turkey trip soon...but again, until then I will blog about pork. My of my favorite things to do is go on over to Shop Rite in West Chester and pick up a pork shoulder. The usually sell the picnic cut for about $0.99/lb. You just can't beat that.

Now grilling a pork shoulder is a fairly large investment of time. You are going to need just about a whole day to prepare it. What I usually do is wake early and fix myself a bloody mary. Next I prepare my dry rub. i dont really measure anything out when preparing my dry rubs but this time I bascially did this:

1) 1 Part Paprika

2) .25-1 Part ground cumin (I like a lot)

3) Quarter part garlic powder

4) Quarter part onion powder

5) Kosher salt

6) Splash of Ow!

Many people out there add brown sugar. I haven't done that in a while but defintely give a shot one time to taste the difference. The heat of the Ow! will go nicely with the sweetness of the sugar. Next I cut off the visible fat from the shoulder and apply the rub. Apply it on thickly and really work it into the meat. Let the shoulder fester in the rub in the refridgerator for at least an hour two. This will give you plenty of time to get your grill ready. The first thing you will need to do is soak your wood chips. I soak mine for at least an hour or two. This will obviously make them smoke and keep them from burning up right away. I almost always use wood in conjuction with regular lump charcoal. If you do it right one large sleeve of coals will be all you need. Get the coals started and damper your grill so that it stays between 200 and 250 degrees. Place the wood chips on top of the coals. Once the grill is at 200 add on the pork opposite the coals so that you cook it indirectly. Plan on the shoulder taking about 8 hours at this temperature. This is a fairly big undertaking but you will be pleased with the results.

Once the shoulder is cooked let it sit for about 15-30 minutes before shredding. I served my sandwiches on ciabbatta bread from Carlinos in West Chester with a nice garlic mayonnaise....and some Hunt's barbecue sauce. I had a few friends over and I took some heat for not making my own sauce. Take it easy on the BBQB man!

Keepin' It Simple

Yo! I am back from Turkey and I had an incredible time. Once I get all of my pictures organized I will certainly put out a few posts. The food, the sites and the people were wonderful.

In the meantime, here is a simple app I put together the other day. Sometimes when you have really great ingredients, keeping it simple is often the best. I'm not sure what I did right this year, but my garden is really starting to kick out some great stuff. My tomatoes, basil, and zucchinnis and taking over my backyard.

You can arrange this dish any way you want to. All I did was slice of some tomatoes, tear up some basil leaves and add some fresh mozzerrella. Then I drizzled some olive oil that I got from A Taste Of Olive. If you haven't been to this shop yet you must go immediately. It is a mecca for olive oils and vinegar. A bottle of their olive oil is a must for your kitchen and they make great gifts as well. To finish off the dish I sprinkled on some sea salt and fresh cracked pepper and it was complete. Stay tuned for the Turkey posts.