12/08/2022
I see folks advertise bbq but never show you their smoker, and the food looks done high and fast, even charred. BBQ, in spite of the loose word usage lately, is actually a cooking method using temperatures between about 275 and 350 degrees with indirect heat from wood or charcoal. Smoking is 225 to 275 or so, and grilling is high temp over direct heat. Most people grill and call it bbq because they put bbq sauce on it and (usually) cooked it outdoors. Nothing wrong with grilling, it's great for burgers and steak, but it is not bbq, does not produce the same results as bbq, and should not be called bbq. Just the opinion of this bbq snob.
At Bear Meadow, we smoke our meats at temperatures below 250 for long periods (18+ hours for brisket and pork butt) in our wood-fired (not pellet) smoker. This means I'm up every couple of hours ALL NIGHT LONG to keep the fire going. Sure, I COULD cook hot and fast then toss it in the fridge and reheat it the next day (or several days later) like most restaurants and vendors. I'd certainly get more sleep, but it wouldn't be as good. As a former KCBS competition judge, I just can't do it.
So my competition gets more sleep and can set up daily. I've even seen them "sell out" but open up 2 hours later with more pork butt. You can't make pulled pork in 2 hours, so they either had more in the fridge/freezer at home, cooked it in a pressure cooker(not bbq), or bought some lloyds from walmart. Not at Bear Meadow. Once the meat is in the smoke it is not refrigerated again. Direct from the smoker to you, no refrigeration, no reheating, just fresh from the heat bbq like it should be. And when it's gone, it's gone.
Add in made-from-scratch bbq sauce, real homemade cheese sauce, and our secret recipe coleslaw, and I doubt you could find better food, much less bbq, anywhere around.
Ok, gotta go smoke some meat now. See y'all tomorrow!
