The first one is in the books!

Happy Sunday morning!

Trinity BBQ catered our first BBQ yesterday and I have to say it was a success.  We catered an engagement party for Chad's cousin.  Best wishes to the newly engaged couple.  We wish you the best.

I learned a lot from doing this event and I can't wait to do more.  I was so nervous going into it.  I put a lot of time into making sure everything was done right. Started prepping for it Thursday.  Got the beans and potato salad perfected Friday.  Woke up at 3am Saturday morning to fire up the smoker.  It was so much fun.  And plus since I was up so early, I got to learn about some awesome new tools and gadgets to save me hours on infomercial TV!  As I was preparing the meats and prepping them for delivery, I realized that as tired as I was, I didn't care. I didn't care because I truly love doing this.  Going to be a great thing to do to bring happiness to others.  When Chad cut into that brisket last night, my heart jumped for joy.  The brisket was perfect. 

So in the end. the flavors, the sights, the smells and the party was perfect.  That is one down and many more to go!!!

So let's keep smokin!!!!

Here are some pics for ya.....

 
 

Movin' on up!

I sat down today to write my blog.  I've been in the kitchen today and last night working on getting things ready for my first real BBQ catering job.  (more are lined up so look out!)  I got to thinking that things are starting to roll here and was thinking "what should I title this outburst today?"  And it hit me.  Movin' On Up in honor of one of my favorite shows as a kid. "The Jeffersons" and Sherman Hemsley.  I will walk around like him all day today.  No pictures please.  So Chad and I are doing our first real catering event Saturday.  I am very excited.  We are catering for 50 people and I hope they love it as much as I love cooking it.  I decided to jar up some of my sauce to send with the BBQ.  Take a look....

So it looks like we are becoming a real business.  As you can see in the picture, I named this first sauce " Shannon's Sauce".  It is sweet and sassy just like my lovely wife.  If you want the whole story of why I named it that, drop me a line.  I will say that she inspires me daily so some of her has to be a part of what her and I are building.

Well, ya better get crackin' on hitting us for your BBQ.  The calendar is filling fast...well, it is filling.  Drop us a line and let us help you.  So keep on smokin and let me know if you  want to hear a story of strength and courage.  Until next time, hook 'em!

Rootin around in Razorback land....

Well this has been an interesting week.  I have been in Little Rock, AR.  I will tell you that downtown Little Rock is pretty nice.  They have some nice bars and restaurants there with some interesting people.  I did go to one BBQ place called The Whole Hog Cafe. http://www.wholehogcafe.com/   The ribs were very good.  Moist and tender and cooked just about perfect.  I was with a co-worker and she got herself a brownie for dessert but this boy went the the ribs for dessert!  Nothing like some smoked pork for dessert.   Well Whole Hog has several sauces and if you know me, I am not a fan of the sauce so much.  Some good Carolina Vinegar sauce on a pulled pork sandwich is great but that's about it.  Whole Hog had six sauces.  Now call me crazy but isn't that a little excessive?  They were all ok but none of them made me say, "Wow!  That was awesome.  Can I have that as a drink?"  


I make  three sauces.  I have what I call Shannon Sauce which is sweet and spicy (hence the name), a savory sauce that I haven't been able to name yet and Kakk's sauce.  Kakk's is very spicy and was handed down to me from my mom who had it handed to her from my grandfather and he had it handed to him from an old BBQ man in North Fort Worth.  I think I have spoken about sauce before but it can be such a huge topic, it never hurts to marinate a bit (I know...poor joke but couldn't resist)  I didn't touch on the potato salad but I think that is a topic for another day.....


Thanks for listening and keep on smokin!!

Road trip!!

I haven't been to the best city in the world in a while so I think it is time for a road trip and research.  Heading to Austin this weekend to see my awesome mother and stepdad.  We are going to help out the VFW Auxiliary (VFW is an amazing organization that helps veterans.  They do a ton for cancer research and you should help them out.  Check out their Facebook.http://www.facebook.com/pages/Texas-VFW/124432532534).  After we do some work for them, I am going to go and try to hit a couple of BBQ places for research. Yeah, that's what I will call it. Research.  Research is just a way to make me feel better about eating a lot.  I love to drive around and try new BBQ and get new ideas.  Every time I watch a show or go to a new BBQ shack, I get a new idea of what to do or what not to do.  What are some of your best cooking ideas and how did you get them?  I can tell you that the basis of a lot of my cooking is around how my family cooked.  My grandfather was one heck of a BBQ guy and I loved it. Still use some of his recipes.   


So drop me a line and let me know how you learned to cook.  If you have a great idea, let me know and I will give it a shot.  


Keep on smokin'!

Some more thoughts on Europe and the smoke...

So it is time for another weekend and I am sure I will be firing up the smoker.  I fired up the ol' girl last weekend (the smoker, not Shannon!) .  I tried something new with my brisket.  I discovered something in Europe that really opened my eyes.  Less is truly more.  The dishes we ate in Italy, France and Spain were very simple.  They were simple but very delicious.  The portions were smaller and the seasoning simple.  I thought a lot about this on the very long flight back from Spain.  I put it to the test last weekend.  I went with a simpler brisket that was trimmed as opposed to untrimmed and went with my simple rub.  Didn't inject it.  Didn't wrap it.  Didn't mess with it a lot.  Just rubbed it, smoked it, cut it and ate it.  I have to tell you that the European people got it right!  That brisket was great.  So besides all of the wonderful architecture, art and history I learned about, I came home with new theories about BBQ and cooking.  Excellent Texas beef, sharp mesquite smoke and a simple savory rub is my key to a wonderful brisket.  I hope everyone had a great 4th and keep on smoking!!


A few pics of wonderful food we had in Europe.