BBQ Billy's Grumblings

i love barbecue, and that's just the start.

Teachers need barbecue too

(download)

It's Teacher Appreciation Week in NYC public schools this week, and my son's school planned  a lunch made by parents for their children's teachers. I totally apreciate my son's teachers, so I barbecued some pork shoulder for them! The cook turned out nice... came in at around 14 hrs to melt that shoulder down, but it was well worth the wait. I saved a little bit for my lunch (because i appreciate myself too), and picked up some tiny martin rolls. "Perfect for Sliders!" said the sticker... it's amazing how what is now a "slider" bun is the same size a regular hamburger bun was 20 years ago.

And in keeping with the times, I had two.  

Rub BBQ

(download)

Considering how obsessed I am with barbecue it's odd how many legitimate north east joints I have yet to taste. I'm one step closer to correcting that travesty today after visiting Rub BBQ on 23rd street in Manhattan. I hit them up right when they opened, and was told the infamous burnt ends were not quite ready. In their place I ordered a half slab of st louis ribs (short end), a 1/4 pound of pork shoulder, and a side of slaw. Read on for my quick review!

Read the rest of this post »

Backyard Pork-a-thon: January 2012

Hockey_porkathon_01

Today was just about perfect: it snowed in the morning, later my son declared on his own "Daddy, i'd like to shovel the rink," the smoker was fired up at noon, we went for a road trip to get a kitten from a shelter, then I went for a night-time skate with the fresh smell of the final hour of a pork shoulder melting away in the smoker, and finally a barbecue feast of chopped pork sandwiches w/ coleslaw, vinegar sauce, baked beans, and my wife's canned pickles form the summer. Now that's a damn fine day. 

Read the rest of this post »