How Erica Blaire Became the Latest Master of ‘Cue

How Erica Blaire Became the Latest Master of 'Cue

Dayton, Ohio-based pitmaster Erica Blaire has taken the barbecue world by storm this year and her story is anything but typical. She practiced law, became a sommelier, and then as a young mother she became interested in learning as much as she could about barbecue. We first became aware of Blaire’s barbecue journey through her @BlueSmokeBlaire Instagram channel, after she formed her female-led barbecue competition team in 2019.

When we had the opportunity to talk with Blaire about wine and barbecue earlier this year, she had just been awarded a grant through the Kingsford Preserve the Pit Program, had been named a brand ambassador for Champion Drum Smokers, and was announced as a contestant on Season 2 of the Food Network show BBQ Brawl. Blaire has continued to find success, going on to defeat some stiff competition to win the show and become the new Master of ‘Cue. (Check out the Season 2 recap from last week’s newsletter by Monk from the Barbecue Bros on why BBQ Brawl was ‘must-watch’ television.)

We spoke with Blaire about her experience on the show, what it was like to be named Master of ‘Cue, and what she has planned for the future. This conversation has been lightly edited for clarity.

Erica Blaire was named Master of ‘Cue in Season 2 of the show BBQ Brawl on the Food Network.

The Smoke Sheet (TSS): It's been about a week and a half since the final episode of BBQ Brawl. What has changed since that episode aired?
Erica Blaire (EB): A lot has changed. I'm in the middle of doing a pop-up for Dayton, Ohio, so that I can show appreciation to my community. I'm trying to get enough sponsors so that it can actually be free, because I think that would be a true way of showing how grateful I am for everybody that rallied around me. I'm working with a couple new sponsors that will be coming up shortly. So I'm really excited about that opportunity. The Food Network has just been a dream come true. It's like a Cinderella story for me. And I'm loving being able to do what I love and actually put it out there where people can see it and still have all of my original crew in my barbecue community on Instagram still rallying behind me. I love it. I really do.

TSS: What does being the new Master of 'Cue entail?
EB: It’s a role where I'm really going deep on grilling and barbecue techniques that everybody can use. My digital series is out on Food Network's Instagram page, their Twitter, and also their Facebook. I got to make recipes of things that I love to cook that are a little ‘out there’ but are things that we do in my family. And I've had a lot of opportunities to just talk to people, and talk to a lot of women and a lot of young girls who are now looking at it like, ‘Hey, you know, maybe I could do this. I mean, she's an ordinary person, and she got out there and kicked butt. The time is now we can do this.’ I just get to talk to people and try and encourage everybody to follow their dreams and get deeper into what actually makes their heart sing. So that's actually been the biggest reward for me.

During the first half of the season of BBQ Brawl, Blaire was focused on the task at hand but her personality began to shine as the show went on.

TSS: Let’s take a step back. Once you knew you were going to take part in the show, what did you do to prepare?
EB: I think the answer would be, ‘What didn’t I do?’ I just started cooking my butt off. I would time myself. I would see if I could do something in 20 minutes, then that means I could do it in 30 minutes or an hour on the show. I tried to perfect simple, down home, true-to-myself recipes that I could be able to use with my eyes closed. I watched season one of BBQ Brawl a lot. I'm talking like ‘freeze frame’ just like I was preparing for a trial. I would freeze the frame and I'd see what was in the pantry, what grills they were cooking on, what the setup was. If I saw an item or something that they mentioned that I hadn't cooked before, I ran out and got it and at least tried it once just to make sure that I'd be a little familiar with it. On the show there are no recipes. You have to do everything from memory. Also the pantry was first come, first serve. If you had in your mind that you were going to do this great chicken dish, if you got to the pantry and the chicken was gone, now you have to pivot. You have to figure out something all new to cook but the clock is running down on you at the same time. So that was really, really intense.

TSS: Was there anything that seemed different when you watched the final episode verses when you were actually there cooking?
EB: Definitely. When I was there and I was in it, I was really just paying attention to myself. A lot of the time I was just laser focused on myself and I was very quiet. I noticed in the first half of the season of our show, I didn't really say much. I got worried because I'm actually a very loud person. As the contest started getting tougher and people started falling, I really came out of my shell. So I felt like the second half of the season, that's who Erica is. That’s how she acts when she cooks. Eventually my personality did come out and I have some pretty good one-liners on there. I do barbecue competitions and we trash talk all the time. So I definitely trash talked a lot and joked around with people. A few of my ‘greatest hits’ did end up sticking.

Blaire prepared to compete on BBQ Brawl by watching the show’s first season and studying everything frame by frame.

TSS: What’s your favorite dish you cooked on the show?
EB: I loved when I did the Lomo al Trapo, which was the beef in a towel. That was something that I knew a lot of people weren't familiar with. I knew if I can just execute this right, at least it brings in another element of cooking that maybe people would be willing to try. It ended up coming out perfectly and I got ‘best dish of the night' with that. I was able to do something that I really cared about and was passionate about on the show.

TSS: So maybe that can be your signature item, perhaps?
EB: On the first day, Bobby [Flay] said to the whole team, “The reason I do so well on Beat Bobby Flay is I cook what I know. I don't try to go extravagant. I don't try to do anything crazy. I cook what I know.” I took that advice and I internalized it. As the competition went on, I decided I would start bringing in a lot of my heritage and a lot of my culture into my dishes, because that's cooking with what I know. And it worked out for me.

Bobby Flay was so confident in Blaire’s abilities, he opted to keep her as the sole contestant on his team.

TSS: Speaking of which, what did your family think about the show?
EB: Oh man, my dad was so excited. At the same time, I couldn't tell anybody anything. So we just would sit and we'd all watch the show together. My dad, his brothers, my aunts, my uncles, everybody chimed in and was heckling me and stuff like that. I'm just biting my tongue the entire time and had to endure all their cracks and jokes and everything like that for the whole summer. During the finale, when we sat down and watched it, Dad was actually crying and he was so proud. He was like, “You really went down there and you did this. You brought back a win for our family and for Ohio. I’m just so proud of you and I’m thankful.” He also reminded me that, “Just know, I'm the Master of ‘Cue. Just in case you forgot, your daddy is the Master of ‘Cue.”

TSS: It was pretty clear that you and Taylor Carroll grew close on the show. Do you keep in touch?
EB: We talk all the time. We really are barbecue sisters. I mean, we went through the war together, and we had each other's backs. Every day after filming was over, we would sneak off into this parking garage across from our hotel and we would sit there for hours. We would just talk, just be girls and just have fun and relax and decompress. We’d try to bring some normalcy back into this crazy, pressure-filled environment.

Blaire became close with the other competitors on Team Bobby, including Brendan Lamb, Terry Matthews, and especially Taylor Carroll.

TSS: Did you also form relationships and bonds with the other contestants?
EB: I definitely had so much fun with Terry [Matthews] and Brendan [Lamb], because they were on my team. Terry and I went kayaking one day and had so much fun. Once I was by myself, David [Sandusky] and Ara [Malekian] ended up taking me in. We joked and we’d go out to eat. I went out to eat with David a lot. At the end of the day, we’re all barbecue people. We are a family. 

TSS: Once your other teammates had all been eliminated, your team captain Bobby Flay opted not to steal a contestant from another team. Was that something you planned together?
EB: That was all him. You could have knocked me over with a feather. Now it’s pressure times 1000. If I make one mistake, I could end up sending Bobby Flay home and I don't want to be the girl who sent Bobby Flay home on national television. That would be awful. That would be just like a double loss. So the pressure was on.

TSS: We first became familiar with you from your background in competition barbecue. Are you going to be competing in more contests in the future?
EB: Yes, that's my heart. And those are my people. So of course, I'm gonna go out there and get my butt kicked like I always do and say thank you afterwards.

Blaire is doing pop-ups in Dayton, Ohio and has released a new line of sauces and rubs.

TSS: When is your next pop up?
EB: It’s on August 28th at 42 North Torrence Street, right in Dayton, Ohio. I'm bringing my New Orleans flair and bringing in a lot of my Southern culture too. We are going to have homemade, heartfelt barbecue and elevate it with the seasonings and the spices that my dad and I have worked on for decades. I'm excited.

TSS: What does the future hold for you now?
EB: I just launched my website, which has my rub and barbecue sauces available for purchase. I’m still working on my food truck. The supply chain has been really rough just getting stuff you need. So my Dad and I decided to go ahead and start doing pop-ups and be organic. We’re not gonna wait another 6 months for the food truck to be done when we can start feeding people now. We’ve ordered everything we need to be fully mobile and portable. Then I think the biggest thing I am doing is using my platform to spend time doing good in the barbecue community. I was a lawyer, I was a sommelier, and then I got into barbecue. When I started barbecuing, I had a brand new baby on my hip, I was working three jobs at one time. I want to be the ‘hype man’ for other people the way that the barbecue community hyped me up and kept me in the game.

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Special thanks to Erica for taking the time out of her busy schedule to chat with us. Stay tuned for our upcoming giveaway on Instagram for a chance to win Erica’s newly-released Blue Smoke Blaire sauces and rubs! 

Ryan Cooper (BBQ Tourist) & Sean Ludwig (NYC BBQ)
Co-Founders, The Smoke Sheet

Thank you to our sponsor DennyMike's, which offers outstanding seasonings and rubs for every situation. Learn more about DennyMike's here.

—You can get tickets to the inaugural Holy Smokes BBQ festival in North Charleston, SC starting today.—

HOT OFF THE PRESS

Tickets for the inaugural Holy Smokes Lowcountry BBQ Festival go on sale on Wednesday, August 25th. The event will be held on November 13th at The Bend in North Charleston, South Carolina. The pitmaster lineup includes festival founders Aaron Siegel and Taylor Garrigan of Home Team BBQ, Anthony DiBernardo of Swig & Swine, and guests from across the country, including Rodney Scott, Sam Jones, Pat Martin, Carey Bringle, Billy Durney, Chris Lilly, Leonard Botello, and more. Proceeds will benefit families affected by pediatric brain cancer through donations to Hogs for the Cause. READ MORE.

The inaugural, three-day Pinehurst Barbecue Festival will take place this Labor Day weekend, September 3-5. The event will feature top pitmasters from North Carolina, including Ed Mitchell, Christopher Prieto of Prime Barbecue, Ashley Sheppard of the Pik N Pig restaurant, and more. Festival attendees will be able to sample whole hog, beef brisket, chicken, ribs and sausage, along with Southern sides. Live entertainment, craft beer, sauce and spice vendors, and grilling classes will also be part of the festivities. READ MORE.

Acclaimed New Orleans BBQ joint Blue Oak BBQ recently shared their plans to expand to Alabama with a second location. The restaurant will open next summer at MidCity, a new multi-use development featuring restaurants, retail shops, and the Huntsville Amphitheater venue. Blue Oak BBQ founder Philip Moseley said one of the things that attracted them to the Huntsville area was the fact that “so many people are so passionate about that city, it resembles the passion New Orleanians have about New Orleans.” READ MORE.

In a recent article for Southern Living, Ann Taylor Pittman recently wrote about how she makes barbecue magic by blending different elements from her Korean and Southern background. Korean barbecue is usually prepared on a tabletop grill, but Pittman highlighted different dishes meant to be prepared on a grill in the backyard. Her recipes include Spicy Grilled Chicken Wings, Sticky Sweet Korean Barbecue Ribs, Honey Butter Chicken Skewers, and Pork Tenderloin in Biscuits with Gochujang Mayo, and Kimchi Sesame Slaw. READ MORE.

ADDITIONAL READS

Martin Cizmar of Kansas City Magazine, wrote about two new consumer-focused barbecue festivals that debuted this summer in Kansas City, including the Harp Barbecue Festival that we wrote about in July.  

Last week, Pitmaster John Lewis opened JL’s Southwest Brisket Burgers in a trailer outside of his Charleston restaurant.

Asheville’s Buxton Hall recently re-opened and is now featuring Texas-style brisket.

Burt Bakman’s popular barbecue restaurant Slab will soon be expanding to Pasadena, California.

Arlington’s Hurtado Barbecue is growing quickly with two new spots opening in the Dallas-Fort Worth Area.

These are the 5 essential spots for barbecue in Nashville, according to Nashville Lifestyles.

Here are 6 new(ish) BBQ places to check out in and around DC.

Here’s why your smartphone will be your next ‘must-have’ grill accessory.

NatGeo announced a new show called Appetite for Adventure that will follow pitmaster Big Moe Cason on culinary adventures around the world.

ry and Tarra Davis of Daddy Pete’s BBQ discuss what it means to be fellows in the Kingsford Preserve the Pit program in this video from Howard University senior Naomi Merlain.—

WATCH

Daddy Pete’s BBQ x Kingsford Are Cookin’ Up Something Hot — Complex

Earlier this year, Kingsford launched the Preserve the Pit program, which celebrates the contributions Black Americans have made to barbecue and invests in the pitmasters who will carry on these traditions in the future. This video from Naomi Merlain, a senior from Howard University, is the first of a three-part series highlighting the fellows who are participating in the Preserve the Pit program. Cory and Tarra Davis of Daddy Pete’s BBQ have served slow-smoked Southern barbecue to members of their community in Grand Rapids, Michigan for nine years. They are passionate about barbecue and are working hard to build their family business with the hopes of becoming recognized beyond their local area. WATCH HERE.
 

LISTEN

Fort Worth Pitmaster Roundtable — Tales from the Pits

No region of Texas has seen a larger increase in both the quality and quantity of good barbecue options the last few years than the Fort Worth area. While other cities have gotten plenty of rightful acclaim for their roster of BBQ spots, not as much focus has been placed on what has developed in North Texas. Hosts Bryan and Andrew are joined by some of the finest cooks and business owners in the region to help shine more light on this burgeoning scene. Spots that are represented in this roundtable discussion include Heim Barbecue, Goldee’s BBQ, Smokeaholics BBQ, Panther City BBQ, Zavala’s BBQ, Brix Barbecue, Dayne’s Craft BBQ, and Hurtado BBQ.  LISTEN HERE.
 

READ

Southern Grit: 100+ Down-Home Recipes for the Modern Cook — Kelsey Barnard Clark

From preeminent chef, multitasking mom, proud Southerner, and 2016 Top Chef winner Kelsey Barnard Clark comes this fresh take on Southern cooking and entertaining. In Southern Grit, Kelsey Barnard Clark presents more than 100 recipes that are made to be shared with family and friends. Indulge your loved ones in delicious modern Southern meals, including Bomb Nachos, Savannah Peach Sangria, Roasted Chicken and Drippin' Veggies, and six variations of Icebox Cookies. With 100 simple recipes that cover all occasions, plus entertaining tips throughout the book, Southern Grit has wide-ranging appeal for the broad audience of people who love Southern flavors. ORDER HERE.

—Erica Blaire enhances the flavor and presentation of her grilled steaks using a Himalayan Salt Block.—

Himalayan Salt Steak

By Erica Blaire

For this week’s Recipe of the Week, we chose this recipe for Himalayan Salt Steak from Erica Blaire. She first learned about cooking with a salt block while working at a waterfront restaurant in San Diego and has used this grilling technique since then. Cooking steak with a Himalayan salt block will not only kick your grilling up a notch, it will also offer a gorgeous presentation at gatherings. For those looking to curtail their salt intake, you can omit the salt in the recipe and let the block add the salt flavor. 

—Lots of must-attend barbecue events are scheduled for 2021.—

September 3-5, 2021: Pinehurst Barbecue Festival — Pinehurst, North Carolina
Debuting Labor Day Weekend 2021, The Pinehurst Barbecue Festival celebrates “All Things Barbecue” in North Carolina. From Eastern North Carolina vinegar to Western North Carolina tomato, they will have all of your favorites. The Pinehurst Barbeque Festival is a “Celebration of Taste and Tradition” featuring award-winning pitmasters in one of the most picturesque settings in all of North Carolina — the historic Village of Pinehurst. Choose to experience the entire three-day festival, or attend just one signature event. A multi-ticket VIP package, as well as individual tickets for each event are available. MORE INFO HERE.

September 10-11, 2021: Beer, Bourbon, & BBQ Festival (Cary) — Cary, North Carolina
Cary’s Beer, Bourbon, & BBQ Festival is back and better than ever. Get ready to enjoy all those pleasures that true Southerners live by – Beer, Bourbon, Barbecue, Boots, Bacon, Biscuits, Bluegrass, and Smoked Beasts. It’s a great day of beer sippin’, bourbon tastin’, music listenin’, cigar smokin’, and barbecue eatin’. One admission buys you a sampling glass so you can enjoy an all-you-care-to-taste sampling of beer and bourbon. MORE INFO HERE.

September 11, 2021: Pig Island NYC — New York, New York
For those that love all things pork and barbecue, the annual Pig Island NYC event is a can’t-miss affair. This year, the event will emphasize its special relationship promoting Friends of Firefighters charity. Many chefs and pitmasters from around the country show up and serve their best pork creations. Held outdoors, this all-inclusive event will also feature a ton of great food, beer, cider, and liquor. MORE INFO HERE.

September 16-19, 2021: American Royal World Series of Barbecue — Kansas City, Kansas
The American Royal World Series of barbecue is the largest BBQ competition in the country. On top of a massive KCBS competition with roughly 500 teams from around the country, this signature Kansas City event includes public-facing activities, including live music, delicious BBQ and local food, a full lineup of kids activities, and a vendor fair authentic to Kansas City and BBQ enthusiasts. Read our to learn more about the experience. MORE INFO HERE.

September 17-19, 2021: Denver BBQ Festival — Denver, Colorado
BBQ in back in the Mile High City for the Denver BBQ Festival. The 3rd annual Denver BBQ Festival is happening at Empower Field at Mile High. Don’t miss this chance to grab an ice-cold brew and sample pure smoked bliss from award-winning pitmasters from across the country. MORE INFO HERE.

September 18-19, 2021: Born & Raised Music Festival — Pryor, Oklahoma
On top of many top musical acts like ZZ Top and Cody Jinks, the big new event will feature “The BBQ Ranch” curated by pitmaster Wayne Mueller. Joining Mueller will be Brotherton's Black Iron Barbecue, Night Goat Barbecue, Phatt Tabb's BBQ, Roegels Barbecue Co., and more. MORE INFO HERE.

October 1-3, 2021: Q In The Lou — St. Louis, Missouri
Get ready to go hog wild and get your BBQ fix at another great year of Q in the Lou. Many of the country’s biggest names in BBQ will be back once again. Given heightened safety protocols, it will likely be a little different from years past but still offering lots of food and fun. Read our to learn more about how the event generally goes. MORE INFO HERE.

October 8-9, 2021: Jack Daniel’s World Championship Invitational — Lynchburg, Tennessee
The Jack Daniel’s Annual World Championship Invitational Barbeque – or simply The Jack as it’s known in the world of competition barbecue – is widely considered the world’s most prestigious barbeque competition where teams from around the globe smoke, season and sear their way to a chance to be named the Grand Champion and a $25,000 prize. Annually featuring more than 100 teams representing all 50 states and countries across the globe, The Jack transforms Lynchburg, home of the Jack Daniel Distillery, into the barbecue capital of the world. It’s also important to note that KCBS has changed the date The Jack is usually held in hopes of getting more favorable weather, so check your calendars. Read our to learn more about the experience. MORE INFO HERE.

November 13, 2021: Holy Smokes: Lowcountry BBQ Festival — Charleston, South Carolina
The Holy Smokes BBQ Festival from Home Team BBQ, Swig & Swine, and Robert Moss will be held November 13 in Charleston. The big new event will include pitmasters from around the country including Chris Lilly of Big Bob Gibson BBQ, Patrick Feges and Erin Smith, Feges BBQ, Billy Durney of Hometown BBQ, Matt Horn of Horn Barbecue, and Rodney Scott of Rodney Scott’s BBQ. MORE INFO HERE.

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