Three delicious dishes to impress at your Memorial Day BBQ (plus top news and events)
With Memorial Day weekend coming up shortly, it’s time to get the grill cleaned off or prep your smoker to make some delicious food for family or friend gatherings. There are lots of choices on what you can make this weekend and it’s easy to go down a rabbit hole trying to find good recipes.
We typically offer a Recipe of the Week every week to make sure our readers have fun things to make and experiment with at home. But because this weekend might be your first good chance this year to prepare some dishes, we’ve picked out three items — one protein, one side, and one dessert — that will help you impress your friends and family.
Bourbon Brown Sugar Smoked Pork Loin
To get your Memorial Day kicked off right and not be too challenging overall, the Bourbon Brown Sugar Smoked Pork Loin from season two of Steven Raichlen’s Project Smoke is a blend of sweet and smoky. It has the bacon strips on the outside of the pork loin, dashes of bourbon, and touches of brown sugar. After smoking the loin for an hour and a half, you then add a glaze of mustard, brown sugar, and whiskey and then finish it over open flame. It’s perfect centerpiece for your gathering.
The World’s Best Potato Salad Recipe
When you’re looking to make a homemade side for your Memorial Day barbecue, creamy and rich potato salad is a good option. The World's Best Potato Salad Recipe from AllRecipes involves first boiling potatoes until they can be pierced by a fork. Then you’ll make a killer dressing to set it apart. The dressing is made from eggs, sugar, corn starch, salt, vinegar, evaporated milk, mustard, butter, and mayonnaise. Add in chopped onion, celery, and hard boiled eggs in with the dressing and diced potatoes to create your salad. Make sure you do all of this the night before your event for the best results.
Apple Cobbler on the Smoker
Finally, a sweet and delicious dessert at your barbecue will win you a lot of admirers. The Apple Cobbler on the Smoker from Malcom Reed of How to BBQ Right is our vote for the dessert of choice. It involves preparing cobbler like you usually would with fruit mix of fresh fruit, sugar, and cinnamon. Then you create a crumble to pair with the fruit mix. Reed’s spin on the cobbler is to throw it in the smoker at 350 degrees for about an hour and then top it with ice cream.
If these recipes aren’t enough, we have one more fun recipe to try down below in our Recipe of the Week section. You can also pick up the relatively new awesome cookbooks Operation BBQ Relief by Stan Hays or Smoked by Ed Randolph if you want a physical guide of tasty and diverse barbecue recipes.
Sean Ludwig (NYC BBQ) and Ryan Cooper (BBQ Tourist)
Co-Founders, The Smoke Sheet
Here are the top recent barbecue news stories from around the country:
Tuffy Stone and members of his team Cool Smoke from Richmond, Virginia celebrate their Grand Championship win at the 2019 Memphis in May World Barbecue Championship.
This past weekend, one of the biggest barbecue celebrations took place at the Memphis in May World Championship Barbecue Contest. Tuffy Stone’s Cool Smoke team from Richmond, Virginia was awarded Grand Championship honors, as well as first place in the pork shoulder competition. Here is the complete list of winners in each division.
While Memphis in May was the biggest event happening last weekend, The Pints In The Park in Waco also took place. Jimmy Ho of The Smoking Ho recaps some of the best highlights at the event.
Last week on The BBQ Central Show, host Greg Rempe announced the names of the nine individuals who were nominated for the Barbecue Hall of Fame Class of 2019. The nominees this year include a more diverse group of candidates than in previous years.
In addition to releasing a new cookbook and announcing plans to open a breakfast taco and coffee trailer, Austin pitmaster Aaron Franklin has recently released a sixteen-part MasterClass on smoking brisket, ribs, and pork butts.
For those looking for a more condensed lesson on cooking barbecue, Burt Bakman from Los Angeles’ Slab and Trudy’s Underground shared his tips for making perfectly smoked brisket with Chowhound.
The Houston Chronicle’s Greg Morago writes that interest in barbecue is hotter than ever, fueled in part by a wealth of recently-released cookbooks.
The Tennessean columnist Brad Schmitt recently drew the ire of residents of Memphis by declaring Nashville’s barbecue to be the best in the state, so Memphis Commercial Appeal’s Jennifer Chandler took him on a tour of five Memphis barbecue institutions. After the tour, Schmitt apologized for the tone but still declared Nashville’s barbecue to be the state’s best.
We don’t often hear about Indiana’s best barbecue restaurants, but they do have some good ones that are worth a visit. The Indianapolis Star has a new list of the 11 best barbecue joints in the Indianapolis area.
Texas Monthly’s Daniel Vaughn reports that the new Interstellar BBQ in northwest Austin has vegetarian sides that are just as savory as the brisket and sausage.
If you’re in need of even more colorful recipes for Memorial Day and the 4th of July, Parade has you covered with 93 festive red, white, and blue dishes, sweet desserts, savory dips, healthy salads, and specialty drinks.
If you’re new to long barbecue lines that you see at top joints around the country, the Houston Chronicle’s J.C. Reid explains the fundamentals of barbecue-line etiquette, including how numbering systems typically work.
Here are BBQ shows, podcasts, or books you should check out this week:
Watch: Sean Ludwig & Ryan Cooper from The Smoke Sheet - Kevin’s BBQ Joints
We were honored to join host Kevin Kelly for this episode of Kevin’s BBQ Joints. We discuss how we started The Smoke Sheet and all of the great content that comes into your email box every Wednesday as well as our backgrounds in barbecue. We also talk about how we cover the world of barbecue by visiting barbecue joints and events across the U.S. We end with some restaurant recommendations in some of the regions we cover extensively, including Texas and the Northeast U.S. Watch it here.
Listen: BBQ Road Trips, Part 1 - Tales from the Pits
Bryan and Andrew from the Tales from the Pits podcast have been traveling across Texas for years seeking out the best and most unique barbecue stops around the state. Through lots of research and plenty of trial and error they have had a lot of successful barbecue runs and have been able to try a wide array of places in a single day or weekend. To help out fellow smoked meat travelers, they are putting together some episodes to help plan out the best route options suitable for everyone's interests. Part one of this series focuses on a few different groups: The Casual BBQ Fan, The Prospective Restaurateur, and The BBQ History Buff. Listen to the episode here.
Read: Big Bob Gibson's BBQ Book: Recipes and Secrets from a Legendary Barbecue Joint - Chris Lilly
Ten years ago, Chris Lilly, executive chef of Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q and great-grandson-in-law of Big Bob himself, passed on the family secrets in the quintessential guide to barbecue. In Big Bob Gibson’s BBQ Book, Lilly gives the lowdown on Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q's award-winning seasonings and combinations. You’ll learn the unique flavors of different woods and you’ll get insider tips on creating the right heat for pulled pork, smoked beef brisket, pit-fired poultry and ribs. Loaded with succulent photographs, easy-to-follow instructions, and colorful stories, Big Bob Gibson’s BBQ Book honors the legacy of Big Bob Gibson and of great barbecue. Order it here.
Jim Auchmutey, author of Smokelore, will be at the Atlanta History Center talking about the history of barbecue in the U.S. (Photo by Reid Laurens)
May 23: Jim Auchmutey Presents Smokelore, A Short History of Barbecue in America - Atlanta, Georgia
At this event at the Atlanta History Center, Jim Auchmutey follows the delicious and contentious history of barbecue in America from the ox roast that celebrated the groundbreaking for the U.S. Capitol building to the first barbecue launched into space almost 200 years later. The narrative covers the golden age of political barbecues, the evolution of the barbecue restaurant, the development of backyard cooking, and the recent rediscovery of traditional barbecue craft. More info here.
May 23-26: Hot Luck Festival - Austin, Texas
Created by Aaron Franklin, James Moody, and Mike Thelin, Hot Luck occurs every Memorial Day weekend in Austin and at pop-ups around the country. It features food, music, events, and more. The main event of Hot Luck is Al Fuego, a live-action, flame-fueled celebration of open-air cooking styles — from Texas to Thailand. They push the chefs to cook what they might prepare for friends in their own backyards. Aaron Franklin might even build them a specialty cooker. More info here.
May 24-26: 8th Annual BBQ, Blues & Brews on the Bay - North Bend, Oregon
The Mill’s BBQ, Blues & Brews on the Bay has grown into one of Oregon’s biggest barbecue events. Finger lickin’ good barbecue, hand-crafted beers, and smokin’ hot tunes are all part of the fun. Whether you’re a grill master or just love to eat great barbecue, this event at The Mill Casino might be for you. More info here.
May 30: Rib King NYC 2019 - Brooklyn, New York
Rib King NYC is the first barbecue event curated by Sean Ludwig of The Smoke Sheet and NYC BBQ. This all-you-can-eat-and-drink event in Williamsburg, Brooklyn and will be a celebration of pork, beef, and lamb ribs with more than 10 pitmasters and chefs from NYC. There will also be unlimited beer, cider, wine, and spirits. Both Judges’ Choice and People’s Choice trophies will be handed out. More info here.
May 30-June 3: Atlanta Food & Wine Festival - Atlanta, Georgia
The Atlanta Food & Wine Festival is an entire weekend dedicated to Southern cuisine. From great down-home delicacies to the freshest fusion dishes, the most sought-after wines to hot new bar favorites, this festival aims to please even the most finicky foodie. Over the course of the weekend attendees have the chance to participate in exclusive wine and food tastings featuring more than 250 restaurants, artisans, chefs and producers. More than 90 classes are offered to educate and entertain guests as they explore regional flavors and traditions, including cooking classes. More info here.
June 8-9: Tony Stone BBQ Competition - Amsterdam, Netherlands
The eighth annual Tony Stone BBQ Competition takes place June 8-9 in Amsterdam. The competition was Europe’s first contest sanctioned by the Kansas City Barbeque Society and a popular event for Americans to attend. The event is free and open to the public and will include a BBQ market, demonstrations, and activities for children. Competitive events include KCBS barbecue competition, Kids Q competitions, Steak Cookoff Association contest, and Tailgating competition. More info here.
June 14-15: The Great Eldorado BBQ, Blues & Brews Festival - Reno, Nevada
Fire up the grills, tap the kegs, and crank up the tunes for Reno’s best summer kick-off party. Join the fun at the Great Eldorado BBQ, Brews and Blues Festival, June 14 and 15. The event is equal parts barbeque block party, microbrew tasting event with more than 50 microbrews from around the world and music festival with two stages featuring nonstop rock and blues. More info here.
June 14-16: Denver BBQ Fest - Denver, Colorado
Get ready to go hog wild this Father’s Day weekend at the second annual Denver BBQ Festival. They will be bringing back may of the best pitmasters to serve the Q that made them famous. Even better, they’ve added a few new faces and expanded the menu way beyond the basics. There will also be live music and activities for the whole family. More info here.
June 16: Birthright BBQ Fest - Dallas, Texas
Dallas Heritage Village and Four Corners Brewing Co. invite you to celebrate Father’s Day at a barbecue event like no other. Smell and taste barbecue cooking over an open pit by pitmasters and chefs such as Aaron Franklin of Franklin Barbecue, Todd David of Cattleack Barbecue, Evan Leroy of Leroy & Lewis, Erin Smith and Patrick Feges of Feges BBQ, Miguel and Modesty Vidal of Valentina’s Tex Mex, and special guest from North Carolina, Elliot Moss of Buxton Hall. Beer, barbecue and live music are all included in the price of admission. More info here.
June 22-23: The Giant National Capital Barbecue Battle - Washington, D.C.
This June, historic Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C., will become the epicenter of barbecue perfection. The biggest part of the event is the Cooking Contest, which will feature big names like Myron Mixon, Tuffy Stone, and Moe Cason competing with teams from around the U.S. Also, lots of U.S. barbecue joints from will be there serving food and more than 30 bands will perform live on three stages. More info here.
Pit Barrel Huli Huli Chicken Recipe
If you didn’t get enough of our recipes above, we also wanted to share this recipe for Huli Huli Chicken that originated in Hawaii. Rus Jones from Smoky Ribs uses the Pit Barrel Cooker with mesquite wood for this sweet and spicy dish that is perfect for any backyard gathering (and maybe even the one you’re having this weekend!). View the recipe here.
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