This weekend, I traveled to Laurens, South Carolina to attend the KCBS Certified BBQ Judging (CBJ) class, and the Table Captain's class.
KCBS representatives taught the classes. They did a very good job. The BBQ was excellent, and I really enjoyed myself.
But I learned two things that kinda shocked me, and I'd like to discuss with competition BBQers, and anyone else who has an opinion.
1. Garnish is Completely Optional
KCBS says garnish (turn-in box lining, usually parsley) is optional, and that a judge cannot deduct points if a cook doesn't use it. So I have a couple questions:
1. (for competition BBQers) Why do you use garnish when you aren't required to do so?
2. (for KCBS reps) Why do you even allow garnish to be used in the first place? It seems like it's more trouble than it's worth, for everybody.
KCBS proclaims that judging is "all about the meat", but then spends 30 minutes of every judging class going over and over the legal and illegal types of garnish. The list has recently changed, and is more complicated than ever. Even the guy who taught our class has had trouble identifying legal/illegal garnish. One time during a contest, he said he had to take cell phone pics of garnish and send them to KCBS headquarters for a disqualification ruling. This just seems way too complicated.
It seems to me that eliminating garnish altogether would simply everyone's life without sacrificing anything. It simplifies life for the cooks, the judges, the Table Captains, and the KCBS reps. Without reducing the appearance or quality of the meat.
During the CBJ class yesterday, we were presented with several turn-in boxes of meat to judge. Some boxes had garnish, and some didn't. To me, the ones that didn't have garnish looked just as good as the ones that did.
2. Chicken Skin is Completely Optional
KCBS does not require chicken skin to be included on chicken entries. And if it's not present, judges are not allowed to deduct points.
And if it is present, there are absolutely no guidelines on how to judge it based upon texture. It is not required to be bite-thru. It is not even suggested to be bite-thru. And if it's rubbery, and comes off all in one bite when a judge samples it, the judge is not allowed to deduct any points. The only KCBS rule involving chicken skin is that if it is present, the judges must taste it, but they are not required to swallow it.
Our KCBS instructor told us that both of these things (garnish and bite-thru chicken skin) are matters in which the BBQ competition community have put undue pressure on themselves. It's become the defacto standard, but not because of any requirement or encouragement from KCBS.
I've read/heard stories (some credible, I think) about competition BBQers spending hours scraping chicken skin, and hours preparing garnished turn-in boxes. So I was pretty surprised to find that these things aren't even required.
KCBS representatives taught the classes. They did a very good job. The BBQ was excellent, and I really enjoyed myself.
But I learned two things that kinda shocked me, and I'd like to discuss with competition BBQers, and anyone else who has an opinion.
1. Garnish is Completely Optional
KCBS says garnish (turn-in box lining, usually parsley) is optional, and that a judge cannot deduct points if a cook doesn't use it. So I have a couple questions:
1. (for competition BBQers) Why do you use garnish when you aren't required to do so?
2. (for KCBS reps) Why do you even allow garnish to be used in the first place? It seems like it's more trouble than it's worth, for everybody.
KCBS proclaims that judging is "all about the meat", but then spends 30 minutes of every judging class going over and over the legal and illegal types of garnish. The list has recently changed, and is more complicated than ever. Even the guy who taught our class has had trouble identifying legal/illegal garnish. One time during a contest, he said he had to take cell phone pics of garnish and send them to KCBS headquarters for a disqualification ruling. This just seems way too complicated.
It seems to me that eliminating garnish altogether would simply everyone's life without sacrificing anything. It simplifies life for the cooks, the judges, the Table Captains, and the KCBS reps. Without reducing the appearance or quality of the meat.
During the CBJ class yesterday, we were presented with several turn-in boxes of meat to judge. Some boxes had garnish, and some didn't. To me, the ones that didn't have garnish looked just as good as the ones that did.
2. Chicken Skin is Completely Optional
KCBS does not require chicken skin to be included on chicken entries. And if it's not present, judges are not allowed to deduct points.
And if it is present, there are absolutely no guidelines on how to judge it based upon texture. It is not required to be bite-thru. It is not even suggested to be bite-thru. And if it's rubbery, and comes off all in one bite when a judge samples it, the judge is not allowed to deduct any points. The only KCBS rule involving chicken skin is that if it is present, the judges must taste it, but they are not required to swallow it.
Our KCBS instructor told us that both of these things (garnish and bite-thru chicken skin) are matters in which the BBQ competition community have put undue pressure on themselves. It's become the defacto standard, but not because of any requirement or encouragement from KCBS.
I've read/heard stories (some credible, I think) about competition BBQers spending hours scraping chicken skin, and hours preparing garnished turn-in boxes. So I was pretty surprised to find that these things aren't even required.
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