Steven Raichlen's BBQ U?

[Michael_in_TX]

Has anyone here gone through Steven Raichlen's BBQ U?

https://barbecuebible.com/barbecue-university/

It does look like a lot of fun, and a chance to use expensive ingredients and grills. Still, wow, it is pricy....$3,200 for three days and that does not include the cost of staying at the hotel! (It's really just three half-days, as afternoons and evenings are on your own.)

I am a huge Steven Raichlen fan....not only for the ingredients and techniques to which he has introduced to me, but also in the way he conveys information. (I'm an educator.)

If I had that kind of discretionary income, absolutely, without question, I'd attend, just to watch him live.

[RichieB]

I'm trying to figure out how to get a $330 Pit Barrel and maintain my manhood. For this, I might as well go to the Royal Gorge Bridge in CO. and jump. I'd have a better chance to survive.

PS: one of the coolest places I have ever been.

[Jerod Broussard]

Yeah, back in 1994. Think it is or was the highest suspension bridge in the US??

[Sam6687]

I love the no fishing from the bridge sign in the middle, about a 1000 feet above the river, lol.

[Clark]

RichieB There have been others that jumped and survived....but they had parachutes.

[Soonerpop]

I got the email and thought the same thing. By the time you do airline tickets, lodging at a very upscale resort, not to mention golf, meals when you’re not enjoying your class projects, limo or rental car, and it’s a pretty expensive three days. Or four if they start in the morning and you have to get there the day before. Maybe I’ll get his latest cookbook.

[Jerod Broussard]

Definitely would buy a hunt or two or twenty before that. Kind of pricey just to hear a guy say "cilantro."

[bbqLuv]

Dito on a hunt or two. Feral Hogs, "Here piggy piggy" taste do good.

[Michael_in_TX]

LOL....yes....

[Donw]

Steven Raichlen's shows are produced by Maryland Public Television. Occasionally he does a master class for them near Baltimore which usually run $140 for non members and less for members.

[BBQPhil]

I've taken Harry Soo's class for $395 for one long day of uninterrupted learning, doing and eating with a small group of fellow BBQers. Can't imagine paying 10X that for something similar.

[Mark V]

There is a lot of info on the internet. People like to make videos.

[glitchy]

That would be a total waste for me. Not because I am anywhere near a great cook, but because my wife and daughter wouldn’t likely eat a single thing I would learn from the class. They wouldn’t even try pickled onions or burger glop. On top of it being insanely expensive, what special secrets are you really going to learn that’s worth that much more than what you can get from watching his show, Malcom’s youtube, and all the info here?

[DavidNorcross]

I have alot of respect for him and think he is great. For me, I can learn more from this forum each day.

[bbqLuv]

You got that RIGHT!
Long Live Amazing RIbs and BBQ.

[JCBBQ]

Hmmm. All in 4K? I mean I like Raichlen and all, but, I’d rather put that towards a Komodo Kamado or something I’ll get way more use out of.

[bbqLuv]

Learning BBQ is like walking. You have to fall in order to walk. Place one leg in front, lean forward, and fall onto that foot, then place the other leg out front and so forth. And so it is with BBQ; steps of improvement is one step after another.
4k can fund many BBQ steps.
Long live BBQ.

[Beefchop]

Steve Raichlen is the Bob Ross of BBQ.

[Jerod Broussard]

Freaking hilarious!!

[DavidNorcross]

Now that is funny..

[MBMorgan]

I must confess that I'm not a Raichlen fan. I'm sure he's a fine cook and is more than capable of turning out some excellent 'Q ... but he's also the biggest purveyor of every known silly old wives' (and silly old husbands', too) BBQ, grilling, and smoking tale out there in TV land. Personally, I wouldn't pay to attend one of his cooking classes but I'll shamelessly confess to owning a few of his cookbooks, Kindle versions purchased over the past few years only out of simple curiosity when they were priced at no more than $1.99 each on Amazon. I will also concede that, as pointed out by Jerod Broussard earlier in this thread, Mr. Raichlen truly is the finest pronouncer of the word "cilantro" you'll ever find around these parts ... or any other ...

[BBQPhil]

Agree. The products with his names are generally overpriced and nothing special. He's done a superb job of marketing himself and clearly has some great skills based on his world travels. But for me, he lacks the authenticity that we get from this site or from watching even Franklin smoking his briskets. I maybe an outlier, but I find his shows to be a little pompous being filmed at top resorts surrounded by a massive crew of cameramen and lighting equipment.

[bbqLuv]

Raichlen also seems to be over scripted.
Although he presents good information I find it hard to sit through one of his shows.

[rickgregory]

This is nothing more than a guy who has created a lot of demand and who's raking it in based on that. No BBQ class is worth several thousand dollars because BBQ just isn't that complex in terms of technique. What it does require is practice and course correction. The idea that you will be some BBQ master after 3 days spend with anyone is ludicrous but... fool... money.

[Steve R.]

Agree 100%. And just imagine the cooker you could buy with that money, and then master it using what we all have access to here.

[Michael_in_TX]

There is a lot of info on the internet. People like to make videos.

I was thinking about this exact thing. When Steven started BBQU, it was a completely different world. YouTube was at least five years off in the future, and PBS was still filming shows in SD.

Now high-quality BBQ channels are all over YouTube and you can watch them whenever you want. Even the full seasons of Stevens' Project Smoke and Fire are available online to watch whenever.

So for me the necessity of taking a class is far, far less than it was fifteen or twenty years ago.

Still, would I pay to hear Steven say "cilantro." Yes, yes, I would.....just not that much!