A big chance to promote American BBQ here in Wenzhou, but I need 10-12 bar-friendly dishes

[Lost in China]

I've been asked by my buddy Leo who owns a couple bars to come up with some menu items for his new lounge. This lounge will be a high-end joint for the local richie riches. I have been trying to do BBQ evangelism for a while now, but haven't had it catch on and this could be the big break. You know Chinese are inveterate copiers and will immediately duplicate anything that's successful. Leo already bought an imported Weber 22" non-deluxe kettle at great expense and has used it a couple of times. He's been to my cookouts and knows how good Meathead's recipes can be. Of all the bar and restaurant owners I know in town, Leo is the one who can really make it happen. It would be really thrilling to have genuine American BBQ dishes take off and become popular. We all know how good these foods are, I just need to turn it into practice. This is the big chance to spread BBQ culture that I've been waiting for.

He asked me to come up 10-12 menu items, and he'll pick and choose. There is a lot to consider here: availability of locally sourced ingredients, ease of cooking in the kitchen, kitchen equipment, cost, chef training - lots of pitfalls. The first big one is that all dishes will be cooked indoors. The kitchen is under construction but I got in did a quick walkaround (the construction chemical smell was awful so I got out of there fast.)













We've got two fryers, a grill-looking thing, a big refrigerator, electric hotplates, and an oven with one layer.

Here are the guidelines Leo asked me to keep in mind:

• Bar food, not restaurant food
• Don't be too filling - no hamburgers
• More meat, fewer vegetables
• Meats must be able to be cut up and eaten with toothpicks
• No soup
• Dry food, make people drink more booze
• Fried or grilled food
• Local customers like flavor inside their meat, so marinading is a plus

A couple of dishes are shoo-ins. BBQ chicken thighs are available locally and do well in the oven, so they're definitely on the menu. I make vinagrette-marinated pork or chicken kebabs with vegetables and those will fit right in. Leo wants to do ribs so we'll be doing those in the oven with Meathead's Memphis Dust. Sweet-sour slaw will be a side, or possibly mayo slaw if they like that better.

Here are a couple of items friends have suggested: nachos, bloomin' onion, cauliflower with cheese, artichokes, deviled eggs, club sandwich, jalapeno poppers. Nachos seem easy enough, we just need to find where to buy a big jar of jalapenos. I don't know if we can get the enormous onions that bloomin' onions need, or if they'll fit in the small fryer. Whole jalapenos for poppers might be a problem, I'll check.

So, what I need is ten or so amazing American dishes that can be easily made in a small kitchen by chefs unfamiliar with the concepts, subject to limited availability of local ingredients, and that can be served short-order style. Easy, right? I know if anyone can help, it's the Pit Forum members. You people are wizards. There's so much knowledge here it's not even funny.

[ComfortablyNumb]

My offer would be wings.

[jfmorris]

I second this! Good old fashioned Buffalo wings. If wings are not available, I've often done it with chicken legs (drumsticks), more meat on them, and my kids like it just as good.

[Karon Adams]

well, brisket can easily be sliced and served on skewers. just BBQ it and slice to size. IF you wanted to serve it as restaurant food, sliced with sauce over the Rice bowl would be terrific. if you are after increasing drink sales, make the BBQ MORE salty. easy enough to do and remember, in Asia, they LOVE salt. spoke to a friend from Korea, he told me that while America has national diabetes issues, Korea, Japan & China have kidney issues because they love salt.

if you want to play east & west, the old marvelous steamed buns (standard pub food in China, apparently) is perfect with American BBQ pork.

If you want to make the slaw really unusual, use the oil from the dripping of your BBQ to make the Mayo. then you'll have BBQ slaw and no one will know how you managed to smoke cabbage!

Do your chicken legs lollipop style, even the wings. those are super cute and you can wrap the handle portion of the bone with a napkin.

for the kebobs, try to incorporate local veg. Look to the local markets for seafood the people eat. get a salt block and smoke it, then cook your seafood on them to transfer the salt.

Of course, the BBQ will be a make ahead item but with sauce on hand, you should be OK. when you make it, package in portions in vaccum bags while still hot. you can them hold the bags in a sous vide pot until needed and when you open, they'll be as good as fresh. Steamed buns are great cause they can be made ahead and steamed to cook in moment. of course the slaw makes up easy.

I wouldn't do too much in sweets but salty snacks, American style would be great. try home made pretles with lots of kosher salt. you might make a kosher salt and dried seaweed blend the locals will love.

I hope this might give you some ideas.

[EdF]

I was thinking the steamed buns with pulled pork, brisket or pulled chuck roast. The only setback there is smoke flavor. There are devices out there that can do smoking indoors (check Breville/Polyscience for an expensive example - there are cheaper ones on Amazon).

Ribs - maybe even Meatheads "Chinatown RIbs" just for fun!

Chicken thighs, wings, oh yeah!

Smoked fish?

[Karon Adams]

low and slow is always the key, smoke is for flavor. so, yes, you CAN so it indoors. Chefsteps does it sous vide.

[Karon Adams]

you can use smoke salt to help bring some smoke flavor or, if you have a place away from work, you can make a small smoker that will allow you to do some offsite work. ALSO, you are in Chine, think Chinese. Pig's feet and Chicken feet. they offer great gelatin when cooked and also, beloved in China. treat them with American BBQ flavors. BOOM

[Mudkat]

This will be an interesting thread and story. How 'bout pork belly burnt ends, bite size?

[Mudkat]

Here's a good thread to get started on pork belly burnt ends. Lost in China

I am not sure how you would smoke them indoors.

https://pitmaster.amazingribs.com/forum/the-pit-mastery-program/318196-pork-belly-burnt-ends#post318196

[Karon Adams]

yup Pork Belly is a very common dish so treating it with some spice and smoke salt and cooking it would be great.

[ILikePigButts]

Lost in China http://howtobbqright.com/2017/04/17/...ly-burnt-ends/

[RonB]

You can take won ton skins and fill them with just about anything - pulled pork, beef, or chicken with some minced veggies - especially sauteed onions. They would be something familiar yet different. They could be assembled in advance and then quickly fried when ordered.
Kabobs were mentioned above, but I'd make mini kabobs and have two or three in an order. If the meat is cut into small chunks, it should cook quickly. Yakatori is actually what I'm thinking, but with different meats marinated in whatever you think will work. Is there any chance that your friend could get the small Japanese grill that yakatori it traditionally made on?

[CaptainMike]

Sausages.

[EdF]

And maybe some variation on Chinese sausages, which are very delicious! Think fusion!

[Troutman]

Carry the pork belly theme one further, make cracklins from the skin and fat back. Cut that into cubes with a toothpick stuck in the side. Line them up horizontally on a long narrow plate, or have them on a round plate pinwheel style.

How about a Mexican theme, something as ubiquitous as chips and salsa. Making your own chips is not that hard if they are not available. Or make homemade tortillas, roll them with ground pork, deep fry and make taquitos.

Any sort of fried cheese stick like a mozzarella stick.

Scotch eggs. A soft boiled egg rapped in a layer of sausage and flash fried.

Any vegetable type tempura; fried mushrooms, onion rings, zucchini, local veggies, etc etc.

Lots, and I mean LOTS, of bowls of free salty nuts. Oldest bar trick in the book, keeps them thirsty !!!!

[EdF]

I like the pork belly direction, but these folks may be spoiled by char siu and char yuk!

[Mudkat]

Char so? 😁

[Troutman]

almost forgot, a popular wine bar here in Texas called MAX's serves up fried chicken. Just good old fashion buttermilk battered fried chicken by the piece. They also couple them with the crowd pleaser, chicken and waffles. Not the restaurant plate presentation but a smaller, sort of mini version. VERY popular here !!!

[Karon Adams]

yeah, that would go over huge! Simple American fried Chicken and I LOVE the Chicken and Waffles idea.

[Mark N]

Fried chicken is huge in South Korea and they do crazy stuff with their version. Fusion fried chicken may work really well.

[MBMorgan]

For starters, have a look through Meathead's Snacks and Munchies recipe section: https://amazingribs.com/tested-recip...nchies-recipes

[jfmorris]

I'll second the chicken wings idea. Buffalo wings are an American bar food. And doing it right (twice fried) means you can par fry the wings (or drumsticks if using legs) well in advance (fry at 300F), then refrigerate. As ordered, bring them out for the second fry - about 5 minutes at 375F, which is where the skin crisps, then toss in your buffalo sauce. The key will be that you will need to adapt to the hot sauces available where you are. Here, I would use Frank's hot sauce, or another "Louisiana style" hot sauce, mixed with butter (or margarine which actually mixes better), a dash of vinegar, and a few other spices (black pepper, red pepper, garlic salt, celery seed). It will have a different flavor using different hot sauces, but still be good.

[EdF]

I don't expect a lack of pepper sauces in China!

[Randy-Phx]

Candied bacon strips
chuck roast burnt ends
grilled chicken on a stick
pilled pork mini tacos
pulled pork nachos
smoked chicken wings then deep fried
smoked meat balls

[Lost in China]

Good ideas! Keep 'em coming!

One thing I should mention is that no dishes need be Asian-themed. This is a high end lounge for well-off Chinese, many of whom have traveled to Europe and are comfortable with foreign foods. In fact, the more foreign, the better. Trendy hotspots are all about what's novel and interesting. It's in our favor that American BBQ and bar foods are almost unheard of. In our disfavor there was one restaurant that served credible American bar food and it just went out of business.

Several people mentioned wings, and that's good standard pub fare. I didn't mention that wings are already a menu item at almost every bar. KFC started the trend with their "New Orleans wings" and everyone copied them. I always get looks of puzzlement from locals when I tell them New Orleans has never heard of these wings.

If we're going to do smoked dishes, how can you smoke on an indoor oven? Liquid smoke?

[EdF]

I'll say again that your best bet is likely to be some kind of American BBQ / Chinese cuisines fusion. For upscale folk the creativity could be very appealing.

[EdF]

This is the expensive indoor smoking device I mentioned, but there are cheaper one available: https://polyscienceculinary.com/prod...-smoke-infuser

[MBMorgan]

If we're going to do smoked dishes, how can you smoke on an indoor oven? Liquid smoke?

You can use something like this: https://www.amazon.com/Indoor-Outdoo...=indoor+smoker

[Mosca]

Atomic Buffalo Turds.

[EdF]

Another winner!

[RonB]

Another thought would be shrimp dusted with a dry rub then grilled. Serve with a bbq sauce for the dip.

[RonB]

Mudkat - it does sound good. I think I will have to try it.

[Mudkat]

Lol! I might beat you to it. Meathead's creole seasoning should do the trick! RonB. Now, what BBQ sauce I wonder? 🤔

[RonB]

For the OP, it will be whatever he can find the ingredients to make it with. For Mudkat, there are a bazillion choices...