Racks Of Ruin are a British competitive BBQ team. This blog shares our passion for authentic low and slow Barbecue and includes BBQ restaurant reviews, BBQ smoking tips and recipes.
Great Taste 2014 reveals new stars and Racks Of Ruin is a winner
The world’s largest blind-tasted food awards Great Taste, has just released the stars of 2014 and Racks Of Ruin is amongst the producers celebrating as the Racks Of Ruin BBQ Sauce is now able to proudly carry the little gold and black Great Taste logo.
Judged by over 400 of the most demanding palates belonging to food critics, chefs, cooks, members of the Women’s Institute, farmers and a host of food writers and journalists, Great Taste is widely acknowledged as the most respected food accreditation scheme for artisan and speciality food producers. When a product wears a Great Taste label it carries a badge of honour but more importantly, the Great Taste logo is a signpost to a wonderful tasting product – and hundreds of judges have worked hard to discover the very best through hours and hours of blind-tasting a total of 10,000 different foods and drink.
Great Taste is simply about taste, not clever branding or smart packaging. Judges are presented with a spoonful of sauce, a pie, a slice of salami, or a cup of espresso, with no wrappings, jars or marks – and they taste, confer and re-taste before making the decision on whether a product should be a 1-, 2- or 3-star winner. In total more than 12 judges will have tasted and commented on each product.
This year a massive 10,000 products were entered into Great Taste, so it is with great pride that the Racks Of Ruin BBQ sauce has been honoured with a 1 star award.
Racks Of Ruin are a competitive BBQ team who have been competing on the growing UK BBQ scene since 2011. Head chef Philip Newton started the team after discovering a love for Low and Slow BBQ and beginning to explore smoke as an ingredient.
Racks Of Ruin understand the importance of impressing the judges with a memorable flavour and like to do a lot of research into the best possible combinations.
The Racks Of Ruin BBQ Sauce has been developed to accompany smoked meats and can be enjoyed as a table sauce, baste or marinade. Sweet at first with a gentle lingering heat, this sauce will leave you wanting more.
Here is our recipe for delicious competition style baby back ribs.
Where possible use fresh ribs, it is good to choose ribs which are meatier and not cut too close to the bone, remember also that marbled fat is good for low and slow BBQ.
Firstly prepare the ribs by trimming off any excess fat or sinew from the surface of the ribs and also remove the membrane on the back of the ribs, this will allow the rub and smoke to get through.
Next rub yellow mustard, French’s is best, all over the ribs to give them a light coating. This will allow the rub to stay in place and also acts as a tenderiser.
Now comes the rub, we coat the ribs with a nice even layer of our own secret rub but also recommend you try Buzz’s Butt Dust available here
Once the ribs have been liberally coated with your chosen dry rub add a handful of brown sugar and layer it across the top of each rack of ribs (meat side), spreading it evenly. Leave this dissolve into syrup like consistency (about 20 minutes)
Whilst the rub and sugar sit on the ribs, bring your smoker up to 250 degrees Fahrenheit and add a mix of Hickory and Apple wood. Use more Apple than Hickory, as hickory is slightly more robust and is only there to supplement the Apple wood rather than over power it.
Smoke the ribs for about 2 hours until they take on a nice colour and the meat begins to draw back from the bones.
Next it is time to make use of the “Texas Crutch” which means tightly wrapping the ribs in foil to create a steaming effect to tenderise the ribs.
Lay out 2 pieces of foil on top of each other and put the smoked rack of ribs on top (meat side down). Then add 3 pieces of thinly sliced unsalted butter, a tablespoon of brown sugar, 1 tablespoon of honey and 2/3 tablespoons of Racks of Ruin BBQ Sauce and another layer of your chosen dry rub. Bring in each piece of foil and wrap the ribs tightly, ensuring all the wrapping ingredients stay inside with no leaks.
Repeat for all the racks of ribs that you are smoking.
Return the ribs to the smoker for 1 more hour and check for tenderness, as you unwrap there will be a syrup like sauce, carefully pour this off and keep it, as this will be used for the final glaze.
Baste each rack with the sauce retained from the wrapping mixture and finish on the smoker to set a lovely sticky glaze and give a nice deep mahogany colour.
Serve with more Racks Of Ruin BBQ Sauce on the side and your choice of traditional BBQ side dishes.
"The Best Burger In The World" - How would you even know?
A few years ago, before I became somewhat fanatical about low and slow BBQ, I did a lot of research into how to make the best burger "in the world".
With the sheer amount of sites out there claiming to have the “worlds best burger” the research was easy enough.
It kind of reminded me of that scene from the movie "Elf" where Buddy sees the sign for "The Worlds Best Coffee"
"You did it! Congratulations! World's best cup of coffee! Great job, everybody! It's great to be here."
Every foodie I know offers plenty of tips for great homemade burgers, but one thing I realised very quickly is that breadcrumbs and eggs definitely DO NOT belong in a burger.
Good quality, freshly ground meat, seasoned with only salt and pepper is a perfectly acceptable start. I actually took to blending rock salt and peppercorns together in equal proportions and simply seasoned the meat with a few pinches before forming the patties.
I upgraded this blend with paprika and some garlic granules and also started to add a few splashes of Worcestershire sauce.
This was until a friend over at BBQ fanatics shared a link that changed my thinking.
This link revealed that salting the beef too early will lead to a tougher burger and it was a very interesting read.
The Burger Lab
It was right about this time that I was also testing the Charleston Gourmet Burger Marinade.
Yes it contains salt, but the additional meat tenderisers and flavouring really did create some of the juiciest and most tender burgers I have ever grilled. Perhaps it wasn’t the “best burger in the world” but how could I possibly know? I do know it was very good indeed and it couldn’t be simpler.
Just add 1/4 cup of the marinade to 1 pound of ground beef (preferably fresh ground with a good fat content, nothing too lean) and leave it for about 30 minutes before forming the patties.
Remember not to over work the meat, the marinade keeps the meat tender and you don’t want to ruin that when making up the patties.
Cooking Burgers
The next step to is to know how to properly cook the burger.
Have you ever seen a friend or family member cook a burger on the BBQ from frozen? Flipping it all the time and pressing down hard to get those grill marks?
Sadly I have.
If you are still speaking to them, then perhaps you can share these tips.
Fresh is best
Make your burgers fresh and if they have been frozen then ensure they are thoroughly defrosted before they see the grill.
Sear the meat.
Burgers need to be cooked hot and fast with a nice crispy sear on each side of the burger.
Some cooks use a griddle/skillet on top of their BBQ grates for extra heat distribution.
I have recently started to use Grillgrates and have had fantastic results. These grates are specially designed to allow for maximum heat distribution and transfer during the cook whilst they sit on top of your existing grates, they also create some ridiculously cool grill marks.
Flipping the burgers.
I flip the burger only once. Flipping the burger too many times will toughen up the meat and you will lose delicious juices. If the burger is particularly thick or you are making a stuffed burger then you may want to cook the burger indirect at first and then sear to finish it, rather than flipping it all the time.
Cook with the lid down
Keeping the lid closed will radiate heat and help cook the burger and this will help retain the moisture.
Don’t press the burger
As you press down you lose juice, and also run the risk of flare ups, which are less of an issue if you are using Grillgrates, but still something you want to avoid.
Check it is cooked
A raw/rare burger is risky business, even with fresh ground you run the risk of food borne illness as bacteria on the surface of the meat can end up uncooked at the centre.
I know people who love a rare burger but it’s not a chance I like to take.
Finish in style.
It’s all in in the extras and the meat is only part of the story and as Sheldon Cooper in the Big Bang Theory is know to say “….this burger has a much more satisfying meat to bun to condiment ratio”
The choice here is all yours, but I like a slice of melted cheese, crunchy salad leaves and a fresh bun, preferably toasted.
I also like to add a couple of tasty pickles and recommend you try Jenny’s traditional bread and butter pickles.
I would also like share a nice and simple burger sauce for you to try.
Burger sauce
1 tablespoon of Italian dressing (I use Wishbone)
1 large heaped tablespoon of mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon of yellow mustard
1/2 teaspoon of onion granules
1 teaspoon sugar
Mix to combine the ingredients and leave it in the fridge for the flavours the combine and mature.
Jenny's Pickles, Grillgrates, Stufz Burger Press, Charleston Gourmet Burger Marinade and more can all be purchased in the UK from WishBox USA.
Soul Food Sunday. Slow cooked black beans (Grandma's recipe) and southern fried chicken, made using the "Palmetto Dust" breader mix from @wishboxusa #soulfood #southern #usa
These are a fab appetiser and are also great for the big game or the holiday season. I usually smoke these on the Cobb, here is the recipe for you to try.
Ingredients
1 medium pork tenderloin, sliced into bite size chunks.
1 Mathesons smoked sausage sliced into rounds
Wooden skewers
Wood chips - Apple or Hickory
Dry rub.
Directions
Push the pork chunks onto the wooden skewers and alternate with sliced smoked sausage.
Dust the kebabs with a gentle layer of your chosen food Rub.
Light the Cobb and set it up for smoking using either a smoking pot with pre-soaked wood chips, or soaked chips wrapped in a foil packet and placed on the coals.
Add the grill plate and insert the roasting rack. Lay out the skewers onto the rack and smoke on the Cobb for about 45 mins.
Once cooked baste them in your favourite BBQ sauce and cook for another 15 - 20 minutes.
For those of you who have seen us around at BBQ competitions, you will know that we like to cook on the Cobb portable cooking system. I love this recipe, adapted from, BBQ Makes Everything Better it is the perfect way to feed a crowd with little effort. Why not give the following recipe a try.
Cobb recipe - Bacon and Cheeseburger Explosion.
Ingredients
500g Mince Beef
Packet of streaky bacon - Dry cured and smoked
1 Tsp Garlic powder
1/2 Tsp freshly ground Black Pepper
Large pinch of salt
2 Tsp of Worcester Sauce
Grated American cheese such as Jack or a medium cheddar is fine.
BBQ Sauce for glaze
Directions
Create a bacon weave using the sliced streaky bacon.
The best way to do this is by laying out 5-7strips vertically and then laying another strip horizontally and weaving it. I use a chopping board with a piece of cling film just larger than the final weave.
I create the weave by folding up every other bacon strip (1, 3, 5) and laying another piece horizontally, fold back the bacon and lift up every other piece (2, 4) lay another strip and repeat until you have a square weave.
Season the beef with garlic powder, black pepper, salt and Worcester sauce. Mix by hand but avoid over working the beef.
Flatten the beef into a square just smaller than the bacon weave and place it on top.
Here you can be creative.
I have stuffed this with a mix of cooked onions, peppers and smoked sausage or you could simply add cheese, for a bacon cheeseburger fatty.
3 Hard boiled eggs can also be placed in a horizontal row across the middle.
The original Bacon Explosion uses Sausage meat instead of beef and is then filled with cooked crispy bacon. Great for Christmas dinner!!
Other variations could include turkey mince then stuffed with a sage and onion stuffing mix and served with cranberry sauce.
Once you have chosen your stuffing, the next step is to roll up the beef starting from one end and form a giant sausage shape.
Next, roll the bacon weave around the beef, making sure all the ends are tucked in.
Set up the Cobb for smoking, using either the smoker pot filled with soaked wood chips or a foil packet with holes poked in it, laid on top of the coals.
Use the roasting rack and smoke/cook for about 90 minutes.
I like to glaze with BBQ sauce and cook for a further 10-15 mins to add a sticky sweetness.
Slice into rounds and serve in buns or as a side dish to a roast dinner. Great for breakfast or lunch whilst camping!
You like burgers, right? Then you need a great homemade burger sauce to serve with your latest creation. Check out our Burger sauce recipe below.
Burger sauce
1 tablespoon of Italian dressing (I use Wishbone)
1 large heaped tablespoon of mayo
1/2 teaspoon of Garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon of yellow mustard
1/2 teaspoon of Onion granules
1 teaspoon sugar
Mix to combine the ingredients and leave it in the fridge for the flavours to combine and mature.
At BBQ competitions I like to add a resting marinade before putting the pork into the cooler. I normally make this up from scratch, but today I used Hail Yeah vinegar sauce, which is available in the UK from WishBox USA. Quick, easy and delicious!!
