Bill Parlaman From BBQFreaks.com Asks, What Are You Going To Barbecue…?

So now you should have a pretty good background on the definition and history of barbecue so we're ready to start talking about the "what" and and the "how" of barbecue.

The choices are endless when it comes to what to barbecue and you are really only limited by your imagination.

But for the purposes of our little conversation here lets just start with the four basic meat categories used in a typical KCBS Barbecue contest, shall we?

KCBS stands for the KANSAS CITY BARBEQUE SOCIETY which is the largest nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting barbecue sporting over 8000 members and manages almost 300 barbecue contests all over America.

Now there are other sanctioning bodies who sponsor barbecue contests but the KCBS is the biggest and most popular so we'll use their standards for now.

I don't wont get into barbecue competitions in this post but going forward I will explain how these competitions work and also discuss some of the differences between each barbecue organization.

So in a typical KCBS sanctioned barbecue contest you'll be cooking four different types of meats, lets you and I take a look at these–okie dokie, here we go…

PORK RIBS:

SPARE RIBS: The rib section from the belly, with or without the brisket. A complete slab of ribs should contain 11 bones.

ST. LOUIS STYLE RIBS: Spare ribs that have the brisket bone and all skirt meat removed.

LOIN BACK ( BABY BACK ) RIBS: These ribs are prepared from the blade and center of the Loin. This type of rib usually has more meat between the bones and is sometimes referred to as "Finger Meat." It will contain eight to eleven rib bones.

PORK SHOULDER:

The pork shoulder is also called a "Boston Butt" or "Picnic Shoulder." This is the cut of meat used to make pulled pork. This cut of meat is defined as the portion containing the arm bone, shank bone, and a portion of the blade bone. The shoulder may be cooked in one piece or divided into two parts with the lower portion being the Arm Picnic and the upper portion being the "Boston Butt."

BEEF BRISKET: The beef brisket is the underside chest muscle from Beef Cattle. Whole brisket weighs anywhere from eight to sixteen pounds trimmed. The brisket has a thick end called the Point end and a thin end called the Flat.

One side of the brisket has a layer of fat and another larger layer of fat extends inside the point end. The fat has a natural baste for flavor and moisture as it cooks and should be removed prior to serving.

CHICKEN

Chicken can also be Cornish Hen. For a contest it can either be prepared whole, half or any combination of the chicken or Cornish Hen as the cook may choose.

So there you have it, the four main categories cooked in a typical KCBS cooking event.

Now you don't have to cook all four meats to enter a contest but you won't be eligible to win the Grand Champion trophy if you don't compete in all four.

So stay tuned over the next few weeks and I'll show you how to barbecue each one of these awesome cuts of meat so you can turn out championship barbecue for your family whenever you want…

Heck, you just might get the "Que" bug and enter a local contest on your own or with your family as an entire team.

Just think about it for a second, what a great way to spend time with your family and come together as a team cooking in a barbecue competition, this is what barbecue is all about!

Now go smoke something, Bill Parlaman

If you enjoyed this please feel free to pass it along to your family and friends. Also, I'd love to know what's going through your mind so don't be bashful and feel free to post your comments below. I'd really mean it when I say I'd love to hear from you.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot, if you have any questions at all about barbecue or how to barbecue make sure you ask them here. I'd love to answer any questions you might have.

Bill Parlaman is the creator of www.BbqFreaks.com, an online community of barbecue enthusiasts from all over the world. Through this community Bill helps backyard chefs cook great barbecue and build stronger barbecue businesses. Bill is also a student of emotional direct response marketing and copywriting and is featured in the book, Ultimate Success Secrets. You can also follow him on Twitter.