Harry Soo's Barbecue 101 Class: An Overview

If you have come to this blog post in hopes of learning all of Harry Soo's secrets... You are going to be disappointed. You still have to take his class. I'm just giving you an in depth look into what I enjoyed and a summary of all of the information that Harry covers. 

I love to BBQ, I am no professional by any means but I do like to consider myself an avid novice. One day I make amazing ribs that I would compare to some of the top 10 I have tasted at competitions; and some days it's bland undercooked mishmash. I have seen and been told some of the best ways to BBQ by the best teams in the US and I still can't get it right. I try to BBQ when I can but like many of you, I still struggle with consistency in my final product. 

I think of it like bowling; it looks like you're just rolling a ball down a lane. How hard can it be, right? You won't know until you try it. This is one of the aspects that I enjoyed about Harry Soo's class. It's very hands on. Your not just watching him do it, you get to try it yourself with real time feed back. 

The class cost $349 per student for each class, so Harry squeezes in tons of information. You meet at 7:45 am at his home and are there till about 3 to 5 pm. You can't put a time on BBQ, it's done when it's done. Here is a list of what Harry covers in his class:

How to light a fire
How to make your own rubs and sauces
How to prepare chicken, ribs, pork, brisket, and tri-tip
How to prepare injections and marinades
Detailed instructions on cooking methods
Equipment and Accessories
Overview of BBQ contests and judging
Cooking long-haul Brisket and Pork Butts
Cooking spareribs, St. Louis Ribs, and Baby Back Ribs
Cooking Tri-Tip Santa Maria Style
Cooking Half Chickens and Chicken Thighs
Cooking Sausages and Links
Answering your grilling and BBQ problems and questions
Certificates and Conclusion

What's special thing about Harry is no matter where he is, he is always experimenting. Today Harry smoked a red wattle pig raised at Cooks Pig Ranch - one of the pig producers featured right here on MEAT ME. Raised locally and supplied to nearby restaurants and cooks like Harry Soo.

This particular class, we had the opportunity to be joined by Harry's fiancé, Donna, from the Professional BBQ Team "Butcher's Daughter". Along with Harry's expertise, we got to hear Donna's technique on the same process. Here Donna talks about temperature and what type of bark color to look for.

Harry goes over the details of what to look for when smoking a whole hog on a Daniel Boone Deluxe Pellet Smoker. He is giving away this particular model on his site. I would look for it on his giveaways page.

After discussing different types of smokers Harry goes over the specifics of barbecue safety and food handeling. Harry gets right into it with how to make the perfect rub to use on your meats.

After a quick taste test, we're off to sampling different sauces that Harry uses with his barbecuing and how each effects the final flavor.

Without missing a beat we are mixing the injection we will be using on both the brisket and pork butt. Since the brisket takes longer to smoke than the class allows we check in on one that was started the night before to get an understanding of where your bark is at and what to look for when it's finished.

Before injecting the meats, Harry discusses the different ways to trim the 2 meats; one that he would recommend for backyard smoking and one that he uses in competition.

Once the injections are mixed and sampled we each take turns injecting each piece of meat so we know exactly what to look for when we are do it on our own. Harry has a list of recommended products to use on his website which help with the learning curve.

After injections, it is time to start applying the rub to the meat. Harry covers the various ways in which to apply the rub as well as what to avoid. We all take turns using Harry's technique.

Donna is working on a special lamb recipe that she is using for a competition where you aren't allowed to use any modern day products. I don't mind the extra meat. I'll take whatever I can get. It was delicious.

You can't barbecue without a fire. Harry covers that too. From the type of coals and wood to keeping the fire burning for a whole 16 - 18 hours.

Once the meat is prepped it is ready to go on the the Weber Smokey Mountain where he talks about various ways of keeping the fire up to temperature.

The brisket is ready to be wrapped so everyone takes turns using Harry's technique. Sauce the meat, then wrap it. You have to make sure to keep the air out.

Trimming spare ribs is done in a very specific manner. Each person gets a chance to cut as well as remove the membrane.

Tri-Tip not to be confused with Bi-Tip (just kidding - there's no such thing) is then smoked differently with a piece of wood on the grill as opposed to a traditional smoker.

Harry and Donna have different styles of trimming chicken and they both show you the right way. There is no wrong way - each is unique to the cook.

After everyone gets a chance to cut chicken, it's time to season and prepare it to go in the smoker.

The epic pig is done and delicious. Stuffed from head to toe - it really is a delicious treat.

Harry also sears up some sashimi grade tuna, that is also seasoned with the rub we created at the beginning of the day. After preparing all that food it is finally time to eat.

Delicious and perfectly cooked try-tip side by side with some pork butt. Harry makes sure everyone taste the "Money Muscle"!

Brisket, done! I always look for the jiggle test. Shake the table and if the top of the brisket moves in the opposite direction of the bottom, 9 times out of 10 it's perfect.

The chicken is done and ready to be sauced, along with the ribs.

Finally after all that information we stuff our faces and talk shop about what we just learned compared to what we thought we knew.

It's official: my Certificate Of Completion. I did it! Now lets see if I can put it to good use. That will come next month.

As you can see, everyone in the class is pretty happy with their barbecue experience. Harry covers so much information it's impossible to write it all down. He does supply you with a note book that contains all the information that he covers in the class. When ever there is subjective material, he does expect you to write down what your prefer.

All in all, it was a pretty awesome class and when I was finished I was pretty overwhelmed with all the information I had just taken in. If I had any criticism it would be that Harry covers too much information in a barbecue 101 class, but then again I am sure if he covered less people would complain that were wasn't enough.

People come from all over to take his class so he has to make it worth it. One man rode out from Maryland on a motorcycle so you know his class is to be taken seriously.

You can find out more about Harry Soo's class at: http://www.slapyodaddybbq.com/classes-2/

DON'T MISS OUT! The first week of October is the American Royal and I will be doing a traveling documentary with El Fuego Fiasco as they embark on thier first trip out to Kansas City, MS. I will be launching videos and photos daily with exciting updates.

Look out - for what I believe - to be one of the most exciting adventures to hit MEAT ME!

Barbecue is No Joke!
Sean Rice
aka MEAT ME

Quest for the Best! The Joint BBQ, New Orleans

At this point I am noticing that more and more restaurants in New Orleans are either really good or really bad; or it is me and I have really bad luck. I have not found a middle ground, although I did find a little southern café on Magazine Street called Joey K’s. It is super simple and super good. No matter where I go people keep telling me that my trip won't be complete unless I eat at The Joint.

After a few phone calls I was finally able to get a hold of the owner Pete and he said come on down anytime and that he’d love to have me.

That Sunday was the last day of Fleet Week and I wanted to get shots of all the navy ships while they were still in town. Before lunch I headed east over the 90 bridge and after a few turns found myself in the Fischer Development Neighborhood. With in seconds I was among hundreds in a southern black neighborhood with no way out. Everywhere I looked I there were custom tricked out low riders bouncing and motorcycle crews doing burn outs till the smoke filled the streets.

I found myself, in what looked like, an episode of “The Wire”. I pulled my hat brim down over my eyes untill I could barely see. My white knuckles gripped the steering wheel over the dash board and sweat pouring down my face. I’ll be honest I’m fuckin' scared to death; my heart is pounding so hard I can barley hear the engine. I was a lone Cali boy lost in the middle of a southern black street party and my California plates made me stick out like a sore thumb. It was obvious I lost was not welcome here.

Every side street I looked down was filled with more and more people. At one point I even hear someone yell, “Are you lost son?” It felt like there was no way out. Finally up a head I saw a small opening under the bridge surrounded by tons of motorcycle crews. I thought this is my way out. I got to the intersection and just as I made a left I thought I was in the clear  but a crew of about 12 bikes pull right up in front of me and start burning smoke as hard as they can. I thought, “This is it!” I’m stuck here in the middle of the street I'm toast. At this point I'm shaking pretty bad. The smoke starts to clear and all the guys are sitting off the side of the road laughing their asses off.

I popped some heart medication and finally decided it was best to just head to The Joint which was on the other side of the river, and in a way better neighborhood. I was done with sticky situations. After all I had no idea what I was doing. So the shots of the NAVY ships never happened, but when I finally arrived at The Joint I could not wait so sit down and enjoy what all of New Orleans was talkin’ about.

MEAT ME: This is obviously The Joint.

The Joint: You are at The Joint Barbecue. Yes.

MEAT ME: It says on the website “Always Smokin’” how does that tie?

The Joint: Well we smoke all the food, and we are literally constantly tending the smoker.

MEAT ME: How long have you guys been out here?

The Joint: June 2004 we opened.

MEAT ME: What is your background in Barbecue?

The Joint: Well I grew up in Baltimore, which is not much of a barbecue town, but I went to college in Virginia and there was and there was an older gentleman from eastern North Carolina. He was there cooking really vinegary barbecue. That was the first time I had ever had barbecue. It was not about this sweet tomato’y sauce all over the meat. I liked that. I was just one of those moments. I moved down here in 1999 and started cookin’ just at the backyard level. Circumstances kind of came to me where I was looking for a job and there was this building right around the corner from our house and there was the opportunity and my wife and I decided to go for it.

MEAT ME: So what is your specialty?

The Joint: Everything. We started out doing pulled pork was the first thing I learned to do. Then ribs and moved on towards brisket and chicken. We have a great sausage that comes in from Brokerage, Louisiana; that we smoke here.

MEAT ME: Do you get all of your meats locally?

The Joint: No. It’s not like we have local purveyors. It’s mostly commodities market and nationally sourced probably.

MEAT ME: Do you get involved in Barbecue Competitions?

The Joint: A little bit. We had some friends who used to live here before Katrina and work took them back up to Memphis. They ended up with a barbecue team up there. We actually went up there for a few years and hung out and cooked at the Memphis in May. Overall the restaurant isn’t dying to spend my off time cooking barbecue competitively.

MEAT ME: So you guys are basically smoking barbecue here 24/7?

The Joint: Well may be 18 hours a day, something like that.

MEAT ME: Do you also make your own sauce, and all that?

The Joint: Yea all the rubs and all the sauces; everything is made from scratch.

MEAT ME: Have you noticed any change in the food and barbecue culture since Katrina?

The Joint: Yeah, I guess there are more restaurants and more people who are opening barbecue restaurants in town. I had always thought that New Orleans; primarily in this neighborhood compared to some parts of the city, is a bunch of people who aren’t necessarily from New Orleans but all the people are from the south have a good understanding of what good barbecue is like. I just feel that all these people have had an appreciation for it; just another nice offering coming to New Orleans. There are a lot of people post Katrina who come from other states, who are very barbecue-centric places. As far as people who open places that are from here and have always been here and decided to throw their hat into the ring.

MEAT ME: What separates barbecue out here from say Carolina, Texas, or the West Coast?

The Joint: Well I guess there isn’t necessarily the barbecue tradition in Louisiana. There is to some degree the andouille sausage which is exclusively a Louisiana thing, but smoked. There is the cochon de lait which is a young whole pig roasted on a vertical spit with hickory logs in the background. There is a festival dedicated to it in central Louisiana in mid May. New Orleans has always just always been New Orleans. It always had so many culinary traditions that barbecue just hasn’t taken root here.

MEAT ME: What are you guys doing so different that no matter where I go people are asking me if I have eaten at The Joint? If you can tell me…

The Joint: I’ll tell you what we do. We make our rubs and we make our sauces. We severe all the sauce on the side and we only do barbecue. We don’t do anything else. You know there are some places that are doing other things with their barbecue; like taco’s or something. That’s not us, we are just doing barbecue, and we do it the old fashion way. We start with charcoal in the morning and then it’s logs all day long and I think that does make a difference. I don’t have a lot of experience with a “set it, forget it” style smoker where it gas powered and it’s kind of pumping smoke into there. I am very suspicious of the results.

MEAT ME: What type of wood do you guys use?

The Joint: What ever we can get our hands on. Right now we have a lot of oak, pecan, and hickory. We try and get some kind of format with those 3 woods.

MEAT ME: What is your favorite kind of MEAT?

The Joint: Ribs are great. Brisket. You know the brisket is the hardest one to get right. We consistently try to pull the briskets off at the right time. A great brisket is my favorite it always depends. Ribs, pulled pork, brisket I certainly try it all.

It truly was delicious; the meat came right off the bone like a snake slithering into my mouth. I felt relieved that I finally got this amazing barbecue off my chest and lived to actually tell about it.

While I was there I ran into 4 guys who drove out from Toronto just to have his delicious barbecue. It that doesn’t tell you how good it is then I don’t know what will.

You can check out the joint at: http://alwayssmokin.com/
You can follow them on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/alwayssmokin
Find them on Yelp: http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-joint-new-orleans

Keep it simple stupid,
Sean Rice
aka MEAT ME