Barbecue can bring people together and is, to many, considered an art form. Perfecting the art of managing fire, smoke, sauces and seasoning to perfectly cook meats, veggies takes practice. Because of this learned skill, there are competitions all over the world where aspiring pitmasters gather to show off their grilling prowess. It's also a great way to learn and meet people while tasting delicious foods. My brother, sister and I recently took part in a local barbecue competition using some of the best grills on the market and some handy tools to cook chicken thighs, St. Louis-style ribs and brisket. While we didn't win, we were proud of the food we made, and it was enjoyed by many of our fellow competitors. Here are the grills and tools we used for the competition and are also used regularly at home. Kamado Joe's Konnected Joe is a fantastic blend of traditional charcoal cooking with some modern technology to make it a bit easier to manage. When it came time to decide which cookers to use for the competition, I'm lucky to have had options. After discussing the types of proteins we had to cook, the flavors we planned to season with and the type of fuel source we felt would best complement it all, we decided to go with three: a pellet grill, a charcoal smoker and a kamado grill. For the pellet grill, we picked the Recteq Flagship XL 1400 due to its expansive 1,437-square-inch cooking area and massive pellet hopper. It was perfect for cooking one of our two briskets overnight. Early the next morning, when we wrapped the meat in some Reynolds Butcher Paper, plenty of cooking space was available for half of the chicken thighs we had been marinating overnight and a slab of our ribs. We then added blended fruitwood pellets that produced great smoke that meshed wonderfully with the seasonings and flavor of the meats. Barbecue é uma forma de arte que une as pessoas. A competição de churrasco é uma maneira de aprender, conhecer pessoas e experimentas comidas deliciosas. Os dispositivos utilizados, como grelhadores e termômetros, são essenciais para cozinhar carnes de forma adequada.
