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September 2017 - HOT From The Pit
It's that time again, time for another issue of the HOTtest thing to hit your inbox this month- so set your thermometer's alarms, toss another apple log in your firebox, grab a beverage and let's take a peek together at what's been going on in The Pit the last month.

It's HOT From The Pit, September 2017!
Operation BBQ Relief (OBR) in Houston, TX
As many of you know by now, Operation BBQ Relief (OBR) is a 501.c.3 Disaster Relief Organization, and one of the charities we proudly support with your help. In fact, 5% of your membership dues go to OBR. The reason for this is because they do great work, and they do it when good people need it most! OBR arrives on the scene of disaster relief and helps feed the hungry, the homeless, the despondent, and the emergency crews. OBR 'gives all they have to give when people lose everything they have to lose'.

After the recent devastating hurricane and flooding in Texas, OBR was able to deploy there and serve 317,760 meals over 11 days in the Houston area- and we're not talking peanut butter & jelly, this is BBQ! For more detailed pictures and updates from OBR Texas, including those from our very own Rick Browne, P.h.B, please see the topics posted in our Charities We Support sub-channel
Sadly, not even 2 weeks after Hurricane Harvey made landfall in Texas, USA, one of the most powerful hurricanes ever recorded in the Atlantic, Irma, brought devastation to nearly the entire state of Florida, not to mention the devastation in the Caribbean and the Leewards in the days prior. As of this writing, OBR is currently lining up a staging area to move in and help the people and the emergency crews of Florida.

How do they keep doing this? With your help! OBR relies on donations of not only money but also people. Without volunteers physically helping they couldn't do what they do.
Many folks didn't fare as well as our Wi-Fi-less friend here, so if you're able to help in any way, please visit their website and sign up!

For more of Jerry King's cartoons, click here.
3rd Place Steak Champion, Powersmoke_80!
The event, titled "The Joe Friday Sr Memorial Cooking for Christmas", was organized by our own Jon Solberg.

Jon explains: "The event was conceived to meet the request of Joe Friday Sr. in his last days with us. Joe Friday is my girlfriend's father. He was very involved in a charity to raise money for children's Christmas. Joe asked us to continue to "take care of his kids".

"Joe's son, Joe Jr, and I decided to do a steak cook. I took the organizer roll and Joe Jr. took on sponsorships. 

"A logo was developed, rules written, judging plate and score sheet drawn up. Site plan developed for the venue, and on and on. 

"We were too small for the Steak Cookoff Association (SCA) so we went on our own. Followed their guidelines with a mix of KCBS for scoring only because I understand that a bit better. Steaks were judged on appearance, doneness and taste.

"For the cook we had 14 teams entered. We had a local BBQ caterer on site doing BBQ and sides for donation. 

"I estimate that we had 350-400 visitors to the event. This year's event was built to ensure we could become an annual event. Yes it is our intention to continue and grow the event."

If you're in Michigan, are interested in traveling to cook in next year's event, or are interested in being involved in other ways, visit the topic and let Jon know!
September's Gold Medal Giveaway Winner, IvanC !
Congratulations to this month's Gold Medal Giveaway winner, Ivan Scwhartz, a.k.a. IvanC, from Washington!
"Wow; thank you to AmazingRibs.com, and thank you all for your kind words!

"I've been a big fan of AmazingRibs.com since 2009 and am proud to be a Charter Member of the Pitmaster Club. This website is my first stop for smoking and grilling info, and I can't begin to imagine the number of times I've sent friends here to learn the secrets of great BBQ," Ivan said.

Ivan chose the The Good-One Open Range, valued at $1,099.00!
Wish him a "congrats!" in his Pit announcement post!
Remember- as a Pitmaster Club member, YOU have the same odds as anyone else with a USA delivery address and you get automatic monthly entry, so make sure to keep @AmazingRibs.com in your email safe list so you don't miss that email when it comes. 

It WILL be one of you!
A Member's USA BBQ Tour

In Texas alone he was able to visit Franklin BBQ, Snow's, Louie Mueller, and La Barbecue. After TX it was off to New York City.

"Honestly after I returned to NYC after Austin, TX, I really could not (maybe even DID NOT) want to eat one more slice of brisket or anything smoked. Luckily in New York there are no shortages of restaurants," fetyani said.

I for one would love the chance to try so much brisket that I didn't want any more... color me #jealous!
Show Us What You're Cookin'!
Every month that goes by it gets harder & harder to pick from the myriads of outstanding cooking pictures our members are sharing to fill the highlight reel here. So go ahead, make it hard on me, flood the forum with your pics, I don't mind!
Kicking things off this month, brand new Pit member waywardsister makes a grand entrance to The Pit with this incredible shot as her first post! At a neighborhood BBQ with her trailer-mounted 200 gallon 'Tank Girl' smoker, they prepared pulled pork, chicken, stuffed pork tenderloins and a leg of lamb. Here's the stuffed tenderloin and lamb with board sauce:
Texastweeter is makin' pizza- I had the same expression!
Another gorgeous brisket, this time from Pit member Sephon, perfection!
PJBowmaster's 16 oz. bone-in ribeye, and a fantastic beverage to accompany it
Johnardoin is serving up a new AR recipe - pork belly bahn mi sandwich!
JeffJ's annual family BBQ makes me wish I was related! Sliders on the Arteflame insert,
...and ribs from the PBC. This is only a sample of his pictures, more here!
Tuna steaks from hoovarmin , with a relish is made with figs, peaches, aged balsamic vinegar, red onion, and mint.
...and a bonus offering from hoovarmin, beef short ribs smoked to perfection!
Grilled scallops and shrimp, with a simple fresh salad from fuzzydaddy- fantastic!
Leftover pulled chuck chili from Deaf Arty- a perfect use for leftover pulled beef!
We wouldn't expect anything less than this beautiful offering from veteran foodie troymeister- Italian-style baked clams, mushrooms, artichokes, and 'haricots verts'!
Smoked wings from Zman23 using pecan wood, with a sauce of butter, garlic, Zatarain's cayenne, brown sugar, and some of chiles from his garden.
Dueling pork loins from Nate- one with a rib rub and a peachy chipotle sauce. The other had kosher salt, coarse black pepper, garlic powder, and some rosemary. "Not sure what I liked more," he said. I'd like the chance to decide!
Brewmaster cooked up a dozen racks of ribs (9 St Louis and 3 baby backs) on twin modded PBCs for a meeting of the Flight Wing section of the air museum
More PBC rib love, this time from Citizenoftheworld.
And who doesn't love a good ol' grilled cheese? We know Jon Solberg is quite the pitmaster, but here he shows us his skillet skills using bread that he baked on his kettle!
JCinPA serves up a cookbook-worthy plated shot of one of his three 1.5" ribeyes. "These three steaks were 4.25 lbs in all. Got a nice bottle of Chateauneuf du Pape to go with them, then made a mushroom, brandy, cream sauce to go on the steaks, and Hasselback potatoes and sauteed spinach", he said.
Livermoron shares his own incredible shot of a surf & turf steak and lobster cook in the same thread as above.
HouseHomey wraps us up this month with an incredible shot of goodness- short rib, tri tip, chicken thigh and shrimp- you need to see all of his photos! And he used the marinade shared by member Citizenoftheworld here.
That completes the highlight reel from the last month. Nice work to everyone who posted! 

Stay tuned for next month's collection. To see all the above posts as well as many others that we just didn't have room for, be sure to visit the new Show Us What You're Cooking, Fall 2017 topic, and be sure to show off your handy work!
A Beautiful Classic Gets a Refurb!
Pit member johnardoin spent 2 weeks on a restoration project returning beauty to an old mid-century relic.

"Sign on it said "free", he said. "Took it home. Spent 2 weeks getting it to work. Works like new. A classic from the 50's. It's amazing how well these things were made," he said.
"I saw some of these restored and for sale on eBay, about 550 bucks, all were sold! I'm keeping this one though. Very nostalgic and quite the conversation piece!"

Nice work johnardoin!

Do you have a refurb project that you've completed or one you'd like to get started? Visit the Grills, Smokers & Fuels channel and brag away or ask for tips & advice!
Henrik Cooks for 300!
Henrik's many adventures never cease to amaze us! First he's hanging out at a 700 year old castle on the west coast of Sweden, where they have to crane the smokers over the walls (I guess catapults were out of the question), networking and selling his books,
...then he's off to cook for 300 people, with only "Rude Boy" (below, left), his home-built offset smoker. And this is just in the last month!

"I smoked all the meat, made all the sides. It was plenty of work, but with good planning I managed to get it all ready in time.

"I did 3 briskets, 3 pork hams, 15 topside beef and 25 pork bellies. All in one go, in my smoker. Pretty darn cool. I had 60 kilos (140 lbs) of meat in that smoker. Love that oak wood flavor! This means I cooked food for 300 people, singlehandedly. Definitely my biggest crowd yet. I'm glad Rude Boy has the capacity, monitoring more than one smoker would be too much. I'm also very glad I got a guy to help me plate and serve, on my own it would be impossible", he says.
What Surprised You About us the Most?
Pit member Mudkat recently started a very cool topic which he titled "What's your biggest surprise when becoming a Pit member?" He says "For me I am surprised at how many different things can be grilled, smoked, roasted, baked, and shared around a cooker. Really! My mind has been expanded beyond it's fire meets food potential."

Some of the other comments include:

  • "I really think it has to be the camaraderie. I'm used to flame wars, and this site seems to be able to keep the egos in check."
  • "Camaraderie is felt on almost every post in here! I am not a social media person so this is the only site I've ever participated in. Man I'm glad I do!"
  • "How welcoming The Pit is to new members and how helpful they are when someone asks for some help/direction. Moments after I asked my first question, it was a professional chef from Alaska who answered me. IMPRESSIVE!"
  • "That such a diverse bunch of peoples can get along peacefully by sharing something common to all of us humans: food and fire and respectful conversation!"
  • "What amazed me is how open and friendly everyone is and how willing to help you out with, not only cooks, but other things as well."
  • "The friendliness and lack of drama. I have participated in a number of forums over the years on various topics. This is the friendliest for me."

Do you agree with the above?

Not sure, haven't really visited The Pit?

Well, what are you waiting for- stop in & say hi and see for yourself!
Catch up on the PitCasts!
Greg Rempe (BBQ Central Show) has been hard at work setting up & recording weekly interviews with your fellow Pit members over the last few months. Get to know the voices and personalities behind the screen names!

Here are some of the latest shows:

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"HOT From The Pit" is the exclusive members only monthly newsletter of the AmazingRibs.com Pitmaster Club from Aaron "Huskee" Lyons, Manager of the Pitmaster Club.

You're receiving this because you're awesome and you're a member of the Club!

For past issues check out the newsletter archive in The Pit.