Sweet VS Spicy

[dwh25]

I have a bunch of the BBQ contests that are shown on Food Network stored on my Tivo. And last night I was watching some of them. I usually watch them because I love BBQ and I watch to get some tips and tricks that are being used by people who compete. One thing I noticed last night that a lot of the people who place in the top ten with ribs and chicken are shown pouring honey and brown sugar on their ribs and chicken before they foil them. I usually make my ribs and chicken with more spice than sweet. In the two contests I have taken part in my ribs took 8th and 12th place. My chicken has taken 4th place. I was wondering if I would score higher if I were to make my ribs and chicken more sweet than spicy. What are your opinions on this? Does sweet beat spicy in a competition? Let me know what you think!

[bubbaschili]

I do chili cook off's for charity and one week i place 1st place and the then the next week i place last...trying to figure out what a judge likes is a gamble.
to me one thing i like to do in chili is if the judging serves beer and the event has beer involved i like to make it a little hotter. i tone down on the heat if the event has no alcohol. this may not have helped much...but best of luck to you in your cook offs....keep posting us and keep us updated

[P_Schneider]

You could always try and strike a balance between the 2. I make a tropical heat and an apple bbq sauce that starts off sweet with a nice afterburn. For those who dont like that much heat I have a honey variety. I guess it would depend on where the contests were being held and who was judging for me to pick one or the other.

In the end, if it tastes good to you, you're a winner!

[darthcarl]

I think in the culinary universe that sweet tends to be the big crowd pleaser and not just in BBQ. Carmelization is one of the best and most loved of all flavors across the globe. Sweet is also simple and recognizable. Sugar, like salt, will also accentuate some other ingredients.

I have found in all subjective judgings, art & food alike, that if you have to explain what you were going for you have already lost. (if that bit o' wisdom helps)

[dwh25]

I saw something else about this subject that bothered me. On Saturdays the BBQ America show is on my local PBS station. On the show this week they talked to a BBQ judge about how to judge a BBQ contest. The first question asked was, “Do you cook BBQ?” The guy they were interviewing said, “No, I don’t cook. I just come to eat.” I was like WHAT??? That killed the rest of the interview for me!! Can you really know what you are talking about or looking for on competition BBQ if you do not cook BBQ?? Even for yourself at home?? I guess I never realized that this was the people who I am cooking for in a competition. Eye opening for someone who is still pretty new to the competition scene!

[bubbaschili]

there is one good thing about bbq and chili cook off's as it pertains to judges. there was a local event that i asked to be a judge and they said no i had to take a class to be qualified to judge.....i liked that...on the chili side.....you wanna judge....i know nothing about chili......who cares...judge.

[staffing]

While I recognize that the goal is to win, I would hate to see someone sacrifice their passion for heat to win a trophy. You can't eat a trophy, IMHO.

[imaguitargod]

You can't eat a trophy, IMHO.
Actually you can eat a trophy, you just can't digest it...plus passing it was be a pain as well... ;)

[DEFCON Creator]

Especially if it's the Golden Porcupine award.

[imaguitargod]

Especially if it's the Golden Porcupine award.
OMG!!! That's an actual award!
Clickie! (http://www.backtothesugarcamp.com/porcupines.html)

[thehotpepper.com]

Anyone can add heat, but not anyone can cook flavorful, moist meat done to perfection. It needs a good flavor, and I don't mean from a sauce, I mean the flavor it gets when cooking, from the rubs, the wood, the smoke, the flame, whatever. In a comp I'd worry more about the taste of the meat (meaning if you ate it without any sauce).