That old pitmaster in Lockhart told me to stop using sauce entirely and just focus on the rub

I was at Smitty's Market last summer and this guy named Roy watched me grab a bottle of sauce and just shook his head, said "if your meat needs a crutch you're hiding bad decisions" and honestly I haven't touched a bottle since, anyone else get called out like that at a BBQ joint?

2 comments

2 Comments

mason.mary17d ago

That line about 'hiding bad decisions' hits hard, but has anyone considered that it might be about texture too? A good bark is basically edible armor, and sauce just softens it into mush.

jesse_burns817d ago

Man that Roy sounds like a legend. I went through the exact same thing with a guy at a little spot in Lexington and he basically told me the same thing. What worked for me was really dialing in the rub and letting the meat sit with it longer before cooking. I started using a little more salt than I thought I needed and let it rest overnight in the fridge. The bark gets way better and you start tasting the smoke instead of just vinegar and sugar.