Not really… it’s just a fact that the famous bbq places, for whatever reason, do not tout the breed of pork they are using. I have bbq in the family, a cousin having twice won the Memphis in May competition for whole hog. Never once talked about the breed of pig. It’s a fact.
Whatever emphasis you would like to put on the breed, that’s fine with me.
I have cooked in competitions against teams using berkshire pork. Katsu-hama, the restaurant mentioned upthread, has berkshire pork on their menu: https://katsu-hama.site/menu/ I believe there are a number of katsu restaurants serving kurobuta pork in japan. I ate at least one of them:
bbq restaurants are trying to control cost and won’t use an expensive breed like berkshire. That doesn’t mean they couldn’t get a better result with it. Likewise, they are not dialing up snake river farms for waygu brisket.
Isn’t the whole point of BBQ to make cheap, unwanted cuts of meat tasty?
Same with comfort food items like katsu or tonkatsu, which is why those dishes are breaded and deep fried – to make up for, or cover up, the often cheaper cuts of chicken or pork that is hidden underneath.
The very quiddity of these dishes is at odds with using high end breeds, or cuts of meat.
It’s why anytime one sees Wagyu burgers or Kobe beef meatloaf, it’s just marketing BS and a way to extract extra $$ from the diners without the use of a gun.
Yes, that was the original idea of bbq but Aaron Franklin seems to have done ok using prime grade brisket. At bbq contests, I’ve seen a lot of teams pay attention to the source of the meat they use, including breed. I sourced my chicken from a local farm, my ribs from an Asian market and typically used prime brisket.
The question I asked was “what separates good katsu from great katsu”. I don’t know the answer to the question but speculated, based on my experience in nyc eating berkshire pork and in Tokyo eating kurobuta pork , that perhaps one of the answers was breed of pork.
Seems reasonable, but I certainly could be wrong.
Heritage pork is not necessary to make great katsu if that’s what you are asking. Nor is it necessary to make great bbq.
You’ve piqued my curiosity, your cousin won Memphis in May twice and indifferently sourced his pork without regard to breed? I doubt he went to his local grocer and said “get me a pig”. I’d seriously love to know if you have a chance to ask him.
The true genius of a BBQ pitmaster is the ability to make the toughest cuts of meat (e.g., USDA select grade brisket) and make it tender to the touch.
Any doofus with a match and some firewood can make ribeye or sirloin tender and delicious. But you make brisket or top round something as tender to the touch as a filet and as beefy flavorful as a sirloin, then you’ve earned your chops as a BBQ pitmaster.
I agree a good pitmaster can create something magical with inexpensive, tough cuts. But as someone who has judged over 25 bbq contests, has competed and taken home trophies, I can confidently state you don’t have the slightest idea what you’re talking about if you think “any doofus” can smoke a prime brisket and turn it into something delicious. The majority of experienced pitmasters can not come close to the brisket found in texas hill country.
I think you misread the comment by @ipsedixit
John Wills, this was in the early eighties. He then started up his eponymous restaurant in Memphis and became a local legend. I am not sure about his competition bbq, but his ribs and chopped pork were fantastic. I don’t think his sourcing was heritage anything, but I can always ask.
perhaps steve, but I’m not seeing it.
thanks, yes, as you pointed out, most people use inexpensive pork in restaurants. in competition, I’m sure things have changed since the 80s as there is a lot more focus today on quality and provenance… I think somewhere or other, I read Sam Jones was buying primarily from one farm for the quality of their pork.
You might enjoy this article, though it’s a bit old.
Cousin John had a falling out with the Memphis in May folks. He was training future judges about how to judge bbq, but he fundamentally disagreed about what they wanted to teach the judges.
We should really move this to another thread but I also have some problems with the way Kcbs judges are trained. I read in Mike Mills book that Memphis in May is not just about the bbq, there’s an interpersonal, sales aspect to the process as the judges meet with each team. While I know I can sell if needed, I’d prefer to let the meat speak for itself.
Kcbs is tasted blind, which works better for someone like me, but imo, competitors in ny shouldn’t have to divine the taste buds of their judges based on local preferences.
I’ve requested mods to move the bbq discussion to a new thread
Bo Ky writeup today:
The majority of pitmasters can’t come close to a lot of over-romanticized experiences that are erroneously linked to terroir. I agree. But Texans flew to my restaurant in Brooklyn, turned around and went home and expressed that we did some things better than they had down there and they would line up for the food, so…it’s definitely subjective.
KCBS should do away with the salad contest and just judge the meat.
the salad contest? it’s ribs, pulled pork, brisket, and chicken. for most of us, chicken is the hill we die on.
