Mason Dixon BBQ Boot Camp?

[SmokingUPnorth]

pretty cool gift. Let us know how it was

 

[Smoke-Chem BBQ]

Thats awesome, I'm glad you got in! I wish you would have made the Jun 11 camp, that's the one I'm registered for. Next year on Black Friday after Thanksgiving you can purchase a gift certificate and get to the front of the line for the dates you want. I was able to get my dates right after New years. I'll be sure to let you know how it goes, should be a lot of fun!

So, bauchjw how was the boot camp? I just got my agenda for the July 9 camp I'm attending--really looking forward to it!

 

[bauchjw]

Hey S Smoke-Chem BBQ ! I had a blast! I was going to post a thread but I’m waiting for some recipes to share. We showed up at 0530 and from the start we’re going at it helping set up, etc. we made a lot of food in between “classes” and had a lot of beer too Not too much beer to get a timeout though! We did brisket hot and fast, I’ve never done that, trimmed the packer, tried different rubs, etc. the part I really appreciated is that they had a rig for everyone. I’m getting a big offset, so used a big offset, my buddy wants to get a pellet, so he used a pellet. They had kettles, BGE, cabinet smokers, etc. Walked away with some good hot gloves and a decent fillet knife too! put together very well and a great time, you’re going to enjoy yourself!

BTW, We stayed at a hotel Sat night and went out for a few more beers at a pool hall nearby.

 

[clifish]

Hey S Smoke-Chem BBQ ! I had a blast! I was going to post a thread but I’m waiting for some recipes to share. We showed up at 0530 and from the start we’re going at it helping set up, etc. we made a lot of food in between “classes” and had a lot of beer too Not too much beer to get a timeout though! We did brisket hot and fast, I’ve never done that, trimmed the packer, tried different rubs, etc. the part I really appreciated is that they had a rig for everyone. I’m getting a big offset, so used a big offset, my buddy wants to get a pellet, so he used a pellet. They had kettles, BGE, cabinet smokers, etc. Walked away with some good hot gloves and a decent fillet knife too! put together very well and a great time, you’re going to enjoy yourself!

BTW, We stayed at a hotel Sat night and went out for a few more beers at a pool hall nearby.

oh this looks so awesome, I wish I saw this thread earlier would loved to take this with you Jed!

Do you have link?

 

[Smoke-Chem BBQ]

Hey S Smoke-Chem BBQ ! I had a blast! I was going to post a thread but I’m waiting for some recipes to share. We showed up at 0530 and from the start we’re going at it helping set up, etc. we made a lot of food in between “classes” and had a lot of beer too Not too much beer to get a timeout though! We did brisket hot and fast, I’ve never done that, trimmed the packer, tried different rubs, etc. the part I really appreciated is that they had a rig for everyone. I’m getting a big offset, so used a big offset, my buddy wants to get a pellet, so he used a pellet. They had kettles, BGE, cabinet smokers, etc. Walked away with some good hot gloves and a decent fillet knife too! put together very well and a great time, you’re going to enjoy yourself!

BTW, We stayed at a hotel Sat night and went out for a few more beers at a pool hall nearby.

Thanks for the report! Now I'm looking forward to it even more! I'll be staying over the night before, but have to head back home after class ends Saturday. With lots of leftover brisket, apparently. The itinerary email I just got said they have 24 briskets, 300 lbs of beef, for the 20-student class. And 12 types of smokers.

I've not done hot-and-fast yet either, but if they are getting good results, it would be nice not to have to babysit a smoker overnight when I cook brisket.

 

[bauchjw]

oh this looks so awesome, I wish I saw this thread earlier would loved to take this with you Jed!

Do you have link?

Hey Cliff! That would be awesome! 2022 is sold out, but on Black Friday after Thanksgiving they sell gift certificates. When you get one of those you are at the head of the line for pre registration in January. When it gets closer to the holidays let me know!

BOOTCAMPS - MDBBQ Services

mdbbqservices.com

 

[TH-n-PA]

28 minute drive from the house to them.
I should go check them out.

 

[Newglide]

That looks like it would be pretty cool. I looked at the link and it doesn't say anything about cost only financing. Hate to ask but what does something like that cost?

 

[Smoke-Chem BBQ]

28 minute drive from the house to them.
I should go check them out.

Next week will be my first time there, but they seem to have an amazing BBQ store at the premises (it closes mid-afternoon on Saturdays). I'd think that if you visit on a day they're holding a bootcamp, you could check out the store and also see what's going on with the bootcamp.

 

[Smoke-Chem BBQ]

That looks like it would be pretty cool. I looked at the link and it doesn't say anything about cost only financing. Hate to ask but what does something like that cost?

$250 for the brisket bootcamp, everything included...meats, rubs, sauces, injections, meals, beer...and everyone apparently gets a free knife and hot gloves, plus leftovers to take home.
I think all of the bootcamps (they also do whole hog, chicken and ribs, turkey and tailgate) are the same price, it's listed on the downloadable application form, but not on the site itself.

 

[TH-n-PA]

Next week will be my first time there, but they seem to have an amazing BBQ store at the premises (it closes mid-afternoon on Saturdays). I'd think that if you visit on a day they're holding a bootcamp, you could check out the store and also see what's going on with the bootcamp.

Very good idea!

Heading south next week and not sure if I will make it back in time for this one but I will check future dates.

 

[bauchjw]

28 minute drive from the house to them.
I should go check them out.

It was a good little store and they have a lot there, I thought their prices were pretty reasonable too. They have an entire room of rubs and sauces, but I didn’t pick any up. My buddy ended up getting a GMG from them though

That looks like it would be pretty cool. I looked at the link and it doesn't say anything about cost only financing. Hate to ask but what does something like that cost?

S Smoke-Chem BBQ got you covered on price. 250, but best to get the gift card on Black Friday, then you get first choice on what class you get. I think it was worth it for the experience. I learned some stuff and tried new things I hadn’t done before, and it was fun hanging out with people and talking about bbq for 11 hours while cooking and drinking beer. I went home with a whole brisket and burnt ends, my wife was happy with that part, but you cook a lot of different things and eat a ton when the briskets are in the smokers. Here are a few pics, I was going to post a thread, but haven’t had a chance.

 

[Smoke-Chem BBQ]

I'm back from the boot camp. I had a great time! I really recommend the experience. I stayed near Mason Dixon BBQ to make it easier to get there by 6 am. They had 23 smokers available, from Weber Kettles used for indirect cooking up through big stick burning offset smokers and a couple of pig roasters. One student had dropped out, so we had 19 students, and 22 briskets, each about 14 lbs. I opted to use a Backwoods cabinet smoker, which worked out very well, burning lump charcoal with apple wood chunks. A local butcher took us through the anatomy of a brisket and gave tips for trimming one, then a competition cook took us through another one with more of an emphasis on trimming for competition.
Each student received a different premixed injection and paired base rub (the base rubs, SPGs, are all variations on salt, pepper, garlic). We then picked an overlay rub. Briskets were prepped by 8:30 am, and on the smoker grates by 9:30. This was the 'hot and fast' class, so smoker temps were in the 275-325F range, depending on the smoker.

Downtime, both morning and afternoon, was spent cooking brunch and lunch. We made omelette cups, french toast roll-ups, biscuits and gravy, sausage queso, quesadillas, cider-braised kielbasa, and probably some things I've forgotten. Just past noon, the briskets were pulled when they hit 160 or so, and wrapped in foil to which nearly a quart of au jus plus leftover injection was added. Back onto the smokers for a couple more hours. When tender, they were pulled to rest wrapped in towels for 45 minutes, then the points were separated to make burnt ends, cubed, tossed in sauce, and put in foil pans to return to the smokers for half an hour to set the sauce. Half an hour after that, the flats were sliced, and returned to the juice in the foil to stay moist.

Both burnt ends and sliced flat were the best I've ever made, and the brisket was done in just 6 hours! I came home with nearly all of the brisket, and all the gimmes from the class; knife, hot gloves, injector. Plus, I got to sample probably 20 rubs and a dozen sauces...before heading into the extensive shop to buy my favorites.

I've attached a few photos.

 

[bauchjw]

S Smoke-Chem BBQ , glad you had a great time too! The 250 hurts a bit, but I think it was definitely worth it! Great pics!

 

[gmc2003]

Looks and sounds like a great time. 250 and it's all inclusive. You can't beat that.

Chris

 

[912smoker]

S Smoke-Chem BBQ , glad you had a great time too! The 250 hurts a bit, but I think it was definitely worth it! Great pics!

Definitely sounds like a lot of cooking and learning.
What were your favorite rubs/sauces ?
Anything new you liked but had never tried ?

Keith

 

[bbqbrett]

Wow sounds like a great time. I would say well worth it.

 

[Smoke-Chem BBQ]

Definitely sounds like a lot of cooking and learning.
What were your favorite rubs/sauces ?
Anything new you liked but had never tried ?

Keith

I used Loot N' Booty BBQ Jolly Roger Jalepeno Garlic Black Rub as the base rub on my brisket, and I liked it enough to buy a jar, even though I usually make my own rubs.

I really liked the Signature 181 Competition BBQ sauce, so I used it on my burnt ends and also bought a bottle. I learned later it won at the Jack Daniels Invitational a few years ago.

Other sauces I bought include Blues Hog Raspberry Chipotle (I had added a little of this to the Signature 181 on my burnt ends), Kosmos Brisket Mop, and Suckle Buster's original-I had tried their Chipotle BBQ sauce before and really liked it.

I didn't try them at the class, but I came home with Blues Hog Beef injection, and Butcher's BBQ Bird Booster Honey injection. They came highly recommended, and while I usually make my own injection, these contain phosphates which help a lot with moisture retention. I've not yet sourced sodium phosphate to add to my own injections; easier just to buy these in powder form, and mix as needed to make injection.

Other rubs that I sampled and really liked, though didn't buy, included Kosmos Texas Beef dry rub, and Suckle Busters Espresso BBQ Rub

 

[TH-n-PA]

I went by there a few weeks ago to check them out.

Definitely a lot of product packed in the store!

I grabbed some pellets and a jerky rub.

Very glad to hear y’all both enjoyed the class/experience.

 

[Smoke-Chem BBQ]

The 2024 Boot Camp schedule is out, and a couple of the dates have already sold out.

These are excellent, well worth the trip to Greencastle, PA if you are interested in taking your BBQ to the next level. They have bootcamps for brisket, pork (pork butts plus whole hog), chicken and ribs, and turkey and tailgate. 12 types of smokers available, everything included including lots of food, beer, and some nice accessories and leftovers to take home.

https://mdbbqservices.com/bootcamps/?registration=open#tve-jump-18cdff45176