I took a Judging Class...What I Learned

[@japa6225]

Really loved your comments. As a dedicated judge, I have a personal golden rule to compete at least once a year. It is also something I encourage all teams to do, judge at least once a year.

[@da-hamgoodbbq535]

Thank you glad you liked it!

[@antonjanik7828]

You gave some really nice, thoughtful comments on the criteria and process. Thanks for sharing.

[@derrickkimball1597]

Thank you for watching !

[@paulbh7]

great video. really appreciate you sharing this.

[@derrickkimball1597]

Thank you very much , I hope to do more videos like this as I do more judging

[@hooksrub]

Thanks for the vid. Lots of good info

[@jonniecarter5911]

Way to go Derrick 🙂

[@Biggammbbq]

Great insight and heads up! I appreciate that!

[@hooksrub]

In kcbs does it have to be chicken thighs or can it be other parts of the bird? Thanks

[@derrickkimball1597]

Thank you! In KCBS most teams do thighs , the next most popular is drumsticks . The contest that I’ve judged out of 6 entries there is usually 1 turn in that is drumsticks, I pick one and try to master it, and that’s thighs !

[@japa6225]

You can do other cuts. Breast is used a lot in Australia but tends to score lower, mostly due to dryness. As a judge, I personally think bone in pillow thighs and cupcake thighs score higher. Mind you, have had some wing lollypops show up and they to great too.

[@hooksrub]

@@derrickkimball1597 sweet thanks! I will be doing drumsticks in this next comp I’ve entered

[@hooksrub]

@@japa6225 wow thanks! Breasts are so hard to get perfect. I am surprised people try to use them. I will be doing drumsticks in this next comp I’ve entered.

[@da-hamgoodbbq535]

Thank you very much!

[@kevinshideler3625]

A bit of a long shot, but considering KCBS doesn’t disallow it I’m wondering how fried chicken would potentially score? Say they were smoked and then breaded and shallow/pan fried in a skillet on the grill.

[@derrickkimball1597]

Most likely against KCBS rules . Frying would be a Disqualification.

[@derrickkimball1597]

Most likely against KCBS rules . Frying would be a Disqualification.

[@kevinshideler3625]

@@derrickkimball1597 the rules do not allow deep frying specifically. They DO allow breading.

[@derrickkimball1597]

That would be interesting to see how judges might respond to that , thank you for clarifying, about the breading!

[@michaelreyes3130]

Hi there! Thanks for your video. I saw you mentioned a box can have a mix of legs and thighs. Are they typically cooked separate or are they split leg quarters?

[@da-hamgoodbbq535]

Cooked separate. Some teams now are doing wings or a combination of 6 legs , or 6 thighs with a combo of 6 wing flats I’ve only came across two boxes that did that , gutsy but I believe overall they scored really well, at least on my card they did 👍

[@michaelreyes3130]

@@da-hamgoodbbq535 ok. I was thinking of splitting leg quarters but then i thought the appearance wouldn't be so good. I think I'll go thighs only. Im competing for my first time in 2 weeks

[@da-hamgoodbbq535]

Thighs is a good start a lot of people struggle with legs, I recommend getting good with thighs , most teams cook in a butter bath to 195 to 200 internal temp, careful with powdered rubs and high temps they tend to show up black , judges score down on appearance, remember to go for a shiny glossy appearance, clumpy and thick does not score well, good luck 👍

[@paulh.7598]

There shouldn't be any mystery in judging and what the expectations and/or rules are supposed to be, especially pertaining to garnish and uniformity or the type and number of slices. Looks can be deceiving, so what if garnish or presentation does NOT look delicious, but is actually the most delicious of the day? Then what? That is why garnish/presentation should be weighted a fraction of the taste, moisture/tenderness, smoke evidence, sauce, balance, and, actually presentation in reality should be the least weighted and perhaps a "tie breaker" if necessary, noting if you have a good evaluation model [Haven't found one yet, so I developed my own], you don't need a tie breaker especially if you have a process that consists of a scoring model range of 1-50 and you do the judging in either 2 or 3 phases depending on number of entrants [less than 100 or up to 500].

[@da-hamgoodbbq535]

Thank you for watching, ! I appreciate it!