Bad Boyz of BBQ

If you saw last weeks Gilroy Garlic Festival post, you may remember me briefly mentioning the Bad Boyz of BBQ. Now when I tell you this group is amazing at what they do, it is a huge understatement! Not only is every bit of food they produce amazing, but they are so nice and just fun to be around. You can tell they really enjoy what they do. Really the only thing I dislike is they are Raider Fans (I kid, sorta, but I do love my Colts). Actually, our first encounter with the Bad Boyz was at a Raider tailgate (we weren't playing them that day) and everyone was so amazing, even knowing we were Colts fans. 

Upon talking to other fellow tailgaters, we found that many people travel from literally all over the world and have to stop by the Bad Boyz tailgate area. It was quite the experience that you must go to if you ever attend a Raiders game!  Kevin even wants to go to more than just when the Colts play even just to eat.  It's the best tailgate we've experienced.  You can BYOB and enjoy the seemingly endless grilled options and sides.  They will even occasionally have television trucks set up so you don't have to miss out on the other games.  With great food, great people, tailgate atmosphere, and at a lower price point than the local sports bars, Bad Boyz of Barbeque is the.....pit....barbeque pit that is.

Ok, I feel like I went off the rails with what I was supposed to talk about (Bad Boyz at the Garlic Festival) lol. You might recall me stating how massive the Gilroy Garlic Festival was. Everywhere we looked there was another nook that had tent after tent (or booth) that we went and explored. The last area we found happened to be the bbq competition area (not a bad area to wander to if I do say so myself). Now I had remembered a friend of ours (a Bad Girl in the bbq world) saying they were going to be there, but I couldn't remember the details, so imagine my surprise when we got to the Garli-Que, People's Choice Challenge and they (her and the Bad Boyz) were standing right there with a crowd of people around them. Which, as previously stated about their tailgates, is not a surprise. 

Everything we have ever had from the Bad Boyz has been simply amazing. There are no amount of descriptive words I can use to describe the pure deliciousness that you experience. The meat had such an amazing smokey flavor and, yes Grandma, they finally got me to eat coleslaw! If you can't make it to a tailgate, check out their website, they do parties and events too! And for those who can't make it our West, which honestly, why wouldn't you, look for them on the Food Network. They have been featured on a few shows, including Chopped. Until then, I guess we will have to keep posting our amazing food pics until you get out here and try it yourself!

Chipotle Pulled Pork BBQ Sandwiches

You may recall, I did a slow cooker BBQ pork sandwich a couple months ago. Well, I still had over two pounds of pork frozen from making that recipe that I decided it was time to finally put it to use. I first made this recipe many years ago, in fact, I don't think I've made it since. That's part of my problem. I make recipes that I love and save them, meticulously organized, on my computer in their appropriate file. I then find all these amazing new recipes and want to make them that I never get back to my old faves. Well I dug this one up and I, as well as the hubs, am sure glad I did. This recipe is sort of like a quicker slow cooker meal. You throw everything in a pot, bring it to a boil, and let it simmer for 45 minutes. At that point, the pork is so tender it just falls apart. It has just a tiny bit of spice to it, nothing overpowering, but it is oh so good. Like I said earlier, I had two pounds of pork still, so I just doubled everything and made enough to freeze (see picture below) in preparation for the potential awful winter. Especially necessary since we haven't experience the NJ/NY winter yet and apparently this one is supposed to be bad. If you are looking for a meal you don't really have to mess with, or want to prepare for the winter season, try this recipe out! Have a great weekend everyone! Enjoy!

Chipotle Pulled Pork BBQ Sandwiches 

Ingredients

7 ounce can chopped chilies
1/4 cup bbq sauce
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 1/2 teaspoon cumin
1 pound pork tenderloin, cubed
14.5 ounce diced tomatoes
1 Tablespoon olive oil
6 slices provolone
6 kaiser rolls

Optional
3 cups onion, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons fresh thyme
1 teaspoon sugar

Place chilies, bbq and next four ingredients in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil.  

Cover, reduce heat and simmer 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Uncover and cook 10 minutes or until sauce thickens.  

The pork should be tender enough to fall apart in the pan, but if not, remove pork and shred.  Return to sauce.  

If having caramelized onions, heat oil over medium heat in a medium skillet.  Add onions, thyme and sugar, cook 10 minutes or until golden. 


*Note: if there is extra, freeze in a cupcake pan and place in a freezer bag once frozen. When ready to reheat, just put desired amount in a saucepan and heat all the way through! 

Slow Cooker BBQ Pork

To switch things up a little bit, we tried this recipe from Kraft.  Obviously it was easy, don't worry that's not always going to be the case, but it was just alright.  I halved the meat since it was for 8 servings, but kept the sauce the same and it still lacked flavor.  The meat itself was very juicy and tender, so if you don't mind doctoring it up a bit then go ahead and try it.  We did use our leftovers for quesadillas with shells and cheese and it was delicious!  Stay tuned for some quick and HEALTHY, yes you read that right, snacks coming soon!  

Slow Cooker BBQ Pork

Ingredients  (modified for 4 servings)

1 pound boneless pork shoulder (mine was a little over)

2 small onion, sliced into rings

1/2 cup BBQ sauce

4 Kaiser rolls

4 slices of cheese (I used Velveeta)

Place meat in slow cooker.  Top with the onions and BBQ sauce.  Cook on low 8-10 hours, or high 4-5 hours.  

After finished, remove meat from slow cooker, discard any excess fat and shred.  Return to slow cooker and stir.  Serve on roll with cheese and onions.  *We put extra BBQ sauce on ours because it was pretty bland.  

Our pulled pork sandwich above and the leftovers in a quesadilla below.