B
BBQ Engineer
Guest
Another smoker CajunSmoke13 turned me on to this recipe which is from nolacuisine.com. I like the beer a lot, and performed this experiment as I was intrigued by the use of wood chips as a flavor element. I had some wood chips laying around as I use them when making wine to add the characteristic oak tones to the wine.
Abita Turbo Dog is a dark beer from Abita Springs, Louisiana...if you haven't had any of their beers, you should, because they are really good. Turbo dog has notes of chocolate, coffee and carmel.
Turbo Dog Barbecue Sauce recipe
1 Bottle Abita Turbo Dog
2 cups Ketchup
1/4 Cup Apple Cider Vinegar
1/4 Homemade Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 Cup Brown Sugar (see note here for homemade)
2 Tbsp Creole Mustard
1 Tbsp Yellow Mustard
1 Tbsp Crystal Hot Sauce
1 Tbsp Basic Barbecue Rub
1/2 tsp Black Pepper, freshly ground
1 Jalapeno, chopped
2 Garlic cloves, chopped
1 handful Pecan wood chips (well washed)
Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the sauce is thickly coats the back of a spoon, about 45 minutes to 1 hour.
__________________
I put together the ingredients to try this BBQ sauce. I like Abita beer and drink (and cook) with Turbo Dog. I have been wanting a “Homemade BBQ Sauce†that I can tweak to be my own, and the sauce sounded good looking at the ingredients that went into it.
Also, I wanted to see what effect the wood chips had on the process and report back. In order to do this, I made the sauce, and then separated it into two batches. One (the control sample) was finished without wood chips, and the test sample I added ½ cup of Oak chips that I had around the house for winemaking. I used Mrs. Engineer as my taste tester as well as noting my own conclusions. Here is what I did:
I assembled the ingredients that I would need. (not shown are the ketchup, brown sugar, and garlic).
Here is a pic of the Turbo Dog beer. As you can see, it is a dark beer and has a lot of flavor to it. I personally like all kinds of different beers, and this one is in my fridge on a regular basis. I like to cook with it, because it has a deep color and a lot of taste that doesn’t get lost in the dish you are making, and I also thought that the flavors of chocolate, coffee and carmel, would add a nice depth to this sauce.
Here are the wood chips that I am going to use. They are used in home wine making to impart the oakiness that comes from wine being aged in oak barrels.
The recipe called for Crystal hot sauce…I couldn’t get that here in KC…so I got this Louisiana hot sauce as a substitute. Also, I couldn’t find something labeled as “Creole†mustard (what does creole signify??)…so I went with a coarse grained Dijon mustard as a substitute.
I made a batch of this and then separated it into two pans. My control sample (without oak chips is in the back).
Closeup of the control sample.
Closeup of the test sample.
I tried them on some meatballs that I had made.
My and Mrs. Engineer’s impressions: Initially, my beautiful and talented assistant thought that the sauce had a lot of mustard and garlic. At intervals I had her taste samples of each, and as they cooked down, the mustard and garlic faded. Also, we both like spice, and I thought that the heat was pretty intense at first, but somehow that faded as the sauce simmered too. At about 5 minutes into the cooking, the oak tones became clear, and the longer I simmered the sauce, the more present it became. The aroma also became clear in the house. If you have ever cut oak boards with a table saw or circular saw, the aroma that comes from that is what I am talking about. It added a really nice essence to the sauce, and it was clear which one had the wood chips in it. Mrs. Engineer (blind taste test) could clearly pick it out, and I thought it was very prominent. We both liked what it added to the sauce.
Things I would change: First of all, I would get a spice bag or cheese cloth to do this or better yet, I would put the wood chips in with the beer and other thin liquid ingredients to simmer first which would make it easier to strain out. Straining the thickened sauce was a little difficult (but not impossible). Believe it our not, I will probably add a little more heat next time, after initially thinking it was to much. I plan to use this sauce, and tinker a little more with quantities to dial it in to my liking, but it does turn out a very rich, tangy, sweet, and spicy sauce that is pretty darn tasty. I want to try this on some ribs as well…along with a cold Turbo Dog on the side.
Here are a few pics of my very own Turbo Dog...Hannah the Blue Heeler is the most driven and focused dog I have ever had. Lightning fast and tough as an alligator. She plays frisbee for keeps, and will sky 6 feet and flip around in the air to snag them...all from a 40 lb dog.
Abita Turbo Dog is a dark beer from Abita Springs, Louisiana...if you haven't had any of their beers, you should, because they are really good. Turbo dog has notes of chocolate, coffee and carmel.
Turbo Dog Barbecue Sauce recipe
1 Bottle Abita Turbo Dog
2 cups Ketchup
1/4 Cup Apple Cider Vinegar
1/4 Homemade Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 Cup Brown Sugar (see note here for homemade)
2 Tbsp Creole Mustard
1 Tbsp Yellow Mustard
1 Tbsp Crystal Hot Sauce
1 Tbsp Basic Barbecue Rub
1/2 tsp Black Pepper, freshly ground
1 Jalapeno, chopped
2 Garlic cloves, chopped
1 handful Pecan wood chips (well washed)
Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the sauce is thickly coats the back of a spoon, about 45 minutes to 1 hour.
__________________
I put together the ingredients to try this BBQ sauce. I like Abita beer and drink (and cook) with Turbo Dog. I have been wanting a “Homemade BBQ Sauce†that I can tweak to be my own, and the sauce sounded good looking at the ingredients that went into it.
Also, I wanted to see what effect the wood chips had on the process and report back. In order to do this, I made the sauce, and then separated it into two batches. One (the control sample) was finished without wood chips, and the test sample I added ½ cup of Oak chips that I had around the house for winemaking. I used Mrs. Engineer as my taste tester as well as noting my own conclusions. Here is what I did:
I assembled the ingredients that I would need. (not shown are the ketchup, brown sugar, and garlic).
Here is a pic of the Turbo Dog beer. As you can see, it is a dark beer and has a lot of flavor to it. I personally like all kinds of different beers, and this one is in my fridge on a regular basis. I like to cook with it, because it has a deep color and a lot of taste that doesn’t get lost in the dish you are making, and I also thought that the flavors of chocolate, coffee and carmel, would add a nice depth to this sauce.
Here are the wood chips that I am going to use. They are used in home wine making to impart the oakiness that comes from wine being aged in oak barrels.
The recipe called for Crystal hot sauce…I couldn’t get that here in KC…so I got this Louisiana hot sauce as a substitute. Also, I couldn’t find something labeled as “Creole†mustard (what does creole signify??)…so I went with a coarse grained Dijon mustard as a substitute.
I made a batch of this and then separated it into two pans. My control sample (without oak chips is in the back).
Closeup of the control sample.
Closeup of the test sample.
I tried them on some meatballs that I had made.
My and Mrs. Engineer’s impressions: Initially, my beautiful and talented assistant thought that the sauce had a lot of mustard and garlic. At intervals I had her taste samples of each, and as they cooked down, the mustard and garlic faded. Also, we both like spice, and I thought that the heat was pretty intense at first, but somehow that faded as the sauce simmered too. At about 5 minutes into the cooking, the oak tones became clear, and the longer I simmered the sauce, the more present it became. The aroma also became clear in the house. If you have ever cut oak boards with a table saw or circular saw, the aroma that comes from that is what I am talking about. It added a really nice essence to the sauce, and it was clear which one had the wood chips in it. Mrs. Engineer (blind taste test) could clearly pick it out, and I thought it was very prominent. We both liked what it added to the sauce.
Things I would change: First of all, I would get a spice bag or cheese cloth to do this or better yet, I would put the wood chips in with the beer and other thin liquid ingredients to simmer first which would make it easier to strain out. Straining the thickened sauce was a little difficult (but not impossible). Believe it our not, I will probably add a little more heat next time, after initially thinking it was to much. I plan to use this sauce, and tinker a little more with quantities to dial it in to my liking, but it does turn out a very rich, tangy, sweet, and spicy sauce that is pretty darn tasty. I want to try this on some ribs as well…along with a cold Turbo Dog on the side.
Here are a few pics of my very own Turbo Dog...Hannah the Blue Heeler is the most driven and focused dog I have ever had. Lightning fast and tough as an alligator. She plays frisbee for keeps, and will sky 6 feet and flip around in the air to snag them...all from a 40 lb dog.