KANSAS CITY, Kan. — It really is serious work tasting and judging at the American Royal World Series of Barbecue.
"It’s some of the best barbecue on the planet," Craig Layman, a Master Certified Barbecue Judge said.
When you're dealing with pit masters who compete all over the country, certified judges are under strict standards.
Saturday's competition is for the grand champions, teams that have achieved first place in other competitions.
"This is basically a one-bite challenge. Each judge, one rib, one bite of chicken thigh, for example, and that’s what they’re being judged on," Emily Detwiler, CEO of the Kansas City Barbecue Societysaid.
The judges consider appearance, taste and tenderness.
Meat with a deep color and gloss against a bed of lettuce, kale, parsley, or cilantro makes the dish stand out.
"The chicken we just had, every team nailed it on tenderness. The appearance looked right-on so it came down to the flavor and it was just subtle differences between," Layman said.
Teams race to the judging booth with six pieces of meat in each box, one for each judge.
The numbers on the boxes are changed to preserve anonymity and the table captain presents it to the judges.
"A Common misnomer is ribs that fall off the bone. As certified barbecue judges, we know that’s really an over-cooked rib, so we’re looking for a slight tug, how it dries, how the meat comes off," Dan Viall, a Master Certified Barbecue Judge said.
There are 1,300 judges volunteering to judge at the event all weekend, and many of them have 100 to 200 competitions under their belt. They're from all walks of life, even different countries. Some came from Australia, Mexico and Costa Rica.
"It's all for the love of barbecue and a great crew," Layman said.
To be a master, you have to cook with a team to understand the hard work that goes into it.
"The cook teams really want to put their absolute best meat in the box, but they will cook quite a bit. So let’s say they cook somewhere between three and five racks of ribs to pick those perfect six bones to put in the box," Detwiler said.
Sunday is the day every team can submit their finest work.
"At the end of the day it all comes down to, do you love that bite of good old Kansas City-style barbecue," Viall said.
