BBQ High (2024) s01e05 Episode Script

[Cami] I cook the dessert
on our team.
My dessert always makes
at least fifth place
or higher because
it tastes great.
I am concerned about the color
bleeding.
[announcer] First place,
dessert
Overtime BBQ.
Oh, my God!
"No presentation design,
exclamation point."
[Cami] To be able to get
that first place
at State, I need to work
on my presentation.
[Langdon] Leg to the lock.
There you go. Here, come on.
[announcer] Third place in the
Graham High School
Barbecue Regional,
-Seriously Smokin'!
-[cheering]
Bethel College has said that
they would match
any scholarship that I got.
I am going to college
for construction management.
But at the same time,
I'm gonna start my own
business and a side hustle,
Habibi Barbecue.
All right, y'all,
let's dig in!
[cow mooing]
Yeah! We're excited.
We're gonna go learn.
Try some amazing barbecue
in Lockhart,
the barbecue capital of Texas.
My kids have been
working really hard,
preparing for the
State Championships
that are coming up soon.
I thought it would be
really cool to have
a fun little road trip.
Three-hour drive
down from Granbury.
We've drove by a few areas and
we've already seen
a bunch of barbeque areas
like Black's Barbecue.
We're pulling into town now,
it's gonna be a fun time. Yay!
There's not any
expectation other than getting
to have some time together,
maybe learn a little bit
and just enjoy
really good food
because they're teenagers
and teenagers love food.
[Emery] Their sign's
really cute!
I like it.
[Langdon] I love it.
The line starts here, I wonder
how often they have the line
all the way around.
Anybody that knows anything
about barbecue in Texas,
knows that if you want
the best in Texas,
you've got to go to Lockhart.
I thought Barb's
was just perfect.
-Hey, y'all.
-[all] Hey!
-[Langdon] How's it going?
-Welcome to Barb's.
[Langdon] We're excited
to be here.
Thank you so much
for having us.
This is Chuck, everybody.
Hi, y'all. Nice to meet y'all.
Let me give y'all
a little tour.
All right. That sounds great.
The restaurant. [chuckles]
I'm the owner and pitmaster
at Barb's BQ.
We've been open
for about eight months now.
This is my baby.
The first one.
People line up this way.
[Langdon] About how many
people are y'all feeding
on weekends?
[Chuck] Close to 150 to 200.
[Langdon] Chuck is nominated
for a James Beard.
It's a very coveted,
prestigious award.
In the food world, there's not
a ton of professional women
on the barbecue circuit.
There are some out there
that are killing it.
[Chuck] This is our
one room kitchen.
[Langdon] Getting
to learn from her
and the kids getting
a different glimpse
into what a future
could be like,
I'm really excited for 'em.
And then we have the smokers
are 1000 gallons.
[Emery] That's crazy.
[Chuck]
But, yeah, we pretty much do
everything on this one.
So how do you figure out
like temperatures
and what to put where
since you're running
everything on one pit?
So it's all sort of like by
what takes the longest first.
Brisket, pork ribs,
and then the short cooks,
turkeys, lamb chops, sausage.
[Chuck] I'm 25
and when I first started,
there was all these barriers.
And in a smokehouse,
you would just see men
working the pits.
It took a lot of years
to get here.
It feels really good to have
the opportunity to welcome
young people in
and let them know that
their dreams are possible.
So this is the firebox.
Have y'all cooked on a big
smoker like this before?
No, no, absolutely.
It's cool because
y'all are doing,
like, using a smaller smoker,
is ten times harder
than using this.
So if you decide to work
at a barbeque restaurant
and then you start using this,
you're going to be like,
-oh, my gosh, this is so--
-Why are they different?
[Chuck]
It's just easier to control
because it's bigger.
So when you build a fire,
the temperature
is maintained for like,
30 minutes, 45 minutes.
You're not messing around
with it so much.
All right. I think
we should go.
I can give y'all
a little training 'cause
right at 10:50,
we're going to get nervous,
and we're just going to get
ready to go through service.
Do you still get nervous
every time?
Yes.
See, I'm not the only one
that gets nervous.
I guess, Ms. Langdon.
[Emery] I'm feeling
pretty excited.
I think it's gonna be cool
to get to see,
like the experience
of how to do a restaurant
and like how to run it.
My plan for college is to
study business and finance,
And then after that,
my ultimate goal in life
is to open my own
barbecue restaurant
and name it Sandra's,
after my grandmother,
and just get to show people
who I am and what I can make
and my potential.
Seeing that it's women ran,
it's pretty awesome to me.
This gives me
a boost of confidence
in just seeing how many people
are lined up right now,
it's crazy just to think
that this could be me one day.
[Chuck] On the menu, we have
brisket, pork ribs and turkey,
lamb chops, sausage.
I always like
to cut brisket first.
For the lean,
sort of like thinner cuts.
For the fatty,
a lot thicker.
It's the money bites, right?
[chuckles]
That's really good.
I like the peppery-ness
that I got with it.
Pork ribs.
With meats, the more pepper
you add, then the more
color it will get.
So with chicken, with turkey,
If you do so much pepper,
then it'll get black and
you don't really want that.
Brisket and beef ribs
are the things that
have the most pepper.
I'll start service.
Where are you
coming from today?
-[customer] Austin.
-[Chuck] Austin. Thank you
so much for coming.
Four sandos!
For the sando, I like
to do pickles and onions.
All right. So I just
put those on right now?
-Yeah.
-Okay.
-[Emery] Would you put four?
-[Chuck] Yeah.
And once I put it on the bun,
do just like a little drizzle.
Not a little drizzle,
that was not a little drizzle.
[Chuck] All right.
Any pork ribs?
Two pounds.
So these are tough to cut
cause they have that bone,
and then they have a
smaller bone right there.
So you kind of have to
wiggle the knife.
Would y'all feel good
zesting the ribs?
-I can zest if you want me to.
-Okay.
Lightly tap that, and you
want to get it, like, evenly.
And then two sausages.
Was that a pound?
-[customer] Yes.
-[Chuck] All right.
A pound, brisket.
[Emery] So how do you
handle the pressure?
You get used to it.
You sort of become addicted
to the pressure of it.
All righty. Two pounds.
-[customer] Thank you.
-[Chuck] Thank you.
Quarter pound, turkey.
[Langdon] Is there a reason
you have turkey
and not chicken?
In my opinion, chicken is
the hardest thing to do.
It's the, out of all
the meats, for consistency,
'cause it's it could be
a fast cook.
-Yeah.
-[Chuck] And then crispy skin.
So I think that's
the biggest challenge
of a barbecue with chicken.
Would you agree, Em?
I think the thing that
we're trying to improve on
the most is our skill.
-[Chuck] When's
the final competition?
-[Langdon] State is May 4th.
-It ought to be interesting
and exciting.
-[Chuck] How do you feel?
Yeah. How do y'all feel?
I feel excited because
now I can try to
critique little things
and fix it before
we go to State.
Every week that you cook,
you really do improve and
find ways to do things
a little bit better.
I've been working on
getting my skin on my chicken
very crispy,
for I don't even know how long
it's been like,
one to two years.
I've been trying
so many different techniques.
I've been trying
different ways,
and I still cannot get it.
So do you know
how to get the skin crispy
on the chicken?
There's little things
that you can do, but
ultimately it's sort of like
it has to hit a very high
temperature at a certain point
for it to crisp up.
[Langdon] Would that be
at the beginning
or at the end of the cook?
At the end.
That looks so gorgeous.
Thank you. All right,
let's go. Let's go eat.
The turkey is like,
my gosh, that's amazing.
I can eat like that
the rest of my life.
Rice in it is so fluffy
and it just like soaks up
all the flavor that's in it.
I just like, wanted to cry
because I could
see it in their eyes
that they love
barbecue so much.
The restaurant world
is stressful.
But at the end of the day,
you are able to create so much
and be a flavor scientist.
Yeah, yeah, yes.
[Langdon] As we get thinking
more geared towards State,
I hope that one of the things
y'all get out of today
is her heart and willingness
to work and her drive
and all of that.
Hopefully, it's something
that translates to y'all
to what it takes to actually
be successful
and to win, you know.
For me to be able to bring
the kids here
is really important
because I want them to be
their best versions
of themselves,
that they can be
and when they get
to come somewhere like this,
they get to see somebody
that has worked so hard.
And had success but it's not
been without trial and error.
It's a wonderful way to keep
us motivated and excited
for State.
[Shelley] You need to try on
your cap and gown,
make sure that
everything is right.
Are you ready for all that?
Yeah, I'm ready
to get a haircut.
Aw. Look.
-[Wes] My baby boy.
-[Shelley] So cute.
Ready to graduate.
Been ready.
[Wes] Since?
Since birth.
it was hard deciding
between going straight
into the restaurant industry
or culinary school.
I chose Johnson & Wales
because something
that interests me more,
you know, I can kind of work
at different restaurants
as opposed to just one style.
You know, just planning
for the next
hopefully, 60 years of life.
There was definitely a little,
you know, relief off of me.
This is like those girls
who, like
-Twirl their hair?
-Yeah.
We'll have to get you some
nice clothes for graduation.
I'm gonna wear
shorts on graduation, too.
[Wes] You're not
wearing crocs.
-[Zane] Says who?
-[Wes] Me.
Figured you'd wear
cowboy boots.
Then you'd really be hot.
[laughs]
Are you ready? Go Wildcats!
You know, I'm just looking
forward to just life, I guess.
I get to, you know,
finally experience freedom.
Not under the supervision
of an adult.
[whispers] My parents.
We're a very close family.
Don't do that, don't do that.
[Wes] Zane,
I can't believe it.
-[Shelley] We're proud of you.
-[Zane] Ow, my neck.
Almost 18, graduating.
I'm proud of you, son.
I know.
Leaving home is fun
to think about.
But like when it actually
happens it's gonna be
pretty hard and tough,
You can't go to Charlotte.
You can't leave me
behind here by myself.
My grand plans for
the end of the year
are winning first place
in state of Texas
at the competition.
You know, send me off
on a high note.
I've been baking
for the last three hours.
Out in Waco,
I wasn't really that proud
of the presentation
that we had turned in.
The cake did not
look that fabulous,
so I'm hoping
to elevate the cake
and improve the appearance.
You know, we could
literally go anywhere
and just sell cakes on the
street with our portable oven.
I would be lying if I said
I hadn't thought about it
[Goodman]
Portable ingredients, yeah.
-[Goodman] We have made it.
-Hey.
[Goodman]
To Scratch Catering.
-I'm Cami, nice to meet you.
-I'm Ted.
[indistinct conversation]
Welcome to Scratch.
Anything you guys need.
Just let me know.
I'm gonna take you back.
Introduce you to Judy.
Y'all come on back.
[Cami] Awesome! Thank you.
[Goodman] Scratch Catering's
been around
Southlake for a while.
They do some pretty
elaborate spreads and,
more noticeably, desserts.
And so when we started
thinking about
where can we go
for specifically our dessert?
Come to Scratch Catering.
Yeah. It's a working kitchen,
that's for sure.
[Cami] Oh, my.
Yeah, I love it.
The big thing we have
here at Caroll is sports.
We didn't really
have culinary arts.
I said, hey, I think some kids
would really enjoy cooking.
I enjoy cooking.
My wife will even tell you
she hasn't cooked anything
in about 30 years.
And that's where
I kind of came up
with wanting to start
this barbecue team
three years ago.
So far as the
commitment involved,
it is extensive.
Once you see results,
every now and then
that makes your kids light up,
it's worth it and that's kinda
what keeps me going.
[Ted] Cami,
this is my wife, Judy.
-Hello.
-Judy, this is Cami.
-Hi. So nice to meet to you.
-Nice to meet you, Judy.
I don't know anything
about baking.
But if I can't
teach you how to do it,
I'll find someone who can.
Well, you're in great hands
with Judy.
Her creativity
is just above board.
So if you need anything,
let me know.
So, Judy, I would say I mostly
need help with the aesthetics
of the cake.
That really matters for State
because these kids
are bringing it.
I have six different cakes.
-Three in each box.
-[Judy] Oh, wow.
[Cami] This morning,
I spent a couple hours
trying out different
recipes to go ahead
and show Judy different ideas
of what I was thinking.
So I made a cake without any
maraschino cherries,
with cherries.
The way we turned in in State
last year and kind of
a base model
for what we started with
and where we're going.
And obviously get her input
and what she thinks is best.
All right, we're ready
for the dumps.
Cami has been Top 10, Top 5
for three years with this
but State Championships,
it's hard, I mean,
it's 100 teams that she's
got to compete against.
We do get comment cards
when it comes out.
"The cake was light and moist,
but the fruit bled
into the cake,
presentation could be better."
That's where we are.
[Judy] It's one of those
things that you taste
with your eyes first.
[Cami] Yes.
So we can jazz it up a bit
and make it look
a little bit prettier.
Awesome. Yeah. Okay.
That is what
I turned in last time.
The pineapple moved around.
Cherries are bleeding
because there's
more restrictions.
And they said, you know,
no canned pineapple,
no canned cherries.
You can make a homemade recipe
of maraschino cherries.
So she's got three hours.
So is this like doing
a quick pickle maybe?
[Judy] It's similar to that
because it's basically
a couple of ingredients
You out it in the pot, and you
simmer it 10 or 15 minutes.
That would be great. I would
love to see if we could do
a homemade maraschino cherry.
It would be less bleeding and
also adding them at the end,
it'll just be a cleaner
finished look to it.
So do we want to start
playing with these
and get the whipped cream out?
-[Goodman] Yes.
-[Cami] Yeah. Yes!
Uh,
I have three different types,
the whipped cream.
That is a confection
sugar frosting,
a bit of pineapple chunk,
confection, sugar and butter.
And then this, that--
That looks like it--
Yeah. That looks separated.
Yeah.
[Judy] Pineapple juice
is very acidic.
Could be that too much acid
with the dairy.
made a breakup.
Okay, so we're just not
even going to touch that.
So let's work with this.
This is whipped cream.
So it's the heavy whipping
cream and powdered sugar.
-Okay.
-So very simple.
On top of this.
[Cami] See, if that was
my whipped cream, it would've
fallen out of the bag.
[Goodman] Oh, my goodness.
She's already going there.
[Cami] Wow, that already looks
so much better.
-[Judy] What I think,
with the stem
-[Cami] With the stem.
I wouldn't be bothered to even
use a pitted, fresh cherry.
I could pit out the bottom and
keep the stem on
instead of baking it in.
That looks fabulous.
-[Judy] But wait.
-[Cami] She said, "But wait."
[Goodman] But wait.
There's more. Good grief.
[Cami] A little mint?
It's fresh. It's natural.
It adds a pop of color.
-I love it.
-Very cute.
[Judy] And lemon brings out
the sweetness of anything.
[Cami] Mm hmm.
That's too cute.
[Judy] You just need
to start playing, girl.
[Cami] You're right.
And I mean it. It smells
better with the lemon.
It looks better with the mint.
[Judy] Yeah.
[Cami]
Every year people get better.
And every year
people are throwing
new things into their recipes.
And I have to, as well.
I'm gonna go ahead and utilize
everything I've learned.
Because that's gonna bring out
all that sweetness
and my gosh, I never even
thought of that.
I know. We never thought
about any of this.
[Goodman] For State,
Cami has three hours
to do everything
we have learned today.
She's gonna have to
practice mapping that out.
-Cute.
-I'm gonna add
a little bit of lemon.
[Goodman] This is
her senior year.
This is her last time
to cook with her team.
If she comes in,
absolutely laser focused
and really pays attention
to the details.
I think she's going
to do it this year.
That definitely takes it up
a level or three.
You turned this in
last year at State
and got 11th overall.
[Cami] That is what
I turned in to State.
[Goodman] If you turn in this,
that's a trophy to me,
that's a trophy.
[Judy] Good job, girl. Yay!
Stop. This is all you.
This is all you.
I am super
confident for State.
I think the cakes look great.
So at State, I really want
to do better
than I've ever done before.
I got 11th in dessert at
last year's state competition,
this year, I'm hoping
to make top ten
because I want to have
some bragging rights
in order for my school
to start taking the barbecue
team seriously.
You're the best.
Seriously, thank you so much.
Well, it was so fun
working with you,
and you're just a joy.
And we wish you
the best of luck.
[Cami] Thank you.
[Goodman] All right.
Do we eat cake now?
[Judy] Let's eat cake.
That's what it's all about.
Okay, y'all, Let's go!
Let's go! Let's roll!
Let's roll! Let's roll!
Let's roll!
It's my last practice
as a senior.
We are currently starting
behind and the clock, y'all.
Today is our last practice
before State.
And you know, if we're gonna
win State, we've got to
get the brisket right,
first and foremost.
Y'all should
notice her by now.
All right, now, tuck it.
We're gonna have a class
all next week.
You know, we don't have
that many briskets.
No, no, no, no.
We don't use brisket.
We're gonna use bricks.
Eighth place brisket,
Phat's Barbecue.
[Beasley] That
was ours to win.
And I think we
dropped the ball.
We've got to be better
at how we wrap things.
Brisket, ribs.
It's something that is needed.
So we're going
to practice that today.
Chancy chose to go do bowling,
which is his passion.
With him moving off to do that
Zane stepped up.
Zane will do both
brisket and ribs.
[Zane] Chancy's leaving.
It is annoying, yes, but
nothing that we can't handle.
We always, you know,
adapt and overcome.
[Beasley] Every team member
has a role.
And there should be a backup
to each individual role.
Whether I have you
on beans, dessert.
If you get sick, go down,
somebody else
have to step up
and finish that product.
That's the whole point
of cross training
everybody to do everything.
Guys. Do we have a walk-in
freezer full of briskets?
No.
What you see here is this
is your brisket for the day.
This is what you'll wrap.
It's time to step up, guys,
and I know we can
win this thing.
But y'all got to come on
and bring it.
-[chanting] One team!
-[chanting] One dream!
[all] Whoo!
-Let's go.
-Let's go.
[Zane] It's been a long year.
I feel like as a leader,
I've gotten to expand
that horizon of my expertise.
Doing brisket plus the ribs
is definitely gonna be
a little more stressful
than what I'm used to.
But I kind of like the stress,
the intensities.
It's definitely something
that my competitive side
is craving.
[Beasley] Let's go.
Y'all better come on.
The pressure
gets me motivated.
Yeah, baby,
that's my brisket paper.
Okay, guys, if you want
to cook something,
it's got to be snug.
So you want to wrap it tight
like it's a baby.
A baby in a blanket.
And as it heats up, you want
it to continue to break down
those muscles of the meat,
so it can get tender.
[Zane] You want the wrapping
to be super tight
because If it's not
tight enough,
then the muscle fibers
won't break down
and the tissue
won't break down.
The meat will be more stiff
and if it's tight,
it breaks down better.
And doesn't allow air pockets,
and so you can get tender
and flavorful meat.
[Beasley] As you go,
pull back.
That's what I expect,
tight as possible.
Back on the smoker it goes.
I'm depending
on you guys to do it right,
so that you're cook time
is what your cook time
should be.
Let's go! Let's go! Let's go!
[Zane] There you go.
You've seen me do it
a dozen times.
There you go, you don't want
to hold it underneath you
because you wanna pick it up.
See, Caitlin's doing it right,
she's seen me do it.
There, place it underneath
[Beasley] Diego, you are
so loose, it's gonna fall out
when you
remove it off the pit.
It's imperative
that you wrap it tight.
Don't leave that
air pocket in there.
Next team. Let's go, let's go!
[Zane] Winning State
Championship
would be a huge milestone.
Second place last year.
First place this year.
That's leaving
Phat's Barbecue
off on a good note
and hopefully, build momentum
for them to become,
you know, The Barbecue
of the state.
That's my goal is for them
to become notorious.
Nice and tight, like a baby.
[Beasley] Unwrap it.
We're gonna go with foil.
Change up.
Change up.
Change up.
Let's go.
Butcher's paper is just
an insulation blanket,
so we don't lose the bark.
Versus foil, it's basically
a convection oven.
At that point, you could crank
your pit up
and go hot and fast.
Just go.
Diego, take your time.
Make it look nice and neat.
Ransom. You're looking
marvelous.
You're making Diego
look like a baby
trying to learn how to walk.
Let's go.
[Diego] That was funny.
[Zane] It's fine. It's fine.
It's about the recovery.
That looks better, Diego.
There you go.
Back on the smoker you go.
Great job, Zane.
Great job, Ransom.
Good recovery, Diego.
If you don't hit your brisket
a few times,
it's not a real brisket.
I'm gonna miss getting
yelled at by Sergeant Coach
Paul Beasley every day.
I don't yell.
-[Zane laughs]
-I just demand excellence.
That Zane is just
one of a kind.
He can't be duplicated.
So I don't think nobody could
pick up where he left off.
Coach.
[Beasley] It is tough love,
and the kids understand
that we care about them.
-That we love them.
-Yeah. I think they do.
But it's just
that competitive edge
of a coach to want to win and
see these kids be victorious.
Any final words
for our senior, Zane?
-You gold.
-Yeah.
Now, I'm gonna tell Zane,
just because this is
your last competition,
you ain't gonna go
and be no slouch.
-I'm trying to win first.
-Ain't gonna be
no slump.
You're gonna go
and you're gonna lead.
I want you to be commander.
"Hey, guys, let's get it.
Let's get it done."
Okay.
Zane's biggest challenge
is time management.
You got the two biggest meats,
so with that,
Zane's gotta be
mentally, mentally focused
at State.
-[chanting] One team!
-[chanting] One dream!
[all] Whoo!
Get out.
Brotherly love.
Hey, beautiful.
Ooh, exciting day.
[Emery] I know.
Congratulations.
[Emery] Thank you.
We are at my signing day.
I'm feeling very nervous,
and I'm also excited, though.
Signing day is me
signing with the school
that I've decided to go to
and saying, like,
"Hey, I'm going to go
play soccer here."
It is a big deal because
it shows that you're going
to do big things in life,
like you're going to play
a college sport.
That's a pretty big deal.
Okay, so.
I had such a fun time
at McMurry,
and I met all the girls I met
who I was going with.
Then we went to practice.
Took some media day pictures.
[whispering] They're so cute.
This is making me
very nervous.
I'm gonna turn around.
I'm very blessed to have
my family, my friends, to come
watch things like that.
I will be the first person
in my family to graduate from
a four-year college.
And that is a big deal,
and I'm excited
for that milestone.
[man on mic]
The next one we're going
to introduce today
is going to continue
her soccer career
at McMurry University
in Abilene.
Everybody, give it up
for Emery Kirby.
[cheering]
Are all of your
soccer teammates,
maybe who you've met
so far at McMurry,
are they gonna expect some
smoked brisket and chicken
before or after games
on the weekend?
Definitely the coaches.
They've been talking
to me about it.
And they're like,
my gosh, that's so cool.
We need to get you
to do it for us.
And they, like, even showed me
a grill they had out there.
And they're like, you can
use this anytime you want.
Make it for us.
Whatever you want to do,
So for sure.
All right!
High school barbecue isn't
just about bragging rights.
It teaches you
how to adjust with pressure.
My confidence
has improved a ton.
It makes me feel like I've
accomplished something.
[man on microphone]
Pick up your pen.
And sign to commit your future
career at McMurry University.
[Emery] I've been accepted to
Bethel and McMurry.
After I got accepted
at both schools, I just came
into like, a lot of thinking.
There was a bunch
of different factors
that went in with McMurry.
I got a $17,000 scholarship
for soccer, and instead
of being six hours away
from my family,
I decided to be two,
just because
it's a lot closer to home.
I don't think I can leave
my family just because
I love them so much.
I'll only be 30 minutes
away from Pop.
So we went down to his house
a few weekends ago
and he told me that I can just
make the back bedroom
and decorate it
however I want to, and I can
just come see him
whenever I want to, so.
Made me cry a little bit.
I believe that she realizes
what family means to her,
and she's family driven,
she knows and down to the core
that's who she is.
[whimpers]
Emotional.
So excited!
[Angie] I'm extremely
proud of her.
You have to go back
and put yourself
in the shoes at that age,
and she's a lot more
responsible and a lot more
driven than I was.
I look around and I see
all these people
that are here for you.
-Yeah.
-It's hard to leave it
when you have that.
-[indistinct
background chatter]
-It's pretty awesome.
I know.
-That's why you're
gonna make me cry.
-I know.
It's hard because
I'm so excited for her.
But, like, every day,
like, she's like my little
my person at school.
So, that's hard. But
It's okay. It's good.
Happy tears.
I feel like you're such
good role models
for my girls,
and I appreciate that.
Did you know,
Harper thinks, like,
you're, like,
just like Taylor Swift
and you.
And then, maybe,
like, I don't know, Jesus,
maybe up here, I'm not sure.
But, like, Emery is like,
right there.
So, thank you for that.
Okay. I've definitely
ruined my makeup.
Huh. Same.
It feels crazy and surreal
just because, like,
I know I just did that.
But I'm like, "Did I
just do that?"
Like, "Did I do that? Really?"
I definitely don't think
that my success is over.
It's time for me
to fully devote all
of my attention to barbecue.
I still want
to walk the stage at State.
I'm ready to go
and compete, and win.
You all right over there?
Holy
Sheesh!
Dude, it's like,
it's seriously raining
out here.
My goal for this practice
is getting our team
ready for anything.
Because we don't know
what State's gonna bring.
I don't know if
it's gonna be rainy, it's
gonna be windy or whatnot.
So, just the team needs
to know how to work together
in all types of conditions.
-Y'all, I'm keeping
the sanitizer on the top rack.
-[men] Got it.
Weather affects
the barbecue a lot.
There's more humidity.
It's gonna cool down
the smoker a lot just
because it's making it wet.
If it's cold outside,
then you're gonna have to use
a lot more fuel in your fire.
Coincidentally, State
is notorious for having
very bad weather.
State, last year,
it was windy.
They set up the tents
and they blew away.
State before that,
it was pouring rain.
[Brysen] All right, let's
check this fire and see
how pearly it's looking.
[man squeals]
It's howling!
[Marc] Fire sounds amazing.
This fire is gonna
get super, super hot.
It's gonna get
super, super good.
And we're gonna have
super, super good food.
Mm-hmm. Let's go.
Are those cookies up?
All right. Good deal.
I'd say I'm in
a pretty good space right now
with Habibi barbecue.
I'm planning on making a menu
and putting it on my website
so people can order stuff.
But right now, I'm really
just worried about State.
And if I do good,
it's like I can tell people,
"Hey, I had the best ribs
in State." Now, people
are gonna want my food.
It just pushes my name
out there to the point
to where
everybody's hearing about it.
Everybody's gonna want it.
I know we didn't really get
to talk about what happened
in Southlake, right?
I can barely
remember Southlake.
-I remember Southlake.
-And it just turned out
not that good.
[Coach A] So, that was
one of the main things
for Southlake,
was obviously
a lack of flavor.
I need you
to get y'all's stuff together.
I know this is your
last practice before State.
Take this serious, all right?
-Yeah.
-Got it.
I want them
to feel that pressure.
I want them to feel
like, "Hey, we're at
a real competition."
This is the point where
we actually have to go back
and fix all the mistakes
that we did during regionals.
[indistinct background
chatter]
-How's your
chicken looking boss?
-It looks pretty good.
At Southlake, all the judges,
they liked the ribs,
obviously,
because I got third place.
[announcer] Third place
in ribs.
[cheering, applause]
But they said
I needed more smoke
and I needed more pepper.
So, what I did was,
I took my normal
rack of ribs,
and I did a layer
of coarse black pepper
just so I can get that
nice bark coming in.
And I did then
my layer of my normal rub.
But it does have
double the peppering.
I got a new method
coming out, y'all
that should be
nice and barky.
My ribs, they have
a wonderful bark.
For my changes,
I'm feeling pretty confident.
[Coach A] Let's make sure
to watch the tenderness
of it so we don't overcook it.
Our ribs need to be perfect.
We need to work
on cooking them
to the perfection
that we're looking for,
not under or way too over,
but we're trying to get
more in the middle
to make sure that
during State,
we, you know, execute,
and hopefully come out on top.
[Marc] I have about
five minutes to cook.
Um, just cook off that glaze.
I'm seeing some
great color on these ribs.
I'm praying that this bark
is nice when I flip it.
[man] All right.
Let's give it a flipper.
What am I, a penguin?
A "flipper," get it?
-Oh, yeah,
that's a money rib!
-[man squeals]
If you look at this team,
we're like working gears,
you know, we're
a well-oiled machine.
-Let's get it in the smoker.
-Somebody open the door.
We're working together,
and it's really nice to have
some people
that you're friends with.
[laughs] We're all
out of sync, bro.
[laughs] Yo, whose
hands are cold?
That's the best part,
honestly. A lot of fun.
Chilling out the fire
with Nate, and Brysen,
and Damien.
It's my last time.
But look at these.
Okay. Oh, my
-Yo, is this
-Sheesh
I seriously think the rib game
leveled up right here.
Look at the peppery-ness
on these ribs, and they're
not coming off.
-It's sticking to it.
I got what I wanted today.
-Sheesh.
That's impressive. Okay.
I think I made
a really good rack.
Are you ready?
Clink!
That's fire.
[Marc] Get in here.
I need your opinion.
I like to bark on there.
I think it might be
a little too much pepper.
So, I think I'm not gonna
add the double pepper
to the classic seasoning.
And I'm only gonna add
as another layer.
[Coach A] There you go.
My only opinion
is, I felt like they
need a little bit more
cooking time.
-Do you think so?
-Just a tad more.
A tad, tad more.
Because it's still
a little tough.
They're not as tender
as the ones that
you had at Southlake.
I'm still kind of
struggling with
the tenderness just 'cause
every time I do it, I feel
like it's either, I'm making
it, like, real crazy tender,
or I'm making it like
it's got a bite to it,
you know.
Like, I need to have a rib
that, like, you take a bite,
and it's, like, "boom,"
you know what I mean?
My ribs, they need
to be A game for State.
[Emery] What the
Physically, the size of me.
-How are we doing
out here? Decent?
-[Emery laughing]
You're a goofball.
-Okay.
-I don't know what I'm doing.
[Coach Langdon] Maria, did you
find your ribs yet?
It's a I am gonna
be a little bit of
a mad scientist today,
and I'm gonna try new things.
I don't know how
Chef Langdon
will think about it,
but we'll see how it goes.
I think I've made it
pretty clear that
I'm competitive,
and that I have goals
that I want to achieve,
and I'm going
to do anything I can
to achieve those goals.
Hey, what are
the comment cards?
-From Graham?
-Yes.
"The flavors
were great together.
The meat was cooked perfectly.
Loved the spice.
Good barbecue sauce.
Flame on point.
Skin, tough.
A little too sweet.
Not much flavor balance.
Good flavor. Skin was chewy."
Since our trip to Barb's,
they have a lot more
drive and passion,
really wanting to get serious
about how they can improve,
how they can take those
comments from the judges
at the last competition
and how they can push forward.
This is our last practice
for this season,
and it's our last chance
to really dial in
all of the details.
Maria, what's
your objective today?
-[Maria] Uh, flavor profiles.
-Okay.
A little bit less sweet,
a little bit more salty,
and a little bit spicier.
[Coach Langdon] Noe, what's
our goal for today?
Um, making more even cuts
and making it look better?
I still have not figured out
how to fix my chicken skin.
-[woman 1] You see all this
fat right here on the skin?
-[woman 2] Mm-hmm.
[woman 1] Take it off
so your skin gets thinner,
so it gets crispier.
-[woman 2] Mm-hmm.
-[woman 1] 'Cause you don't
want your skin to be chewy.
After going to Barb's
and seeing Chuck,
it really just made me
think about like,
what ideas can I come up with
to help my chicken out,
and I think I have an idea.
All right. Emery,
what's our game plan?
[Emery] I'm focusing
on my skin today.
Trying to get it crispier.
-I have an idea.
-[Coach Langdon] Okay.
And I don't know
if you're gonna like it
or hate it or not, but
[Coach Langdon] Well,
today is the day to try it.
What is it?
I was going to get,
like, a propane thing,
and do it from a distance.
Just like kind of
a blowtorch the top.
There are
some things that,
when your students suggest,
you're like, "Really?
Is that really what
we're gonna do?"
Okay. I love the idea
of trying something new,
but I don't want you to
do that to every single one.
-You good with that?
-Okay. Yep.
I really was just
thinking about
ways to get my skin tighter,
and I was like,
"If you put something
next to a flame,
it tightens up."
And I was like,
"What if I put
the flame next to the skin?"
So, I was like, "What if
I just used a blowtorch?"
The mad scientist part
of this whole thing is
how different I feel like
this stuff is than
other people do.
Because I don't think
I've ever heard of anybody
who blowtorches their chicken.
No, I just thought
of it on my break.
-[producer] Okay.
-Look at this.
I literally I take it
out the package
[woman 2] They, like,
cut through, like
Hey, you may get
something like that.
You've got to be prepared.
Other than
leaving behind a legacy,
my number one reason
that I want to do well
at State is for my family.
My parents, who have eaten
more chicken than they could
have imagined in their life,
my grandma who passed away,
she never, like, really got
to come and see me compete
in high school barbecue.
Cool, cool.
There we go.
My pops, because
he supports me
through whatever I do.
Get that little motion going.
I also want to do it
for Coach Langdon
just because of how much work
she's put in for us.
I want that work to show,
and I want her to get
first-place-chicken ribbon
to put in her room.
They look pretty decent.
Sheesh McGeesh.
I'm kind of excited.
Hopefully, I don't
blow things up.
-Ready?
-Oh, sweet Jesus!
Hey, hang on.
That thing's broken.
[Emery] How do I get
the propane to come out?
I'm not as strong as you.
-Okay, Here we go.
-Oh, sweet Jesus.
I don't know about that, Em.
Oh, my God. There you go.
-[Emery] Hey, you saw that?
-Did you see it? Yeah.
It's like tightened up
a little bit.
Try to hit it
in that pocket in the wing.
Yeah, I hit it up there
on that tail.
-[Emery] It's
getting crispier.
-There you go.
[both chuckle excitedly]
Now, hey, don't let
the power go
to your head, crazy.
There you go.
You don't want to overdo it.
There you go.
[Emery] Close it.
Turn off the heat.
-I'm done.
-"Turn off the heat.
I'm done."
[chuckles] Why don't
you wear some pants
to school next time?
All right,
let's give it a try.
Okay.
That one has a lot of fat.
It's prettier.
-Is it crispier?
-I like that.
It's just with, like,
the blowtorch method
that I did
I liked it. I mean,
I was kind of surprised.
-I was a little skeptical.
-[Emery] Me, too.
[Coach Langdon] The torch
helped give it that crispiness
that you'd been searching for.
I'm stoked. Like, I was
not expecting it to work.
Like, I thought
it was a dumb idea
I was gonna try. It worked.
[Coach Langdon] Bye bye,
mad scientist.
At State, we need to do well
because this is our chance.
This is our chance
to really be one of the ones
that, when we pull
in the parking lot,
people are like
"Ah, Cranberry is here.
All right."
Emery, chicken queen!