What We Made On Episode 1 of Pitmasters

Christie (Girls Can Grill) and I competed on Pitmasters! See what we cooked for Pitmasters episode 1, meet the fierce competition, and get ready to drool over amazing BBQ from all across the United Sates!

What We Made On Episode 1 of Pitmasters

If you haven’t heard already, I was selected to compete on a team with my good friend Christie Vanover from Girls Can Grill on a new Food Network show called Pitmasters. The show takes 9 teams of 2 to the middle of nowhere to compete in an open-fire cooking competition for 7 days and nights. We had to deal with heat, weather, wind, elevation, and four legendary BBQ judges (Andrew Zimmern, Big Moe Cason, Ernest Servantes, and Jess Pryles) tasting and critiquing everything we put in front of them.

To say it was intense is an understatement, but we had so much fun. Now, I’m excited to share with you what we cooked up for episode 1 of Pitmasters!

The Challenge(s)

Each episode of the show comes with a unique challenge and 2 different cooks to turn in. For the “Big Burn”, we had 10 hours to cook 2 proteins and at least 1 side. For the “Flash Burn” (which we had to do DURING the “Big Burn”) we had 1 hour to create a one-bite challenge. No pressure.

The “Flash Burn”: One Hour, One Bite

Even though this was the first challenge, in some ways it was tougher than the “Big Burn”. We had 1 hour to deliver 1 incredible bite. No slowly-building depth of flavors or a full meal to lean on. In competition BBQ, this is the way judges eat the food. You get one shot to say everything in a single bite. First place walked away with $2,000 while everyone else inched a little closer to elimination.

What We Made

Christie and I wanted our bite to say something about who we are (backyard BBQ enthusiasts), so we built it around our families and the people we love to feed. Christie’s husband is Filipino, which is where the lumpia idea came from. She’s already got an incredible Filipino-inspired grilled chicken lumpia on her https://homefrontking.com/. And if you know my husband, Taste Test Todd, you know exactly how much that guy loves Buffalo chicken thighs. Putting the two together was a no-brainer.

The result: Buffalo Chicken Lumpia. I cooked the chicken thighs on planchas over open flame (did you catch the close up of my Pitmaster Gloves flipping the hot chicken?!) while Christie hand-rolled the lumpia and fried them in a Dutch oven set right over the coals. We finished the plate with a cool cabbage slaw and my creamy Buffalo ranch.

Andrew Zimmern walked up to our station and told us straight up he was ready to “dislike it immensely.” Then he tasted it and said, “Very, very nice.” I’ll take that all day long.

The “Big Burn”: 10 Hours to Show Your Stuff

With the “Flash Burn” behind us, it was time to focus back on our “Big Burn” dishes. Now less than 10 hours left, still with 2 proteins and at least 1 side to cook, and no time to catch our breath.

What I Made

I went with my Candied Jalapeño Pork Belly Burnt Ends: sweet, sticky, and just enough heat to keep things interesting. But here’s where it got dicey: we were cooking at high elevation, and that pork belly just would not push through the stall. Christie made the call to wrap it and power through with the Texas Crutch method (you can learn all about this method in my post HERE). Honestly, that save might be the whole reason this dish made it to the judges at all.

Alongside that, I made Smoked Poblano Shells and White Cheddar. I’ve got a whole library of mac and cheese variations on my https://homefrontking.com/ (my Smoked Mac and Cheese is actually the top-rated recipe on Google right now, no big deal), but for this one I went with extra sharp white cheddar and smoked gouda, shells, and, of course, some smoked poblanos. Then we stacked candied jalapeños (from my Backyard BBQ Hero cookbook!) on the burnt ends and piled the burnt ends on the shells and cheese. Not to brag, but it might be the perfect BBQ bite.

What Christie Made

Christie brought her show-stopping Dino Ribs to the table. If you haven’t made her version at home, you need to. These massive beef plate ribs are her go-to for a reason: she coats them with her Brisket Rub, then lets them cook low and slow until they’re probe-tender. She also sliced some of the beef from the finished ribs into medallions to crisp up on the plancha. To round it all out, she prepared a bright spinach salad to cut through all that rich smoked meat. 

The Judging

We shared this entire spread with the judges on night one, tasted what the other teams cooked, then got real feedback face to face. It was amazing to sit down and share a meal with our judges and other competitors. One thing you may have noticed is how many layers and blankets and jackets everybody had on for that final meal. The dinner and judging took HOURS, after dark, in the mountains. We were all so incredibly cold!!

The Results

Results came in right after judging and, if you watched already watched Pitmasters episode 1, you know where we landed. Of course, I can’t tell you who won. I can’t tell you if we made it through. What I can tell you is we ate some amazing food, and you need to watch the whole season Pitmasters to find out who wins and see all the incredible BBQ. The chefs on this show are next level and I feel honored to be in their company!

Christie and I poured everything into this competition, and this is just a little taste of what’s coming up. You can catch new episodes of Pitmasters live at 9/8c (7pm if you’re in MST like me) on Food Network, or steaming the next day on the Food Network https://homefrontking.com/ and Discovery+. Make sure to stop by next week to see if we made it to episode 2, and so you can cook alongside all the Pitmasters!