I’m very excited about this weekend. Not only am I celebrating a friends 30th Birthday and going to see the excellent Goodnight Lenin at their EP launch party, but I’m heading over to Harborne for a reunion with the team behind the highly successful ‘Popstrami‘ pop-up NY deli that we put on back in March. Chief popstrami conspirator, bank-roller, and long-time Loaf customer Nick Loman instigated this get-together, and not content with a mere chinwag over a curry, has challenged us all to a southern BBQ cook-off that we have to document in film, photo and word!

My original plan of doing a proper pit-roast suckling pig has fallen by the wayside for now, but I am equally excited by the three side dishes that I’ve opted to prepare to go alongside pork ribs, smoked brisket, barbecue beans, apple pie etcetera. After borrowing the excellent Real Cajun by Donald Link from Nick, I’ve spent the week getting acquainted with the cuisine of the southern states, and opted for hush puppies, boudin balls, and slaw.

Boudin is a traditional rice and pork sausage, which I believe has it’s roots in spanish Morcilla black pudding sausage though I’m happy to be corrected on that. As I’ve not bothered to look for another one, I’m going to do the recipe just as it is from Real Cajun. I’ve ordered the pork liver and shoulder from Rossiters and plan to make the mix fresh on Sunday morning. As I don’t have a sausage stuffer and Rossiters is closed on a Sunday I’m going to make these into bread-crumbed-and-deep-fried boudin balls instead.

As I’ll be heating up some oil anyway, it makes sense to do hush puppies too which also require deep frying. I managed to pry a recipe out of Soul Food Project’s head chef Carl Finn during the week, so I’m planning to play off his recipe against Donald Link’s and see what comes out top. Link’s recipe is described as a batter, whereas Carl said his is more like a scone mixture. Carl’s also includes ale, which is automatically drawing me in that direction, specially with the fab selection of USA ales currently in stock at Stirchley Wines.

I haven’t found a decent slaw recipe yet so may just make something up. If i have time I’ll make a homemade BBQ sauce to dress it though.

I am salivating already. Hopefully i’ll post some pictures of experiments and the cook-off on Sunday too.