Although Bruce was not on the picnic planing committee, he provided a great deal of effort to the success of this picnic and I want to be sure that he is recognized and knows that he has my thanks. I agreed to cook the BBQ without first thinking thru all that had to be done. There was more involved than just spending a few hours on the day it was cooked. I had to have the meat very early Friday morning and the chopped BBQ had to be refrigerated Friday night, but I certainly didn't have the refrigeration necessary to store 9 shoulders overnight. Bruce read a post of mine stating that, and the next thing I knew, there was a refrigerator and also a chest freezer in my garage, courtesy of Bruce. Pete brought the shoulders Thursday afternoon, so that problem was solved. Bruce explained to me that the time it took to cool the meat from the cooker temperature to a safe 40 degrees had to be fairly quick to avoid bacteria from creating potential problems. He provided aluminum pans in which I froze about an inch or so of water. Once the meat was chopped, a pan of meat was sandwiched between two pans of ice and placed in the refrigerator....presto, problem solved. Pork is normally chopped with meat cleavers and can be a time consuming arm numbing experience. He provided a chop box which resulted in everything being chopped in 30 minutes. We never thought about how to keep the BBQ warm while on the serving line. Guess who showed up with racks for the pans and burners that were placed beneath those racks? He also provided the chicken cooker with the flip-over grate which meant that each individual piece of chicken did not have to be turned. He also provided a chest of slaw, among other things.
If it sounds as if I am singing Bruce's praises, I am. He certainly made my job much, much easier and, as far as I know, no one has gotten sick from eating bacteria-laced pork. Thanks Bruce and I'll see you Monday when you make another trip to Chapel Hill to get the refrigerator, freezer, and chop box. :eusa_clap:eusa_clap
If it sounds as if I am singing Bruce's praises, I am. He certainly made my job much, much easier and, as far as I know, no one has gotten sick from eating bacteria-laced pork. Thanks Bruce and I'll see you Monday when you make another trip to Chapel Hill to get the refrigerator, freezer, and chop box. :eusa_clap:eusa_clap
