Cookin' wings for Sam's BWOP

(Midwest City, OK) -- As mentioned in the previous post -- this week we shall not judge but rather cook. Wings. 

The Tyson "Best Wings on the Planet" sampling tent setup

Pre-seasoned, fully-cooked Tyson wings. 140 lbs. of  them in all available flavors except Spicy Asian and Buffalo (!). Which, at this club, leaves Tequila Lime and Honey BBQ.

Since they are fully cooked we just have to make sure the frozen wings are heated through to the bone. Of course we will use charcoal and a competition-grade smoker to make sure they have a little carmelization on the outside so they taste great.

They did. The Honey BBQ were gone first, I'm suspecting because people are more familiar with a flavor like that. Those that passed on the Tequila Lime missed out because them things is tasty. In fact they were so good I bought a bag to take home.

Even the kids had a great time  helping out and pushing those tasty wings

It was a fun day meeting the people out there and watching what happens at a BBQ contest from a different perspective than that of a judge. We'd look at our watches and see 1pm and think -- Pork is hitting the tables about now. A little envious but still having a good time. The kids even took joy in helping out.

The set-up for the BWOP sampling is really cool (as you can see). Tyson is proud of the wings and should be. All of the barbecue teams were given the opportunity to put their own spin on wings for a chance to have their face on the bag of next year's new flavor. 

Teams gather hoping to collect the trophies and checks

The winners were as follows:

1st  - Blue Collar BBQ of Wichita, KS

2nd - Sizzlin' Bones BBQ of Muskogee, OK

3rd  - Buffalo's BBQ of Sperry, OK

Tom Rodgers collects his giant check for his winning wings

The guy from Blue Collar -- Tom Rodgers -- called his recipe "Asian Barbecue Wings I Guess" and seemed a bit sheepish realizing he may not have been working from a set recipe that he'd now have to re-create and write down for the organization.

It was a great day and we'd do it again. Still, though, looking forward to getting back in the judges tent. Stillwater? No -- turns out they say they don't need us. I guess we don't need them either then (more on poorly run competitions - which this certainly was NOT - in a future post).

--Rufus