A super Super Bowl spread

My buddy Matt Pittman, the biggest Bama fan in Waxahachie, TX, went all out for the Super Bowl. (Any of you have a spread like this???) Here are his own words about it, along with his pics:

Super Bowl XLVII Smoke

A week ago I was enjoying a cold beer and some BBQ at the Katy Trail Ice House when a buddy asked me what I was doing for the Super Bowl. It took about two seconds for me to say, “Let’s BBQ.”

My mind started racing immediately about how I could prepare a feast suitable for the final football game of the year.  I cook out just about every weekend for football while I am watching my 15 time national champion Crimson Tide or my beloved Dallas Cowboys.  I had to do it right since we were down to one final game.

I’m always nervous about cooking for a crowd, but I took this chance to test some of my homemade rubs and recipes on people other than my family. Literally everything I served would be smoked. I decided my menu would consist of:

Appetizers

1.)    Bacon wrapped jalapenos stuffed with cream cheese.

2.)    Bacon wrapped jumbo shrimp stuffed with jalapeno and monterrey jack cheese.

3.)    Cajun seasoned chicken wings.

Main Course

1.)    Brisket with a simple central Texas salt and pepper rub. Inspired by @bbqfranklin.

2.)    Spare ribs with my homemade rub that starts off with a kick but finishes sweet.

3.)    Shiner Bock beer can chicken with @DallasLockhart rub.

4.)    Authentic Louisiana boudain.

5.)    Brown sugar baked beans.

Dessert

1.)    Leftover meat from first two courses.

Smoking is an all-day affair with me. I got a head start Saturday and prepared all my meats. I rubbed down the brisket and ribs and stored them in by beer fridge to marinade. Yes, I have a fridge completely dedicated to beer and meat.  Awesome, I know.

I’m such a BBQ geek that I developed and wrote down my cook plan. That way I could put the meats on the pit at the proper time in order to serve them right on time for the game. This also helps if I drink too much hand cramping, ice cold Lone Star during the smoke and forget what I need to do and when I need to do it.

My trailer smoker is named Estelle after my 99 year old Great Aunt. She ain’t much to look at, but she sure can cook. And boy did she not disappoint. I managed to cover most of Estelle's cook surface with meat. This is a site that got my BBQ wiener at full attention.

The fan favorite was the bacon wrapped shrimp. The ribs and brisket were fantastic which made me a happy man. I was in a meat coma after this meal.

I took 2 showers Sunday and still managed to go to bed smelling like smoked meat. In fact I smelled like smoked meat for 2 days. I wished I could bottle that scent and wear it like a cologne to work.

In the end….the Ravens did not win the Super Bowl. I did.

Matt

@PittmanKid