Napa Jack's Barbecue Sauce Grilled Pork Chops (sauce review)

Napa Jack's Barbecue Sauces

You better turn on the lights before you go feeling around in the dark for something stiff to drink, or you might grab a bottle of Napa Jack's. Yes. The bottles look like liquor bottles, but they contain some very yummy barbecue sauce. One sauce even has wine in the recipe though not liquor.

Napa Jack's asked if I'd like sample bottles to see what I thought of these sauces. I like to try out new sauces and do reviews, so I said I give these sauces a try.

Pork Chops on the O Grill with Napa Jack's

This was a late day at the office, so I decided to do some thin chops. Well, I'm not sure if those are even chops. They are pork though.

Seeing as how these were thin, I let them marinate in the Napa Jack's barbecue sauce. The smell was really nice, kind of tangy but sweet.

Napa Jack Pork Chops Hit the Spot

The pork turned out good. The sauce was definitely the star of the show. My favorite was the Chipotle Cabernet. That little hint of wine gave it the edge for me.

These barbecue sauces were advertised as being good as replacements for ketchup which worried me a bit. They are mild enough to use more generally, but they do taste like barbecue sauce. I could see them used for dipping as also mentioned (meat balls would be really good - especially grilled meat balls). I doubt I'd dip French fries, but then I like my fries plain, so I'm not the best one to judge on that.

I would also not that these sauces are all natural and do have that nice fresh flavor. They are also gluten free. My family eats the heck out of some gluten, but I know a lot of people avoid gluten these days. 

Cowboy Joe's Pit and Grilling Sauce - Vinegar Sauce Review

Cowboy Joe's Pit & Grilling Sauce on Pork Chops

Leslie got in touch. She'd found Barbecue Master and thought I'd like to try out Cowboy Joe's Pit & Grilling Sauce. They have just taken first place in the Austin, Texas "Man-Up" annual competition and then 4th in the National Barbecue Association competition with 600 entries.

Life has been crazy around here as some of you know with a kid out of the country and an airline take-over with some questions about when I'd get him back. I still had to eat, and this sauce interesting, since it's a vinegar, and North Carolina is the vinegar capital of sauces.

Leslie sent out samples of the mild and spicy, and made my quick and easy boneless pork chops. I also tried the sauce (or really a mop) on some chopped pork as well that I had from our last low and slow smoke.

Here's What Cowboy Joe's Barbecue Sauce Looks Like in the Jar
 

When I first opened the box, I thought I had what I'd call a sauce - thick like Kansas City sauce. In North Carolina, Bone Suckin' Sauce is a thick sauce billed as a vinegar sauce, but it's certainly not a classic North Carolina BBQ sauce. It's more like Kansas with a hint of vinegar.

The darker color was throwing me off, but when I opened the jar, this was what I call a mop. It's thin like a classic North Carolina vinegar sauce but with a sweeter smell. What this means is that you can use it as a marinade, and you can brush it on while grilling where on thick sauces you need to wait until the meat is almost done, or the sugars will burn, and your barbecue meat will be charred on the outside.

I did marinate the pork chops for about 20 minutes in Cowboy Joe's Pit & Grilling barbecue sauce. And, then I sauced a little. It does not take long to grill boneless pork chops, so I didn't need to mop much. Just on each flip.

On the chopped pork, I just heated the sauce and poured it over as we do here in North Carolina on pork butt or shoulder sandwiches.

This was a really robust and tasty sauce. Cowboy Joe's was sweet just as it smelled. So, it's not a North Carolina knock off which is almost totally vinegar in flavor with some heat (hot pepper seeds) and in the western area (piedmont) a little red (some form of tomato).

I love a wide range of styles of barbecue sauces, but I do associate vinegar with NC. Our sauce does seem to be an acquired taste though, and many kind of freak out on the big hit of vinegar.

You get a little vinegar flavor in Cowboy Joe's but more sweet than tang, so I'd have to say that it would be more mainstream and appeal to a wider audience. You get the mop style which is great for moisture as you can see in my pork chop photo.

I go thumbs up, unless you are looking for NC style vinegar sauce. Then I'd say go with Ralph's (very small batch) or Scott's (easier to find). If you're looking for your first vinegar mop sauce, Cowboy Joe's is much less tart so a great bet if you're not used to vinegar sauces.

I love our NC vinegar sauces, but I have to call things the way I see them. Our barbecue sauce here can be kind of a shock. You get something similar here with Cowboy Joe's Pit & Grilling Sauce but with more balance and less bite. Someone may come by and revoke my North Carolina citizenship card. But, I adore out sauce style. I just know it's a niche product. Cowboy Joe's would be broader in appeal.

On a side note, I did get my son back. Now, I need to make him some smoked pork with Cowboy Joe's.

 

Lucky Smoke House has a Barbecue Rub or Seasoning for You

 

Lucky Smoke House Rubs and Seasonings - Something to Impress any Griller

First I'm sure everyone is impressed that I was able to stack so many barbecue rubs and seasonings without toppling them over. When I say Lucky Smoke House has something for everyone, I'm not just kidding as you can see.

Troy is my Facebook friend, and he and his wife, Elizabeth, are BBQ rub folks but also sell smoked foods like cold smoked salmon which I wrote about earlier and which is one of my new passions. Really great food does me like that, and that west coast salmon was heaven.

Troy was trying to explain that cold smoked salmon which is complex, so he said he'd just call and he did. We chatted about barbecue and smoking and about rubs/seasonings. He said he'd send me out some of his seasoning, because he knows I love to check out new ones and blog about them (the good, the bad, and the ugh - well I hate to tell you about the bad and ugh but fair is fair).

I did not realize that Troy had such a broad collecion of rubs and seasonings. Wow. He and Elizabeth have been busy as you can tell.

I decided to do some pork chops first, since I had some thawed out. I asked Troy what he'd suggest to season. He laughed and said: "Lucky Pig."

Of course.

But, his collection is NOT that simple. So, I pointed out that he had Panda, and I am pretty sure it's not legal to eat Panda. Correct me if I'm wrong. Either way, they don't sell Panda meat here.

"Oh," said Troy. "That's an Asian inspired seasoning."

It was not really intended for grilling panda. Whew. I do not have to go hunting or break any laws.

I decided to do Lucky Pig and Lucky Mad Panda (and the "mad" part in the collection just means spicy - but spicy here is a kick but not burn your tongue).

Pork Chops Resting with Lucky Smoke House Pig and Mad Panda

I put a little olive oil on the boneless pork chops which are a "go to" grill meal here, because they are quick and easy. They are also on sale quite often. I paid less than $4 for the meat here.

Both barbeque seasonings smelled quite fabulous but very different (you can even see the difference just in looking at the colors in the photo). In some large collections, I have a hard time telling one from the next. Every Lucky Smoke House flavor I've tried has really had its own unique smell and flavor.

Lucky Pig was a very classic pork type rub with a little sweet and heat and some extra umph which only comes with really balanced special rubs. I went light, because this could be a rub for a pork butt. So, something small like a pork chop does not need a thick coating - just enough to give some pop.

The Lucky Mad Panda had more bite. It worked across the table here, so I'll call it all purpose except for those who can't stand any heat. There was some kick, but it was the pleasant kind that you feel but don't cry about.

I loved both seasonings but especially the Lucky Mad Panda, since it was so unique. It did have some Asian notes (and I lived in Japan) and a nip of heat (which I love). I would not call this one classic for grilling, but it's one of my favorites in a long time. Very nice taste and really jazzed up plain, inexpensive grilled pork chops. We were eating large and feeling uptown.

Yes. These Pork Chops Were as Yummy as They Look!

It was fun picking out and playing with the Lucky Smoke House barbecue rubs. I'm still checking out these, since this is a big collecion. We had some Lucky Azz (changed the spelling so as not to upset the Google gods) on chicken. That one is billed for tacos and such versus donkey (do people grill donkey?), and it's great for stir fry in a grill wok and then served in soft taco shells or burrito wraps.

Troy has created a really interesting and broad range of BBQ seasonings and rubs. The collection is cohesive with clear balance or inspiraton but does not leave you wondering if you have the same rub with just a little change or two. No. They are all unique and each we've had tastes great.

Lucky Smoke House is a barbecue chef collection. I find a few great seasoning mixers but few who can pull off a big collection with each having a personality. Each bottle you open - you do get lucky just as the name of the barbecue rub line.

Grilled Pork Chops with Fischer & Wieser Havest Peach Sauce

Fischer & Wieser Peach Sauced BBQ Grilled Pork Chops

My son popped in from college last night, and a package from Toni Leigh had just arrived with Fischer & Wieser Harvest Peach Hatch Pepper Sauce (long name huh?). Toni sends me new products from Fischer & Wieser to try out on my grills, and I test them out and see how they go over here at the Barbecue Master house.

I hadn't really planned to grill, since it started raining, but my youngest son is a real peach freak. He even planted a peach tree in the yard, but the squirrels keep stripping it bare before we get many. My son isn't much of a squirrel fan due to that. In fact, he has suggested grilled squirrel, but I like the squirrels even if they eat the peaches, so we still just try to chase them away from the peach tree - unsuccessfully.

Fischer & Wieser is marketed as a finishing sauce with some heat from cilis from Hatch Valley in New Mexico that are roasted and then mixed with fresh sweet peaches. So, it's one of the newer sweet heat combo sauces.

I opened up the bottle. The smell was devine. It really did small like fresh peaches, and that' coming from a Carolina girl. I could also pick up the lighter heat notes. Yum.

Since I'd not planned on griling, I pulled out some thin cut pork chops. I needed something I could thaw quickly (in the sink in cool water) but also that would go well with the peach flavor. Pork hit me as perfect.

Since the chops were thin, I used the sauce as a pre-marinade. With thicker chops, I likely would have waited and lathered on sauce. Sugars in sauces can burn on the grill if over the fire too long.

The peach sauce looked really amazing when I poured it out. The texture was smooth but with chunks of peaches. And, the smell filled the kitchen. I was hoping this quick meal was going to taste as good as I was anticipating.

I put the pork chops on the Portable Kitchen cooker. It's cast aluminum and holds heat really well. Since it was cold and rainy, I needed that heat retention. My coals were still running a little cooler than I would have liked, since the rain was blowing in sideways.

With these chops about a half inch, it took about 3 or 4 minutes per side. Time varies on the thickness and the heat. I grill so much that I can eyeball items like pork chops, but you can always use a thermometer to double check. Dried out grilled pork chops aren't too tasty.

These pork chops were spot on. Juicy and tender. The Fischer & Wieser Peach sauce was terrific. The chops were perfectly peachy with just enough heat to taste great but not so much as to cover up the nice pork flavor.

The company has a halibut recipe using the peach sauce which sounds really good too. I may have to try that out soon.

If you're looking for a nice sauce to make your pork, fish, or chicken taste gourmet without having to spend hours making up your own sauce, I would highly recommend Fischer & Wieser Peach. It tastes yummy, and it grills up really nice as well.

Here's a photo of the bottle, so you'll know what to look for, or they also sell online which is always nice, since some of the best sauces are not available at many grocery stores.

Nephew's Peachy Potle' Barbecue Sauce

Tonight I broke out the Nephew's Peachy Potle' barbecue sauce. I'd been saving it back for a special evening, and since some of the guys were in for the holidays, it seemed a good night to test out this sauce from Garner, North Carolina.

Since I had some nice boneless pork chops, I went ahead and sauced them and let them rest for about a half hour while I started up the charcoal. With a sauce with a sugar base like this one, I would not sauce ahead with a larger cut of meat that takes longer to grill. These little cuts of pork grill up fast, so it works out perfect to sauce them ahead.

I had the charcoals good and hot and let the grate heat well, since it was very chilly outside. You want the grates hot regardless, since meat is likely to stick to cold grates and then your barbecue sauce doesn't stay on.

The Nephew's peach barbecue sauce set up nicely in 3 or 4 minutes. Then I flipped the chops and did the other side. All told it took about 10 minutes to grill these done but not dried out. The biggest mistake with the little pork chops that I see is grilling them too long. The USDA recommends 145 degrees F on grilled pork now. Remember though that pork continues to cook a bit after being pulled off.

Our grilled pork chops looked and smelled great, and the flavor was terrific. The peach flavor is natural with a nice sweet taste and just a little kick of heat. The balance is there. This sauce enhances the meat without overpowering it. It's a shame to grill a perfect pork chop and then not even be able to taste it. With Nephew's the sauce simply takes the flavor up several notches.

I'm glad I saved back the peachy potle' for an evening with the guys home. I was pretty certain it would be a hit, since the cherry potle and ghostly pumpkin by Newphew's had both been winners. The cherry barbecue sauce by Nephew's is our all time favorite on country ribs in the smoker. I think the peach would be really good too, so that's the next thing I want to do with the peach barbecue sauce.

Nephew's is a rather new sauce and growing. They were in the Raleigh/Chapel Hill area close to Garner, but I think they are available in Charlotte as well. If you're not close by, you can buy Nephew's barbecue sauce online, and it's well worth it. I ordered in the Cherry Potle' to give for Valentine's Day gifts. It's a beautiful red sauce, so it went well with the heart theme.

Here's a picture of the Nephew's barbecue sauce jar. I know it helps to know what you're looking for. The red headed guy in the blue cap is on all the labels.

Dizzy Pig - BBQ Rub Review - Excellent All Purpose Dizzy Dust

Dizzy Pig - Dizzy Dust All Purpose Barbecue Seasoning

Heather contacted me about trying out the Dizzy Pig line of barbecue rubs. I'd heard that they make really great rubs, so I was watching for the package to come in.

The package arrived, and the smell was fabulous. The Dizzy Dust All Purpose bottle and the sample packs of the other flavors were sealed up tight, but I still got that blast of "yum" smell.

Pork Chops Sprinkled with Dizzy Dust BBQ Rub

I decided to grill boneless pork chops, because they are quick and easy. Plus, I can really taste rubs or sauces and get the full effect with the chops which are very mild.

Some barbecue rubs are over the top on salt or heat or something, so I went light as you can see. I hate to tank a meal and end up breaking out a frozen pizza.

I should not have worried though . . .

Grilling Pork Chops Featuring Dizzy Dust by Dizzy Pig

Dizzy Pig uses all natural ingredients. They make these rubs fresh and with quality ingredients. And, it does make a difference.

The all purpose rub you see here is gluten free (and some of my family members can't eat gluten) and also has no MSG. It's also salt free which I thought might cut down on the flavor, but it didn't.

Even though I used a light hand seasoning my pork chops, the taste was just fabulous. The seasoning is robust on the one hand but not overpowering. I could easily see this barbecue seasoning being a "go to" for all types of meats, fish, potatoes, and vegetables. It just has an all round easy-on-the-mouth pop that made my pork chops rock even with a skimpy shake.

Next time I'll go heavier on Dizzy Pig. The barbecue mix is designed to crust on the meat with flavor. It did crust, but I would suggest shaking on more liberally. The best parts were the bites with the most Dizzy Dust.

I don't find many barbecue rubs that I go hog wild over. This is one that is spot on. A balanced and beautiful flavor. No strange flavor notes that push this one to the back of the cabinet. I can see why Dizzy Pig has won awards. It really is THAT GOOD. Yum.

Grilled Pork Chops with Game Day Eats BBQ Sauce

This has been a rough week, but I wanted to crank up a grill and have a great dinner. I had some pork chops in the refrigerator and decided to turn on the Traeger and make some chops and sauce them down with Game Day Eats which is one of my favorite barbecue sauces.

I went with the Traeger grill, because it is so easy to use. You just turn it on, and then you chill out. No babysitting. The Traeger pellet grill holds even temperatures, so you just press the on button and select smoke, medium, or high and cook to times like you do with a home stove. It really does not get any easier with outdoor cooking.



I am a barbecue sauce nut. I could go broke with this sauce habit, but I would go broke happy.

Some nights I like to experiment with new barbecue sauces, but tonight I wanted a sure thing. And, I had some Game Day Eats bbq sauce in the refrigerator. There's no way to go wrong with that one. It has enough bite for me but not so much that my mild sauce son turns red in the face and runs for the water faucet.

Really I would say that Game Day Eats barbecue sauce is a super all purpose sauce, since it is robust but not over the top. It is fresh and has a wonderful kick but is not going to freak out any family or friends.



Here is the pork chop I ate tonight - smoked on the Traeger and sauced with Game Day Eats. It was a super easy grill night, since all I did was turn on the smoker and lather on some good sauce. I do more high maintenance meals, but it is hard to beat an easy and sure one especially if you are not clicking on all cylinders.