Chris Webb has already dazzled Ranch Foods Direct customers with his barbecue prowess, introducing them to marvels like the sausage-stuffed “bacon bomb.” Starting today, he’s offering hands-on meat prep classes on the first and third Thursday of each month. Chris has many years of experience cooking with fire and smoke, including a stint competing on the professional circuit while he lived in New York State. Here, more about Chris:
“I’m from Daphne, Alabama. It’s a coastal town across the bay from Mobile. My dad was a pharmacist, my mom, a college professor. Fishing is big-time down there, but it’s more deep-sea fishing rather than ponds or lakes, a lot of Spanish mackerel and crawfishing, things like that. All of the rivers and streams trickle down to the Delta, and they all meet up in the bay I lived on, so you end up with a freshwater-saltwater mix. Barbecuing is huge there as well.
Barbecue is a cooking style that originally developed in the South. You’ve heard the expression, I’m eating high on the hog? Plantation owners used the phrase to refer to getting the best cut. They would take the loins and rib chops and maybe the ham, and give the pork shoulders and beef brisket and tougher cuts to the slaves. But the slaves figured out how to cook it low and slow over an indirect heat source, and at the end of day they ended up something that was even better!
I was in the Army for 14 years. The Army is a big melting pot, and I took everything I learned from that experience along with me. During that time, what had been a hobby turned into something more serious. I got into competing in 2011, when I was an instructor at West Point. Eventually I came to Ft. Carson. I also worked as a security contractor in Saudi Arabia for almost two years. But after spending the majority of my life in the infantry I was at a point where I could do what I wanted. I was already a customer here, and I knew if I ever had the opportunity to work with Ranch Foods Direct, I would jump on it.
Smoking to me is the ultimate experience. Anybody can throw a steak on the grill, but smoking takes it to another level. I’m offering these classes to help give our customers more bang for their buck. If you’re buying the best meat in town, I don’t want to see you over-season it or under-cook it; I want to give you all the right tools to have the maximum eating experience.”
Classes held first and third Thursday of the month, evenings from 7 to 9 p.m. Food is included!
Also includes Bristol Brewing Co. beer pairings and smoker recommendations from the Colorado Springs Grill Store!
March 23 class: Brisket U
Coming in April: pork ribs
Class sign-up taken at the register OR call the store, 719-473-2306.
Prices vary depending on what product is being prepared.
NOTE: All students must provide their own knife. Payment is required at time of registration. Any cancellations must be received 72 hours prior to event and are subject to a $10 cancellation fee. Please see a sales associate for more information or to register.
Class sizes are limited to insure a relaxed and personal experience!
