Bayou BBQ Bash: Texture is king, and so is Justin Barnett

Looking for the secret for great barbecue?

A couple of competitors came up with the same answer at Saturday's conclusion of the 2023 Bayou BBQ Bash: Texture is king.

That's for the cooking. In the bash's Barbeque Competitors Alliance-sanctioned competition, Justin Barnett of Springfield, Louisiana, was the king, winning the Grand Champion trophy as well as first in the Ribs competition.

He won a $600 and $500 checks from Smokin' With Smithfield, a meat producer's effort to promote barbecue, which added $3,000 to the Bayou BBQ Bash's $5,000 prize fund this year. Master Electric Service donated a championship belt buckle.

And D.a.T. Sauce donated a "Golden Ticket" to the World Food Championships in November in Dallas.

Master Electric also won the Best Local Team competition. James Cruse was another double winner, taking Reserve Champion and first in the Brisket category.
In the new dessert competition, held in memory of bash co-founder Mata Tellman, Daryl Walker took first place.

The taste of the barbecue can be bold, but the difference between good and great can be subtle.

Benjy Lewis of Monroe was among the 44 entrants in this year's Bayou BBQ Bash. He has been in barbecue competitions since 2009.

"I thought I made a good rib," Lewis said. "I got humbled when I got into my first one."

But Lewis continued to compete, winning some top prizes along the way. The crowning accomplishment was an eighth-place finish in the 2022 World Food Championships Ribs competition.

"The reason I stay in it," Lewis said, "is the people."

He has picked up some tips. Odd though it is to hear in south Louisiana, he warns against making the sauce too spicy. And the most important thing is to make sure the meat has a pleasing texture.

"You've got make sure you mind your texture," Lewis said. "Texture is king."

Chris Bridge of the Master Electric corporate team said much the same thing in different words. The Bayou BBQ Bash is his second competition this year.

"What I learned is to create feel rather than temperature," Bridge said.

"It tells you everything you want to know. You have to feel it."

Here's a list of the first-place winners at the 2023 Bayou BBQ Bash:

Grand Champion
Justin Barnett

Reserve Champion
James Cruse

Best Local Team
Master Electric Services

Corporate
Sewart Supply Gear-B-Que
(Pau A. Cheramie, Paul E. Cheramie, Carl Beecher and Billy Waguespack)

Chicken
Jason Pettis

Ribs
Justin Barnett

Brisket
James Cruse

Mata Tellman
Dessert Competition
Daryl Walker

Cannata's Kids Q
Under 13
Noah Lindsey
14-17
Kerigan Allemond

Click here to see photos of the winners.