Awesome stuff. If you love the sweet/bold/smokiness of Bullseye BBQ sauce, with some additional onion and spice flavors added, you’ll love TJ’s Bold and Smoky KC Style BBQ Sauce.
And if you don’t have a Trader Joe’s near you, well… you should move. 
Continue reading “Trader Joe’s Bold and Smoky Kansas City Style Barbecue Sauce (5/5)”
Phil Ford, a real estate appraiser and father of four in Raleigh, North Carolina, developed his sauce around 1987 while trying to copy his mother’s recipe for a western North Carolina-style barbecue sauce.
The resulting all natural, fat-free, fragrant blend of ingredients include: tomato paste, apple cider vinegar, honey, molasses, mustard, horseradish, lemon juice, onions, garlic, peppers, natural hickory smoke, natural spices and salt.
This one gets BBQSR props for a magical combination of quality ingredients, simple packaging, clever name, and well balanced flavor. The only thing I found slightly lacking (a stretch) was that the consistency was a bit on the thin side.
The smell is wonderful - a sweet yet complex aroma with hints of apple, mustard, lemon, onions, and the “smokiness” that all barbecue sauces attempt. I could see putting this on almost anything - I think I want to try this on swordfish next, then a Bone Suckin Burger after that.
The first time I tried this stuff was a long time ago, during my college days, before I knew much about BBQ and grilling… and I had slathered the stuff on before the meat was ready for a barbecue bath. The result was a less-than-tasty, blackened mess. Bad experience for a bad griller - I blame it on the beer I was drinking at the time.
But my most recent, and sober, experience was a meal of half rack of ribs and a few chicken wings all done the right way, when the meat is at about the 75th percentile of BBQ cookage. This way, the sweets didn’t completely die and I was able to take in one of the best natural- ingredient sauces on the market…
I’d like to advocate for only the little guys in the BBQ sauce world, as if all the big companies couldn’t make a good BBQ sauce product. But I’d be wrong, and quite a hypocrite, if I didn’t give Bullseye props and a solid 4/5. It just tastes great.
Way back in my high school days I used to have a crush on the Bullseye Burger… and when BK would release it at specified, “limited time offer!” periods in the summer time, I’d eat them like they were going the way of the 8 track. Luckily, I’ve gotten past those dark days and have tempered my fast food intake for the most part, although I will relapse on special occasions - like when I travel for business. Good thing the Rodeo Burger is a permanent member of their value menu.
Bob Gibson was big… around 6 foot 3 and weighed between 275 and 295. Nowadays, he’s dead, but oh boy back in the day, growing up in rural Alabama as a rail line worker, he’d invite folks over to his house where he’d barbecue practically all weekend long. Hell yeah! They say he never met a stranger (because everyone already knew of him - get it?) For more on the history of Bob, watch this nicely done 4 min video.
Anyway, what started as a backyard BBQ turned into a hugely popular restaurant (one frequently called one of the top ten BBQ joints in the country) and a wide offering of sauces, including the 4 recently mailed to me:
I’ll get to the other sauces soon enough, but let’s jump into the tasting of the Championship Red Sauce, shall we? While the BBQ joint in Decatur Alabama receives accolades for being a fine purveyor of slow cooked pork and poultry, it is now a fairly substantial merchandiser. Which kinda sucks.
As high tech as me having this blog could be considered, I’m still a traditionalist in some respects. I like my rock-stars to be completely crazed lunatics that are caught up in drugs I’ve never heard of. I’d rather play real live tennis or go to a bowling alley, than play it a pretend version on a video screen… gamers. And for BBQ - I like underdogs - and I give natural BBQ sauces a boost. I’m sick of eating things I can’t spell - which is where this particular sauce lose a lot of it’s appeal for me. There’s a bunch of preservatives (I guess you gotta have a shelf life), a bunch of artificial flavors, some Worcestershire sauce, and TWO STEAK SAUCES?! It’s like Bob’s relatives were raiding the pantry to find the crap to load up this bottle. And it’s obvious with the two “Best Ever” Awards emblazoned on the bottle I’m sure the stuff has sold very well and perhaps prepared very well at the festivals… but I think the sauce itself is kinda weak.
Don’t fall for this bottle marketing BS:
“It took my family over 70 years and four generations to perfect this barbeque sauce recipe. Not until we were convinced that this thick red sauce was the best barbeque sauce in the world would we place the Bog Bob Gibson’s name on it. We hope you enjoy this unique flavor.”
If you watch the video above, it looks like it took about nine months to make the sauce. Hmm. The internet age is here, and I’ve got my eye on you, BBG! And also - you spelled barbecue wrong. C’mon Bob!
The sauce did win several awards, which I would attribute to BBQ technique and not the sauce itself (my guess is that it’s substantially different that the crap they put in bottles). Those awards include some big ones:
On to the Rating
Enough stumbling around and vague chit chat. I’d give Big Bobs Championship Red Sauce a 2 out of five.
Here’s why:
Packaging
OK presentation and representation of the overall brand. These guys win awards and should certainly brag about em… I’d recommend working in a little more Bob into the overall picture.
BBQ Sauce Consistency
The video told me alot… they aimed for a thick sweet sauce, and ended with a somewhat thin liquid (at least the bottled version). Use some Xanthan gum next time! Just don’t get it from China. 
Also you couldn’t see to many spices flowing out with this sauce - it screams I am mass produced all over it. Bob - what the fuck, man?
Taste and Smell
First sniff is like ketchup with hints of Worcestershire - simple, plain, nothing special. After reading the ingredients (after I ate) and seeing (and imagining) steak sauces being dumped into this sauce, I pictured A1 steak sauce combined with Open Pit BBQ sauce. Then I threw up. Just kidding. I thought of a drunk dude in a kitchen mucking around with the items available to him - yummy - here’s some soy sauce, oh and some steak sauce, molasses, oh Natural Smoke - nice!
I cooked up a few bucks worth of drumsticks to test it out, and - it was OK. I tend to think most BBQ chicken is good. Especially when I cook it. But this variety lacked zing or standout qualities. I really can’t say it was good; it seemed fairly plain. When I basted on the sauce I needed tons of it, because it was so thin (even with my new kickass bristle baster). And the ingredient overload just kinda makes me think the restaurant is numero one for these guys, and they probably don’t use anything like this mass produced variant of the real thing. Bob and Family. Hook us up with the real thing!
Ingredients:
Water, high fructose corn syrup, tomato paste, distilled water, brown sugar, molasses, salt, worcestershire sauce, onion, soy sauce, modified food starch, spices, 2 types of steak sauce, smoke flavor, sodium benzoate, potssium sorbate, beef flavor, garlic, lemon juice concenrate, natural and artificial flavors.
Nutrition Information:
Calories per 100 grma serving 52
Total fat 0g
Cholesteral 0mg
Sodium 280 mg
Total carbs 12g
Protein 0mg
Vit a 8% Vit C 4% Calcium 2% Iron 0%
More Stuff on the Web Related to Big Bob Gibsons:
It’s funny when a company wins an award and then slaps a proud emblem “Multi Award Winner” on all of their brands. The only award this particular one should win is “Most Grotesque BBQ Sauce Ever.”
Negative One - The Smell
Smells like someone puked up sweet-and-sour-sauce.
Negative Two - The Taste
Just odd and unnatural. My daughter could make better sauce, and she’s 1.
Negative Three - The Price
It costs $5 to pick up a bottle. The company should pay people to eat this stuff…
Ingredients: Water, sugar, apricots, tomato puree, white vinegar, sesame oil, dehydrated garlic, modified food starch, ginger, chili sauce (contains preservatives and sulfites) salt, herbs and spices, sesame seeds, xanthan gum, ginger powder, citric acid, potassium sorbate, onion powder, natural flavor, polysorbate 80.
Nutrition Info: 45 calories per 32g serving, 1g fat, 9g carbs, 120mg sodium
Link to Website? No, I wouldn’t do that to you.
BBQ Sauce Reviews Recommendation: this stuff should stay in Afrika.
Clearly marketed towards big loud chopper owners, the references aren’t too strong enough to turn off those of us who aren’t bikers.
How many references to Harley’s can you find on this bottle? I found 5
The manufacturer describes this as “an aggressive, crimson-red, tomato-based sauce riddled with spices you can see, smell and taste,” and I’d agree.
This sauce was easily the best of a recent batch of three random varieties I just got in. The consistency was thin yet stable and clung to the meat well. There was just enough heat (provided by cayenne peppers) to really add life to really tasty set of wings. This one really is unique in that it provides the three major BBQ flavors: sweet, spicy, and sour (tangy). If you are looking for something that tastes slightly different, has no preservatives, and supports really loud forms of transportation - this one is for you!
Smell: Nice with a very natural scent.
Taste: Sweet, sour, and a dab of spicy. Unique, yet not overpowering.
Consistency: One tiny nit is that it pours a little thin, but you can really see the spices as they flow out of the bottle and into intermediate basting container… and it clings well to ________ (insert favorite meat here).
Packaging: Fun “Harley-marketing”, but cheap plastic bottle. Guess it’s good if you’re like me with a kid or kids running around grabbing everything they can!
One of my highest reviews and faves so far.
Ingredients: Tomato sauce, prepared mustard, brown sugar, cayenne peppers, vinegar, natural smoke flavor, salt, spices, xanthan gum.
Nutrition Info: 25 calories per 28g serving, 0g fat, 5g carbs, 240mg sodium
Never buy barbecue sauce at Border’s book stores. For one, they are a friggin book store - they shouldn’t be selling barbecue sauce. And number two, it’s expensive. I picked up this large brown cylinder-jar of sauce in the hip neighborhood of Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia, PA - setting me back $8.99 for 18 ounces. Worth it? Hell no.
Smell: Hints of lemon mixed with molasses, vinegar, and spices and high fructose corn syrup (OK I didn’t smell the HFCS).
Taste: Extremely sweet. Nothing unique or bold, however. Limited lemon zing… too-safe, mild lemon aftertaste. Was expecting stronger lemon flavor. But then again, I guess I don’t really want lemon in my sauce anyway.
Consistency: Thin and drippy.
Packaging: Nice jar for smooth flow and pour into larger basting container. However, it left me with a bad taste in my mouth, like I was buying from the CEO of BBQ as this guy has a finely crafted PR image and team of support. I kinda like buying from the little guys.
Good execution, yet too big in terms of presence and ingredients. No doubt Steven has a team of people working on his behalf to add to his BBQ University and BBQ book revenue stream, but he may have had this project on auto-pilot.
Ingredients: Tomato concentrate, distilled vinegar, high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, brown sugar, lemon juice, molasses, garlic, salt, spices, chili pepper extract, salt, hydrolyzed soy and corn protein, liquid smoke, anchovies, water, onions, wheat, soybeans, mustard flour, onion powder, tamarind extract, cloves, natural flavor, black pepper.
Nutrition Info: 50 calories per 32g serving, no fat, 13g carbs, 290mg sodium
Sometimes the stories behind the sauces are as tasty as their sauces. Here’s the Sweet Baby Ray’s story (from SBR website):
“It all began back in 1985 when a local Chicago boy named Chef Larry perfected his family’s recipe for a sweet and tangy BBQ sauce and entered it into the country’s largest rib cook-off, the Mike Royko Rib-off. Chef Larry called his sauce Sweet Baby Ray’s after his little brother David, who got the nickname shootin’ hoops on the west side of Chicago. On the day of the rib-off, Sweet Baby Ray’s beat nearly 700 entrants to come in second - an amazing feat for an unknown. The rest, as they say, is history.”
Sweet Baby’s Ray’s is now huge, with national distribution and availability at virtual any supermarket. And while I try to stay away from mass market BBQ sauces, I must say this one’s a winner. Although mass produced drawbacks such as high fructose corn syrup, preservatives, and random ingredients such as “natural flavor” are apparent, it’s also undeniable that this is one damn tasty, and thick sweet sauce.
As a matter of fact, the only real negatives to the product were:
1. the package I chose - the squeeze bottle - and
2. the ingredients that mass produced stuff ends up putting in there to prolong shelf life and simplify and cheapen the production process. Lots of concentrates, preservatives, and goopy sweeteners.
So anyway, I opened the bottle and took my first sniff. Delightful. Smoky and sweet, with hints of garlic and onions, and maybe a little a little vinegar. Instantly I think to myself, I should put this stuff on ribs. But I had already purchased a package of chicken wings, so that would have to suffice this time around.
Before cooking it, I sampled the uncooked flavors using my trusty unsalted Saltine crackers. Smoky, sweet, and … bold I guess. Just a strong flavor that instantly makes your mouth water and think, let’s put away these friggin crackers and get on with it!
So I fired up the grill and got the chicken started; then gathered my tools, and started to prep the sauce. But when I opened the top, I realized I had opted for the wrong bottle! Don’t get me wrong - squeezable bottles are on my list of greatest all time food product enhancements - but only when you’re talking about condiments like ketchup and mustard. But a griller uses a bottle in a completely different way. I want an open mouth on my BBQ sauce, so I can pour it, unfiltered and unrestrained, watching it flow like lava into a wide open bowl in which I dip my basting brush. Sweet Baby! Next time I’ll get the big bottle.
Regardless, the sauce was nice and thick and made application to the meat a breeze. It clung onto the meat like glue… in a good way.
Post grill, I sampled my wings and they were as good as before if not better. The overwhelming sweetness got burnt off a touch, so the flavors smoothed out into a sweet yet hearty flavor. I haven’t tried their original yet, but this one is sure a winner in my book… er, site.Got a deal on this at a special 2 for $3 price. 18 oz squeezable bottle.
Smell: Very nice, round, complex sniffage. Just smells like a BBQ sauce should.
Taste: Sweet, hearty, bold, nice… could satisfy anyone’s palate I’d say.
Consistency: OK, I have a thing for thicker sauces. They made it thick - with modified food starch. Yum.
Packaging: Did I mention I didn’t like the squeeze bottle?
Overall Score: 4 out of 5
Ingredients: High Fructose Corn Syrup, Vinegar, Tomato Paste, Honey, Chipotle Pepper Sauce, Modified Food Starch, and less than 2% of: Salt, Worcestershire Concentrate, Pineapple Juice Concentrate, Spice, Natural Smoke Flavor, Caramel, Sodium Benzoate for shelf life, Red Bell Pepper (dried), Natural Flavor (?), Garlic (dried).
Nutrition Info: 18G carbs, 0g Fat, 310mg Sodium, 70 Calories per serving (37g)
Positive: High scores due to creative use of natural ingredients and flavor.
Negative: Similar taste can probably be achieved by adding a little Worcestershire Sauce to a giant national brand.
Marketed as natural, gluten-free BBQ Sauces, Charley Biggs’ has several flavors to choose from, including Hot Pepper, Sweet Bourbon, and Maine Apple, which pays respect to the Wyndham Maine birthplace of this sauce.
That small town coziness has of course taken a turn, as this item was picked up at a local supermarket. The company also has franchised Chicken N’ Sauce QSRs (quick serve restaurants) so the local, small town feel is really only a history lesson.
On to the tasting.
Uncooked, you could really taste what was happening in this sauce. I dipped unsalted crackers into a small pool of CB’s Sweet Bourbon so I wouldn’t throw off my taste buds with external flavors. Heavy molasses and Worcestershire Sauce and a mix of spices (garlic and onion were most dominant) really tempted the taste buds. There is no heat to this sauce, as was intended in this simple, sweet sauce.
The consistency of the sauce was medium I’d say. Not too thin to be slippery when applying yet thick enough to hang on to the meat on the grill. I tend to prefer a thicker sauce, but their accomplishment of making the sauce this thick using all natural ingredients and no glutens is quite an accomplishment. I think the heavy use of molasses had something to do with that
When I grilled some chicken wings with the sauce and that’s where the flavor started to get a little toned down - which was expected. It did, however make for a very satisfying BBQ meal. I see this as a nice replacement to big brand sauces made by Kraft and others.
All in all, a very good value for the $3.39 I paid for an 18.5 ounce bottle.
Smell: Nothing special for the olfactory senses. Smells mostly like diluted Worcestershire Sauce.
Taste: A nice mild sauce for when your cooking for people with conservative taste buds.
Consistency: A little thinner than expected, but higher than average marks for achieving this thickness through non-gluten techniques.
Packaging: A good bottle with an open mouth means it ready to pour into an intermediary medium like a basting bowl.
Ingredients: Tomato Puree, Molasses, Sugar, Cider Vinegar, Worcestershire Sauce, Sea Salt, Bourbon, Horseradish, Garlic (dry), Onion (dry), Spices.
Nutrition Info: 12G carbs, 0g Fat, 300mg Sodium, 45 Calories per serving (35g)
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