How BBQ Competitions Work: A Plain-English Guide
Updated
A BBQ competition is a timed cooking contest where teams cook set meat categories on site and hand in samples at fixed times to a panel of trained judges. In most contests judges score each entry blind (they don't know whose it is) on appearance, taste and tenderness or texture, and the team with the highest combined score across all categories is named Grand Champion.
What a typical contest weekend looks like
- Friday: setup and inspection. Teams arrive, set up their pits, and have their raw meat checked. Under KCBS rules, for example, "all competition meat shall start out raw" and nothing can go on the cooker until the meat inspector has checked it.
- Friday night: the long cooks start. Brisket and pork shoulders often go on overnight.
- Saturday: turn-ins. Each category has a set turn-in time. At a KCBS contest the usual schedule is chicken at noon, ribs at 12:30, pork at 1:00 and brisket at 1:30, and an entry more than five minutes early or late scores zero.
- Saturday afternoon: awards. Category winners, then Reserve Grand Champion and Grand Champion.
How judging works
- Blind judging. Entries go in numbered, unmarked containers so judges can't tell whose food they are tasting. KCBS uses six judges per table, IBCA uses five, and the Memphis Barbecue Network uses six for its blind round.
- What judges score. It varies by sanctioning body: KCBS judges appearance, taste and tenderness; IBCA judges appearance, taste and texture; MBN adds an "overall impression" score; and steak cook-offs judge appearance, doneness, taste, texture and overall impression.
- On-site judging (MBN only). The Memphis Barbecue Network also sends judges to each team's cook site, where the team presents its cooking process. The top three in each category then go to on-site finals, and the finals judges pick the Grand Champion from all nine finalists.
The main types of contests
- BBQ competitions cook the classic meats: chicken, ribs, pork and brisket (KCBS), whole hog, pulled pork and ribs (MBN), or brisket, pork spare ribs and chicken (IBCA in Texas). Browse them on our BBQ competitions calendar.
- Steak cook-offs are one-day contests where every cook gets the same ribeye from the organizer and turns in one whole steak. See upcoming steak cook-offs.
- Chili cook-offs judge pots of chili in categories like Traditional Red, Homestyle and Chili Verde. See upcoming chili cook-offs.
- Festivals pair a contest with music, vendors and public tasting. See BBQ festivals.
Fire rules
Most BBQ sanctioning bodies require real fire. KCBS says fires "shall be of wood, wood pellets or charcoal," and gas or electric can only be used to light it. MBN and IBCA have similar rules. Steak cook-offs are the exception: the Steak Cookoff Association allows any heat source, including gas, electric and sous vide.
Can the public eat the food?
Usually not the competition entries, which go to the judges. Many contests run a public tasting, "people's choice" or festival side with food for sale, so check the event's official website from its page on BBQ Mapper.
FAQ
How long does a BBQ competition last?
Most BBQ competitions run over a weekend, with setup on Friday and judging on Saturday. Steak and chili cook-offs are often one day.
Do judges know whose food they are tasting?
Not in blind judging, which most contests use. MBN also has on-site judging, where judges visit the team.
What does Grand Champion mean?
The team with the best combined results across all the required categories. Reserve Grand Champion is second overall.
Sources: KCBS 2026 Master Rules; Memphis Barbecue Network Official Rules; IBCA Rules (rev. Jan 21, 2025); Steak Cookoff Association 2026 Rules; International Chili Society.
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