DeKalb 4-H Takes Third In State Grilling, Primed For Second Shot in 2022

DeKalb County 4-H has placed third in Tennessee for the state grilling competition.

UT-Extension County Director Johnny Barnes said the level of competition certainly went to another level after their win in regionals. Barnes said the best way to look at the result, is they fielded a team of 4-H Freshmen and have plenty of time to go after the top prize.

“Kind of like a football team or a basketball team, kind of like the younger, junior-varsity you could say,” Barnes said. “So they can still compete the next few years here so hopefully we can keep on giving it a shot.”

Barnes said the funny part about getting third place, was Macon County winning for the state, even though DeKalb beat them in the regional competition. Barnes said his four member team each had their own type of meat to focus on.

He said they were assigned beef, poultry, pork and lamb

“There’s a smaller amount of teams, so the judges have more time to focus on each individual that’s cooking,” Barnes said. “There’s judges assigned to walk around and watch the kids while they’re cooking. They’re looking at things like food safety, fire safety, making sure you don’t cross contaminate.”

Barnes said there were sensory judges that did the taste testing. He said judges included culinary experts from Knoxville restaurants, food-science specialists from UT and extension office members checking for safety.

Barnes said the grilling team is not done though, with one member scoring high enough to compete at the National Poultry Contest.

“She will compete in the turkey barbecue in late-November up in Louisville,” Barnes said. “That will give her some good experience and hopefully some things that she can help teach some of the rest of the team members.”