Mel Meets.....Byron Moses from Southern Eleven

Mel caught up with Southern Eleven’s head chef Byron Moses where they discussed dirty swines, secret rubs and Barcelona.

Hi Byron, how long have you been cooking for? Well, between 15 and 16 years, when I was young I found myself being asked for recipes, tips on cooking and general advice. I suppose that’s when I realised that I should pursue a career in the kitchen.

Where did you train? I attended Durham New College and from there went on to work for Michelin star and rosette acclaimed restaurants.

Manchester has always longed for a star, is this something you’re keen to achieve? It used to be something I strived for but after working in that environment for a while I realised the desire to achieve a star often took away from what we're really here for as chefs, to give our customers the tastiest plate of food we can.

Tell me about the current set-up at Southern Eleven? We specialise in American food; specifically BBQ meats as well as a wide range of burgers, appetizers and desserts.

And the most popular dish on the menu is? By far the Dirty Swine which consists of BBQ pulled pork, smoked pork belly and smoked bacon; all for £8.95. Not only is it great value for money, but a real belly full too.

Your menu states you have a secret house rub – any tips on this? Absolutely not!

Okay, well how about some BBQ tips. What makes a true BBQ dish? Well you need a proper smoker to give your meat the true BBQ flavour and desired smoke ring. We import our smokers directly from the States which allow us to have a continuous smoking system by a steady stream of a mix of fruit and Hickory wood.

So does it take a while to convert a big slab of meat to a plate full of deliciousness? Oh yes. We make everything by hand here and preparation has to start at least 36 hours in advance. When we get a large piece of pork butt joint (say 4kg), we first have to brine it for several hours and then put it in the smoker for 12-16 hours. The result is 1kg’s worth of BBQ pulled pork. The ribs are also a time consuming process of 3-4 hours in the smoker but with anything – the more love you give it, the better it will be. Patience is a big thing with barbecuing.

What’s the difference between regular supermarket ribs and yours? We make a Memphis style baby back which have a dry spiced rub and then smoked. They are tender, sweet with a bit of give when eating.

Away from Manchester, where is the tastiest meal you’ve had out? It was at a place called Recasens in a suburb of Barcelona called PoblenouI. I had a wonderful platter of cured meats, smoked cheeses and good wine. It was a perfect example of keeping it simple with great ingredients. Definitely my kind of food.

Would you ever go down the Masterchef or celebrity chef route? Not really, although I do enjoy the Aussie and New Zealand Masterchef show.

Who cooks at home – a joint effort? No, it’s all me!

And if you ever get a takeaway or some junk food in, what’s your guilty pleasure? Oh definitely a pizza. Not a high end one, the greasier the better!!

What about 10 years from now, will you still be cooking? Yes, but maybe owning several cottages in the country doing cookery classes with my partner.

If you could work for any chef, is there anyone you’d pick? Mark Hix would be high up on that list.

We get a lot of budding cooks visiting Onionring. Have you any tips of people hoping to enter the hospitality industry? Be prepared as it’s not an easy career. If you work hard it’s very rewarding thought.

And finally, we always like to end with an intellectual question; what would you go for first in an all-you-can-eat buffet? If it’s one of those international ones I’d head straight for the crispy duck pancakes!

Thanks Byron, will let you get back to your smoker. Cheers!

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Posted: Wednesday 4th March 2015
ID: 9290 - 1282