November 2017

Texas BBQ Posse / 2017 / November

November 2017

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Tips for choosing a backyard smoker

Marshall Cooper fires up his two main backyard pits, a Jambo J-3, front, and a custom oversize Pitts & Spits smoker. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) You have visited plenty of stops on the Texas BBQ trail and know what good barbecue is. You’ve experimented on the grill in the backyard, but need to buy the proper equipment to take the next step of becoming a serious backyard smoker and pit master. Here are a few simple tips and options to help you make the right choice of backyard smoker. Determine how many people you want to cook for at…

Equipment - 11/30/2017

Recipe: How to cook brisket burnt ends. . .'five pounds of absolute heaven'

Brisket burnt ends cook on the smoker, held together by steel shish kabob rods. (Photo ©Marshall Cooper) The first time I ever had brisket burnt ends was in 1967 at a barbecue shack on Maury Street located in the 5th ward of Houston, Texas. They cost $1 for a small brown paper sack full. They were really damn good and that’s when I fell in love with them. They were real, authentic, not sauced, you know cut straight off the ends, aka bark, of a brisket that had been cooked low and slow in a stick burner. Sonny Bryan would give…

Cooking - 11/28/2017

A BBQ gift guide from the Posse

With Christmas fast approaching, we reached out to the Posse’s backyard pitmasters for suggestions of their favorite cooking tools so we could assemble this BBQ gift guide. Here are some ideas for the pitmaster in your family. 1. ThermoWorks Thermapen Mk4 This is the probe thermometer that all the others are judged by. It may cost a little more that some others, but its accuracy & durability are unquestioned by professional cooks. Phil Lamb calls the Thermapen his “favorite piece of grilling equipment.” --Marshall Cooper & Phil Lamb 2. Dexter Sani-Safe 12” Scalloped Roast Slicer Knife This is the go-to…

Equipment - 11/28/2017

Words of business wisdom from Grant Pinkerton at Pinkerton's Barbecue

Grant Pinkerton works a homemade cinder block pit he set up for fun behind Pinkerton's Barbecue. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) As business philosophies go, the approach at Pinkerton's Barbecue in Houston is direct and simple, the best kind. “Do a little better today than you did yesterday,” Grant Pinkerton says. “And don’t make the same mistakes twice.” That approach helped land Pinkerton on the prestigious Forbes 30 Under 30 list earlier this month, as well as get his place on Texas Monthly’s list of the Top 50 joints in the state earlier this year. And it keeps the young…

Joints - 11/24/2017

A Thanksgiving tribute to Walt and all the grill masters and pitmasters in our lives

Libby & Gunnar Jacobson at the cabin on Grindstone Island in 1991. (Editor's note: Making a nod to Thanksgiving tradition, we're re-running this post, first published in 2013.) With the Posse, I've eaten turkey at some of the best barbecue joints in Texas, including Franklin Barbecue in Austin and Stanley's in Tyler. Their turkey breast is first rate, no question, just like their other smoked meats. But the most memorable turkey I've ever eaten still remains Walt Scheela's, cooked at his cabin on Grindstone Island. The ambiance is important. One of 1,600 islands in Rainey Lake, Grindstone is located about…

People - 11/21/2017

Holiday recipes: The Posse's favorite side dishes

Here are 3 of the Posse’s favorite holiday side dish recipes, left to right, collard greens, twice-baked potato casserole & kale salad. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) Like a good song, no barbecue feast is complete without strong accompaniment. So, just in time for Thanksgiving and Christmas, here are a few of the Posse's favorite side dishes. Sherry's favorite twice-baked potato casserole This recipe cooks up easily for a crowd and can be prepped early, refrigerated and then baked at the last minute. Sherry Jacobson's twice-baked potato casserole recipe. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) Ingredients 5 pounds baking potatoes 1…

Cooking - 11/20/2017

Calling all pitmasters and grillers and cooks, Oh My!

In the realm of barbecue and grilling, proud cooks reign with smoke and fire. The proof is everywhere. Look at your neighbor with a Weber, or all the Facebook pages dedicated to barbecue and grilling. There you’ll see photo after photo of baby backs, turkey, smoked meatloaf, chicken wings, beef cheeks, brisket, rib roast, even pork belly slow smoked using walnut shells. Side dishes, too. When the Posse launched its new Web site earlier this year, we said we were going to run more items about cooking. We have. Now, it’s your turn to share some of your knowledge about…

Cooking - 11/15/2017

Recipe: How to cook a spatchcock turkey

Two spatchcock turkeys on Marshall Cooper's custom Jambo J-3 smoker. (Photo ©Chris Wilkins/Texas BBQ Posse) With Thanksgiving right around the corner, the Posse wanted to share a lesser-known turkey recipe with our readers. Pitmaster Marshall Cooper suggested we smoke a spatchcock turkey, a technique I hadn’t tried before. He enjoys having the ability to cook a big turkey hot and fast. Our total cook time for two huge turkeys was three hours. By definition, spatchcock is poultry or game that has been prepared for roasting or grilling by removing the backbone, and sometimes the sternum of the bird and flattening…

Cooking - 11/12/2017

How to put great Thanksgiving BBQ on your table

With the holiday fast approaching, the Posse reached out to some top barbecue joints to see what they're offering to help bring some great Thanksgiving BBQ to your dining table this year. We didn't find any places open for regular business on Thanksgiving, preferring their staffs spend the day with family and friends. In the true spirit of the holiday, our friends at Slow Bone in Dallas and Meat U Anywhere in Trophy Club are both holding events to help feed the less fortunate. Here's what we heard from 11 of the the Posse's favorite joints around Texas. Happy Thanksgiving…

Joints - 11/07/2017

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