“Texas” BBQ
Everything is bigger in Texas, including our love for good barbeque. But, not all Texas BBQ was created equal.
BY: BREANNA STARK
What constitutes Texas BBQ? Is it a brisket made just like Aaron Franklin does it? One of the most popular arguments I see in the Texas barbeque community is about what barbeque style is Texan and which isn’t. The funny thing is that they are actually all correct, they just come from different parts of Texas. Texas is 790 miles long and up to 660 miles wide. With that much acreage packed into one state, you will find that not all Texans smoke their meats the same way.
Similar to the regional American barbeque styles like Kansas City, Memphis, and South Carolina, Texas also has regional barbeque styles. The barbeque joint that you pull up to in East Texas is not going to taste the same as the barbeque joint located in Central Texas. Additionally, if you head out to the Hill Country, you’re going to have a different experience than what you will find down in South Texas. Today, I want to talk about the 4 major styles of Texas BBQ and what makes them unique:
Central Texas: Where it All Started
Central Texas barbeque focuses on simple flavors that allow the meat to speak for itself. You will commonly find pitmasters that use nothing but coarse-ground black pepper and kosher salt on their meats and their BBQ can be fantastic. The emphasis in Central Texas barbeque is on the meat and the wood. Post Oak stands out as the most popular choice of wood in this area, but other types of Oak are prevalent as well. In Central Texas, the emphasis is on the meat and sides are usually an afterthought. You will commonly find meat piled high and a noticeable absence of breads and sauces. Central Texans are there to showcase the meat in all of it’s glory, the extras just aren’t necessary.
East Texas: Low, Slow, and Full of Flavor
Low and slow is the name of the game out in East Texas. You will find meat that is so tender that it falls right off the bone. Similar to their Central Texas brothers, you will find an abundance of offset-style smokers in East Texas but you are more likely to see the firebox filled with Hickory or Pecan wood. The other major difference you will find in East Texas barbeque is the abundant use of spices and marinades. East Texans like to chop up their meat and serve it on a bun as a sandwich, but when it comes to a preference between pork and beef you won’t find one. Pulled Pork and Chopped Beef are neck-and-neck in popularity in the East and the low-and-slow cooking will provide a juicy and savory bite.
South Texas: Mexican Influence with a Texas Twist
Texas shares a southern border with the country of Mexico and you can taste it in South Texas barbeque. Most famous for their barbacoa-style of cooking, South Texas barbeque pulls inspiration from both traditional Mexican cooking styles and traditional Texan flair. You will commonly find a pitmaster slow-cooking in a pit in the ground that is lined with bricks with a large fire at the bottom. The wood of choice in South Texan cuisine is mesquite and once the wood burns down and only coals are left, a layer of leaves are placed directly on the coals with the meat on top. You will commonly find an entire goat or lamb being cooked, but the most popular way to prepare barbacoa is with the whole head of a cow. This meat will fall right off the bone when cooked right and will provide some of the best tacos you’ve had in your life, guaranteed.
Hill Country: Keeping it Old School
The Texas Hill Country is a beautiful area that boasts delicious food. They are known for their old-school cooking style in which they cook the meat directly over hot coals. Here, you won’t find the “low and slow” style that is so commonly associated with barbeque, but that doesn’t mean the food is lacking in flavor. While you won’t be tasting the famous flavor of wood smoke, the meat from The Texas Hill Country captures the flavor of the fat in the meat as it renders over hot coals. You are more likely to find whole chickens, pork chops, and sausage in this area with an abundance of sides and sauces to choose from.
Texas BBQ: A Cultural Staple
Texas is a home to great barbeque and such a vast variety of styles that you will never be bored. Innovation is key and is admired by Texans and over the past decade, you will find barbeque staples integrated into other cooking styles more prevalently. It’s not uncommon to see a Brisket Breakfast Taco on a menu of a restaurant that doesn’t specialize in barbeque, nor would it be out of place to see a Brisket Banh Mi at your local Vietnamese restaurant. Barbeque is engrained in Texas culture and it’s made it quite obvious that it is here to stay…
Do you have more questions about Texas BBQ? Feel free to shoot me an email!
