Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Texas brought with them recipes for a 'wet' style of barbecue, which involved thick mar-
inades, sweet sauces and juicier meats.
Somewhere along the way, slow-smoked barbecue crossed the line from simple eating
pleasure to statewide obsession. Maybe it's the primal joy of gnawing tender, tasty meat
directly from the bone, or the simplistic, sloppy appeal of the hands-on eating experience.
Whatever the reason, dedicated barbecue eaters demonstrate nearly religious devotion by
worshipping at the pits of Texas' renowned smokehouses.
Cook-Offs
There are people who will travel the entire state of Texas to sample all the various per-
mutations of barbecue. But if your time's a little more limited, you can always try one of
the many organized cook-offs around the state. Amateurs and pros alike come together for
the noble joint cause of barbecue perfection and, if they're lucky, bragging rights. Cook-
offs generally start on Friday afternoon so the pit masters have plenty of time to get their
meat just right before the judging on Saturday, even if it means staying up all night. (You
can't rush these things.) Once the judging is complete, the public is invited to swoop in
and judge for themselves.
One of the largest events is the
Taylor International Barbeque Cook-off
(
www.taylorjaycees.org
)
, held in late August in Taylor (northeast of Austin), with up to
100 contestants competing in divisions including beef, ribs, pork, poultry, lamb, seafood
and wild game. If you can't make that one, a quick search on
www.tourtexas.com
will
lead you to events such as the Good Times Barbecue Cook-off in Amarillo or the Wildfire
Barbecue Cook-off, Car Show & Festival in Bowie.
Otherwise, check out the calendar on the
Central Texas Barbecue Association
(CTBA;
www.ctbabbq.com
)
website, where you can also read the incredibly detailed rules that
competitions must follow ('CTBA recommends the use of a Styrofoam tray with a hinged
lid and without dividers or the best readily available judging container that is approxim-
ately 9 inches square on the bottom half').
Ingredients
In today's Texas, barbecue recipes are as varied as central Texas summers are long. Most
folks agree on the basics: slow cooking over a low-heat fire. A cooking time of up to 12 or
16 hours isn't unheard of - anything less and you're just too darn impatient. It allows the
meat to be infused with a rich smoky flavor of usually hickory or pecan in the eastern part
