Film: You Say Texas; I Say Barbecue
- Thread starter Chris Allingham
- Start date
Dustin Dorsey
TVWBB Hall of Fame
I went and ate at Franklin's Barbeque about a month ago and trust me, it lives up to the hype. Pecan Lodge in Dallas is very good, too. When I first started barbequing a few years ago I mainly stuck to pork because most places you go, the brisket is dry shoe leather. In my part of Texas the brisket is almost universally bad. Then I went to Pecan Lodge and it opened my eyes to what brisket could be and Franklin's is a slight notch above that. I went to Franklin's on a Saturday when they also had beef ribs and they were absolutely phenomenal. The spare ribs were astoundingly good too, even with a simple rub and no sauce. They have great sauce there but trust me you won't reach for it except to sample it. That video definitely reminded me of that line though. We had a good time despite getting there at around 7:30 and waiting in line for 3:30 hours.
Dave Russell
TVWBB Honor Circle
So do any of you fellas have any idea what makes central Texas BBQ so special?
J Hasselberger
TVWBB All-Star
I'll let you know -- we're moving to Hill Country August 1. After we unpack, Franklin will be a first stop.
William Landreth
TVWBB Member
Simple rub of salt and pepper with a greater portion of pepper. No sugar on beef. EVER.
Very little to no trimming of the fat cap on brisket.
Offset pit that has years and years of seasoning.
Temperatures maintained 225-250 for the duration of cooking.
Mesquite, oak and hickory/pecan wood used for firing the pit. No creative fruit woods.
Using larger briskets (15 to 20 pounders) to allow for more collagen conversion to keep beef moist.
Foiling or wrapping in butcher paper at the stall or immediately afterward.
Voodoo magic.
Dave Russell
TVWBB Honor Circle
Dustin Dorsey
TVWBB Hall of Fame
I had a hard time keeping my mouth shut!
Alan F
TVWBB Pro
They cook hotter than that. Black's pit is at 300f and I expect more of them are around there.
Dave Russell
TVWBB Honor Circle
Maybe so, and I think that Franklin even mentioned in a video that he cooks up to 300. Like most pitmasters though, he recommends the typical 225-275.
Where I'd differ with William's post is FOIL. I don't like what it does to brisket bark, and so I'd like to think at least that the very best joints in Texas still won't wrap with anything but butcher paper. (I sure don't think folks would wait for two to three hours in line at Franklin's if he was foiling!!)
Anyhow, know why Texas style smoked brisket doesn't need anything but salt and pepper? IT'S THE SMOKE. Now I know that there's other ways it's done, but what Aaron Franklin's method has in common with other central Texas style pitmasters, and the best joints around here as well for that matter, is INDIRECT cooking with smoke from a real live, BURNING LOG FIRE of oak or hickory.
Ken Serwatowski
TVWBB Fan
Cool video, however I'll just keep making my own before I wait in a three to four hour line LOL.......I waited four hours once to get into an alleged famous place for ribs and was disappointed that I make them better. I'd love to try Franklins but not thinking I'd get there at 0700 for a 1100 opening. Ive eaten at ones that made the Smoke and Spice book mentions and was disappointed too. One place in Detroit got voted in the top 10 in the Country and I totally disagree with that. I think what happens is over the years we as cooks tailor our BBQ to our tastes over time, mixing spices, changing sauces etc, kinda like no one cooks like our moms or Grandmas LOL. They cater to the masses, we customize. There is a place in Michigan that the Chef has won several James Beard awards for his food and has a three meat BBQ plate that won a James Beard award as well. It's good but I think his sauce is a bit spicy for my tastes and he doesn't offer a sweeter version. However decides those awards obviously enjoyed it tremendously though.........Brisket is the one I feel I still have not mastered though and I have a 17lb'r in the freezer causing me stress LOL
William Landreth
TVWBB Member
I am not privy to what Franklin does behind closed doors in regard to foiling. But, people stand in that ludicrous line because they have become conditioned to do so.
Better brisket exists at Louie Mueller, Snow's and La Barbecue IMHO.
Dustin Dorsey
TVWBB Hall of Fame
A lot of the central Texas places have done slow cooking directly over coals in brick pits for that matter if you wanna get into it. I'll stand by the fact that Franklin's is amazing. Judge it by the meat, not the line and I mean that both ways. It's not good because there is a line, but it's not bad because there is a line either. Besides that we all like cooking to some degree, low and slow. Patience is not a virtue that anyone on this board should be lacking! 
Dave Russell
TVWBB Honor Circle
Regarding direct vs indirect, low and slow vs HH, I'm no expert, but I read that those were differences between the hill country and the central Tx styles of BBQ. Regardless, my main point was that simple as it sounds, a big part of the flavor is because they know how to smoke and cook with a log burning fire.
Last edited:
Dustin Dorsey
TVWBB Hall of Fame
There is something very special that happens with salt and pepper and post oak smoke.
Dave Russell
TVWBB Honor Circle
Butcher paper sure has helped my brisket cooking, I'll tell you that, but I'm not privy either. Just going by what Franklin has said in his videos.
From what I've read, the late Louie Mueller would be super proud of how his son is cooking, and his joint was listed at the very top of the list with Franklin's and a couple of others that I've never read about. All this talk of Texas makes me want to take a trip.