Lockhart style BBQ a WSM


 
J

JP Stanley

TVWBB Member
I recently visited Kreuz Market in Lockhart, Texas and was amazed by the amount of Oak they have stored at the side of their building and how hot they run their pits using just oak.

Has anyone tried to mimic the Lockhart BBQ style of using oak only in a WSM? I think that using Royal Oak lump and some chunks of oak would do the trick. I recently got about 30 lbs of oak from our local Rudy's BBQ which they use in their pits. I'm wondering if anyone has tried this on their WSM. I'm also wondering if anything will happen to the oak of I leave it outside with and it rains. I guess it will be ok since Rudy's & Kreuz leaves there's outdoors all the time.
Here's a link to some picsI took at Kreuz last week
 
Great pics and narative!!!
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Thanks for sharing!

Bill
 
A WSM does not move enough air to run on straight wood. If you want to do a burn barrel and get the wood to coals and then add coals to the firering you could do that, but burning straight wood is a mess.

Jim
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">A WSM does not move enough air to run on straight wood. If you want to do a burn barrel and get the wood to coals and then add coals to the firering you could do that, but burning straight wood is a mess. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Jim, how about using something like Royal Oak lump and some chunks of Oak..would that get the taste close enough? How many chunks of fist size oak would you recommend? By the way, I'm a big fan. Thanks for replying to my post!
 
Kreuz cooks at high heat, which a few of us here do. That is easy to do. If you want to lay on the smoke or cook with wood go with Jim's suggestion and reduce the wood to coals/embers first. (And if you'd like your brisket to taste much better than Kreuz's, season it first!
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JP,
To answer one of your questions in your original post, you can leave the oak outside. Leaving the wood outside will help to season the wood but it should already be seasoned when you bought it. I would not store the wood on the ground. I would elevate it by using two 2x4s set on edge in order to promote airflow and to stop the wood from sinking into the soil. This also helps to reduce pests that like to live in woodpiles. Nice pictures of Kreuz. I hope to go there someday.
Lance
 
Cool pics, looks like a neat spot.

As for the wood...not sure if straight wood is an option. I used Royal Oak Lump on my last cook, and it does give a great flavor just by itself, without any wood at all. i think with lump and wood chunks, you'll have plenty of smoke...maybe too much. Doing in MM with the lump gives a lot of smoke. The lump seems to really smoke when it gets lit using the minion. For me, I don't like a ton of smoke, so I am good with just lump and no smoke wood. But...to each his own!
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">so how was the q? you never mention actually eating anything!
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The Q was excellent, as expected. We ordered brisket, sausage links and spare ribs...everything was juicy & tender. If I had to nitpick, I'd say the crust (rub) on the Brisket was too salty, but perhaps they do that to help tenderize the meat. It's true that you don't need BBQ sauce, because it's that good!
 
JP, like Jim wrote, you can't burn pure wood in the WSM. I usually just burn oak chunks when doing brisket; I find oak and beef a good combo. It's been awhile since I stopped into Kreuz's. So long, that I haven't stepped foot into the 'new' location looks the size of a WalMart. I'd be willing to bet that they do a high temp cook as many commercial establishments are doing. All of my wood is stored outside; the oak and pecan is exposed to the elements with no problems. My fruit woods are kept in heavy duty plastic patio boxes. Have they finished the road work out front yet? That's been a mess for over a year.

Kevin, are you serious about the seasoning statement? That'd be a first for a restaurant.

Paul
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Have they finished the road work out front yet? That's been a mess for over a year. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Yup, I didn't see any roadwork going on...and yes it does seem to be almost as big as a Wal-Mart.
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Kevin, are you serious about the seasoning statement? That'd be a first for a restaurant. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
In regards to that, I heard they use only salt & pepper and nothing else....wonder if that's true. Like I said, the brisket crust/rub seemed really salty. But the meat was juicy & tender.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by JP Stanley:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Kevin, are you serious about the seasoning statement? That'd be a first for a restaurant. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
In regards to that, I heard they use only salt & pepper and nothing else....wonder if that's true. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Yes it is true. I saw it on Diners Driveins & Dives. Salt & Pepper only.
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Yup. True. And not a first at all. Many commercial joints barely season at all. Numerous places in Texas don't season much and it is one reason I fault them. The meat SCREAMS for sauce. Kreuz, to me, is tender but that seems to be the be-all end-all there. I find the beef bland and uninteresting (the 'just beef and smoke' that some food writers--Texas Monthly and the usually nonsensical Michael Stern especially--tout as being so wonderful I find as anything but), the ribs usually oversmoked and over-peppered, the sausage usually greasy and not well spiced.

I'd give them an overall of 'average' myself. Just my two...

Kreuz has cooked at high heat for a very long time. Many central Texas places do--Kreuz, Mueller's, Cooper'--or use a high heat variation.
 
I think I spent a good hour on Youtube last night after watching your video, bouncing to other various bbq videos. Thank you for posting the write-up, it was very entertaining. My brother lives only 20 minutes from there, just south of Austin, so I will definitely have to give it a try next time I go there.
 
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