Saturday, November 21, 2009

Texas Barbecue at Texas A&M


Professor Ray Riley of the Rosenthal Meat Science and Technology Center at Texas A&M is offering students the opportunity for an all-important education in barbecue. Course #UPAS 181 has the following course description in the course directory, "Survey, demonstration, and participation class celebrating the rich heritage of Texas Barbecue; preparation techniques include types of meats, seasonings, and cooking methods with emphasis on food safety, costs, and availability; regional (e.g., Carolinas, Kansas City, Memphis, Cajun) and international (e.g., Brazilian, Argentine, Cuban, Asian) methods to be explored and compared."

In a recent class, Robb Walsh stopped by for a lecture and a brisket tasting between wrapped and not wrapped briskets. Walsh's book, Legends of Texas Barbecue serves as the textbook for the class. Although the class is on a Friday afternoon, its popularity is high in the inaugural year. Here's hoping many more Aggie classes get the chance to learn about this important piece of Texas culture.

On another note, while perusing the Rosenthal Center website, I found the most interesting online quiz I've yet to come by. On this website you can test your skill at identifying cuts of beef. You can also order some of Texas A&M's brand of beef jerky produced by the Rosenthal Center. I'll have to try some myself.

- BBQ Snob

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Wow, I've never felt prouder to be an Aggie.

DISCLAIMER:

Each joint is judged on the essence of Texas 'cue...sliced brisket and pork ribs. Sausage is only considered if house made. Sauce is good, but good meat needs no adornment to satisfy. Each review can only be based on specific cuts of meat on that particular day. Finally, if the place fries up catfish or serves a caesar salad, then chances are they aren't paying enough attention to the pits, so we mostly steered clear.

-THE PROPHETS OF SMOKED MEAT