First smoke of 2026

 

Salmon may not be BBQ but it is the next best thing to put in a smoker.  We have 8 and a half pounds to make us smile for awhile.  We also did a bunch of poblano and banana peppers, which are also great right off the smoker.

Last BBQ of 2025

 

https://www.royhutchinsbbq.com/

sampled 12/30/25 around 4 pm

We had a friend in town for New Years Eve festivities and he wanted some Roy's.  I stuck with pork belly burnt ends, a slice of fatty brisket, and a couple of twinkies.  Their meat to cheese ratio in their twinkies is just right, to my taste.  A great end to a year full of great BBQ.

Santa loves brisket biscuits

 

sampled 12/21/25

Santa loves brisket biscuits so much, he brought me a 1 quart deep fryer for Christmas, 4 days early.  I put it to good use and I think I have it down close enough.  From my previous attempts, I learned to roll the biscuit dough even thinner and add more brisket.

Into the grease they went at 375 degrees until they were golden brown on both sides.

Were they as good as Don Green's?  I don't think so, but they will do fine when I feel the need to brisket a biscuit.  Thanks Santa!

Brisket biscuit experiment, part 2

 

sampled 12/15/25

Applying what I learned last night, the results tonight were much better.  Tonight I rolled the biscuit dough a lot thinner and added more brisket.  The best of the batch were very good, as seen above.  I also experimented a bit adding sauce and a small pat of butter to a few.  Those were pretty good, too, but the extra moisture inside kept the innermost part of the biscuit a bit doughy.  

The takeaway is that I need to roll the dough even thinner and add even more brisket.  The extras should be added after frying.  I think I'm about 80% there and we'll see in the next batch if we can get even closer to perfection.

For the last two I added smoked turkey instead of brisket.  That works, too!

Brisket Biscuit experiment, part 1

 

sampled 12/14/25

Green's has only been gone for a week and I finished off my last brisket biscuit from there on Thursday.  Time to start experimenting to see if I can make something half as good.  

My Mrs. picked up some cheapo store brand biscuits, I packed them full of brisket and fried them up at 350 degrees.  Close, but no cigar.  The outside was nice and crispy, but they were doughy inside.  I learned I need to roll out that biscuit dough much thinner and I need to put in a lot more brisket.

When at first you don't succeed, try try again.  And I shall!

Happy Retirement to Don Green

 

https://www.greenstexasbbq.com/

Today was the last day for Green's Texas Bar-B-Que in Euless.  A sad day for BBQ lovers but we wish Don the happiest of retirements and many wonderful bike rides.

As I was at Zavala's for our Xmas get-together, my Mrs. and our friend John from San Angelo did the honors of our last order from Green's.  They were 15th in line at 10:30 and reported that they came down the line passing out a free brisket biscuit to everyone in the line.  The also promised they would NOT run out of them today!  

Some of Don's bike riding friends rode up to the trailer and rode around it as a tribute.  They handed him a beer through the window before riding off.

They did run out of twinkies, just before my wife got to order, but she did scoop me up some pork belly bites and some brisket biscuits to go.  Thanks sweetie!  Thanks to John for the two pix below.

I swung by after our "meating" at Zavala's and found a healthy line waiting for their last taste of Green's.  Now that's the way to end a long run of great BBQ.  All the best to Don Green!

Oh, and if you look at his facebook page today, he posted a note saying he will miss seeing the line of people waiting for his food and posted a photo to go with.  That's me in the front of the line in that photo.  :)  A place I was happy to be, many times in the past, but never again.  :(

Zavala's BBQ, Grand Prairie 12/6/25

 

https://www.zavalasbarbecue.com/

sampled around 11 am

We usually have a get-together around Xmas with some friends and usually it's at a BBQ place.  This year we chose Zavala's in Grand Prairie and it proved to be an excellent choice.  Nestled between Brisket Lane and Sloppy Juan Drive, we had been there several times before so we knew it would be excellent.  I was third in line and Scott and our other friends showed up shortly after.  I think there were about 10 in line when they opened at 11 am.

I grabbed my usual Texas Trinity and added a couple of twinkies.

Everything was excellent, as it usually is, and we had a nice visit before doing our annual Xmas exchange.  Everything goes better with BBQ, especially good friends!