Tag Archives: Michael Berto

Texas A&M University a sponsor at TMBBQ FEST 2016

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For the sixth year in a row, Texas A&M University will be one of the sponsors of the TMBBQ FEST 2016 on Sunday, October 30, 2016. Faculty and students will be in attendance at the festival meeting and greeting people who are interested in knowing more about the art and science of barbecue. The event also will give us a chance to visit with the pit masters who be sharing the wonderful food they will be preparing for the large group of participants. Here are some photos from… Read More →

Camp Brisket, 2015 version, a success!

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The third Camp Brisket, held January 9-10, 2015, was attended by about 100 participants, speakers, and instructors all gathered to learn all they could about the king of Texas Barbecue, the brisket. The two-day program, co-sponsored by Foodways Texas and the Department of Animal Science at Texas A&M University, featured demonstrations, panels, and taste tests allowing everyone to learn more about briskets. Here are photos from this year’s Camp Brisket showing a small sample of the activities that were held at the Rosenthal Meat Center and the Beef… Read More →

Whole hog cooking in ANSC 117, Texas Barbecue

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For the sixth year in a row, we finished ANSC 117, Texas Barbecue by cooking a whole pig at the Savell home (here is last year’s post). We used the cinder-block pit located in the backyard, and once again, it performed well with a minimum of wood required to cook the pig. Just like last year, we obtained a smaller pig (around 70 pounds) so that we did not have to worry about a long cooking time. I believe that we will continue to cook whole pigs around… Read More →

ANSC 117: Fuel and smoke

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  Two key parts of preparing barbecue is to provide heat for cooking, through a source of fuel, and to provide smoke, through burning wood. Sometimes the fuel and smoke are combined as when logs such as oak or hickory are used to cook with. Sources of fuel may include but are not limited to: Chunk charcoal Charcoal briquettes Propane Logs Sources of smoke may include but are not limited to: Hickory Oak Mesquite Pecan Apple Cherry For this class, we cooked unseasoned chicken thighs using Weber Performer®… Read More →

Aggies participate in TMBBQ FEST 2014

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For the fourth year in a row, Texas A&M University was one of the sponsors of the TMBBQ Fest, and Texas Barbecue faculty and students were in attendance at the festival on Sunday, September 14, 2014 in Austin. The Texas A&M University team included Davey Griffin, Ray Riley, Jeff Savell, Blythe Schultz, Kaitlyn Porter, Hillary Henderson, Michael Berto, and John Chivvis. Our booth has been dubbed the Barbecue Genius Counter, mimicking the Apple Genius Bar concept where people can get their questions answered. But we find our group… Read More →

Fourth Barbecue Summer Camp held June 6-8, 2014

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The very popular Foodways Texas Barbecue Summer Camp was held at the Rosenthal Meat Center at Texas A&M University on June 6-8, 2014. This is the fourth year of the camp, and about 60 participants from all walks of life, but with a common love for all things barbecue were in attendance this year. To start the morning, Marvin Bendele of Foodways Texas and Jeff Savell of the Meat Science Section of the Department of Animal Science gave a welcome to everyone and led the class introductions of… Read More →

Aggies participate in Houston Barbecue Festival

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We had the great pleasure of participating in the 2nd Houston Barbecue Festival, which was held at Reliant Park in Houston on Sunday, April 6, 2014. We took the BBQ Genius Counter set up, and eight of us traveled to Houston for the event: Davey Griffin, Michael Berto, Tyler Rosser, Clay Eastwood, Kaitlyn Porter, Katy Jo Nickelson, and Jackie Savell. We got to see old friends and met new pitmasters at the event. Here are some photos of great people and barbecue. Thanks to the organizers of the… Read More →

Texas Barbecue says goodbye to Snazzy Seniors

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The first Texas Barbecue class for freshmen was held in the fall of 2009, and with the second class in 2010, we began having a few students who had been in the previous class help out with the current class. Four students from the 2010 class, Jenny Bohac, Tyler Rosser, Taylor Adcock, and Chloe Geye, decided that they wanted to serve as assistants in the 2011 class, and we called them “Super Sophomores.” At the end of the 2011, Ray Riley and I said goodbye to Jenny, Tyler, Taylor, and… Read More →

Aggies participate in Texas Monthly BBQ Festival, 2013 edition

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For the third year in a row, Texas A&M University and its BBQ Genius Counter participated in the Texas Monthly BBQ Festival in Austin. Faculty and students from the Department of Animal Science, Jeff Savell, Davey Griffin, Ray Riley, Clay Eastwood, Chloe Geye, Kaitlyn Porter, and Michael Berto, were at the festival working at the Texas A&M University booth, visiting pitmasters, giving tips to backyard barbecue enthusiasts, and sampling great barbecue from the top places around the state. Thanks to John Chivvis for preparing and setting up the… Read More →