AUSTIN, Texas — For many people, griling and celebrating Independence Day go hand-in-hand. KVUE went to the expert pitmasters at Big O's Pit BBQ on Burnet Road to get some tricks of the trade for people to use at home.
At Big O's, the pitmasters use huge smoke pits, which most people don't have at their houses. But owner Orlando Arriaga said there are important things to remember, even for the grills in your backyard.
He said it's important to get your grill up to the proper temperature, but you also shouldn't use too much lighter fluid. Be sure to follow the directions on the bottle.
"You go through the process of temperatures and what you're going to cook your meats and what temperature you'd like to cook. So, slow cooking requires about 220 to 250 [degrees], and that's long and slow. High heat is 300 to 450, and that's short and fast," Arriaga said. "So, depending on your temperature, the way you want your meats – chicken is usually high and fast, ribs are slow and low, brisket is slow and low sausage is high and fast."
"Once you get your fire to temp and you've closed the lid, everybody always wants the keep opening and closing the lid. But please, you just use your temperature – your temperature control is very important, and your thermometer is your friend," Arriaga added.
At Big O's, the pitmasters smoke a lot of their meats – some for as long as 17 hours! Pitmaster Rudy Rivera said it's important to check the temperature of your meat and also to take a good look at it after taking it off the grill.
"We're kind of looking at how tender it needs to be. So kind of just feeling it with your hands, you know, get a lot of those sensory feels in there and make sure the meat's actually nice and tender, the fat's kind of rendered through it, nice and juicy," Rivera said. "Just kind of feeling it and seeing how it jiggles like that, that tells you that it's about there and it's done."
Once you're sure the meat is ready, then it's time to cut it. And there is a lot that goes into the best ways to cut it.
Rivera gave a demonstration for brisket, specifically:
"Basic understanding is this is going to be two muscles. You have the flat, which is going to be your lean end, and then the point, which is going to be your fattier end, juicy, or what a lot of people call moist end," Rivera said.
He said it's important to cut against the grain.
"If you're not going against the grain, it's going to be very tough and chewy. And if you're going against the grain, it kind of just breaks the muscle fibers down and makes it really tender for you," Rivera said.
For anyone who isn't able to grill, Big O's and other local places like Slab BBQ & Beer are open for the Fourth of July. But you may want to call ahead to see if their hours are adjusted due to the holiday.