Texas Q by Cheryl Alters Jamison – Paperback Cookbook

Texas Q is a paperback cookbook by James Beard Award-winning author Cheryl Alters Jamison with 100 smoke-cooked recipes that cover Texas barbecue well beyond brisket, from pork, lamb, goat and game to chicken, Gulf seafood and sides. It's built for backyard smokers and celebrates the Mexican-American, African-American and immigrant traditions that shape Texas barbecue today.

Bragging rights, beyond the brisket

Cheryl Alters Jamison co-wrote Smoke & Spice, one of the original bibles of backyard smoking, so she knows her brisket backwards. Texas Q sets out to prove the Lone Star State's barbecue is far bigger than one cut. It celebrates the variety that makes modern Texas barbecue so interesting without losing the rubs, mops and smoke that define it.

What's inside

The book comes in three parts. Bragging Rights Texas BBQ covers the revival of the craft and the outdoor kitchen basics: fuels, equipment and tools. Really Smoking is the engine room, with chapters on rubs and seasonings, party starters, beef, pork plus lamb, goat and game, chicken, turkey and game birds, and Gulf seafood and lake fish. From the Great Indoors rounds things off with sauces and condiments, sides and sweet finishes.

Brisket gets several recipes and even a run of ideas for using up your barbecued brisket, but it's the breadth that impresses: mops and sauces, snacks to eat while you wait, and fish straight from the Gulf.

Who it's for

Backyard smoker owners who've done a few briskets and want to branch out. The basics chapter makes it workable for beginners, and the regional range will keep seasoned cooks busy for years.

About Cheryl Alters Jamison

Cheryl Alters Jamison is a James Beard Award-winning cookbook author and radio food-show host. With her late husband Bill she co-wrote Smoke & Spice and Texas Home Cooking, two of the best-known books on American barbecue and Texas food.

The Rub Smuggler's Verdict

Darryl's orders: if you think Texas barbecue starts and ends with brisket, this book will set you straight. Cheryl does beef proper justice, but the chapter on pork, lamb, goat and game is where she really shows off the state's range. Get it and your smoker finally earns its keep on more than one cut. Read it beside The Austin Cookbook for the city's wider food scene and Pig Beach BBQ Cookbook for a modern pitmaster's take. Rub your beef with Meat Church Holy Cow and you're halfway to Texas; patience is the only law I keep.

Questions answered

Who wrote Texas Q?

Texas Q was written by Cheryl Alters Jamison, a James Beard Award-winning cookbook author who co-wrote Smoke & Spice with her late husband Bill.

How many recipes are in Texas Q?

There are 100 smoke-cooked recipes across 11 chapters, from rubs and starters through beef, pork, poultry and seafood to sauces, sides and desserts.

Is Texas Q good for beginners?

Yes. It opens with barbecue basics on fuels, equipment and tools before moving into the recipes.

Is Texas Q a paperback?

Yes. It's a paperback published by Harvard Common Press in 2020.

Does Texas Q go beyond brisket?

Yes. Brisket is covered, but there are whole chapters on pork, lamb, goat and game, poultry, and Gulf seafood and lake fish.