Texas BBQ, with a foreign flavor

with millions of Americans firing up their grills this weekend Lee Cowan pays a return visit to Texas for barbecue that's truly a taste sensation she is perhaps one of the Lesser known ancient Egyptian goddesses her name is hassat depicted as a cow she was worshiped as the goddess of nourishment so perhaps it's not that much of a surprise that a cow goddess and barbecue would eventually meet oh man this is kg Barbecue in Austin Texas the r bow is a great introduction where Pitmaster Kareem El gesh has Blended the flavors of ancient Egypt with an age-old Cowboy tradition it's a combo I've never heard of before yeah yeah I've never seen pomegranate seeds on barbecue his presentation is as unique as The Taste each dish looks like a landscape painted with the vibrant colors of the Middle East Meats of All Sorts including lamb and Kaa sausages are seasoned with cumin coriander and turmeric my goal was to present something that looks familiar but then you go and try it and it's an explosion of flavors Kareem first came to Texas from Cairo on a whim I mean I know western movies I know cowboys I know concer music he never tasted Texas barbecue but when he did recreating it for himself became his life's work sounds like he became a little obsessed with figuring out how to do it just a little bit yeah just a little bit he was a finance executive back in Cairo where in his spare time he would go searching for a cut of brisket to try his hand at his new found love I would go with the cow chart you know on my phone and this is where the brisket is like can you cut it 10 years after his very first Taste of Texas barbecue Kareem opened his own food truck and within months his Egyptian style barbecue had earned a nomination for a prestigious James Beard award don't ask me how I think it's beautiful I think it's like a work of art I can't wait to eat this I really think a lot of the immigrants who are coming to Texas specifically you see barbecue is a way like a pallet to bring the flavors of of their culture uh to the Forefront that's Daniel vaugh the highly influential barbecue editor for Texas monthly we got crispy pig skin right here we found him at the Magazine's annual barbecue fest in lockart this past fall oh that's the good sound right there hovering around a whole pig being prepared by Don W who along with his brother Theo started a Vietnamese style popup in Houston called koi barbecue and what I'm kind of doing on top is just a little uh fried onion oil this dish for example offers pork shoulder on a bed of vermil noodles then flavored with a Vietnamese fish sauce this a spot on right here you ever tasted anything like this no that's unique I see people who sort of rail against the idea of all these changes in Texas barbecue but when you sit them down with that plate in front of them they're rarely arguing about whether it's good or not right oh w they're certainly lining up at this Asian style Texas Smokehouse called ciri tatsuya also in Austin probably the best one Chef Tatsu iawa is Tokyo born but he's Texas raised so he doesn't see his barbecue as some kind of trendy Fusion to him it's just as natural as pairing salt and pepper what I make is it just comes through me you know as an experience that's why I don't like to use word f Fusion you know what I mean it's I think to me like it's it's deep than that he too has been racking up awards for items like his barbecue bento box where diners can take brisket put it on a bed of rice and garlic wrap it in Nori and then just eat it like a hand roll good then there's this hugely popular Ramen dish where barbecue brisket is served to top thick slurp worthy noodles accompanied with a pork bone broth for dipp it kind of crazes thickness where it kind of coats the whole noodle takes barbecue is almost perfect you know to his form and I respect it so to me I'm just creating vehicle to Showcase and highlight I'm not trying to alter what it is these are about maybe 6 7 hours in neither is Kareem elges I'm just someone that followed my brain you know I'm like this is what I want to do so I'm just going to do it followed your heart I guess yeah follow my heart too exactly followed my heart he just got his US citizenship last year and he now proudly wears an American flag on his barbecue Hue apron right next to his Egyptian pendant a Texan by way of Cairo who just put a few more notches in the nation's barbecue belt I love introducing people to Egypt and its food and its culture uh and it's a great way to do it through Texas barbecue

Channel: CBS Sunday Morning

Views: 75,403

Keywords: Texas, Sunday Morning, U.S.

Id: V9CaQsIcpOA

Length: 5min 23sec (323 seconds)

Published: Sun May 26 2024