9780767930734The Tex-Mex Grill and Backyard Barbacoa Cookbook
by Robb Walsh
Ten Speed Press (2010)
Paperback, $19

Purchase on:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Random House

The Tex-Mex Grill and Backyard Barbacoa Cookbook is a grand tour of famous Tex-Mex restaurants, taco trucks, cook-offs and tailgating get-togethers, with recipes to bring this popular American regional cuisine to your home grill.

Sizzling fajitas are probably the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Tex-Mex’s contribution to the backyard barbecue. But mesquite-kissed T-bones with grilled corn on the cob slathered in ancho chile butter is Tex-Mex too—and so are grilled jumbo Gulf shrimp with pineapple kebabs and red snapper fish tacos. In The Tex-Mex Grill and Backyard Barbacoa Cookbook renowned Texas food writer and James Beard Award winner Robb Walsh showcases the full spectrum of outdoor cooking in Texas and Northern Mexico in his unique style with photos and 85 easy-to-follow recipes.

“The Tex-Mex Grill and Backyard Barbacoa Cookbook is pure Robb Walsh—as delicious to read as it is to cook from. Robb explores with the zeal of an adventurous journalist, reels you in with the skill of a great storyteller, and entices you into the kitchen with wow-that-sounds-great creativity. His sections on butchering and grill wrangling will ensure that this book stays on my kitchen counter for a long, long time.”
– Rick Bayless, author of Authentic Mexican

“Robb Walsh is the most Mexican gringo I’ve met after my cousin-in- law. The recipes in this book will help everyone from the novice cook to the most grizzled abuelita, and the history and stories behind each will simply dazzle. Anyone who doesn’t buy this book deserves deportation.”
– Gustavo Arellano, syndicated columnist, ¡Ask a Mexican!

 

Want a taste? Check out this recipe from the book:

Grilled Stuffed Peppers (from the Tex-Mex Grill)

Makes 6 small stuffed pepper halves

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons seasoning blend of your choice
• 1 teaspoon salt (omit if there is salt in the seasoning mix)
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1/2 pound venison sausage (substitute breakfast sausage meat)
• 1/2 pound ground beef
• 1 cup cooked rice
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/2 cup minced fresh parsley leaves
• Cayenne pepper
• Ground cumin
• Oil, for frying
• 3 small green bell peppers (four lobes preferred)
• Mix the seasoning blend, salt, and wine in a small bowl and stir well. Then combine the mixture with all the other ingredients except the oil and peppers in a mixing bowl and mash with your hands until all the ingredients are evenly distributed. Put the meat in the refrigerator for an hour or more to allow the flavors to blend.
• Heat a little oil in a frying pan and place a teaspoon of the meat mixture in the hot oil. Cook, turning frequently, until done on both sides. Taste, and adjust the salt and seasonings in the remaining meat mixture.
• Cut the peppers in half through the stem so that they form six half-pepper cups. Fill each half pepper with meat mixture. Mound the meat no more than a 1/2 inch over the top edge of each pepper. The stuffed peppers can be made in advance to this point and stored covered in the refrigerator for several days.
• Light the grill. Cook pepper side down over low heat for 10 to 12 minutes, until the pepper is charred and soft. Turn the stuffed peppers over and cook on the meat side for 10 minutes. Test for doneness. Serve immediately with your choice of salsas. These are also great cold or cut into slices for sandwiches.