Friday, July 03, 2009

My Favorite Restaurant Is A Gas Station

"Health food makes me sick." ~ Calvin Trillin

In my humble but expert opinion, the best Barbeque restaurant in the world is a gas station.

Nestled snugly on the corner of Mission Road and County Line Road in Kansas City, Kansas, is a convenience store which boasts gas pumps on the outside. On the inside of the store is Oklahoma Joe's Barbeque restaurant. Just a few short blocks from the Missouri line.


My wife often sends away for literature from resorts, and interesting tourists spots from around the United states. Recently, we received one from Kansas, my home state.

Last summer, we drove to Kansas to visit my elderly mother, some of my siblings, and my kids in Wichita.

Although she wasn't feeling too well through much of the journey, I made it a point to take her to Oklahoma Joe's when we went through Kansas City.

After sampling the fare, she agreed it was the best Barbeque she ever had.

So imagine my delight when I found actual recipes for Oklahoma Joe's ribs, Barbeque sauce, and brisket in the tourist's guide to Kansas!

As many of you know, I own a smoker, and enjoy smoking meat at home. I use my own recipes for rubs and sauces. I am pretty good, but I don't compare with Oklahoma Joe's. I've always had a problem with getting my ribs "fall-off-the-bone" tender. Perhaps this strange mustard rub of Joe's will solve that problem for me.

Here is a picture of one of my briskets on the smoker:



It looks dry in the photo, but trust me, it isn't.

I was going to post the recipes, but just now decided against it, due to concerns of copyright or patent infringement.

But tomorrow, on Independence day, my family and friends are going to enjoy genuine Oklahoma Joe's barbeque ribs and brisket, cooked by yours truly!

9 comments:

LL said...

It's cruel to tantalize in such an overt way... And to have to drive 2000 miles to Kansas for BBQ is a bit more than I'm likely to do.

You should "box the smell" and mail it to your distant friends when you want them to come and visit.

Mark said...

LL, go to TravelKS.com and order the Official Visitor's guide 2009/2010, and within those pages is the recipe that I am referring to. You can make your own Oklahoma Joe's style ribs and sauces and brisket!

Lone Ranger said...

To get fall-off-the-bones tender ribs, try steaming them first for an hour. They will not only be tender, they will be fat and juicy, as the steam permeates the meat. I use a stainless steel Chinese steamer I got at an Asian market. They don't cost much.

Krystal said...

The following are recipes from Oklahoma Joe's:

Rib Rub - http://www.recipezaar.com/Oklahoma-Joes-Rib-Rub-118966

Pulled Pork - http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bbq-with-bobby-flay/oklahoma-joes-pulled-pork-recipe/index.html

Smoked Brisket - http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bbq-with-bobby-flay/oklahoma-joes-pulled-pork-recipe/index.html

Mustard Rub - http://www.recipezaar.com/Oklahoma-Joes-Mustard-Rib-Rub-118846

All Courtesy of the owner who has posted them online. :)

Mark said...

Great Find, Krystal! However, your link to the beef brisket recipe is actually the recipe for pulled pork.

I've had the pulled pork at OK Joe's and it's the best, too!

OK. I've had everything at OK Joe's at one time or another. I used to go there every week when I lived in Kansas City.

Joe said...

Please email me a big slab of that bbq...you can send it as an attachment.

The best in the world? The world is a big place...I'd better get up there and try some of those.

Krystal said...

Mark, Here's the brisket. I orderd that guide BTW.

Brisket - http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bbq-with-bobby-flay/oklahoma-joes-smoked-brisket-flat-recipe/index.html

Mark said...

I smoked a brisket and a rack of ribs on Independence Day, plus I made a batch of Oklahoma Joe's BBQ sauce.

Oklahoma Joe's BBQ Sauce was voted best sauce on the planet, and I'm not completely sure, but my batch may have beat that!

The sauce came out great, but I was disappointed with the ribs and the brisket. Neither were as tender as they should have been. I followed the recipes exactly, too.

The only thing I can think of that I might have done wrong was, I used my smoker instead of a grill. These recipes were meant for grills. Grills cook hotter than smokers, and it was obvious that the ribs and brisket didn't cook at a hot enough temperature.

Besides that, both the ribs and the brisket tasted great. They just weren't as tender as I like. I have cooked them both more tender in the past. I am very good with brisket. That, and pork roast are my specialties.

I think next time I'll stick with my own recipes, and possibly steam the ribs first, as LR suggested. That would likely make them perfect.

Mark said...

Krystal, Interestingly enough, the recipes you linked to are different than the recipes found in the Kansas Tourists Guide.

I don't know what to make of that, unless Jeff Stehney is just publicizing ordinary BBQ recipes while keeping his own secret.

If I had the best recipe in the world, that's what I would do.