Texas Eats: The New Lone Star Heritage Cookbook, with More Than 200 Recipes [Paperback]

Robb Walsh (Author)

Book Description

Release date: March 6, 2012

Who says cooking is for homebodies? 

Veteran Texas food writer Robb Walsh served as a judge at a chuck wagon cook-off, worked as a deckhand on a shrimp boat, and went mayhaw-picking in the Big Thicket--for seven years, he drove the length and breadth of the state looking for the best in barbecue, burgers, kolaches, and tacos; while scouring museums, libraries, and public archives unearthing vintage photos, culinary stories, and nearly-forgotten dishes. Then he headed home to Houston to test the recipes he'd collected back in his own  kitchen. The result is Texas Eats: The New Lone Star Heritage Cookbook, a colorful and deeply personal blend of history, anecdotes, and recipes from all over the Lone Star State. 

     

Editorial Reviews

Review

 
“A rich, comprehensive portrait of Lone Star food that goes leagues beyond brisket and chicken-fried steak.”
—New York Times Book Review

Texas Eats isn’t just a cookbook. Or a history book. It’s really the world of Texas food according to Walsh.
—Dallas Morning News

“This book is rich with gravitas and gravy. But its true strength is the broad cast of previously unheralded characters—from Vietnamese pho masters in Houston to chicken-fried steak pioneers in Paradise—whose family histories and recipes tell us what it means to claim a Texas kitchen as your own.”
—John T Edge, series editor, Cornbread Nation: The Best of Southern Food Writing
 
“With a brilliant eye for detail, master storyteller Robb Walsh delivers a remarkable portrait of Lone Star food. Recipe by recipe, he shows that Texas is its own country, with its own reasons and contradictions and, thankfully, one of the purest and most unique cuisines in the continental United States.”
—Molly O’Neill, author of One Big Table: A Portrait of American Cooking
 
“Robb Walsh is the Homer of Brisket, the great storyteller of Texas food. Spending half a day with him, eating breakfast tacos, chicken-fried steak, and Galveston oysters, is getting a history lesson, adventure tale, and potential heart stoppage all at once. Luckily, with this book, you can pace yourself.”
—Francis Lam, Features Editor, Gilt Taste
 
“Robb Walsh’s new book has ‘Eat Me!’ written all over it.”
—Kinky Friedman

From the Inside Flap

In Texas Eats, Walsh covers the standards, from chicken-fried steak to cheese enchiladas to barbecued brisket. He also makes stops in East Texas, for some good old-fashioned soul food; the Hill Country, for German- and Czech-influenced favorites; the Panhandle, for traditional cowboy cooking; and the Gulf Coast, for timeless seafood dishes and lost classics like pickled shrimp. Texas Eats even covers recent trends, like Viet-Texan fusion and Pakistani fajitas. And yes, there are recipes for those beloved-but-obscure gems: King Ranch casserole, parisa, and barbecued crabs. With more than 200 recipes and stunning food photography, Texas Eats brings the richness of Texas food history vibrantly to life and serves up a hearty helping of real Texas flavor.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Ten Speed Press (March 6, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 076792150X
• ISBN-13: 978-0767921503
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 0.9 x 9.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #33,431 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Food writer Robb Walsh is the T.R. Fehrenbach of Texas culinary history. While Fehrenbach has chronicled Texas history, Walsh's books--The Tex-Mex Cookbook, Legends of Texas Barbecue Cookbook and The Texas Cowboy Cookbook--honor the state's food traditions with recipes and revisionist accounts of how our Lone Star staples came to be. Many of the articles he pens for the Houston Press--where he's been head restaurant reviewer for almost 10 years-- have been nominated for James Beard awards.

-Jennifer Lizt, Texas Magazine

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Texas Cookbook Ever! March 12, 2012

By Naomi Manygoats

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I have read, cooked, and salivated my way through Rob Walsh's books on Tex-Mex, BBQ, and Cowboy cooking. And I could hardly wait to get this, his newest book, in my hands. This time, Walsh covers the regional food from all over Texas. He divides Texas into regions: West Texas, East Texas, Central/ Hill Country, South Texas and Coastal Bend. Then he covers some of the best food to be found in each region. His recipes are spot-on, and the photographs are beautiful. Besides just recording authentic recipes though, Walsh tells the story of the foods of Texas. From the Tamale stands in San Antonio, to the arrival of the Cajuns and Germans. I had forgotten that pirate Jean Lafitte had his headquarters on Galveston Island. It is fascinating and gives the reader a much greater appreciation for the history of the food. Texas is huge, and the food so diverse, it really does take a lifetime of living and eating here to fully appreciate all it has to offer. Thankfully, unlike some authors of Texas cookbooks, Walsh has done just that.

From the Coastal Bend, we have many seafood recipes including many for oysters, fish, crab, and shrimp. Texas has a huge coastline (367 miles), and the wonderful seafood from its shores is often neglected by other Texas cookbook authors. The Galveston Crab Cakes sound wonderful, and I know my husband will love Hattie's Shrimp and Grits with Tabasco Bacon Pan Sauce. Texas also has its own fair share of Cajuns living here, and there are recipes from them such as Grandma Gossen's Shrimp Stew.

East Texas has typically southern food, such as cornbread, biscuits, and stewed chicken. A section on Juneteenth has wonderful soul food, like fried chicken, fried catfish, chicken and dumplings, and stewed okra. Not to mention Sweet Potato cobbler.

South Texas brings us all the Tex-Mex delights that make me swoon, and are the reason I would never be able to live outside of Texas. We have Classic Chili Con Carne, Chile Con Queso, Cheese Enchiladas, and even the crock-pot chile con queso that I believe every Texas simply must eat during the Super Bowl. My husband will love the Stacked Enchiladas with Pork and Red Chile, as well as the Carne Guisada. If you have never had Charro Beans, you simply must, and here is a recipe for them that will be hard for anyone to pass up.

The Hill Country traditionally had many settlers from Germany, and in this section we see this influence with the German Potato Salad and Red Cabbage. From the Czech settlers, we have Claudia Matchek's Poppy Seed Kolaches. We simply must stop for Kolaches on our way back from Houston to Austin, or there would be a family rebellion! And of course French recipes, since the French flew the first of the six flags that flew over Texas.

From West Texas, we have traditional cowboy pleasing food, such as Chicken Fried Steak and King Ranch Casserole. And of course some fabulous BBQ recipes, as well as recipes for sauces and rubs such as Chipotle BBQ Sauce. There is a recipe for Pulled Pork, Beef Links, and Brisket. There is even a recipe for Brisket Breakfast Tacos, something my husband makes whenever we have leftover brisket.

There are also Jalapeno Cheeseburgers, Onion Rings, and Cheese Fries. And even a dessert section that includes Texas favorites, such as Butter Pecan Ice Cream, Peach Cobbler, and German Chocolate Cake. And tucked into the back are even sections on Vietnamese-Texas dishes, and Indian (from India) Texas influenced recipes.

If we ever HAD to move out of state, you can bet this will be the first book that I pack! I will enjoy reading it and cooking from it for years to come. The only thing `missing' is a large section on breakfast tacos... I do hope that Walsh will come out with a book devoted to this favorite south and central Texas breakfast food!

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars History and Heat Make it Delicious May 9, 2012

By Margaret Martindale

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Texas Eats:
The New Lone Star Heritage Cookbook with More than 200 Recipes
By Robb Walsh
Photography by Laurie Smith
A review by Marty Martindale, Editor, FoodsiteMagazine.com

This is a good cookbook to keep for a long time. Robb Walsh knows his Texas and its regional pockets of who's cooking what. And, along with recipes, is his generous, personal recollections with a bit of colorful storytelling. Walsh is a three-time James Beard award winner, author of five earlier Texas cookbooks, a former Houston Express restaurant reviewer and restaurant owner in Houston.

The book begins with "Tartar Sauce and Hurricane," a look at Texas' Coastal Bend, then he weaves his way across-state with stops like "Boardinghouse Fare," "Juneteenth," "Chicken-Fried Steak in Paradise," "Shade Tree Barbecue," "The Green Chile Line," and on and on through "Banh Mi on the Bayou," to the end of the line at "Indian Cowboys."

Here's some of the recipes we found:

SAGE BREAKFAST SAUSAGE
Calls for pork loin, bacon, brown sugar, fresh sage, rosemary, paprika, jalapeno chili and cayenne.

BUTTERMILK MACARONI AND CHEESE WITH HOMEGROWN TOMATOES
Butter, macaroni, buttermilk, half-and-half, dry mustard, Cheddar cheese, jack cheese, bread crumbs and sliced tomato

GRAMMY'S CREAMY COLESLAW
Slightly cooked eggs, vinegar, sugar, mayonnaise, dry mustard and cabbage

COUNTRTY MEAT LOAF
Sausage, ground sirloin, onion, bread crumbs, eggs, cream, garlic, thyme, chili powder, jalapeno chili and bacon

MAMA SUGAR'S MARGARITA RIBS
Ribs, tequila, Mr. and Mrs. T's Margarita Mix and BBQ Rub

PICKLED WATERMELON RIND
Water, rind pieces, white vinegar, sugar, cinnamon sticks, mustard seeds, clove and allspice berries

GREEN RICE
Butter, onion, garlic, rice, bay leaves, Mexican oregano, cilantro and water

PECAN PARLINES
Brown sugar, white sugar, corn syrup, butter, water and pecans

SAUERKRAUT GRAVY
Fat, onions, sauerkraut, broth, oil, flour and mashed potatoes

FRANKLIN'S ESPRESSO BBQ SAUCE
Ketchup, water, cider vinegar, white vinegar, brewed espresso, Worcestershire sauce and chili power

REBECCA RATHER'S ANCHO BROWNIES
Semisweet chocolate, butter, eggs, sugar, flour, ancho chili powder, chocolate chips, pine nuts or pecans and vanilla ice cream

NOAH BARTOS' BUTTERMILK PIE
Butter, sugar, flour, eggs, buttermilk, vanilla and nutmeg in a pie shell

FAUX PHO
Filet mignon, gingerroot, shallot, soy sauce, star anise, cardamom, cinnamon, broth, jalapeno chili, fish sauce, rice noodles, fresh herbs, green onions, fresh limes and Sriracha sauce

MINT CHUTNEY
Yellow onions, mint leaves, Serrano chili, lime juice and cayenne pepper

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Texas Cookbook!!! June 26, 2012

By Nancy A. Breshears

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

This cookbook has a lot of old Texas favorites. It was like finding old Texas recipes that my grandmother and mother used to make. My grandmother grew up in Grandbury and my mother in Van and me in Carrollton-Farmers Branch. Boy Howdy how they could cook. This book is like home to me.