The last place you might expect to get a barbecue cooking lesson is in a cold, wind-swept field in an unincorporated area of Williamson County just north of Austin. Yet, every weekend, Javier Vargas presides over his culinary domain: a trailer housing two massive, 3,000-pound round brick pits, known as “hornos.”

Vargas, a partner and head cook at El Grandpa Mexican BBQ, has turned this spot into a pilgrimage site for barbecue aficionados. Specializing in barbacoa de borrego estilo Hidalgo — smoked lamb prepared in the traditional style of Mexico’s Hidalgo region — Vargas, along with his son Emilio and business partner Keith Sheffield, has crafted one of the most distinctive barbecue experiences in Texas.

GUIDE: Houston's best barbecue joints

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

What makes it so unique? The team has ingeniously adapted a centuries-old method of........

© Houston Chronicle