Halal barbecue comes to Houston
Muslim preparations are similar to kosher rules of Jewish faith.
Fort Bend teacher Sania Ali, a native Houstonian, had never tasted Texas barbecue.
“Even though I was born in Houston, I never tried Texas barbecue because it wasn’t halal,” said Ali, a Muslim whose parents emigrated from Pakistan. “I’d spent my whole life listening to friends and co-workers say how great it is.”
Robert West changed that. A Muslim convert, West started cooking halal barbecue for friends, including Ali, at backyard gatherings. They loved it, of course.
“It makes me feel like a real Texan,” Ali told the Houston Chronicle.
Now West has expanded his barbecue outreach. He coowns Chopped N Smoked, the only Texas-style barbecue joint catering to the halal dietary traditions of the Muslim faith.
“Halal” roughly translates to “permitted” or “lawful” and refers to food produced in a ritual manner that satisfies Muslim edicts. Specifically, halal meat must come from a permitted animal (cows, sheep, goats) that is slaughtered in a humane way by an adult Muslim. Halal rules restrict the consumption of pork or blood. Halal-prepared food is similar to the kosher traditions of the Jewish faith.
The Chopped N Smoked barbecue trailer sits in the parking lot of a Citgo gas station on Texas 6 in northeastern Fort Bend County, the most ethnically diverse county in the most diverse metropolitan area in the nation.
The culinary diversity in this area is obvious. Indian food trucks (Tandoori Nite, Bansuri) are prevalent in other Sugar Land parking lots, while mom-and-pop taquerias (Mr. Trompo!) have set up shop in old, repurposed Pizza Inn restaurants. Pakistani, Thai, Chinese and other world cuisines are well-represented, too.
Chopped N Smoked is the new kid on the block, having just opened in March.
Why open a halal barbecue joint in Houston?
“There are generations of Muslim Houstonians who have never tasted Texas barbecue because it is not halal,” West said. “We always talk about integrating the many groups of Houston. How can you do that when certain foods are restricted? Although we welcome all Houstonians, we specifically wanted to bring authentic Texas barbecue to the Muslim community.”
It’s important to note that halal barbecue tastes like other Texas barbecue, and West welcomes everyone to try it. Halal requirements don’t necessarily affect the taste of the meat — they guide only the ritual manner in which the food is produced.
West grew up in the Klein area in a “relatively strict” Mormon family. He attended Klein Forest High School and went on to Loyola University in New Orleans on a music scholarship. When that didn’t work out, he joined the Marines in 2000.
He was based in Okinawa, Japan, at the time of the Sept. 11 attacks. He was deployed to Kuwait and was part of the original invasion force into Iraq in 2003. When he was honorably discharged from the Marines in 2004, he returned to Houston.
West enrolled at University of Houston, earning a master’s in biotechnology. While working at a local energy company, he met his future wife, Aliya Ahmed, a native Houstonian and practicing Muslim. Her parents had emigrated from India in the 1980s. West eventually converted to Islam.
During get-togethers with his wife’s family and friends — often revolving around food — West would talk about Texas barbecue and how delicious it is. Many in this social group said they had never tried it. “Put up or shut up,” they would tell him. Either make Texas barbecue for them or stop talking about it. That’s when West started cooking halal chicken and beef at family events.
One of the guests at these get-togethers was Ahmed’s longtime friend, Jason Bones, whose family had emigrated from India when he was young. They are from a part of India that is mainly Christian, and he is Catholic.
That didn’t stop him from going into business with West in the halal business. An anesthesia technician in his day job, he now co-owns Chopped N Smoked.
Because halal guidelines require that no food preparation surfaces or appliances have ever been in contact with restricted foods such as pork, West and Bones built their food trailer from the ground up with all new equipment.
West built the attached barbecue pit himself, after studying principles of flow dynamics to ensure the proper flow of smoke and heat over the meat.
The two men originally sourced their halal meats from various places around Houston, but the supply was inconsistent.
Now Phoenicia Specialty Foods’ meat department helps them secure a consistent supply of halal chicken, brisket and beef ribs.
Business is good, West said. They originally were open only Saturdays and Sundays, but they recently added Friday hours. Chopped N Smoked is open 3 to 10 p.m., but they often sell out before closing time.
Most of their customers are curious Muslims, young and old, who have never tried Texas barbecue, West said.
It’s rewarding to watch them become true Texans.