On this episode of Taste Buds with Deb, host Debra Eckerling speaks with Warren Rockmacher, known as the godfather of kosher barbecue. Rockmacher discovered competitive barbecue in 2013. He competes with his kosher barbecue team around the country and has started competitions of his own, including the Great American Kosher Barbecue Championship and Jewish Festival in Lake Worth, Florida.

“People love coming out for the food [but we also have] crafters, vendors,” he says. “We're celebrating being Jewish and that's really what [the event] is all about.” Their third annual event will be February 15, 2026.

Rockmacher believes there’s an art and craft to making barbecue.

“[The art] is taking something uniquely American … and being able to make it your own,” he explains. “[This applies to] something as simple as just grilling hamburgers and hot dogs or elevating that chicken [or] brisket.

“Try different things - you never know what you might like.”

The craft of barbecue is the fire management. You use different wood pellets, rather than charcoal or propane, to get a nice wood flavor. And you cook it low and slow.

“A good brisket is going to take you anywhere from 9 to 13, 14 hours, depending on how you do it,” he explains. “We start at night and they're done the next morning, and then you let them rest for a period of time and then go ahead and eat them.”

Warren Rockmacher shares his barbecue origin story, name drops some of his favorite kosher pitmasters - including Dani Goldblatt of Holy Smokes in LA - and goes through the different types of grills and smokers, along with what you can make in them. He also shares barbecue tips, the 411 on competitions, and recipes for two of his favorites: honey bourbon crack hot dogs and brisket, which you can find at JewishJournal.com/podcasts.

To learn more about the Great American Kosher Barbecue Competition, visit gakbbq.org. For more from Taste Buds, subscribe on iTunes and YouTube, and follow @TheDEBMethod on social media.