Local man builds Texan smoker from scratch

By William Crooks

Local Journalism Initiative

Matthew Patton, a resident of Lennoxville, has successfully built a massive 500-gallon barbecue offset tank smoker, a type uncommon in the area and originating from Texas. This smoker, which he named “the Franklin” after influential American pitmaster Aaron Franklin, was the result of many weeks of work and customization. Although Patton does not run a restaurant or sell his food publicly, he is celebrated in the community for his scrumptious cooking, having mastered everything from briskets to whole hogs and smoking over 500 racks of ribs.

Patton’s passion for cooking began at age five, and he has honed his skills over the years, paying close attention to dietary preferences and restrictions while cooking for his family. His cooking stands out because he only uses fire as a heat source, requiring a high level of attention and care, leading to a unique bond with the element.

In addition to smoking meat, Patton is meticulous in the preparation process, which can span months. This includes selecting the perfect meat cuts, brining or injecting them, grinding his own spice mix, and preparing sauces. He also ages meats, sometimes up to 17 days, and butchers his own pigs, turkeys, and chickens for a farm-to-table experience. His respect for the animals he raises for food is evident, as he ensures they are raised with care and gratitude.

“I got into barbecuing about 15 years ago,” Patton said; he decided he would take it a little more seriously. Locally, there is not much “action” for barbecuing. Electric pellet smokers, for instance, are “glorified air-friers”. He has always loved the traditional, woodfire, Texas-style method.

Initially, he used cinder block pits to grill his meat, until he saw an old tank in a farmer’s field while he was out at work. It was eventually arranged that he buy the old tank, which he picked up on a trailer “and the project began”.

Getting all the material he needed lined up to make his new smoker was “an absolute nightmare”; it was hard to find the parts he needed at a fair price. For the inside liner of his firebox, which keeps the fire semi-insulated from the outside air temperature, he bought a piece of steel, cut it to the right size and then got it rolled into the right shape using machinery at Lennoxville’s Pro-Par. He could not find the ten-inch smokestack he needed anywhere – sellers being unwilling to sell him anything less than longer pieces for upwards of $1,500 – until he found what he needed at Cookshire’s Dolbec. Upon buying the tank, the smoker was completed within a week.

“The pit cooks like an absolute dream, beyond my expectations,” Patton said. The smoker is on wheels, so it is easier to transport around to the different events he is thinking of doing. He has made ribs, chicken, and sausage on it so far, for his large family gatherings of 30+ people. The recent Sundays have been pleasant, which has made things a little easier. The smoker is so big he says he could make 80 racks of ribs at a time. “It’s a huge device.”