United ISD’s four high school BBQ teams are going to the state competition later this month, and one close-knit family involved in the program has displayed true showmanship across the district.
The Gonzalez family - Eli at United South High School, his mother, Griselda, at Alexander High School, and his sister, Kassandra, at Alexander High School in 9th grade - have led the charge for their BBQ teams, demonstrating teamwork and dedication along the way.
They have won a lot at competitions - and they have struggled at a few, too - but the overall important lesson is that the district’s teams have worked together, and a close family has grown even closer.
“When I played football at Alexander, it was, be mean, be mad, have a rivalry,” said Eli Gonzalez, a 2015 Alexander graduate who now works at United South High School as an Agriculture teacher, FFA advisor, and BBQ coach.
“I think in agriculture, we have stuck together. I don’t see ourselves as basketball and football, an actual rivalry. I think everyone in AG is programmed to help each other,” he added.
At a competition earlier this year, an Alexander team member got a small cut on her finger, and one of Eli’s USHS team members ran to the first aid station to get her help. United High School didn’t have one tent for the instructor,s so USHS lent them a tent. And when USHS needed sugar, Eli’s mother told them not to worry. Her team from Alexander had extra.
“We want everyone to qualify, and when we go to state, we want everyone to be up there at state,” Eli said.
So when Eli’s mother’s team ranked higher at a competition, Eli wished nothing but the best for his mom and her team.
“I am really happy for her,” he said. “From one coach to another, she is doing a really good job out there.”
And there have been times that Griselda has observed Eli and his team’s skills at the pit and taken notes that she brought back for her team to study.
THE COMPETITIVE SPIRIT
The competitions fall under the High School BBQ, Inc. - a non-profit organization that aims to “enrich the lives of high school students through dynamic and engaging educational programs related to traditional BBQ,” states the website. There are several regional competitions, and the state competition will be held later this month. Winners can earn scholarships.
USHS got their BBQ pits in early April of 2022. Eli said his first year was “awful,” but soon, Los Grillers del Sur became a force to be reckoned with.
In 2023, they placed sixth at the state level in spite of the odds that were fully against them. Windstorms damaged their station, which was tucked away in the back. The tents were shredded, and the station was a mess. Nonetheless, they did very well.
From there, they went on to compete in the World Competition in Dallas. This was an elite competition for roughly 1,000 chefs from around the world. It also included a high school division where the best of the best competed. They earned Reserve Grand Champion, knocking out big-city teams that had much more experience.
Danny Mendoza, a senior on the USHS BBQ team, said that Eli is an incredible coach who knows how to interact with the students.
“I have been on the team for three years. Mr. Gonzalez is a good mentor,” he said. “You learn a lot from Mr. Gonzalez. He understands you and he knows the way that you learn. He will look at you and understand what you need and figure it out.”
“It’s fun because we have never experienced that because we are here from Laredo, and we don’t get to go out. When we do, it’s new things that we experience,” he added.
Mendoza said the team enjoys each other’s company and occasionally gets frustrated, “but we understand each other and we know how to talk to each other, and if we see somebody who is frustrated, then you go help him out.”
The students, in turn, fight for every gain they have made.
“They want to fight for what they deserve … whether working the ranch or helping work and pay bills with their parents,” said Eli. The students must also maintain a certain grade point average to stay on the team. And practices can start as early as 5 a.m.
And while the students enjoy the spirit of competition, there are many practical skills they have gained.
“Throughout the competition season, students learn many valuable lessons,” Eli said. “Students learn the importance of responsibility, time management, culinary art skills, and adaptability. Students learn responsibility by checking that all equipment is up to date, all meats and other crafts are where they need to be, and ensuring that all necessary equipment is in good condition for use. Time management comes into play with our BBQ practices and competitions as there are certain deadlines and specific turn-in times for each craft.”
Kassandra, Agriculture teacher at AHS 9th, FFA adviser, and BBQ coach, who helps her mother, agreed.
“These kids are earning scholarships. It is opening doors for them and providing them with a financial standing to go and try something different,” she said. “Growing up here, it is always import and export, the oil field, industrial-based work. You don’t see a lot of kids wanting to be a chef, a baker. By offering these things, it is opening up a lot of doors.”
She added that the kids love making special desserts at home for their parents, who are taking notice of the change in their children.
“A freshman made three desserts in seven days. He will do beans once a week. It really is building bonds with the family. They are doing it, and parents are seeing it at home,” Kassandra said.
THE GONZALEZ FAMILY
Kassandra and Eli loved their upbringing. They enjoyed home-cooked meals that they helped prepare, and they loved the family conversation around the table. They discussed their days and made plans as a family for the weekends.
“Family does not make food, but our food made family,” Eli said.
“I think the kids have always been taught some cooking skills, either by me or my husband. And I would do a lot of baking, and food has always been a big part of the family,” added Griselda, an AHS Pathway Teacher, TAFE sponsor, and BBQ coach.
Alejandro Gonzalez, the patriarch of the family, routinely cooked outside and made sure Kassandra was by his side to learn how to manage the temperature of the fire and grill to perfection. To the parents, it was crucial that their kids knew how to cook in the event their future partner didn’t. They saw it as a life skill.
“My kids were not McDonald’s kids,” said Griselda.
Eli and Kassandra were a huge hit with the other students while attending Texas A&M Kingsville. Their culinary skills probably played a part in that.
While other students ate Ramen noodles and fast food, Eli and Kassandra became known for their home-cooked meals prepared at the apartment on a small $75 grill.
“I wasn’t used to Ramen noodles, and I wasn’t used to oven-baked pizza. It was homemade meals, and dinner was almost, I would say, religious,” Eli said. “You have to go to dinner, you have to sit down at the table, and then we'll go over the day. I think it was because of the dinners, conversations, jokes, and laughs that made us stronger as a family.”
Eli honed his cooking skills by learning how to prepare Whitetail deer, Axis deer, Nilgai, and Blackbuck. Students who were hunters would stop by the apartment so Eli could cook up some delicious meals with their game.
He learned the art of experimentation, but, above all, he liked the friendships that developed while they cooked together and then ate at the apartment.
The Gonzalez family now likes to look up recipes on YouTube and still experiment with the meals, teaching their students to do the same.
“It’s BBQ, but it’s so much more than that. It’s art. Once the students got here, we tried to make sure they could do the best that they could do. That is a huge part,” Eli said. “Whatever comes out here, it all comes from the students.”
L-R: Eli Gonzalez, Griselda Gonzalez and Kassandra Gonzalez
L-R: Mia Ancira, Daniel Mendoza, Aaron Saldivar, Joshua Flores, members of United South High School's Los Grillers del Sur, the BBQ team
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