No holiday to hang our hat menu on this week, just a hard truth: How often do we obsess over the meat and then reach for a dusty jar of pre-ground mystery dust? Let’s fix that. Show us your spice setup in the Dead Meat Society Facebook group or tag us on Instagram.

Now, here’s what we’ve been cooking up all week…

First up, why your seasonings deserve as much attention as your meats. Plus, what really happens when you cook brisket in a pressure cooker (spoiler: don’t).

And down in the recipes, a smoked cornbread chili casserole built for the couch and the game.

Every week, we crown the DMS champion of BBQ. And there are only two ways to enter: 1) Submit a pic to the Dead Meat Society Facebook Group 2) Tag us on Instagram. If you aren’t sharing (and competing), what the hell are you waiting for?

And remember, the stakes have never been higher!

This week’s Smoke Show Champ is Chris Waterboy for setting the gator theme. (Cause mama said it was gator week.) Shared via the Dead Meat Society Facebook Group.

Honorable mention to Allen Flockerzi Sr. for the bacon wrapped gator. Shared via the Dead Meat Society Facebook Group.

Honorable mention to Jason Calhoun for sharing the DMS gear with Troy Landry, commercial alligator hunter featured on the History Channel series Swamp People. Shared via the Dead Meat Society Facebook Group.

Have a Smoke Show submission? Stop wasting your time posting on all those other sites and share it with the Facebook group that gives a damn: Dead Meat Society. Or just tag us on Instagram.

That one story that will make you infinitely more interesting than your know-it-all brother-in-law. Seriously, wtf is that guy’s deal?

There’s something we gotta talk about, Dead Meat Society. And it’s going to sound a little salty…

Time for all of us to admit a difficult truth: when it comes to our favorite thing (cooking delicious meats), we source the right cut, we dial in the fire or smoke, and we’re willing to babysit the smoker for hours.

But then, far too many of us end up reaching for a dusty jar of pre-ground mystery dust and calling it seasoning. And we act like that’s good enough.

News flash: it isn’t.

Today, we end the streak of phoning in seasonings. Today, we make a commitment to be better than the value-shelf spice jars.

To get us started, a little inspiration for you…

Texas Monthly just ran a deep-dive into some folks who inspired us this week…

A Texas couple, Nate Thomas and Cass Pecoraro, run Sandcastle Seasonings out of tiny Groesbeck, and they grind almost every spice themselves.

They infuse salt with whiskey aged in peach-wood barrels, they smoke serranos over pecan, and build umami from dried shiitake and fermented tomato instead of MSG.

Come on, you know that’s better than the McCormick crowding your pantry (no offense, McCormick…).

Let their story be a jumping-off point to open your eyes to the world of seasoning…

Ground seasonings and mixes are one thing, but the real pit purist knows you can level up with whole seasonings instead…

Form matters more than most of us care to admit. The main difference is this: Whole spices infuse slowly into fat or liquid and add texture, while ground spices hit fast and spread evenly but scorch in seconds.

If you’ve never worked with whole spices before, it’s worth unlocking the next challenge in your cooking journey. Bloom them in fat, toast them for aroma, or steep them in liquid.

And when you swap ground for whole, use about half, since ground is far more potent by volume.

Seasoning is not just dry rubs, you guys. A few dashes of liquid seasoning can deepen a sauce or marinade in a hurry.

If you’ve never purchased any type of liquid seasonings, your marinades are going to be severely lacking too…

In essence (no pun intended), there are 3 levels to this game of seasoning.

And the master of all 3 is the one who starts winning local tournaments, not just being a backyard hero.

We know you, and we’re here to challenge you, too. You would never cheap out on the brisket, so stop cheaping out on what goes on it.

Like the memes you send back and forth in your group chat, except these won’t get you canceled. Oh, and lots more grill marks.

🥩 PRESSURE POINT: What actually happens when you cook brisket in a pressure cooker, and why you should (obviously) not.

🥩 SECRET MENU: The Flying Dutchman, In-N-Out’s secret-menu burger, recreated for your griddle.

🥩 FLAY SAUCE: Bobby Flay’s most-ordered restaurant burger comes down to one special sauce.

🥩 FISH FILE: Costco’s five best cuts of fish, ranked for the grill.

🥩 THE LIST: Inside the making of Texas Monthly’s Top 50 BBQ list, the gospel of Texas taste 👇

Did we miss something? Share it in the Dead Meat Society Facebook group or tag us on Instagram for a chance to be featured.

Tips, tech & gear that’ll help you beat your friend’s meat. Wait, that came out wrong…

🥓 SAUCE BOOST: BBQ sauce tastes 10x better when you stir in this tangy fruit.

🥓 TURKEY FIX: How to cook ground turkey without turning it to sawdust.

🥓 PLUG PULLED: Char-Broil recalled its Bistro Pro electric grills. Real grills never had this problem.

🥓 POPPER SZN: Chud’s new favorite BBQ poppers 👇

Did we miss something? Share it in the Dead Meat Society Facebook group or tag us on Instagram for a chance to be featured.

Like a Paula Deen cookbook, but with less butter and more BBQ sauce.

Smoked chili under a cornbread lid. Gameday fuel.

Pigs in a blanket that grew up.

Nostalgia you can share by the handful.

Have a recipe you want to share? Share it in the Dead Meat Society Facebook group or tag us on Instagram for a chance to be featured.

A happy ending just for you.

That’s it for this week. If you make any of the recipes above, you’re legally obligated to share pics on the DMS Facebook Group or tag us on Instagram so we can feature them next week (sorry, we don’t make the rules).

And since the only thing that is better than grill marks and ice-cold beer is grill marks and ice-cold beer with a side of dad jokes, we’ll leave this right here…

Dead Meat Society Merch in the wild.

DMS tools in the wild earning their keep. Thanks for the share, @jfiregrillin365

Lock in. Grip down. Show no mercy.

The Dead Grip isn’t your average pair of tongs, it’s a forged extension of your fire-searing will. Skull-tip grippers, 2mm stainless steel, and a locking mechanism built in. From flipping ribs to rescuing runaway hot dogs, it clamps down with bite and total control.

Serious gear for serious grilling, built to dominate the pit and serve in style.

As part of our commitment to community, we will donate 10% of net profits to charities that matter.