St. Louis Day Fun Facts
This year's famed celebration is celebrated August 24 & 25; August 25th is the actual recognized feast day of the parish’s patron saint, King Louis IX of France. A life-size statue of the "lieutenant of God on Earth" is displayed on the church grounds.
A Cooking Tradition—the St. Louis Day Meal
Long before 10 a.m. on St. Louis Day, things are buzzing on the Koenig Park grounds. The highlight of every celebration is the serving of the giant barbecue dinner — beef brisket, Alsatian-style sausage, potato salad, beans, fresh bread and iced tea.
This year's famed celebration is celebrated August 24 & 25; August 25th is the actual recognized feast day of the parish’s patron saint, King Louis IX of France. A life-size statue of the "lieutenant of God on Earth" is displayed on the church grounds.
A Cooking Tradition—the St. Louis Day Meal
Long before 10 a.m. on St. Louis Day, things are buzzing on the Koenig Park grounds. The highlight of every celebration is the serving of the giant barbecue dinner — beef brisket, Alsatian-style sausage, potato salad, beans, fresh bread and iced tea.
Fresh sausage
Around two tons of famous Alsatian sausage is seasoned and stuffed in the cool early hours on Saturday morning, when most of the experienced sausage makers of the area give of their talents using a century old sausage recipe. The sausage is stored in a spacious walk-in cooler in the kitchen allowing the spices to marry with the meat until Sunday morning when it is cooked and served.
Around two tons of famous Alsatian sausage is seasoned and stuffed in the cool early hours on Saturday morning, when most of the experienced sausage makers of the area give of their talents using a century old sausage recipe. The sausage is stored in a spacious walk-in cooler in the kitchen allowing the spices to marry with the meat until Sunday morning when it is cooked and served.
Smoked beef brisket
After the huge metal barbecue pits have been fed an adequate supply of mesquite coals, a virtual mountain of prime, boneless beef is placed in the pits and cooked to perfection by some 50 volunteers. Only cured mesquite wood from area farms and ranches is used to slow cook the thousands of pounds of barbecued brisket each year.
Picnic side dishes
Tons of potato salad, coleslaw, huge vats of pinto beans, thousands of slices of Alsatian bread and homemade cake, and a sea of iced tea and coffee, round out the menu that more than 500 volunteer workers will dish out at a pace of around 2,000 hungry diners per hour.
After the huge metal barbecue pits have been fed an adequate supply of mesquite coals, a virtual mountain of prime, boneless beef is placed in the pits and cooked to perfection by some 50 volunteers. Only cured mesquite wood from area farms and ranches is used to slow cook the thousands of pounds of barbecued brisket each year.
Picnic side dishes
Tons of potato salad, coleslaw, huge vats of pinto beans, thousands of slices of Alsatian bread and homemade cake, and a sea of iced tea and coffee, round out the menu that more than 500 volunteer workers will dish out at a pace of around 2,000 hungry diners per hour.
Quick meal lines, cool seating
An incredibly efficient serving area avoids long meal lines. Diners may feast under the roof of the large dining pavilion or they may avail themselves of heaping plates to go, and eat their meals under the Biergarten Tent while enjoying the musical performances. Some prefer picnic style, beneath ancient pecan trees that have shaded picnickers for over a century.
An incredibly efficient serving area avoids long meal lines. Diners may feast under the roof of the large dining pavilion or they may avail themselves of heaping plates to go, and eat their meals under the Biergarten Tent while enjoying the musical performances. Some prefer picnic style, beneath ancient pecan trees that have shaded picnickers for over a century.
ST LOUIS DAY RECIPES
St. Louis Day Bean Recipe
1 kettle
75 lbs. Colorado Beans
35 lbs. bacon, cubed to 1/2”
10 lbs. onions, diced
6 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 lb. chili powder
16 cans diced tomatoes with chili peppers
Salt and pepper to taste
Wash and clean beans; put in kettle and fill water 4 inches over top of beans. Heat to boiling and add all remaining ingredients. Cook slow until the bubbles that come up have a bubble inside. Turn off heat and let set to thicken. The Groff clan, pictured above, have been the "Frijole Kings" for over 30 years.
St. Louis Day Beef Brisket Recipe
3,800 lbs. beef brisket
15 lbs. salt
9 lbs. pepper
4 lbs. garlic powder
Basting sauce
40 gal. vinegar
20 lbs. finely chopped onions
10 lbs. lemons, squeezed for juice
1 gal. mustard
5 gal. cooking oil
Mix salt, pepper and garlic powder and sprinkle on both sides of brisket. Cook over hot mesquite coals for hours and hours and hours. Mix basting sauce ingredients and boil in large pot for 10 minutes. Baste meat throughout cook time.
St. Louis Day Bean Recipe
1 kettle
75 lbs. Colorado Beans
35 lbs. bacon, cubed to 1/2”
10 lbs. onions, diced
6 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 lb. chili powder
16 cans diced tomatoes with chili peppers
Salt and pepper to taste
Wash and clean beans; put in kettle and fill water 4 inches over top of beans. Heat to boiling and add all remaining ingredients. Cook slow until the bubbles that come up have a bubble inside. Turn off heat and let set to thicken. The Groff clan, pictured above, have been the "Frijole Kings" for over 30 years.
St. Louis Day Beef Brisket Recipe
3,800 lbs. beef brisket
15 lbs. salt
9 lbs. pepper
4 lbs. garlic powder
Basting sauce
40 gal. vinegar
20 lbs. finely chopped onions
10 lbs. lemons, squeezed for juice
1 gal. mustard
5 gal. cooking oil
Mix salt, pepper and garlic powder and sprinkle on both sides of brisket. Cook over hot mesquite coals for hours and hours and hours. Mix basting sauce ingredients and boil in large pot for 10 minutes. Baste meat throughout cook time.
St. Louis Day BBQ Sauce
Many years ago, a local contest yielded the original recipe for the St. Louis Day BBQ Sauce. Over time, it’s been perfected. Residents brag that it’s “Number one” in Castroville and the surrounding area. Pictured are L-R Troy Haby and Nathan Lutz, the two men who have been concocting and guarding the sacred recipe for over 31 years. Tip #7: You would be wasting your time trying to get the secret from them; they don't even fly on the same plane together. These two men and one other Secret Sauce Society member are the only ones who know how to formulate the secret ingredient.
Many years ago, a local contest yielded the original recipe for the St. Louis Day BBQ Sauce. Over time, it’s been perfected. Residents brag that it’s “Number one” in Castroville and the surrounding area. Pictured are L-R Troy Haby and Nathan Lutz, the two men who have been concocting and guarding the sacred recipe for over 31 years. Tip #7: You would be wasting your time trying to get the secret from them; they don't even fly on the same plane together. These two men and one other Secret Sauce Society member are the only ones who know how to formulate the secret ingredient.
