“TRUCKERS PUT US ON THE MAP.”
Image 25: Woody’s Bar-B-Que Corner of Highways 14 and 49 • Waldenburg, AR 72475
I guess you would call it a little professional courtesy, since William and Cecelia Wood operate out of a Winnebago. Legend has spread over the CB radio about this barbecue stand carved out of a rice field on the corner of state Highways 14 and 49 in remote northeastern Arkansas.
There may only be eighty people in town, but when the main Wal-Mart distribution center is fifty miles down the road, you are on one of the major truck routes in the country.
William fell into barbecuing to supplement his income back in 1985. He was a crop duster, which made him very busy during spring and fall, but not very busy during the rest of the year. “I thought of it as giving me a little extra fishing money. Now, I’m so busy I don’t have time to go fishing, or crop dusting for that matter.” He gave that up to devote himself full time to barbecuing in 1991. Cecelia has been riding shotgun from the start. (Image 26)
Image 26
“You can really feel the weather out here,” Cecelia tells me from her station in the Winnebago. Their stand is surrounded by flat rice fields for as far as the eye can see. “It has gotten in the single digits in winter and over a hundred during the summer,” William adds as he checks the meat in the smoker. It is early spring, but he is already in midsummer form, his fair skin already beet red. This is only emphasized by his snow white hair.
As humble as this little stand is, don’t be fooled. They do move a lot of barbecue, but that is just the tip of the iceberg. “People were always asking to buy our sauces, so we started bottling them,” Cecelia tells me as she makes a couple of sandwiches to go. When you start off by winning first places from the National Barbecue Association and the Dallas Gourmet Market, people take notice. William and Cecelia have expanded into marinades and dry rubs and the awards have kept coming. Today they are the sole wholesale distributors of their concoctions. Not bad for a little stand at the crossroads.
WOODY’S BARBECUED RICE
Image 27
Grand Prize Winner: Riceland Rice Cook-Off
First place: Arkansas Rice Festival
Combine ingredients in an aluminum drip pan and seal tightly with foil. Place on center rack and cook at 350 degrees until rice is done and liquid is absorbed (about 40 minutes). [All ingredients may be mixed together and cooked in rice cooker or on stovetop over medium heat.] Fluff and let set 5 minutes before serving.