This Gargantuan 18-Wheeler In Texas Is The Largest BBQ Pit In The World

Who would have imagined an enormous barbecue pit rolling around on 18 wheels? The mystery doubles when realizing those wheels are attached to a traditional, bright-red Peterbilt truck — though there's nothing traditional about its current use. In the trucks' current incarnation as the "Undisputable Cuz" barbecue pit, it travels, aided by highway escorts, when duty calls for charity functions, disaster relief, or holiday events. It's considered the world's largest mobile BBQ smoker, according to the rig's owner, Terry Folsom, who hails from Brenham, Texas.

The massive smoker trailer, built in 2000 by a championship barbecue pitmaster from Louisiana, stretches about 76 feet long with a weight of roughly 40 tons, or roughly 80,000 pounds. After struggling to remain viable, the owner sold it to Folsom, who reportedly owns a trucking company, a farm, and now, this gargantuan smoky road warrior. Seven smokestacks pierce the skyline, towering over 24 pit doors leading to 800 square feet of dedicated cooking space for many thousands of pounds of smoked meats — an incomprehensible 8,000 to 12,000 pounds at a time if need be.

Just heating up this wood smoker (the only way to cook Texas barbecue) can take up to 2.5 hours, requiring a patient pitmaster with a real passion for large-scale smoky Texas-made barbecue. Building the rig took about six months to complete, after which Folsom, along with family members and local chefs, hit the highway to help feed 55,000 first responders and victims of Hurricane Harvey in 2017, as well as working alongside the Salvation Army in Galveston.

Charity work remains a big part of the Undisputable Cuz and its mission. Folsom and his wife, Kimberly King, coordinated a Thanksgiving trip in 2016 to prepare smoked hams and turkeys for more than 1,000 people in Galveston, 200 of which were delivered to those unable to leave their homes. The on-wheels smoker contains a built-in propane fajita grill and a generator to control the cooler and other equipment. The refrigerated cooler facilitates space for beer kegs and outside taps, and there's a big-screen TV for entertainment.

At one point in 2015, the duo listed the Undisputable Cuz on eBay for a whopping $350,000 sales price. Some accounts reported an asking price as high as $400,000, but there are no records of it ever changing hands. In fact, Folsom was featured, along with The Cuz, on an episode of "Ridiculous Rides" in 2020, still calling cooking and smoking meat his passion. In fact, the episode records Folsom, King, and a team of local chefs cooking free barbecue for first responders, including firefighters, law enforcement, and EMS techs.

The pair also use the rig to feed veterans, the homeless, and others in need, often in conjunction with organizations such as the Salvation Army and the Red Cross. The "Ridiculous Rides" accompanying story text also confirms that the couple no longer has any plans to sell the truck, as it "makes them feel good when giving back to their community" (via Dailymotion). While perhaps not one of the absolute best barbecue restaurants in Texas, the Undisputable Cuz is notable for other reasons.