Mesquite wood is hard allowing it to be used for furniture and implements. Wood from Prosopis juliflora and Prosopis glandulosa is used for decorative woodworking and woodturning. It is highly desirable due to its dimensional stability after being fully cured. The hard dense lumber is also sold as Texas Ironwood and is rather harsh on saws,  chain saws and other tools.
As firewood mesquite burns slow and very hot. When used to barbecue the smoke from the wood adds a distinct flavor to the food. This is common in Texas-Style barbecue, while in the Southeast, hickory is usually used. Randy Lee uses Mesquite Wood for all of his meats. Artisans and woodcrafters in Northern Mexico claim that mesquite should be cut under the light of a full moon to avoid splitting. While this has not been proven mesquite does take longer to cure than most hardwoods.
Cowboys on the famed King Ranch of South Texas used mesquite fires to heat their branding irons and also to cook their lunches. A slab of fajita meat (skirt steak) was laid skin side down directly on the mesquite coals and cooked to well done. Flour tortillas (stored in their chaps or chinks) were also heated directly on coals and rounded out the meal along with strong coffee.
Randy Lee smokes all of his meats for ten hours to achieve that one of a kind flavor that will have you "Squealing for More!"
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