The growth of Texas barbecue locally, nationally and internationally has continued apace in the first half of 2018. Far from reaching “peak barbecue” — that theoretical moment when the dining public tires of eating and hearing about it so moves on to the next trendy thing — our traditions and techniques are reaching an ever-widening audience.

In Houston, the barbecue engine rumbles on. The city’s entrepreneurial spirit is exemplified in the many backyard cooks and competition pitmasters who decide to make the jump to commercial barbecue. There are so many barbecue joints popping up here that I’m categorizing them as start-ups, full-timers or newly established.

Start-up pitmasters are in the earliest stage of selling their smoked meats to the public. It is usually a once-a-month or weekend endeavor. A small trailer pit is used to cook overnight, then a tent and table are set up in a parking lot of a bar or brewery where there’s a built-in audience.

Recently, I’ve been attending a once-a-month pop-up at Baileson Brewing Co. in the Rice Village area, where brothers Don and Theodore Nguyen of Khói Barbecue have been producing consistently excellent and unique Central Texas-inspired barbecue. “Khói” translates to “smoke” in Vietnamese, reflecting the brothers’ Vietnamese-American backgrounds. Follow them on Instagram for future pop-ups.

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Full-timers are those pitmasters who have graduated from the occasional pop-up to cooking barbecue for a living, though not in a permanent brick-and-mortar location. This is the make-it-or-break-it moment. Full-timers can spend as long as three years grinding under tough circumstances, such as working from a truck or trailer, or partnering with a local bar for a space in the corner of the establishment.

Jim Buchanan of Buck’s Barbeque Co. recently went “all-in” and started serving barbecue full time, most recently at Lucky’s Lodge just east of downtown. After Hurricane Harvey pushed back his original opening date, Buchanan has established himself as one of Houston’s most promising pitmasters. You can follow Buck’s Barbeque Co. on Facebook for future announcements.

The final step in an aspiring pitmaster’s matriculation is to open a newly established permanent location, usually a brick-and-mortar joint. So far this year two of Houston’s most celebrated pitmasters — Patrick Feges of Feges BBQ and Ara Malekian of Harlem Road Texas BBQ — made that jump. Another example is Blood Bros. BBQ, which recently started construction of its new location in Bellaire.

With all of the new talent coming down the pipeline, I am often asked if the scene is becoming saturated (a variation on the “peak barbecue” question). Based on my own observations, the local market can still absorb quite a bit of supply — especially in areas such as Katy and west Houston, which is still waiting to get its signature barbecue restaurant.

Fortunately, a new barbecue full-timer is making waves in that area. Chef Randy Duncan of the Daddy Duncan’s BBQ trailer has been drawing crowds at various pop-up locations. You can follow him on Facebook for his latest appearances.

Indeed, the Houston barbecue scene is curiously self-organizing when it comes to the distribution of competition. Other than the Heights — where Gatlin’s BBQ, Pinkerton’s Barbecue and Willow’s Texas BBQ are in close proximity — most of the city’s best purveyors are spread out geographically, so as to assure their success.

At a recent pop-up of Khói Barbecue, I sat at a picnic table next to a regular customer of Baileson Brewing. He was a beer guy who didn’t eat barbecue often but lavishly praised the Nguyen brothers’ smoky goods. Another convert, I thought to myself, estimating that at the same time there were another eight to 10 pop-ups across the city spreading the gospel of Houston barbecue, too. That’s hundreds of newly minted barbecue fans every week.

Fortunately, there will be enough supply to meet the demand.

J.C. Reid is the Chronicle's barbecue columnist. He also is the co-host of BBQ State of Mind, a podcast covering barbecue news from Texas and around the world, and co-founder of the Houston Barbecue Festival. You can follow him on Twitter and Facebook, or send barbecue tips and questions to jcreid@jcreidtx.com.