My family and I were a little late in getting our Christmas tree up this year, waiting until this past Sunday. As we hung the ornaments, it became obvious we had collected quite a few with a barbecue theme. For every painted-glass Santa Claus or glittery snowman, we’d unbox a shiny grill or bottle of barbecue sauce. It got me thinking that maybe it was time for dedicated barbecue tree. We had a good start, but I needed a few more ornaments if we were going to fill the branches of even a miniature conifer. I couldn’t help myself going down the rabbit hole, and found plenty of great options. I thought I’d share them in case you wanted to trim your own barbecue tree.

A saucy quarter rack of pork ribs will glisten nicely on the tree, or maybe you’d rather have them all dressed up inside a bun on this highly detailed McRib replica. If you’re more into the look of raw meat, then how about an adorable hand-stitched steak on the tree? Or maybe go for the whole meat counter. Use this rough guide as a model to make your own cuts from a Christmas hog, or get it already done up in sausage form.

Barbecue Holiday Ornaments
FoodieOrnaments’ McRib Barbecue Sandwich ornament. Courtesy of FoodieOrnaments
Barbecue Holiday Ornaments
Santa’s BBQ Smoker from Hallmark. Courtesy of Hallmark

You’ll need somewhere to cook all that barbecue, and a miniature Weber Kettle is as good a tool as any. If you’d prefer a shortcut, this gas grill already comes loaded with steaks, sausages, and corn on the cob; or get a smoker from Santa’s workshop, but beware: the wheels are made of peppermints. Here’s a more classic design for an offset smoker, or a Kamado grill if you’d prefer. Or better yet, just get Santa to baste your ribs with his own special-recipe barbecue sauce. And Santa may be a miracle worker, but he still requires a load of firewood for all that barbecue.

I’m curious about these brisket-flavored candy canes, but honestly not sure if that’s enough to put them in the cart. I think I’d rather stick with a dill pickle (it’s for good luck according to German-American tradition, you know), a raw onion, some white bread, and a glittery bottle of barbecue sauce. And it wouldn’t be a tree trimming without something to trim with. This set of miniature knives can hang from the tree in December, and be used afterwards to make your very own viral miniature cooking video.