BBQ has an extensive history with myriad meanings. Some date BBQ’ing back to the discovery of fire and the ability to hunt game with tools. Because of this, the history of BBQ is rich, and particularly long, thus I will focus particularly on the deep South’s BBQ; the kind that you read about with Gone With the Wind (granted, in the movie you never see Scarlett actually eat any barbecue, that just wouldn’t be lady-like), or see in Fried Green Tomatoes . I’ve only been to the South once – Florida does not count – but hope to one day go on a barbecue tour, driving though various states to sample the some of the best BBQ, and pulled pork the South has to offer. Despite that, I know and understand what real BBQ is, and understand that it is no grilling outside. That’s calling “grilling.”
BBQ is both a noun and a verb.
“I’m BBQ’ing this weekend, come over and bring the beer!” (However, when we use this in the North it often means grilling hamburgers, brats and hot-dogs. Southerners beware, we know not what we say. My sincerest apologies.)
“That BBQ was awesome! I have sauce all over my mouth! Give me a me a wet nap and Texas toast, stat!” – Notice how the meat is not specified; e.g. “that BBQ pork was awesome!” It’s unnecessary, and minorly redundant, unless you’re Kosher and it makes a monster of a difference. Alas, I am a simple girl and will eat either.
Or most strangely: “BBQ chips” which have nothing to do with meat (obviously) but are labeled as such to connote that inside the bag lies smoky, spicy and sweet artificially flavored potato slices. Which, all artificial things considered, is one of my favorite flavors as far as potato chips go.
To get back on topic – Southern BBQ varies not only vary by a dry or wet rub, smoked, slow cooked or grilled methods of cooking, but also by beef or pork. Texans, for instance are more apt to specialize in beef BBQ whereas the Southeast will have pork. Of course I’m sure you could find both types of BBQ in both areas. Like nearly everything else in Anglo-American culture, pigs and cattle were brought over from Europe during the colonial period. Pigs were allowed to roam free, and often scoured the forests for any scraps of food, making them an easy animal to care for. Capturing the then wild pigs, and being able to eat them was often a celebrated, and shared experience because of the time and effort that it took to hunt them, then smoke them.
Historically, BBQ’ing came about in order to completely utilize the entire animal, even the cuts of meat that would otherwise be tough and give one’s jaw too much of a workout. If one were to choose a good cut of meat, whether it be a pork chop, hanger steak, rib-eye etc, the meat would fall apart. These good cuts just don’t need to be cooked for very long in order to taste good and fall apart in your mouth. Slow cooking the meat allows the fats and collegian to break down in the meat and tenderizes the piece. As mentioned above, this can be done in a slow cooker (pork shoulder), a smoker, or over low heat on a grill. Whichever way you choose to barbecue your meat, make sure that you allow yourself a lot time as it will take hours, possibly half a day or even more. Some barbecue joints will smoke their meat for 12-18 hours to get it just right.
Tending the barbecue pit is taken very seriously since each person’s rendition of barbecue and sauce is a reflection of themselves. The method also drastically changes the flavor. Smoking it will give it a smoky flavor (obv), but depending on how you create the smoke gives it another flavor. Hickory chips are often used to give the meat a rich and complex flavor.
Meat is definitely one thing, but start talking sauce, and you’ve opened up a giant can of worms. Some sauces are vinegar base while others are mustard, or ketchup based. With such little knowledge on sauce, I suggest you simply go here.
I prefer a sauce over a dry rub on most accounts, but many people swear by the dry rub. They are applied to the meat prior to any smoking and often times are left to marinade for a period of time depending on the size of the meat and the rub. Rubs come in dry, or in a wet paste-like form and are easily adaptable per your own tastes.
Barbecue is pretty, pretty, pretty great. Always stop by the hole-in-the-wall BBQ shack, and if you must choose between that and Famous Dave’s, go with the shack. You will get a more original concoction, and don’t have to look at walls covered in a bunch of crap.
Can’t get enough BBQ? Read more here, here, here, and here, and look! Even the government got in on barbecue!
