The Debate Rages
Chef Frank Terranova M.C.F.E.
What is true BBQ
The Debate Rages
What is True BBQ?
The debate over the origin of the American barbecue is one that will probably never be resolved. By defining barbecue as a process by which meat is slow cooked over a low fire with smoke opens up the history of barbecue to prehistoric times.
First of all, let’s separate grilling from smoking. While they may appear similar, the equipment and techniques are two very different ways of cooking. Grilling is a hot and fast cooking process. And while you can get the introduction of smoke and fire, you don’t get the same results that you do from smoking. The smoking of foods is a slow process, sometimes taking more than24 hours to complete.
Now while people will refer to cooking a steak out on the barbecue, buying a new barbecue grill or attending a barbecue where hamburgers are served isn’t a barbecue. THIS is grilling.
Moving forward to nail down what true barbecue is, it’s time to look at the regional variations. In Texas we have beef that is partially brisket. In the Carolinas we find pork, either whole hogs or pork shoulder. As you start to move towards Kansas City you will find ribs which are generally pork, but beef isn’t unheard of. Out in western Kentucky you will find mutton. The thing that all of these traditions have in common is low cooking temperatures over a long period of time and the introduction of smoke to flavor and tenderize. They all start out as a tough cut of meat and end up as a tender pull-apart delicacy.
Let’s look at the different cuts of meat in true barbecue.
Brisket: Usually Texas style. Once you have tried this cut properly cooked, its one of the best tasting cuts of beef you’ll ever have. It’s also one of the toughest pieces, but when cooked properly it’s tremendous. Especially when served with lots of thick smoky BBQ sauce.
Pulled Pork: Probably the original American BBQ. This delicacy was enjoyed by our founding fathers. Slow smoked pork from either the whole hog or selected cuts become so tender it is pulled apart by hand, dished up on simple white bread or buns, and topped with a vinegar sauce.
Ribs: This is the most popular form of barbecue; you don’t know what you are missing until you’ve had them the traditional way. There are many variations on how ribs are smoked but typically pork ribs are cooked in whole racks and served up with the thick sweet/tangy barbecue sauce.
Believe it or not in olden days you could have been lynched for misspeaking about barbecue! For the sake of this conversation you need to know the difference between eating barbecue and attending a barbecue. If you have not been to a true barbecue then you owe it to yourself to go out and find some, because when it’s cooked right it will melt in your mouth. I have been to some of the best barbecues in the USA as a corporate chef for a major smoke house company. I have sampled it in Texas, Kansas City, Memphis, St Louis, Arkansas, and Oklahoma, just to mention a few. It’s too bad that here there are not any really good places to have real barbecue. Even though many places advertise it in New England, it’s just not the real thing. You could compare it to trying to find a really great Maine lobster dinner in South Dakota. So hopefully you will research and create your own barbecue. Just one last reminder: “long and slow is the way to go”. Make sure you have plenty of chilled beer and have a blast.
As always “That’s Cooking with Class”.
