It is with great trepidation that I broach this most radioactive of topics. Few topics can cause such a ruction amongst Southerners as the subject of this piece, and in so addressing it I will do my best to provide information without judgement. That topic – barbecue.
Few cuisines are more quintessentially Southern than barbecue. It is seemingly simple, but requires no small amount of knowledge and skill to do well. It is steeped in tradition, with techniques and recipes passed down through families. Barbecue’s regional variations is another aspect of it’s Southernness and before readers begin, this is an exploration of various regional styles, not a judgement.
Some urban sprawls in the y*nkee wastelands claim to have their own unique style of barbecue. Those will be ignored because not only are they repugnant nightmare lands, they are lying. Smoked meat sacrifices to the pagan demons they worship is not barbecue and is only an attempt to corrupt the souls of the righteous.
When someone says “Memphis Style” they generally mean the dry style. This means that a dry rub is applied to the meat (usually, pulled pork, shredded pork or pork ribs) before smoking slowly. Memphis style dry rubs can vary greatly, but are usually paprika based. Memphis style’s wet variation includes serving sauce on the side, which is more popular with pulled pork sandwiches, and using a technique known as “mopping” during the smoking process. In this process, dry rub is mixed with water to create a thin sauce and is applied multiple times while the meat is being cooked.
Like any gender besides “male” and “female,” Texas style barbecue is not real. In contrast to gender, Texas actually has several regional variations on barbecue. What most people think of as “Texas style” is really the style most popular in Central Texas. That, of course, being beef brisket smoked with a minimum of spices and if sauce is brought into the picture at all, it is served on the side. Other distinct variations of barbecue are broken up regionally into East Texas, Hill Country and South Texas. These variations use different meats, woods for smoking and, in some cases, different techniques based on cultural influences and what animals, spices and fire wood is available in the region. Each is likely deserving of its own paragraph, but Texans getting the most space in this piece will not be abided by.
North Carolina style can be broken up into two general regions, Eastern and Western. Eastern North Carolina style is known for using pork, hickory wood, and a spicy vinegar based mopping sauce during the cooking process. Rather than using a cut of meat, Eastern North Carolina style is known for smoking whole hog, then roughly chopping the meat for sandwiches or served by itself with the mopping sauce on the side and coleslaw.
Western North Carolina style is also called “Piedmont” style, and is seen throughout the center of the state as well. The meat preferred there is the pork shoulder, as opposed to the whole pig. The sauce used is similar to the Eastern variation, but includes the use of tomatoes, which adds a sweetness to this variety. Where coleslaw uses a mayonnaise base, “red slaw” aka “barbecue slaw” uses the aforementioned barbecue sauce. This creates a unique continuity of flavor throughout.
South Carolina style barbecue is known for a pungent, mustard based sauce called “Carolina Gold.” While this is a defining feature, the smoking technique they use for whole hog cooking involve lower temps for longer periods of time than its Tarheel counterpart. Eastern South Carolina follows North Carolina’s Eastern style, and the Low Country favors a tangier, sweeter sauce than other areas of the state.
The former penal colony of Georgia also has a unique variation on barbecue, being the only one attempting to claim soup has any business in this category. Brunswick Stew is an admittedly tasty dish, which features smoked pork. That being said, it is up for debate whether this counts as barbecue. In some academic circles it is believed this very debate caused the stock market crash of 1929 and the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Alabama’s white sauce is equally controversial, in that it is the only mayonnaise based barbecue sauce. It is interesting to note that this was developed in Northern Alabama. Throughout the State, pork shoulder and chicken are the meats of choice. Tuscaloosa and the Southeastern region has a mustard base sauce reminiscent of Carolina Gold, where Birmingham barbecue will use a more sweet, spicy tomato based sauce.
No matter the style, well executed barbecue is a thing to behold. Barbecue is an art form and science that should be appreciated as an example of what it is. Another unique aspect to barbecue is its communal nature. From brisket to whole hog, barbecue is simply not done in single serving quantities. It is designed to be shared, and is best enjoyed when in the company of people you care for.
Excellent article, Sir. Very interesting subject and well written essay that I learned something from.
My third great grandfather in my father’s line, Benjamin C. Morris, is said to have been born in Tennessee in or around 1815. He and his wife, Cary Ann Anderton Morris (who disappears without a trace sometime during the WBTS), started and raised a family in Blountsville, Blount County, AL, where the family remained until 1870 when they moved to Ellis County, TX.
In the several histories I’ve read of Blountsville and Blount Co., it is related that the great majority of early (White) inhabitants of the region hailed from two different southern states, namely North Carolina, and Tennessee. The North Carolinians were said to have been mostly Presbyterian by way of religion; whereas the Tennesseans are said to have been mostly what we would now call “Holiness” by the same. These differences in religious scruples between the two groups are said to have been one of the chief causes for which, and at length, it was mutually agreed upon between the disparate factions that they should probably not live within too close proximity, one to the other, if at all possible.
Now that I’ve read your informative piece, I’m persuaded to believe that another chief cause for the agreed-to separation between them must have been their irreconcilable differences of opinion as to what constituted authentic BBQ, vs its various “inauthentic” counterparts. Ha, ha.
There are four styles of barbecue in South Carolina and all of them have marked differences from styles of barbecue popular in North Carolina.
The mustard-based style of barbecue is found in the Midlands, especially in the Dutch Fork area. It was popularized around the state by the late Southern Nationalist and barbecue restaurateur Maurice Bessinger. This style comes from German immigrants from Hannover who settled in the Midlands during the colonial period.
In the Low Country (south and central coast) of South Carolina, folks prefer a vinegar and pepper sauce that is tangy and spicy. This sauce is not the least bit sweet. It’s the oldest style in South Carolina and can be documented back to the late 1600s.
The sauce in the Pee Dee region of South Carolina (a seven county region in the northeast) is somewhat sweeter. Ketchup is added to the vinegar and pepper recipe so you get tangy and sweet with a bit of spice.
Last but not least, is the heavy tomato and molasses sauce of the Piedmont region of South Carolina. It is the sweetest of the four varieties of South Carolina barbecue sauce This is the sort of sauce most people think of when they think of barbecue sauce. This is what I mostly grew up with in and around the Spartanburg area.
Our styles of barbecue in South Carolina are distinctive from both North Carolina and Georgia styles and I would invite all y’all to come to South Carolina during one of the many local barbecue festivals throughout the year and try all four styles.
There are several styles of barbecue in North Carolina but I’ve never heard of the “Piedmont” style. As a general rule the ‘cue starts as vinegar based in the East and becomes more tomato based as you go west. The type in the Piedmont region called Lexington bbq is a blend. Hickory bbq a bit further west becomes more tomato with less vinegar. Once is get to the mountains the sauce becomes almost like catsup which is anathema.
It is unfortunate that this article failed to mention Louisiana’s smoked chaurice pork sausage.
https://www.bradleysmoker.com/recipe/chaurice-hot-creole-sausage/
Georgia has two distinct regions of BBQ, the northeastern half of the state is a tomatoes mollases based tangy type, and they put lima beans in the brunswick stew. The southwestern half of the state(AKA Gods country) is known for our vinegar and mustard brine based sauce, such as the famous “chicken comer” restaurant in columbus ga, now across the river in alabama. Our brunswick stew is smoked pork and chicken, stewed tomatoes,corn, pearled barley, and the secret herbs and spices that make it famous. Bbq slaw uses the same vinegar mustard brine based sauce, but with a touch of sugar added.
You cannot discuss Pee Dee barbecue in SC without mentioning chicken bog. It’s what makes the plate and is not found anywhere else (I’ve looked).
But, I would also challenge Southerners to look up Portuguese Leitao. It’s a roasted suckling pig and it’s freaking delicious. I had it when traveling and decided Southerners would love it if given a taste.
Apologies Clemsonman, been a while since I’ve had some chicken bog. You’re right though, it’s delicious!
Mesquite wood, that’s the ingredient that gives Texas bbq it’s unique flavor. You have to only use a small portion of it in the fire or the taste will be too overwhelming. In fact, whenever I travel to visit Texas ex-pats in Missouri they always ask me to bring only one thing….mesquite wood.