By Caren Weiner Campbell
Summer calls for simple cooking and outdoor eating – with your hands, if possible. In other words, 'tis the season for barbecue. But while cooking a hunk of meat over fire may be one of the most basic forms of food prep known to man, the question of what constitutes bona fide authentic barbecue is no cinch to answer. Indeed, it's given rise to countless debates, books, cook-offs, symposia and no doubt a fistfight or two.
In an effort to clear away some of the smoke surrounding the subject, we've put together a mini–barbecue primer, below, outlining the major regional styles of barbecue and what characterizes them. We've also compiled a list of some Barbecue Best Bets as rated by Zagat surveyors.
Before attempting to define what real barbecue is, it's helpful to rule out one thing that purists agree it isn't: slapping a steak on the rack of a Weber and sizzling it directly over a very hot flame, as legions of backyard meat flippers are doing at this time of year. That's known as "grilling" and is considered a different technique.
In contrast, true barbecue – a noun, not a verb, as any Southerner would tell you – lives up to the old Mae West saying, "Anything worth doing is worth doing slowly." According to experts such as Paul Kirk, a renowned Kansas City–based pitmaster (and self-styled "Baron of BBQ"), it's a large, tough cut of meat daubed with sauces or spices and cooked over indirect, low heat (230°–250° F) for many hours at a stretch. Coals – not charcoal, but incompletely burned bits of woods such as hickory, pecan, apple and mesquite – are usually used as fuel, with their smoke imparting a subtle flavoring even without seasoning. Other aspects to consider include the amount of smoke, along with the angle and speed at which it wafts over the meat. "The heat, the seasoning and the smoke all work together," explains Kirk, a 'cue consultant/connoisseur and the co-owner of NYC's RUB BBQ.
Beyond that, the debate about what's authentic begins, with many factors varying by locale: the preferred meat, the typical cut, the way it's sauced or seasoned. "The best you can do is say that something is authentic for a particular region," emphasizes Kirk. "Finding 'authentic' outside that region is an uphill battle."
Whatever regional style a pitmaster may prefer, Kirk believes that the most important underlying principle is adherence to traditional, time-tested methods and pacing – a concept, he admits, that doesn't always go over well with chefs who may be fired up with contemporary culinary ambitions. "I tell people, 'This is the procedure; don't deviate from it. Don't try to make it better. Do it this way and you'll get it right.'"
For those new to 'cue, here's a guide to finger-lickers' favorite styles.
Style/region: Kansas City
Preferred meat/cut: Almost any kind of meat is acceptable, but beef and pork ribs are favored. Also popular: "burnt ends" – the chewy, smoke-infused fragments trimmed from a beef brisket.
Sauce/seasoning: During cooking, the slabs are basted with a thick, spicy-sweet tomato-based sauce.
Etc.: The 6,000-member, nonprofit Kansas City Barbeque Society (www.kcbs.us) claims to be "the world's largest organization of barbecue and grilling enthusiasts"; the city itself is home to roughly 100 barbecue restaurants at any given time.
Style/region: Memphis
Preferred meat/cut: Pork, especially ribs.
Sauce/seasoning: Made "wet" (basted and served with a tomato-and-vinegar-based sauce) or "dry" (rubbed with spices during and after cooking).
Etc.: The annual "Memphis in May" World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest (WCBCC) regularly draws thousands of pork lovers from around the globe (www.memphisinmay.org).
Style/region: North Carolina (Eastern)
Preferred meat/cut: Pork – typically a whole hog, cooked overnight. The meat is often pulled or chopped and served as a sandwich dressed with coleslaw.
Sauce/seasoning: A hot, peppery, vinegar-based sauce, which is usually applied to the meat after it's pulled from the hog.
Etc.: North Carolinians never use the term "barbecue" to refer to anything except slow-cooked pork; beef, chicken and other meats will never qualify.
Style/region: North Carolina (Western) – aka Lexington-style
Preferred meat/cut: Pork – typically pork shoulder, which is pulled or chopped after cooking. It's often served in chopped form in sandwiches or on platters.
Sauce/seasoning: Basted and served with a sauce (or "dip") made of vinegar, ketchup, water, salt and pepper plus a touch of tomato sauce (the latter distinguishes it from Eastern NC–style sauce).
Etc.: Slang terms pertaining to both Eastern and Western NC–style barbecue include "Miss White" (the lighter, moister meat deep inside the slab) and "Mr. Brown" (the dark, smoky surface meat).
Style/region: South Carolina
Preferred meat/cut: Pork, typically ribs.
Sauce/seasoning: Basted and served with a mustard-based sauce sometimes called "Carolina Gold."
Etc.: Another smoky specialty of South Carolina is barbecue hash, a chopped mixture of pork, onions, vegetables and spices served over rice.
Style/region: St. Louis
Preferred meat/cut: Pork steak cut from the shoulder, or spareribs.
Sauce/seasoning: A tomato-based sauce that's tangier and thinner than KC's, and may contain brown sugar, mustard and/or a dash of Worcestershire. Generally served on the side with ribs; pork steaks are often simmered in the sauce just before serving.
Etc.: Daring diners may want to try another regional barbecue fave, "crispy snoots" (very well-done pig snouts).
Style/region: Texas
Preferred meat/cut: Usually beef (sliced brisket is common); sometimes sausage.
Sauce/seasoning: Often cooked over mesquite wood and served with a tomato-based sauce thinned with vinegar and spiced up with hot peppers.
Etc.: Texas-style brisket should have a pink ring around the edges of the meat – a result of chemical action during smoking.