Northern BBQ vs Southern BBQ

Unit74 said:
Yup..... basically an SR22. Takes almost no skill to BBQ as long as you push the right button when you start and make sure it has enough fuel.
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Hey, if I could get great BBQ flavor and texture out of a microwave, sign me up.
 
Bill Jennings said:
Anyone tried the white BBQ sauces that seem to be prevalent in northern Alabama? Pretty interesting, but I've not seen them available outside of that area.
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Mayonaise is the white death.
 
Hank S said:
The biggest difference I've noticed is that up North, "barbecue" is usually a verb, meaning "to cook food outside."
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Better be a little more clear about where "North" is... I'm a lifelong Wisconsinite, and I find that somewhat offensive. Or maybe I'm just well-traveled and I speak enough Texan to know what "barbecue" means.

To me, the noun is "barbecue" and means "super yummy smoked stuff", and the verb is "barbecue" which means "to make barbecue".

If you're talking about burgers, brats, hot dogs, steaks, etc, the verb is "grill" and the noun is burgers, brats, hot dogs, steaks etc as appropriate.

Nothin' wrong with either one. There's not many ways to combine fire and meat that I don't like. But, I *HATE* the misuse of "barbecue". The thing I call a grill is not a "barbecue" or a "barbecue grill". IMO there's no such object as a "barbecue". It's a way of cooking meat, or the meat that has been cooked that way, period.

Zeldman said:
I guess it is just what a person grows up with that is considered the best....
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Just be glad you weren't born in Iowa, where people grew up on Maid-Rite. :vomit:

Personally, I love brisket, solo or used in other things. My favorite food in the world is brisket tacos. A local place here did a wrap with brisket and mac and cheese in it recently that was surprisingly good as well - The surprise being that it was the best smoked brisket I've had north of the Mason-Dixon line in several years.

I'll usually get some pork too. I think pork is popular because it's a lot harder to screw up.

And, if there's a "3-meat combo" at a particular BBQ joint, I'll round it out with some jalapeño cheddar sausage, if they offer such a thing.

Dangit, now I'm hungry.
 
Nope, down south, barbecue is a noun. To make barbecue, you smoke or cook the meat.

Oddly enough when I grew up in Maryland, we had sort of a hybrid definition. We abused it like Yankees for grilling and often you would be served (at school and other cafeterias) "barbecue" which meant any ground or shredded meat with (usually sweet) sauce all over it, a mockery of true barbecue.
 
Here's us, getting chicken ready for judging a couple years ago. Gives you an idea of what judges are used to seeing. And no, it's not something I do at home - too much trouble. The 6 pieces on the left were eventually turned in, the other 2 didn't make the cut. Breaking out the center tines on those plastic forks makes it easier to move the chicken around and not leave fingerprints or fork marks.

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And bonus pic of a t-shirt I liked at the cooks meeting.

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Bill Jennings said:
Anyone tried the white BBQ sauces that seem to be prevalent in northern Alabama? Pretty interesting, but I've not seen them available outside of that area.
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I have, and I love it. There is a place down here in Woodbridge VA (Dixie Bones) that serves Alabama style bbq with white sauce. The owners are from down that way. They suggest the white sauce on the chicken, but I think it works great on chopped pork as well. Not everyone's liking, but I'm a fan.
 
mmm...

toss a package or three of brats on the smoker, wait a few hours, and lunch is ready. There's always room for brats, even if you have to tuck them in around the briskets, ribs, and butts.
 
Matthew said:
mmm...

toss a package or three of brats on the smoker, wait a few hours, and lunch is ready. There's always room for brats, even if you have to tuck them in around the briskets, ribs, and butts.
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Hmmm. I've never tried smoking brats before. I was referring to the more traditional methods... Of course, here in Wisconsin that means you boil 'em in beer and onions, and then throw 'em on the grill for a few minutes.
 
flyingcheesehead said:
Hmmm. I've never tried smoking brats before. I was referring to the more traditional methods... Of course, here in Wisconsin that means you boil 'em in beer and onions, and then throw 'em on the grill for a few minutes.
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Oh, yeah - that's good, too.

One of the recipes I've done is to grill the brats, saute onions and peppers in butter in a foil pan on the grill, add beer and simmer, then dump the brats in the whole mess. That keeps well in a warm oven during a long football game and makes for some good eating throughout.

Whenever I start the smoker, whether at home or a contest, there's always going to be a mess of brats - all flavors - jalapeno/cheddar, regular, not-regular, and a lot of italian sausage. That's lunch while everything else cooks. Even a package of hot dogs works out way better than you'd expect.
 
flyingcheesehead said:
Hmmm. I've never tried smoking brats before. I was referring to the more traditional methods... Of course, here in Wisconsin that means you boil 'em in beer and onions, and then throw 'em on the grill for a few minutes.
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I've had smoked brats and I don't really care for it. I think they're best done on a grill or broiler pan in the oven.
 
Matthew said:
One of the recipes I've done is to grill the brats, saute onions and peppers in butter in a foil pan on the grill, add beer and simmer, then dump the brats in the whole mess. That keeps well in a warm oven during a long football game and makes for some good eating throughout.

Whenever I start the smoker, whether at home or a contest, there's always going to be a mess of brats - all flavors - jalapeno/cheddar, regular, not-regular, and a lot of italian sausage. That's lunch while everything else cooks. Even a package of hot dogs works out way better than you'd expect.
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You can also throw them back in a fresh batch of beer and onions after they've been on the grill. If you burn them on the grill, they can even be "rescued" that way, as all the char will eventually come off. If you leave them in the beer for several hours, they get quite tender.

I also once did brats in dark beer - That was really good too.
 
Matthew said:
The skins will toughen up quite a bit on a smoker.
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Yeah, I think the smoke flavor was a little much for me on the brats. I normally throw some woods chips over the coals when I grill to add some smoke flavor, but the brats fully prepared in the smoker made the smoke flavor too intense. I love a good brat, though (must be the German blood).
 
Speaking of brats, I've found there are two "double cook" schools. Some boil them in beer and finish them off on the grill, and some grill them a bit and then finish them off in the beer.

Me, I just grill them and then drink the beer.
 
flyingron said:
Speaking of brats, I've found there are two "double cook" schools. Some boil them in beer and finish them off on the grill, and some grill them a bit and then finish them off in the beer.
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Never met anyone that grilled first... But I've done *both* (beer, grill, beer again) when I wasn't going to eat them all right away.

Taste is OK doing beer second, but the coloring isn't as good.
 
Any of you ever have someone refuse to eat a beer brat, because of the beer?

Asking for a friend.
 
My sister in law won't eat anything that has been near alcohol. I make both regular Cranberry Sauce and port wine-asian spice cranberry each Thanksgiving as a result. I can't image much alcohol remains after being boiled away for 25 minutes.
 
flyingron said:
I can't image much alcohol remains after being boiled away for 25 minutes.
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Nor can I imagine a beer brat raising someone's BAC. It's not like putting a liter of vodka in a watermelon. (Which I might need to put on list one of these weekends)
 
ktup-flyer said:
Memphis, STL, and KC. Those are the only places to get acceptable BBQ
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Nah, it's all good. I'm a NC boy, so eastern NC is my favorite, but Memphis style runs pretty close to a tie. But vinegar, tomato, mustard, pork, beef, dry rub ribs, etc, I like it all!
 
Worst Charred meat I have eaten was in Kansas City at some famous place. "Red's," I think. Cousin's in North Carolina looked like a legit BBQ joint, but it was hilarious Pork poo...

Best is Cooper's in Llano.

Believe it or not, the second best BBQ I've had was in California, Maryland. Place called Mission Texas Style Barbecue. Legit and yummy!
 
IK04 said:
Worst Charred meat I have eaten was in Kansas City at some famous place. "Red's," I think. Cousin's in North Carolina looked like a legit BBQ joint, but it was hilarious Pork poo...

Best is Cooper's in Llano.

Believe it or not, the second best BBQ I've had was in California, Maryland. Place called Mission Texas Style Barbecue. Legit and yummy!
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Can you remember the KC place?

My favorite Q happened to be at a joint in Bandera, TX. Not sure why, the bbq and cold beer just seemed to be the right thing at the right time for my soul.
 
My favorite BBQ place was called Santa Fe Crossing in San Saba, TX. It closed many years ago. They had the best sauce and after a change of ownership, some really good meat.

I can't find the place in KC. It was terrible, so they are undoubtedly gone...
 
Southern BBQ, I always thought that was a social function where people drank too much, shot their guns, wrecked their trucks while burning the meat.
 
Ravioli said:
Any of you ever have someone refuse to eat a beer brat, because of the beer?

Asking for a friend.
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Nope... And that includes my parents and siblings, all of whom hate beer. I don't really drink beer myself... It's been years since I actually drank one. But I sure do cook with it. Beer brats, beer cheese soup, beer chili, beer battered fried stuff, etc... It generally just tends to give whatever you put it in a fuller flavor.

And yeah, I'll eat a beer brat with a side of beer cheese soup and go flying afterwards. No alcohol left in it by the time you eat it...

IK04 said:
Believe it or not, the second best BBQ I've had was in California, Maryland. Place called Mission Texas Style Barbecue. Legit and yummy!
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That's a chain. We even have one in Milwaukee. It's decent, but given that I know where I can get better barbecue in Milwaukee, that's not saying much. But I guess I've become a snob, at least when it comes to dishing out compliments. I'll still eat average BBQ all day long. :rofl:
 
In NC there are two things you can't get on Sunday: Hard Liquor (the ABC stores are all closed) and good Barbecue. The better BBQ places start cooking on Friday to get the "after work pay day crowd" which was the traditional customer. They'd be out of meat by Saturday dinner in most cases. Of course, everybody ate at home after Church on Sunday anyway.

My NC-born and raised friend gave me two books when I bought property in NC. One was a list of all the best 'cue places. The other was the directory of NC wineries. I also when commuting back and forth timed to pass through Lexington at meal time. I've tried every place in that town.
 
c'mon, people. I'll settle this once and for all...……..




it's 'babeque'
 
eman1200 said:
c'mon, people. I'll settle this once and for all...……..

it's 'babeque'
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Babeque?

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