How American is barbecue?

The indigenous people of the United States were familiar with things like grilling, slow cooking and smoking long before the first Europeans arrived, but that doesn’t mean barbecue is exclusively an American thing. However, Americans did popularize the concept. Or commercialized, as you will. The idea that anyone can barbecue in their backyard or at their campsite is terribly American. As early as the early 20th century, (mobile) grill sets were widely advertised, and shortly after World War II the first modern barbecue (with a lockable lid and ventilation holes) made its appearance.

Of much more recent date are the so-called offset barbecue smokers with the characteristic chimney and separate chambers for firing and smoking. These are miniature versions of the large commercial smokers that have been used at parties and events in the southern United States since the beginning of the last century.

Although barbecuing is taken seriously throughout North America, there are two regions that very fanatically claim to be the epicenter of “smoking,” The South and The West. Within those, several states claim to be the birthplace of the one and only barbecue, while within those states, several cities in turn have declared themselves BBQ capitals of the world. This mutual rivalry should not be taken too lightly. If you claim out loud in Memphis, Tennessee, that the barbecue is tastier in Austin, Texas, you run a good chance of being chased out of town with pitch and feathers.

Primarily, the mutual struggle centers on the meat used. For the average “Southerner,” it is foolishly unthinkable to barbecue anything other than pork, while the “Westerner” swears by beef. This has an obvious background. Since the colonial days, the South has been populated by poor shithole farmers (“rednecks”) for whom keeping a pig was the highest achievable goal. Such an animal could scavenge its own food in the forests, leaving the small patch of its own land available for growing cotton or tobacco, for example.

The West was considered a worthless wasteland of inhospitable grasslands until the mid-19th century, until it was discovered, more or less by accident, that a breed of cattle (called longhorns) thrived on these prairies, even in harsh winters. In addition, the introduction of the steam train provided good transportation links to the major population centers in the east. From then on, The West was owned by ranchers with vast ranches and gigantic herds herded by cowboys. The primary food source in this region became beef. The controversy between ranchers and farmers intensified when the latter also wanted to take advantage of the cheap land in the West and established farms, shielding their fields (and hogs) from loose-grazing cattle with barbed wire.

Besides meat, barbecue sauce plays a big role. Even in this, parties are diametrically opposed. In some camps, the sauce is mostly vinegar- or mustard-based, while elsewhere tomato-based sauces are often preferred. Sauces can be used to cook the meat in, but also as a topping or as a dip (i.e., next to rather than on top of the meat), which provides another argument for competition.