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What does "barbecue" mean where you are?


momofkhm
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Here in NC, it means pulled pork with a vinegar sauce.  Well, that's Eastern barbecue.  Western NC barbecue is pulled pork with a tomato sauce.  I like Eastern.

 

The best way to have it is one a bun with cole slaw also on it.  Hush puppies on the side.  (Hush puppies are nuggets of deep fried corn bread.)  And dessert is banana pudding.

 

When someone says we're having barbecue that's what I expect, here.

 

What about you?

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I am from Western Canada. If someone is "having a barbecue" they are having a party, probably in the backyard, with grilled food. Outdoor grills are referred to as barbecues here. We eat barbecued salmon, chicken, veggies, etc. Pulled pork is simply called pulled pork. I cook my pulled pork in a slow oven and it has a vinegar sauce.

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If asked to go to a Barbecue I would expect anything from hamburgers to shrimp on a grill.

The dish itself would be pork shoulder, slow-smoked and served with a tomato based sauce that is both sweet and tangy. Potato chips, perhaps a pickle for the pickle eater (that would be my DH) and deviled eggs would accompany. Maybe potato salad if not potato chips.

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Barbecue could mean a meal cooked on a grill and served outdoors. 

It could mean any variety of meat coated with barbecue sauce. (Barbecued chicken, barbecued pork, etc.)

Or, it could be a shredded meat sandwich with or without sauce. (Chicken barbecue, pork barbecue, etc. – Notice that in the sandwich, the type of meat comes first and the word barbecue second.  That is an important distinction when ordering from an Eastern PA menu.)

 

My preferred variety of barbecue is barbecue flavored potato chips. :001_smile:

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Where we are if someone tells us they are having BBQ they usually mean what we call Sloppy Joes.   :eek:

 

I don't care for Sloppy Joes.  I love real BBQ (NC, TX, etc - anywhere the meat is slow cooked and deliciously tender/tasty) and I like backyard grilled foods too, so I'd be ok with that.  Real BBQ to us has to be slow cooked with or without sauce (generally better with).  Grilled foods are the other and we refer to them as grilled, but understand the terminology of other areas.  Sloppy Joes are Sloppy Joes.  To me, they don't even mimic BBQ.

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If invited for BBQ I would expect smoked meat that has been cooked at a  low temperature for a long time. It can either have a dry rub (preference) or sauce.

 

If people are grilling they say, "Hey, come over we will throw something on the grill."

 

I lived in KC for a long time and calling grilled things "BBQ" is a serious faux pas. People either call it, "grilling," or "BBQ" but the two are not interchangeable.

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Slow smoked meat is what BBQ is to me.

 

We love smoked brisket, pork shoulder, RIBS!, chicken, turkey, and salmon. Love smoking meat.

 

I do different sauces for different meats. Little sweet, little spicy is a good combo.

 

Grilled meat is great, too.

 

Now, I'm hungry....

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Barbecue can be an event or a food depending upon the context.

 

If someone says, "Come on over. We're going to barbecue tonight." That means they will be grilling something, but not necessarily with any sauce involved.

 

If someone says, "Come on over. We're having barbecue." That means they will be eating meat with barbecue sauce on it. Since I'm in Texas that would be Texas style barbecue and usually some kind of slow roasted meat (pork, beef, or chicken).

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Where we are if someone tells us they are having BBQ they usually mean what we call Sloppy Joes.   :eek:

 

I don't care for Sloppy Joes.  I love real BBQ (NC, TX, etc - anywhere the meat is slow cooked and deliciously tender/tasty) and I like backyard grilled foods too, so I'd be ok with that.  Real BBQ to us has to be slow cooked with or without sauce (generally better with).  Grilled foods are the other and we refer to them as grilled, but understand the terminology of other areas.  Sloppy Joes are Sloppy Joes.  To me, they don't even mimic BBQ.

 

What??

 

That is weird. 

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Here in NC, it means pulled pork with a vinegar sauce.  Well, that's Eastern barbecue.  Western NC barbecue is pulled pork with a tomato sauce.  I like Eastern.

 

The best way to have it is one a bun with cole slaw also on it.  Hush puppies on the side.  (Hush puppies are nuggets of deep fried corn bread.)  And dessert is banana pudding.

 

When someone says we're having barbecue that's what I expect, here.

 

What about you?

 

Here in Central Texas, "barbecue" is a specific kind of meat (brisket) cooked a specific way (lots of smoke, a dry rub, a sauce cooked and served separately).

 

Pork or sausage or turkey breast might be cooked on the same fire, but it is pulled pork or sausage or turkey, not barbecue.

 

When we get together to eat and cook food outside, it's a cook-out, not a barbecue; in California, "barbecue" was a verb, not a noun. :-)

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If invited for BBQ I would expect smoked meat that has been cooked at a  low temperature for a long time. It can either have a dry rub (preference) or sauce.

 

If people are grilling they say, "Hey, come over we will throw something on the grill."

 

I lived in KC for a long time and calling grilled things "BBQ" is a serious faux pas. People either call it, "grilling," or "BBQ" but the two are not interchangeable.

 

Yup, around here BBQ is way of life and there is endless debate on the "the best." 

 

Grilling is what the average person does on their deck on the weekend. 

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Here in Central Texas, "barbecue" is a specific kind of meat (brisket) cooked a specific way (lots of smoke, a dry rub, a sauce cooked and served separately).

 

Pork or sausage or turkey breast might be cooked on the same fire, but it is pulled pork or sausage or turkey, not barbecue.

 

When we get together to eat and cook food outside, it's a cook-out, not a barbecue; in California, "barbecue" was a verb, not a noun. :-)

 

I don't care what you call it.  That all sounds good.  :drool5:

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Oh that would disappoint me.  I don't like those either!

 

Let's just say our first experience with it (being invited over for BBQ) was interesting.  We travel quite a bit - esp around the US - and are used to so many terms being used with different meanings - esp food - but this was a totally new one for both hubby and I.

 

Now we're cautious when someone invites us over for BBQ locally.

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I'm in NC.  Although I'm aware of and appreciate all the styles of barbecue served here, my favorite is our local Lexington style (also referred to as western style) -- a pork shoulder smoked for a long time over hickory or oak coals and with a sauce of vinegar, ketchup, pepper and other spices.  It's usually served chopped, although some people who don't know any better eat it sliced.  Served with barbecue slaw (sometimes called red slaw), which is also prepared with a ketchup and vinegar sauce.

 

And I have to take just a bit of exception with the OP.  Western or Lexington style barbecue isn't pulled, and the sauce is ketchup based.  Not tomato based.  Those differences matter. ;)

 

Lexington style barbecue

 

So here barbecue means a very specific type of meat prepared in a very specific way.

 

If we're cooking something on the grill then we say we're grilling or cooking out.

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Where we are if someone tells us they are having BBQ they usually mean what we call Sloppy Joes.   :eek:

 

 

 

When we moved to northern Illinois, I really missed what we called Barbecue in the south-  meat that was smoked for a long time, sliced or pulled, and had BBQ sauce on it.  I mentioned to a friend that I really missed it and she said she makes it all the time. Knowing she was a crummy cook, I asked her to elaborate and she described sloppy joes. I told her that was sloppy joes and she had never heard it called that. And had never heard of what I called BBQ. Weird regional difference!!

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Around here BBQ means anything cooked outdoors on the grill- meat, fish, even veggies.  Shellfish has its own special term though- a clam bake-- which is usually cooked in a fire on the beach along with corn on the cob and potatoes (and sometimes chowder).

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If you mean barbecue as in an event, then it would mean anything on the grill, but most typically hamburgers and brats.

 

If you mean barbecue as in "We're having barbecues for dinner tonight," that would mean sloppy joe's.  However, that wasn't true when I lived in California, it's only been true since I lived in the Midwest.  In California where I lived, I think we would only use it as the name of an event.  "We're having a barbecue!"

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I am from Western Canada. If someone is "having a barbecue" they are having a party, probably in the backyard, with grilled food. Outdoor grills are referred to as barbecues here.

 

:iagree: yup, this.

 

A barbecue is an outdoor grill appliance, or a party where people will eat food prepared on the appliance.

 

It isn't specifically about cooking meat.. We grill veggies, potatoes, veggie burgers, veggie hot dogs,  veg shish-kebab etc.

 

To 'have a bbq' would usually mean to invite people over & grill something on the bbq outside & probably sit & eat outside if you have that kind of space (deck, balcony, gardens).

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I am sad at what means "barbecue" in some areas.

 

Some of y'all are tragically deprived.

 

 

 

LOL. Does it help that most bbq's also have beer? Sometimes byob but usually hosts provide...

 

Also, I've made mental note to decline invites to bbq in the US as I gather they're not v*g friendly :P   

 

 

 

 

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I grew up in Pittsburgh, PA. A BBQ sandwich in that area is made with chipped, or chipped chopped ham (made famous by Isaly's). This very thin sliced ham is not found outside of "The Burgh" as far as I know. The sauce is some variation of Heinz ketchup and other ingredients, but as I recall, the simplest was made with ketchup and Coke!

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LOL. Does it help that most bbq's also have beer? Sometimes byob but usually hosts provide...

 

Also, I've made mental note to decline invites to bbq in the US as I gather they're not v*g friendly :p   

 

 

 

 

 

What is considered by many to be the best BBQ restaurant in KC  has a vegetarian sandwich on the menu. I guess it would depend on whose sending the invite. :lol: If I knew v*g people were coming I would include things for them, I would hope most people would be polite enough to provide things everyone could eat.

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In California, generally speaking, a barbecue is a casul party where there is outdoor grilled meat. Could be Tri-tip (a pretty popular "regional" specialty), or burgers, chicken, etc.

 

At my house that is called "grilling" (within the family) and "barbecue" means a "low-and-slow" cooked brisket (18-20 hours), or a slow cooked pork butt, or ribs cooked with hardwood charcoal. Real barbecue.

 

Bill

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LOL. Does it help that most bbq's also have beer? Sometimes byob but usually hosts provide...

 

Also, I've made mental note to decline invites to bbq in the US as I gather they're not v*g friendly :p   

 

 

 

 

you can come to ours. Dh does some good veggies when he bbq's (long and slow on a smoker/ it is NOT grilling). He has an unbelievable stuffed mushroom. Corn in the husk bbqed is unreal. Thee is usually beer. And wine. Often Painkillers and other coconutty drinks. And...moonshine (and it is good stuff).

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"I'm going to a barbeque." Burgers, dogs, chips, potato salad.

 

"We're having barbeque for dinner." Sweet love of all things good, and put on an old shirt! I'm banking on pulled pork, spicy sweet sauce, maybe ribs, cole slaw, and tea. If it's my birthday - add a caramel cake.

 

ETA- I live in the Deep South.

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I'm shuddering at the thought of barbecue being a synonym for Sloppy Joes.

 

 

I would be depressed if promised BBQ and received Sloppy Joes, I even like Sloppy Joes now and then.  I admit the ham thing is also bothering me a bit.

 

I can't go to Pittsburgh now, I would be all,

 

"I would like BBQ sandwich please."

 

"Here ya go."

 

*Wailing* "Is this Heinz ketchup!!?? AAAAAHH!!! *sobbing*"

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Here in Central Texas, "barbecue" is a specific kind of meat (brisket) cooked a specific way (lots of smoke, a dry rub, a sauce cooked and served separately).

 

Pork or sausage or turkey breast might be cooked on the same fire, but it is pulled pork or sausage or turkey, not barbecue.

 

When we get together to eat and cook food outside, it's a cook-out, not a barbecue; in California, "barbecue" was a verb, not a noun. :-)

 

Also in Central Texas and I hear the word Barbecue for much more than one meat. Is that really all it means at the restaurants?

I figured barbecue pork was pork that was made to be eaten with barbecue sauce

 

Make barbecued chicken with chicken in the crockpot with BarBQ sauce. Etc

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Here in my part of Michigan, barbecue means some sort of meat with barbecue sauce on it. This can be pork, chicken, or beef. No one assumes anything.

 

Grilled means someone went outside and cooked over a fire of some kind...could be a grill, could be a bonfire, or in our case, LOL, inside our exterior wood boiler!

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