American pit barbecue

What it is

The pit can be a trench, a brick chamber or a steel smoker with a firebox at one end. The cook, called a pitmaster, manages the fire through the night. Central Texas is known for beef brisket seasoned with salt and pepper and smoked over oak. The Carolinas cook pork, whole hog in the east and shoulder in the west, dressed with vinegar-based sauces. Memphis is known for pork ribs, with or without sauce. Kansas City smokes everything and serves a thick, sweet tomato sauce.

Where it comes from

The word barbecue comes through Spanish from a Caribbean word for a frame of sticks on which food was cooked over a fire. In the American South the method became the food of large public gatherings. For generations the hard work of digging pits, tending fires and cooking the meat was done by enslaved African Americans, and Black pitmasters shaped the craft and carried it across the country. German and Czech butchers in Texas added their own smoked meat tradition.

How it works

At a classic Texas meat market you queue at the counter and order by weight. The meat is sliced in front of you and handed over on butcher paper, with white bread, pickles and raw onion. Elsewhere you order a plate or a sandwich, with sides such as coleslaw, beans, greens and cornbread. Good barbecue places cook a set amount each day. When it is gone they close, so the most famous ones have queues from mid morning.

How to do it

1. Go early. The best places sell out by early afternoon.
2. In Texas, order brisket by the pound and ask for both lean and fatty slices.
3. In the Carolinas, order chopped or pulled pork with slaw.
4. Taste the meat before adding any sauce.
5. Pick two sides, and use the white bread to make a sandwich.

Good manners

• Do not ask for sauce where none is offered. Some pits take pride in doing without.
• Eat with your hands. Paper towels are on the table for that.
• Do not tell a local that another region does it better.

What is eaten

Pulled porkSlow-cooked, shredded pork shoulder from the Southern United StatesHushpuppyDeep-fried cornmeal balls often served with seafood in the Southern United StatesColeslawShredded raw cabbage salad with a creamy or tangy dressingBaked beansWhite beans slow-cooked in a sweet or savory sauce, often served hot or on toastCornbreadA quick bread made from cornmeal, central to Southern U.S. and Native American cookingMacaroni and cheeseBaked or stovetop pasta in a creamy cheese sauce, often with cheddar

Also part of it, and being written: Brisket, Burnt ends, Spare ribs, Brunswick stew.

Sources and further reading

• Barbecue in the United States on Wikipedia
• Southern Foodways Alliance: Oral histories
• New World Encyclopedia: Barbecue