/ck/ - Food & Cooking

>>7532618

There's tons of types of barbecue, all are essentially derived from indigenous cooking techniques involving lots of smoke and placing the meat over low heat for extended periods of time. Southerners love pork because historically pigs thrive in that climate better than cows, while midwesterners and Texans prefer beef because beef because their regions are better suited to cattle ranching. Beef barbecue uses the cheap, tough cuts of meat that can't be cooked easily over high heat while pork barbecue uses the shoulder, butt, or even the whole hog.

Sides vary based on regional preferences, but typically include some kind of corn-based bread product (hushpuppies, cornbread, cornpone, etc.), a beans and rice based dish (red beans and rice, hoppin john, dirty rice, etc), and steamed green leaves (collard greens, turnip greens, mustard greens, etc) which are derived from west African cooking traditions. Sweet potatoes are another common side dish.