On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. In the South, barbecue is more bbq seasoning just a style of cooking, but a subculture with wide variation between regions, and fierce rivalry for titles at barbecue competitions.

Often the proprietors of Southern-style barbecue establishments in other areas originate from the South. There are usually three ingredients to barbecue—meat and wood smoke are essential. The use of a sauce or seasoning varies widely between regional traditions. The first ingredient in the barbecue tradition is the meat.

The most widely used meat in most barbecue is pork, particularly pork ribs, and also the pork shoulder for pulled pork. The techniques used to cook the meat are hot smoking and smoke cooking, distinct from cold-smoking. Characteristically, this process leaves a distinctive line of red just under the surface, where the myoglobin in the meat reacts with carbon monoxide from the smoke, and imparts the smoky taste essential to barbecue. The second ingredient in barbecue is the wood used to smoke the meat. Since the wood smoke flavors the food, the type of wood used influences the process. Different woods impart different flavors, so the regional availability of various woods for smoking defines the taste of the region’s barbecue. Hard woods such as hickory, mesquite and various varieties of oak impart a strong smoke flavor.

Maple, alder, pecan and fruit woods such as apple, pear, and cherry impart a milder, sweeter taste. Stronger flavored woods are used for pork and beef, while the lighter flavored woods are used for fish and poultry. The last, and in many cases optional, ingredient is the barbecue sauce. There are no constants, with sauces running the gamut from clear, peppered vinegars to thick, sweet, tomato and molasses sauces to mustard-based barbecue sauces, which themselves range from mild to painfully spicy. The sauce may be used as a marinade before cooking, applied during cooking, after cooking, or used as a table sauce.

An alternate to barbecue sauce is dry rub, a mixture of salt and spices applied to the meat before cooking. The origins of American barbecue date back to colonial times, with the first recorded mention in 1672 and George Washington mentions attending a “barbicue” in Alexandria, Virginia, in 1769. While barbecue is found outside of this region, the 14 core barbecue states contain 70 of the top 100 barbecue restaurants, and most top barbecue restaurants outside the region have their roots there. Barbecue in its current form came from the South, where cooks learned to slow-roast tough cuts of meat over fire pits to make them tender. Despite these unusual traits, rib joints often have a fiercely loyal clientele. Barbecue is strongly associated with Southern cooking and culture due to its long history and evolution in the region.

Indian corn cribs, predecessors to Southern barbecue, were described during the Hernando de Soto expedition in southwest Georgia, and were still around when English settlers arrived two centuries later. Today, barbecue has come to embody cultural ideals of communal recreation and faithfulness in certain areas. These ideals were historically important in farming and frontier regions throughout the South and parts of the Midwest with influences from the South. As such, due to the strong cultural associations that it holds, barbecue has attained an important position in America’s culinary tradition.

Parts of the Midwest also incorporate their own styles of barbecue into their culinary traditions. For example, in Kansas City, barbecue entails a wide variety of meats, sweet and thick sauces, dry rubs, and sliced beef brisket. Barbecue as a cultural tradition spread from the South and was incorporated into several Midwestern regions such as western Missouri. Variations of these ideals by region are reflected in the great diversity of barbecue styles and traditions within the United States. Barbecue has been a staple of American culture, especially Southern American culture, since colonial times.

As it emerged over years many traditions have become prevalent in the United States. Barbecue remains one of the most traditional foods in the United States. While many festive foods, such as roasted turkey or ham, are usually served on particular days or holidays, barbecue can be served on any day. As barbecues continued to be held through the times of U. Today, barbecues held in different regions of the country vary in cuisine but the cuisines all hold the same concept of cooking outside and over a fire.

Barbecues today have taken on new meaning yet again with the emergence of competitive barbecue. As a result of the prevalence of hogs in the South, the pig became synonymous with Southern culture and barbecue. The pig symbolizing Southern culture began as a result of its value as an economic commodity. By 1860, hogs and southern livestock were valued at double the cotton crop, at a price of half a billion dollars. The majority of pigs were raised by residents of the South and pigs contributed considerably to the economic well-being of many Southerners. Pigs and barbecue were not only valuable economically but for barbecues “scores of hog” were set aside for large gatherings, often used for political rallies, church events, and harvest festival celebrations.