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The history of barbeque

2023. 06. 26.

What is barbeque (BBQ)?

In its original sense, barbeque (or barbecue) is a cooking technique that became popular primarily in the southern states of the United States of America (USA). Over time, those friend and family gatherings, which were organized around barbeques, started to be called this way.

Many people confuse barbeque with grilling, even though they are actually quite different. 

Barbeque (or BBQ for short) is slow cooking over the hot smoke of wood or charcoal at a constant low temperature (110-120 degrees).
It is not uncommon for particularly large meats (up to 8-10 kg) to be cooked using this method. (During grilling, on the other hand, meat, vegetables, sausages, and mushrooms cut into small slices are fried directly, at high heat, on coals or charcoal.)

The right technique

During a barbeque, meats can lose up to 30% of their weight, but this does not mean that they will dry out. They remain juicy under the roasted, almost black bark. Meat baked under the protection of the crust is amazingly tasty. When slicing, you can see a unique pink ring (smoke ring) on ​​the edge of the cutting surface: this proves that the chef did an excellent job.

However, for this, you have to be very careful to maintain the temperature and to allow enough time for the operation: slow cooking takes place over several hours. In the case of pork, this can be up to 7-8 hours, and for beef even more, up to 14-15 hours. This time is needed in order for the meat to reach the characteristic texture that makes it unmistakable.

The barbeque includes the appropriate seasoning, i.e. dry marinade (rub), as well as BBQ sauce, which the meat receives when it is served.. These can be very diverse, and although each version has distinctive stylistic features, basically no two BBQ dishes and no two BBQ sauces are the same.. Traditionally in America, every region and every state has its own traditions, which BBQ sauce, which baking techniques, and which spices they swear by.

Barbecue recipes

So if you plan to have a BBQ as one of the big attractions this summer, you need to prepare three things: meat, dry marinade (rub) and the sauce for serving.

Consider the following recipes only as a kind of thought-provoking and teaser. In any case, if you try these, it will be a good starting point for later occasions!

Homemade barbecue dry marinade (rub) recipe

The essence of dry marinating is that the meat is not soaked in juice, but only rubbed with spices and left to rest. Because of this, the characteristic, smoky flavor can come through more easily during baking, and the crust forms much more easily.

Kansas City Barbecue Dry Marinade

1.2-1.3 dl of brown sugar, 4 tablespoons of red pepper, 1 tablespoon of ground pepper, 1 tablespoon of salt, 3-4 cloves of garlic (you can also use garlic granules) and 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper, which you can replace with other chili peppers. (The amounts are enough for 3-4 kg of meat.)

The spice mixture is made up of these ingredients, with which the meat must be rubbed before baking, and then allowed to rest for a while.

Homemade barbecue sauce recipe

For 4-5 deciliters of sauce, you need the following ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons oil (vegetable)
• 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar 
• 1 shallot - you can replace it with red onion
• 1-2 cloves of garlic
• 2 teaspoons ground mustard seeds
• 1-2 teaspoons of chili powder
• 1-2 teaspoons of red pepper - you can replace it with paprika
• 5-6 dkg brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce - you can replace it with soy sauce
• 50 dkg ketchup
• 1-2 dl water - depending on how thick you want it to be
• plus salt and pepper

Start preparing the sauce by peeling the onions! Cut the onion as small as possible, press the garlic with a garlic press. 

Heat the oil in a pan, add the onion, then 4-5 minutes later the garlic! Stir in the mustard seeds, chili powder, and paprika, and simmer everything like this for a few more minutes!

Then add the ketchup, water, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, Worcestershire sauce/soy sauce and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.

Lower the heat, then simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, for 15-20 minutes, until you reach the desired thickness. After tasting, you can refine the taste with salt and pepper!

We hope we got you in the mood for barbeque! If you still need anything to organize a great BBQ party, you can get the necessary tools from us