Barbecue can be made with direct or indirect heat

Barbecue is a cooking style practiced across the globe

How many ways are there to cook meat over a fire? Tons, it turns out. Every continent, barring Antarctica, has a local version (or versions) of barbecue. For instance, in Japan, it’s meat-laden skewers cooked over Japanese oak charcoal. Head down to Argentina, and you’ll find parillas—open-flame grills that impart a smoky char to the ingredients.

Barbecue relies on a unique scientific equation

Barbecue's distinct flavor starts with an interaction between the heat source and food, which creates a Maillard Reaction—better known to diners as those crunchy, caramelized bits on the outside.

Korean barbecue uses thin slices of marinated beef

Korean food, and specifically Korean barbecue, jumped across the Pacific to become one of the fastest-growing international cuisines in the United States. In Korean restaurants, dishes like bulgogi (thin slices of marinated beef) are grilled at the table and accompanied by a wide variety of side dishes.

Pellet grills evenly distribute heat across a grill

Using ignited wooden pellets and fans to evenly distribute the heat across the cooking surface, pellet grills give food deep flavor and grant cooks more control, offering a newfangled take on barbecue.

The word 'barbecue' is thought to come from 'barbicu'

Modern barbecue originated in the precolonial Caribbean and Americas. The word is thought to come from the Indigenous term for wooden frames used to cook meat high above the fire.

Americans' love of combining freedom and charred meat began in the 1800s

In the 19th century, politicians (particularly in Virginia) hosted large public barbecues to celebrate Independence Day and, of course, boost their own campaigns. When personal grills became common in the 20th century, the tradition moved into backyards and block parties, where it's still going strong today.

The food took root with Black Americans in the Civil War era

Because the technique requires little equipment and can tenderize tough or undesirable cuts of meat like ribs, barbecue took root among impoverished Black Americans in the late 1800s. When these communities moved north during the Great Migration, barbecue followed.

The preferred barbecue sauce depends on your location

America's regional barbecue styles include multiple highly specific sauces. From the tart, acidic vinegar-based sauces of North Carolina, to the thick, sweet-spicy Kansas City variation, American barbecue sauces are as varied as the country’s geography.

'Braai' is South Africa's take on barbecue

Braai—a colloquialism for the Afrikaner word for “grilled meat”—is a South African tradition similar to American cookouts, where communities gather to cook meat over a wood fire.

Memphis-style barbecue emphasizes pork

The cuisine's signature dish is dry-rubbed ribs. Before smoking, the meat gets a spice rub with paprika and chili powder. Some restaurants also offer their ribs “wet” (with sauce) or “muddy” (a mixture of sauce and rub).

Kansas City barbecue makes use of 'burnt ends'

The Midwest city has its own delicious tradition, serving the double-smoked chunks of fatty brisket slathered in the region’s signature thick, sweet-and-spicy sauce.

The original McDonald's served barbecue

Barbecue was a popular roadside cuisine in the early days of the US highway system, and McDonald's, while it was still a small enterprise in San Bernardino, California, served it as a part of its fast food menu.

The South prefers the term 'cookout'

A 2016 Eater poll showed that folks from the South generally prefer "cookout" to describe a backyard event centered around barbecued meat. In fact, that preference extends to much of the country, with 65% of Americans saying they prefer the term.

Hibachi restaurants were designed to appeal to American soldiers stationed in Japan

Hibachi-style cooking was originally used in residences, with Japanese families cooking together around the grill. That style was then refined after World War II with the teppanyaki restaurant Misono, which used more American-friendly ingredients (like steak) to appeal to American soldiers stationed in the country. Despite the differences between teppanyaki and hibachi, diners began using "hibachi" to describe the concept. Later, the Aoki family brought it to American soil with Benihana.

Low-and-slow smoking transforms tough cuts into tender, flavorful cuisine

Cooking meats at low temperatures over many hours breaks down muscle proteins and collagen into gelatin, making the meat juicy and soft. Patience, gentle smoke, and moisture retention are needed to avoid dry or chewy results.

One food writer ranks the best barbecue in Texas every 4 years

Barbecue is so big in Texas that Texas Monthly, one of the state's premier magazines, has its own barbecue editor. That man, Daniel Vaughn, is responsible for ranking the top 50 barbecue restaurants every four years. This short documentary profiles three of them, and shows what Vaughn considers when he's making his picks.

What it's like to be a competitive barbecue judge

Follow food writer and barbecue lover Mattie John Bamman as he tries to become a certified barbecue judge. The training is practical and subjective, involving learning the strict Kansas City Barbecue Society standards and the judges’ (literal) tastes.

How to have a bug-free backyard dinner

An entomologist’s advice for bug-free backyard barbecues, including tips on the use of chemicals and how fans are pretty effective at keeping bugs away.

Unique ingredients and preparations differentiate burrito styles

Examples include California burritos, which wrap french fries in with the other ingredients, and chimichangas, an Arizona specialty in which the burrito is deep-fried prior to serving.

What is a heat dome?

The world is seeing regular heat waves with multiple causes, including so-called "heat domes," a term rising in use in recent years. A heat dome occurs when the atmosphere traps hot ocean air like a lid or cap, creating stifling conditions and resulting in extended periods of heat. See an illustration of this phenomenon and read how it works with this brief explainer.

Infrared light is most often associated with thermal radiation and cooking food

Although extensively used in remote controls for electronics, where LED lights send signals wirelessly, infrared cameras allow for night vision and thermography—imaging of heat patterns in the body to non-invasively reveal blood flow for supplementary diagnostics. Infrared radiation also provides heat in toasters, saunas, and other technologies.

Before the 16th Amendment, US tax law required direct taxes to be directly apportioned to a state's population

Due to these requirements, the federal government could not impose many direct taxes. Direct taxes include property and income taxes, whereas indirect taxes include duties and excises.

A barbell investment strategy focuses on balancing high-risk and low-risk investments

Barbell investment strategies emphasize bypassing medium-risk investments in favor of combinations of high-risk and low-risk investments. The idea is that the stability on the low-risk side offsets the volatility on the high-risk side, and would look like a barbell with two large weights on either end of the bar.

Crude oil is the type of oil used to create fuel like gasoline, heating oil, and more

Technically speaking, crude oil is unrefined petroleum. This article dives into the different ways it’s categorized (by density, sulfur content, and origin), and how the combinations of these types of oil are used.

Learn how your body is, scientifically, like a firework with its own slow, controlled burn.

Satire often employs irony

Satirists often make their point indirectly through ironic statements, indirectly highlighting the foolishness of the thing they’re mocking. An example is Mark Twain's satirical 1882 essay, “Advice to Youth.” “Build your character thoughtfully and painstakingly upon these precepts,” he wrote, “and by and by, when you have got it built, you will be surprised and gratified to see how nicely and sharply it resembles everybody else’s.”

The history of many kitchen appliances involves unexpected discoveries and applications, including wartime radar turned hamster defroster and replacing an 'ice king' with heat-stealing boxes.

Dirty lightning is a thunderstorm created from friction between rising and falling flows of ash and smoke during volcanic eruptions.

At the beginning of the 20th century, a group of young men ate standard American food—replete with food additives like borax and formaldehyde—as part of government research to better understand food safety.

'Shogun,' a 1980s TV series, helped popularize sushi in the US by stimulating an American interest in Japanese culture.

Fast-casual restaurant Chili's is experiencing a resurgence, with its parent company recently reporting a nearly 32% increase in sales, thanks to passionate Gen Z fans on TikTok.

Before writing 'Walden,' transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau nearly burned down his hometown with a campfire that grew out of control.

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Gerrymandering works through two techniques: cracking opposing voters across districts to dilute their power, and packing them into a few to waste their votes in lopsided majorities.

The word 'jazz' evolved from 'jasm,' 19th-century American slang for 'energy'

Louisiana's 'Cancer Alley' is infamous for having some of the highest industrial pollution, toxic air emissions, and cancer risks in the US.

An initial public offering or 'IPO' is the process of a private company becoming public by putting shares of the company on the stock market for purchase.

Jimmy Carter signed a 1978 bill that legalized home brewing, a move credited with kick-starting the craft beer industry.

Browse a detailed visual analysis of over 200,000 similes—comparisons that often use 'like' or 'as'—from popular fiction to see how frequently writers the same idiomatic expressions.

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Explore an interactive map of battles from the American Revolution, along with detailed summaries of each engagement

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Hurricanes, which rely on air consistently spinning in the same direction, cannot cross the equator because air curves in opposite directions north and south of it.

Ebola species have historically been named after where they were discovered, stigmatizing residents who live there, including Bundibugyo, in Uganda.

Explore the history, structure, and species of Australia's Great Barrier Reef with this interactive journey narrated by Sir David Attenborough.