# Just how picky are you with what gets called "barbecue"? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 27, 2012, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249 "2012-05-27T15:49:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2012, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/41 "2012-05-28T03:32:48Z")
No one “grills” or “cooks out” in Canada. If it’s cooked outside on the barbeque (yes, barbeque) then it’s barbequed. It doesn’t matter what it is. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2012, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/42 "2012-05-28T05:30:04Z")
> [@Alpha\_Twit](#): > > To my way of thinking, salt and black pepper would push it into BBQ territory, barely. Yeah, that’s known as a “Dalmatian rub” in Texas. I was just asking, because I’d be surprised to find a smoked brisket that has less seasoning than salt and black pepper. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2012, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/43 "2012-05-28T06:39:03Z")
depends how the word is used. “Barbecue” is a slow cooked process. It should be worded as “beef barbecue”. “Barbecued” is anything thrown on a barbeque grill. It should be billed as “barbecued beef”. “Barbecue sauce” is a concoction used as a condiment after cooking and can be anything. my 2c. ---
**Author:** ![jabiru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@jabiru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jabiru)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2012, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/44 "2012-05-28T06:53:05Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > No one “grills” or “cooks out” in Canada. If it’s cooked outside on the barbeque (yes, barbeque) then it’s barbequed. It doesn’t matter what it is. Same in Oz. Cooked outside over burning wood? Or coals? Or gas? It’s a barbecue. Especially if some random male who doesn’t know his way around a kitchen is doing it. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2012, 10:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/45 "2012-05-28T10:48:54Z")
My ideal 'que (seldom found) is any style - but cooked by a purist. This is not some international street festival food, where you combine the Flavors of Diversity into a new and creative endeavor. This is the cuisine of people who didn’t range too far from home and used what they had around until it became tradition. Chauvinism isn’t just some spontaneous internet peeing contest here - it’s part of the _nature_ of the product. I want to _taste_ it. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2012, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/46 "2012-05-28T12:05:19Z")
> [@Odesio](#): > > I’m picky about it but it’s certainly not something I’m going to argue with someone about. I can grill burgers on the same cooking device I barbecue my rips. Grilling is done with a higher more direct heat and barbecue is done with a lower indirect heat and hopefully some smoke. My thoughts exactly, though I’d swap “and hopefully” for “with”. Both can be delicious. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2012, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/47 "2012-05-28T14:50:32Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Low and slow. Period. End of sentence. > > Grilling isn’t even close, and BBQ is not a noun. Wrong as hell. Barbecue is almost exclusively a noun. Most people in the South never use it as a verb. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2012, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/48 "2012-05-28T14:59:59Z")
So what? Most of the people in the South thought slavery was a good idea, too. They’re wrong. 😛 (So am I, a lot of the time. I’ll say “Let’s go eat some BBQ.” But I am mis-using the word when I do.) But grilling **is not** barbecueing, no matter what the Canucks, Kiwis and [del]Convicts[/del]Aussies say. That is The Line In the Sand, the Hill To Die On. ---
**Author:** ![Cub\_Mistress](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ea666f/32.png) [@Cub\_Mistress](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cub_Mistress)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2012, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/49 "2012-05-28T15:32:45Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > So what? Most of the people in the South thought slavery was a good idea, too. They’re wrong. 😛 > > (So am I, a lot of the time. I’ll say “Let’s go eat some BBQ.” But I am mis-using the word when I do.) > > But grilling **is not** barbecueing, no matter what the Canucks, Kiwis and [del]Convicts[/del]Aussies say. That is The Line In the Sand, the Hill To Die On. As an aside, there needs to be a corollary to Godwin’s Law covering the inclusion of the topic of slavery in any discussion that involves the South. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2012, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/50 "2012-05-28T15:35:54Z")
> [@Cub\_Mistress](#): > > As an aside, there needs to be a corollary to Godwin’s Law covering the inclusion of the topic of slavery in any discussion that involves the South. Right on! ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2012, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/51 "2012-05-28T15:38:52Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > So what? Most of the people in the South thought slavery was a good idea, too. They’re wrong. 😛 Not about BBQ. Its always a noun, unless you’re from up north and think grilling is “barbecuing”. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2012, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/52 "2012-05-28T16:34:38Z")
[Here it is](http://books.google.com/books?id=RwwUAAAAQAAJ&pg=PT110#v=onepage&q&f=false) from Samuel Johnson’s _A Dictionary of the English Language_, 1756 > [@](#): > > TO BARBECUE - a term for dressing a whole hog. > > BARBECUE - a hog drest whole No notes on the manner of cooking or “dressing” there, but evidence that the word has been used as a noun for over two hundred fifty years. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2012, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/53 "2012-05-28T16:46:57Z")
Thats right damit! Its even in the US Constitution if you look carefully. Or was it in the Declaration of Independence (aka we are gonna party and have BBQ and frack you you British wankers)? I look forward to the day the Supreme Court finally hears Mustard vs Vinegar so can get this shit straightened out once and for all. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2012, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/54 "2012-05-28T17:17:33Z")
The point was that barbecue has a long history of being used both as a noun and a verb. ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2012, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/55 "2012-05-28T17:37:28Z")
If I say I am going to barbecue, that means low and slow. Might be ribs, might be pulled pork, might be brisket. If I say I am going to grill, or cook out we are talking about grilling steaks, chops, chicken or fish. If someone invites me to a BBQ, I will expect it will be some type of grilling. Sauce has nothing to do with it. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2012, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/56 "2012-05-28T18:40:56Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > I look forward to the day the Supreme Court finally hears Mustard vs Vinegar so can get this shit straightened out once and for all. Really? With _this_ court? State’s rights mean nothing if they are going to use the power to mustardize BBQ sauce. We need a new Sherman to march through South Carolina and bring those heathens to justice. Starting with Laurens County, which is my family’s ancestral breeding ground. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2012, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/57 "2012-05-28T19:48:55Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Really? With _this_ court? State’s rights mean nothing if they are going to use the power to mustardize BBQ sauce. We need a new Sherman to march through South Carolina and bring those heathens to justice. Starting with Laurens County, which is my family’s ancestral breeding ground. My uncle lives on a farm outside Laurens. His home was built before the civil war. Beautiful place. ---
**Author:** ![si\_blakely](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@si\_blakely](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/si_blakely)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2012, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/58 "2012-05-29T08:47:27Z")
> [@jabiru](#): > > Same in Oz. Cooked outside over burning wood? Or coals? Or gas? It’s a barbecue. Especially if some random male who doesn’t know his way around a kitchen is doing it. Ya gotta be able to slip (or maybe slap) another shrimp on it 😉 Si ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2012, 10:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/59 "2012-05-29T10:07:58Z")
To me, there are two conditions for a barbecue - the food has to be cooked outside, and it has to be eaten outside. Beyond that, anything’s cool. ---
**Author:** ![jabiru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@jabiru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jabiru)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249/60 "2012-05-30T01:18:17Z")
> [@si\_blakely](#): > > Ya gotta be able to slip (or maybe slap) another shrimp on it 😉 > > Si Except that no one here calls 'em shrimp. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-picky-are-you-with-what-gets-called-barbecue/623249.md?page=4)