Who Invented the Barbeque

An article by Peter Pierce    Comments Off

While Barbeque is the most popular way of cooking meat in America, it did not originate in America. In fact, no one knows where the original method came from but the Americans have popularised this method of cooking tough meats all over the world today.

Barbeque refers to slowly cooking of meat at low temperature. The meat is cooked for a long time over charcoal or wood at a reasonably lower temperature as compared to grilling. Also, grilling can be used for vegetables and fruits as well whereas barbeque is a method that only tenderises and cooks meat. Barbeque has its origin from America in late 18th century during western cattle drives. Hard working cowboys fed on imperfect meats and indentified with the tough meat which required to be cooked for five to seven hours. With barbeque techniques Pork chops, pork butt, pork ribs and goats could be quickly cooked over wood in lesser time.

The term barbeque might have derived from the Taino Indian word ‘barbacoa’ which means apparatus used for meat smoking. Another story towards its origin – the word has been derived from the French word ‘barbe a queue’, which means ‘whisker to tail’. But there is no solid proof to identify the origin. The term barbeque not only refers to the method of cooking, but also refers to the event, when this type of food is served. Ribs, brisker, whole hogs, mutton roasts, beef roasts, etc are the commonly used meats for barbeque.