A Book's Worth of Info on Barbecue

I recently read Sylvia Lovegren's piece about the history of barbecue, published in the July/August issue of American Heritage, and learned quite a bit. The subject is complicated, I have found, because the history is all over the place and the tastes and styles so varied not by country, but by region.

Ms. Lovegren did a good job sweeping through those. I've heard that word barbacoa quite often the past year or so, and didn't know the roots. I like that the writer immediately defined what barbecue stands for, and grilling ain't barbecue. I bitch about that all the time, the phrase, “We're having a barbecue.” Really, you have a pit? “No, we're grilling some burgers and hot dogs.”

Critically, I liked the mix of barbecuists, writers and academics she relied upon, but thought Texas and Kansas City needed a little more depth. The fact that Texas Monthly hired a full-time barbecue editor a few years ago would have been worth a mention, and maybe a few words from him. She broadstroked Aaron Franklin, whose importance to the current barbecue craze (and industry, which is increasingly becoming politicized) is important. He's almost single-handedly responsible for the vast consumerism of barbecue, leading to an enormous cottage industry of grills, smokers, accessories, master classes and seminars, and books.

Make no mistake: the patio barbecuist has hurt the commercial barbecue business, where almost 90 percent of all new restaurants close in a year. Now, any dumbass can buy a $500 pellet smoker with digital controls and make a high-quality brisket.

The writer made a good choice to emphasize the sociology aspect of barbecue; again, an area where I learned some new things. But I'm not sure how much the purveyor cares about that stuff, so that's why it was important to an American Heritage piece. She crammed a book's worth of topics into a relatively small space.