Project Maryland BBQ

There are regional and state barbecue styles across the United States. Texas has beef brisket, sausage, and barbacoa. Kansas City has ribs, as well as the thick tangy sauce.  Memphis also has ribs, but with complex dry rubs with kicks.  The Carolinas have either whole hog or pulled pork, accompanied by a different sauce depending upon where you are eating your barbecue. 

What if the State of Maryland had its own barbecue style? What would that style look like?

This project focuses on what a barbecue style would be in the Old Line State or the Free State.  The first series explores this issue by reference to the essential elements of a barbecue style, such as the protein, whether there is a sauce (and, if so, what type of sauce), and what alternatives could become part of that style. The blog posts that comprise the series are as follows: 

Part 1, Introduction: A brief overview of what currently passes for barbecue in Maryland and setting the stage for the next blog posts.

Part 2, Old Line Barbecue Chicken: A look at what the signature protein would be in a Maryland style of barbecue and why that protein would be chicken.

Part 3, The Sauce: If Maryland barbecue is going to have its own sauce, would it be similar to the thin, vinegar based sauces out of nearby North Carolina or more like the thicker, tomato-based sauces of Kansas City.  Could it be somewhere in between?

Part 4, Free State Smoked Pork Shoulder: A regional barbecue style could include more than one protein. That means, in Maryland, it can be more than just chicken. Perhaps it could be pork, a possibility given the proximity to North Carolina. 

PEACE.