A Quick Guide To Regional Barbecue Styles

Barbecue is a religion to some, and it's a lot more complex than you may think. Like many other foods, it changes depending on where you are in the country. Here's a quick guide to the four main barbecue regions, and what the hallmarks of all of those regional styles are.

North Carolina BBQ : the "whole hog" in the east and the shoulder in the west. The pork is chopped up and usually mixed with a vinegar-based sauce that's heavy on the spices and only contains a small amount of tomato sauce, if any.

In Memphis, it's . Wet ribs are before and after cooking, and dry ribs are seasoned with a dry rub. You'll also find lots of barbecue sandwiches in Memphis, chopped pork on a bun topped with barbecue sauce, pickles, and cole slaw. You'll find chopped pork all over the place in Memphis, in fact, on everything from pizza to nachos.

uses a wide variety of meat (but especially beef) and here , which is thick and sweet — think KC Masterpiece. Kansas City is a barbecue melting pot, to expect to find plenty of ribs, brisket, chicken, and pulled pork there, all served with plenty of sauce and a side of fries. Brisket burnt ends are also a specialty here.

There are a few different styles native to Texas (it's a big state, after all), but the most popular variety is the Central Texas "meat market" style," heavy on the beef brisket, which has been given a black pepper-heavy rub. Sauce and side dishes usually play second fiddle, because in Texas it's , be it ginormous beef ribs, pork ribs, chicken, brisket, or sausage.

Of course, this is just the tip of the rib when it comes to barbecue; there's Alabama white sauce, St. Louis crispy snoots, Oklahoma bologna, and plenty of other regional styles and specialties out there, but memorize the ones above and you'll have made a good start.