oking meat from the native islanders. It was imported to America, particularly the pre-Civil War south and became a part of the cooking culture there.

Because the staple meat of the south was and still is pork this charcoal cooking caught on quite easily. Of course the barbecue

The charcoal barbecue has been around for quite some time. It is a summertime tradition in the United States to fire up some hot coals and grill up a slab of meat while the smell of numerous other barbecues floats across the neighborhood. A barbecue with friends, family and all the fixin’s is truly an American institution.

But where did all this summertime fun and food come from? How did it begin? The first charcoal barbecue as we are used to seeing showed up in the United States in the 1950’s. During this time a long running television advertising campaign introduced the American public to the charcoal barbecue. This was the beginning of barbecuing as we know it.

But even before the introduction of the modern charcoal barbecue people were using charcoal fires to roast meat. The first people believed to have barbecued were the native peoples of the Caribbean islands who cooked large pieces of meat over big pits filled with hot coals. The University of Virginia did a research project on the origins of the charcoal barbecue and found that the French and Spanish explorers and colonists “borrowed” this way of cooking meat from the native islanders. It was imported to America, particularly the pre-Civil War south and became a part of the cooking culture there.

Because the staple meat of the south was and still is pork this charcoal cooking caught on quite easily. Of course the barbecue

ixin’s is truly an American institution.

But where did all this summertime fun and food come from? How did it begin? The first charcoal barbecue as we are used to seeing showed up in the United States in the 1950’s. During this time a long running television advertising campaign introduced the American public to the charcoal barbecue. This was the beginning of barbecuing as we know it.

But even before the introduction of the modern charcoal barbecue people were using charcoal fires to roast meat. The first people believed to have barbecued were the native peoples of the Caribbean islands who cooked large pieces of meat over big pits filled with hot coals. The University of Virginia did a research project on the origins of the charcoal barbecue and found that the French and Spanish explorers and colonists “borrowed” this way of cooking meat from the native islanders. It was imported to America, particularly the pre-Civil War south and became a part of the cooking culture there.

Because the staple meat of the south was and still is pork this charcoal cooking caught on quite easily. Of course the barbecue

n introduced the American public to the charcoal barbecue. This was the beginning of barbecuing as we know it.

But even before the introduction of the modern charcoal barbecue people were using charcoal fires to roast meat. The first people believed to have barbecued were the native peoples of the Caribbean islands who cooked large pieces of meat over big pits filled with hot coals. The University of Virginia did a research project on the origins of the charcoal barbecue and found that the French and Spanish explorers and colonists “borrowed” this way of cooking meat from the native islanders. It was imported to America, particularly the pre-Civil War south and became a part of the cooking culture there.

Because the staple meat of the south was and still is pork this charcoal cooking caught on quite easily. Of course the barbecue

tive peoples of the Caribbean islands who cooked large pieces of meat over big pits filled with hot coals. The University of Virginia did a research project on the origins of the charcoal barbecue and found that the French and Spanish explorers and colonists “borrowed” this way of cooking meat from the native islanders. It was imported to America, particularly the pre-Civil War south and became a part of the cooking culture there.

Because the staple meat of the south was and still is pork this charcoal cooking caught on quite easily. Of course the barbecue

oking meat from the native islanders. It was imported to America, particularly the pre-Civil War south and became a part of the cooking culture there.

Because the staple meat of the south was and still is pork this charcoal cooking caught on quite easily. Of course the barbecue process was improved upon over time until the first charcoal barbecue was marketed nation wide in the 1950’s.

Since that first charcoal barbecue was introduced over 50 years ago it has evolved even further during that time. What started as a coal filled pit with a spit to turn the meat placed over is now the modern barbecue we see in our local home improvement stores. Of course there have been several major advances in the charcoal barbecue over the years. The first was the introduction of lighter fluid. This made it easier to get the fire started and along with charcoal briquettes brought barbecuing into mainstream American culture. Taking this a step farther you can now get a hybrid charcoal and gas grill all in one. The gas is used to light the coals so that the more traditional barbecue chefs can continue to enjoy the smoky taste afforded by hot coals.

The charcoal barbecue continues to be an American institution and for good reason, there is no better way to cook burgers, steaks, chicken or just about anything else then over an open fire.