Course: WVA 104 Sauces, Condiments & Dressings

Reading

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Barbeque, Barbeque Sauce, and Salsa

Barbeque, barbeque sauces, and salsa may be the most American of foods. They are an iconic part of our culture. Barbeque is a cooking method generally applied to meat and every culture has some form of barbeque or the grilling of meat over open flame. However, American barbecue is a much slower method utilizing indirect heat imparted by the smoke of a wood-fueled fire and attended to over an extended period of several hours.  Generally the difference between barbecue and grilling is in the cooking time and the type of heat used. Grilling is generally done "hot and fast" over direct heat from low-smoke fuels (with the flame contacting the meat itself), while barbecuing is usually done "low and slow" over indirect heat from high-smoke fuels. Barbecue sauces are used as a flavoring, marinade, condiment, and/or basting liquid. The ingredients for American BBQ vary, and BBQ sauces vary based on region of the country in which it is prepared. The most common commercialized BBQ sauce is a Kansas City-style which uses tomato purée, corn syrup, molasses and vinegar and has a long shelf life. Salsa, the Spanish translation for sauce usually refers to the tomato-based, hot sauces typical of Mexican cuisine and Latin America. The migration of the tomato began in Mexico with the Mesoamerica Aztecs. Both the species and its use as a food originated in Mexico and spread throughout the world following the Spanish colonization of the Americas. The exact date of domestication is unknown but by 500 BC, it was already being cultivated in southern Mexico as an edible fruit. Students will read about barbeque, barbeque sauces, and salsas from an assortment of websites. Students are asked to review the information and extensive listings of barbeque sauces and salsas to answer discussion question 2.

Click here to access the A Brief History of Barbeque article from Time Online website.
Click here to access the Wikipedia page on Barbeque.
Click here to access the Wikipedia page on Barbeque Sauce.
Click here to access the Wikipedia page on Salsa.
Click here to access The Art of Making Delicious Salsa article from the Epicurious website.