Pit barbecue facts for kids
Pit barbecue is a special way of cooking food, like meat and root vegetables, by burying them in a pit in the ground. People all over the world have used earth ovens for thousands of years. Today, this cooking style is often linked to the Eastern U.S. and places like California and Mexico. The most common meats cooked this way are beef, pork, and goat.
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What is Pit Barbecue?
Pit barbecue is a cooking method where food is cooked slowly underground. A pit is dug, and a fire is built inside it. Once the fire burns down to hot coals, the food is placed in the pit. It is then covered with earth to trap the heat and smoke. This slow cooking makes the food very tender and gives it a smoky flavor.
Pit Barbecue in California
Long ago, Native Americans in the New World cooked food in the ground for thousands of years. This included tribes in California.
When California was part of Spain and then Mexico in the late 1700s and early 1800s, large cattle ranches were common. After the cattle were used for their hides and fat, the remaining meat was often cooked in big pit barbecues. When California became a U.S. state after 1850, people called Californios kept this outdoor cooking tradition alive for their parties and celebrations.
Today, traditional Californian pit barbecuing is not done very often. This is because it needs a lot of space to dig a pit and a lot of wood for the fire. It also raises concerns about air quality. However, in 2007, a group called the 'Culinary Historians of Southern California' recreated an old California pit barbecue. They did this at the Ygnacio Palomares Adobe in Pomona. They burned hundreds of pounds of wood in the pit all night. Then, they lowered marinated meat, wrapped in cloth, into the hot coals. Everything was covered with earth. After cooking all night, the meat was described as "incredibly tender" and "deeply smoky."
A different style of barbecue from California is the Santa Maria-style barbecue. This style, from the Central Coast, often uses a portable grill that looks like a trailer. You might see these at farmers markets.
Pit Barbecue on the East Coast
Pit barbecuing is also popular along the Eastern Seaboard of the U.S. One example is the buried version of the New England clam bake. This is where seafood like clams are cooked in a pit.
In Maryland, large "bull roasts" are held in the summer. In colder months, they have "Bull & Oyster Roasts." Maryland-style pit beef is a bit different. It's usually cooked quickly over charcoal. The meat is often served rare, which means it's still pink inside. It's usually eaten with a strong horseradish sauce.
Southern-Style Pit Barbecue
In the "barbecue belt" of the United States, pit barbecue can also mean an enclosed cooking area above ground. This can be like an outdoor pizza oven. The meat is cooked very slowly using different kinds of wood to add flavor. This long, slow cooking breaks down tough parts of the meat, making it very tender. Both beef and pork are cooked this way.
Images for kids
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Pork ribs cooking in a barbecue "pit" in Memphis, Tennessee, USA
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A wood-fired barbecue pit at Wilber's Barbecue in Goldsboro, NC, USA
