FOOD + DRINK
BARBECUE REVIVAL!
Get your fix of mouth-watering BBQ in Kent this summer …
Barbecue … What does it mean? Well, it seems that no one really knows, although plenty have tried to work it out.
It could be from the Spanish who landed on the islands in the Caribbean and found the locals cooking food out in the open. The Spanish named this cooking method barbecoa( see where we’ re going with this?), and it basically meant that the meat was cooked for a long time, outside, so that it was as juicy and succulent as possible. That makes sense. But then again, what about the idea that the term‘ barbecue’ actually comes from the American deep south, and that it stems from a phrase that was originally written as‘ bar, beer, cue’( as in a pool hall that sold liquor and cooked its food out in the open), which, of course, became barbecue( or BBQ for short). Yet another theory suggests that the word has a French origin( barbe a queue) meaning‘ head to tail’, which is certainly what the very first of these barbecues would cook.
Wherever the word and cooking style comes from, a barbecue is more than simply slapping some( possibly) marinated meat on a too hot grill and serving it up before it’ s properly cooked, hoping that friends and relatives don’ t get ill from it. No. A real barbecue is all about taking time – sometimes as much as 18 or more hours – to ensure that the meat is cooked in the most delicious, moreish way possible. A barbecue is not a quick meal, but it is a good one.
Although it may be the Southern states of the USA that boasts having the best idea of how to cook barbecue, we’ re not doing too badly here in Kent – and there are plenty of excellent restaurants around that will prove that point perfectly, and juicily, with just the right touch of sauce and perhaps a side salad …
The Bull, Wrotham The Smokehouse at The Bull offers plenty of excellent reasons to try their exceptional barbecue. They serve traditional, hickory smoked meat and only use the best quality meat( aged 6 to 8 weeks) and have a number of craft beers available to add to the experience. The menu includes smoked ox cheek, smoked beef brisket, spicy beef Bull banger and 10-hour smoked pulled pork with apple sauce. www. thebullhotel. com 66