My Que Roots by Julie

I was raised in Madison, FL, a rural North Florida (NoFlo) town about 20-30 minutes south of the Georgia line, so our culinary traditions are really South Georgian (SoGa).  And if you don’t think Florida is “Southern”, then stop visiting Orlando, Tampa, and Miami and go see the rest of the state.  Our barbecue style (and yes we do have one) is drier, pit smoked meat.  We use beef brisket, pork butt, pork ribs, and chicken.  The meat is always sliced and never “pulled”.  If there is “pulled pork” at a SoGa/NoFlo joint, then it is there to appease pulled pork lovers.  The pre-smoke dressing is minimal, so that you can enjoy the taste of the smoke.  The wood used to smoke the meat is often oak or pecan, which are plentiful in the SoGa/NoFlo area.  I LOVE oak smoked meat and believe that oak is highly underutilized as a smoking wood.  Oak gives the meat an earthy, organic flavor.   Pecan is also very tasty, giving the meat a nutty, slightly sweet, smoky flavor.  We are not famous for our sauces or rubs; in fact our barbecue is completely understated. And speaking of the sauce it is a non-controversial tomato and mustard based sauce with plenty of paprika and black pepper.  It lies somewhere between a Carolina mustard, a Tangy Texas, and a Smoky Tennessee.  Sonny’s Real Pit Bar-B-Q epitomizes the SoGa/NoFlo barbecue style and while it is a very pedestrian example, it is a pretty good place to introduce you to the style.  Our barbecue is typically served with garlic bread, barbecue baked beans (slightly sweet and with a bit of the smoked meat and house sauce), shredded mayonnaise based sweet coleslaw, and/or French fries. One item you will find seasonally in SoGa/NoFlo barbeque joints is Brunswick stew.  If you are ever in the area and at a ‘que joint offering it, try some.