Why I still like North Carolina

[David M. Bueker]

Can't stand Duke, but this on the other hand...

NC Staple Food.jpg

That. Looks. Great. I think I'll print out a picture of it and eat it.

David, that looks great. Where is it from? We live in Pinehurst, NC for a few months in the summer and have a hard time finding good BBQ. There is a place about 20 minutes away called the Pik n Pig that has amazing pulled pork, but their ribs are only available by reservation on a Saturday night, so we haven't had them yet!

The dish looks great, but like Carrie we have never seen ribs in NC, only pulled pork. The sauce on the ribs looks great, but not Carolinian. Most of their sauces are vinegar rather than tomato based. There is some tomato in them, but the resulting sauce is much lighter in appearance. Despite all this, what you have there looks good enough to eat the picture!

[David M. Bueker]

This was at Mac's in Charlotte.

They have several sauce options. I tried them all at some point, as they provide squeeze bottles of all the options. I liked their "red" sauce and mustard sauce the best. The vinegar sauce was good, but too weak for my taste.

Remmeber that there are variaitons across North Carolina. The eastern part is very much vinegar based saucing. Not so exclusive elsewhere.

We like this on smoked Baby Back Ribs:

CAROLINA RED SAUCE:

1 ½ C. Red wine vinegar
½ C. Ketchup
½ tsp Cayenne
2 tsp Sugar
1 tsp Lawry salt

Whisk all together. Keeps in refrigerator for a long time. Recipe halves

[Robin Garr]

Remember that there are variations across North Carolina. The eastern part is very much vinegar based saucing. Not so exclusive elsewhere.

Point well taken. In my experience, in the Appalachian west it's the same sweet-tangy tomato-based sauce that you'll find on the adjacent stretches of Appalachia in eastern Tennessee (and Kentucky). And of course, even in those smaller states you get something completely different at the other end.

[David M. Bueker]

And just to clarify, this was the "small plate" of mixed meats - pulled pork, smoked turkey, brisket and ribs.

And just to clarify, this was the "small plate" of mixed meats - pulled pork, smoked turkey, brisket and ribs.

Are those grits in the little dish?
And, the fact that is a "small plate" explains why I am considered "skinny" by many people who live there!

[David M. Bueker]

Cheese grits! It also came with a salad, but that was not so exciting.

Great-looking plate of food there. Definitely a reason to go back to NC!