Eastern North Carolina Barbecue
I’m not just a North Carolinian – I’m an 11th generation North Carolinian. Eleven generations, ya’ll! In a country as young as the USA, it’s hard to find anyone who is an 11th generation anything.
Yes, my Tar Heel roots go down to the bedrock, so it should come as no surprise that I was well into my teens before I realized eastern North Carolina barbecue – which is smoked whole hog, pulled and served with a spicy vinegar sauce – isn’t the only kind. That the bottled “barbecue sauce” sold at the grocery store was some kind of gloppy, ketchupy stuff, and obviously in no way related to what I called barbecue, was one of those anomalies in life that children are so good at ignoring.
Since then I’ve traveled all over the US, and tasted a lot of regional barbecues. Texas, Tennessee, South Carolina, even western North Carolina - they’ve all got their own style. But I’ll take eastern North Carolina’s ‘cue any day of the week. The spicy tang of vinegar sauce turns smoked pulled meat into something sublime.
Traditional eastern NC barbecue is whole smoked hog. Period. That being said, this sauce is just as delicious on pulled pork butt, chicken, or even turkey. This recipe uses chicken breasts, brined and grilled.
Traditional eastern NC barbecue sauce does not contain apple juice, butter or Dijon mustard, and it uses red pepper flakes instead of cayenne pepper. That being said, this stuff is delicious.
- 5 cups cider vinegar
- 3 cups white vinegar
- 2 cups unfiltered apple juice
- ½ cup dark brown sugar
- ¼ cup Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons hot sauce (I suggest Frank’s)
- 4 teaspoons cayenne pepper
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon ground black pepper
- 20 lbs. bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts
- Kosher salt
- ½ pound butter
- Combine all of the ingredients for the sauce, and store in an air-tight container for up to 2 weeks, shaking occasionally. Refrigeration is not required.
- Soak the chicken in big tub of salty water for 30-60 minutes. Put the chicken over medium-hot charcoal, skin-side up, and season with a sprinkle of kosher salt. Cook until the meat is browned around the edges and the skin is starting to brown on top. Flip the chicken and keep cooking until it reaches an internal temperature of 160 degrees. Remove and let cool. When the chicken is cool enough to touch, shred meat into a stock pot. Add the sauce and the butter, then cook over medium-high heat stirring occasionally until the butter is melted. Remove from heat and serve.