Depending on where you go in the United States, the terms barbecue and barbecue sauce have very different meanings. In the South, barbecue means one thing: pork. In the North, barbecue is used as a verb. When it comes to sauce, what you prefer is a decidedly personal decision. Different geographical areas offer their own take on barbecue sauce.
North Carolina
Nearly all North Carolinians have a strong preference when it comes to barbecue: Eastern style or Lexington style. In the East, barbecue sauce is made with vinegar, black pepper, and hot pepper flakes. The sauce is thin, hot, and penetrates the meat. Lexington, or Western, style sauce contains tomato paste, tomato sauce, or sometimes ketchup. The sauce is thicker and the tomato softens the vinegar’s bite.
Kansas City
Most commercially available sauces are based on the Kansas City style of sauce. This sauce is also tomato-based, and it is thick and sweet, often containing molasses or other sugars along with spices and vinegar. Tomatoes soften the vinegar taste, so, like Lexington style sauces, these sauces are not as sharp as Eastern North Carolina sauce. The thickness of this sauce means it sits on the meat and is more like a dip than one that penetrates the meat.
Texas
You can taste the Mexican influence on Texas style sauces that contain cumin, chile peppers, chili powder, onion, and ancho powder. Texas style barbecue sauce contains only a little tomato and no sugar. Medium-thick in consistency, these sauces are a little like thin soup. Sauces used in restaurants often contain meat drippings.
South Carolina
In the region of South Carolina settled by Germans (generally from Charleston West to Columbia), barbecue sauces are made mostly from yellow mustard, vinegar, sugar, and spices. As in North Carolina, vinegar-based sauces are more common near the coast, while the farther West one goes, tomato and vinegar-based sauces are more prevalent.
Geography and cultural influences of settlers dictate what barbecue sauce means in different areas of the country. Many people have strong preferences, but if you have not claimed a sauce as your favorite, trying them all seems like a delicious proposition.