Barbecue

Barbecue or barbeque (often shortened to BBQ worldwide; barbie or barby in Australia and New Zealand) is a term used with regional and national variations to describe various cooking methods, employing live fire and smoke to cook food.

The term is applied to the devices associated with those methods, the broader cuisines these methods produce, and the meals or gatherings at which this style of food is cooked and served. Though, the cooking methods associated with barbecuing vary.

The various regional variations of barbecue can be categorized into methods using direct or indirect heating. Indirect barbecues are associated with US cuisine, in which meat is heated by roasting or smoking over wood or charcoal. These methods of barbecue involve cooking, and using smoke at low temperatures with long cooking times for several hours.

Elsewhere, barbecuing more refers to the direct application of heat, grilling of food over hot coals or a gas fire. This technique is done over direct dry heat or a hot fire for a few minutes.