He’s competed in barbecue competitions for decades, and last year, he won No. 1 overall at the Black BBQ Cook Off. Chicken is his specialty. “I am the chicken man,” Collins said.

African American pitmasters, though rarely credited, were the ones preparing the food, refining techniques and creating flavor profiles that continue to shape regional barbecue styles to this day.

It is unlikely that she was the only Black female pitmaster to play a role in American history, however like many other cultural contributions made by Black women, it is likely their presence has ...

Adrian Miller begins the introduction of his new book, “Black Smoke: African Americans and the United States of Barbecue” (University of North Carolina Press, April 2021), with the admission ...

Meet four Black women who preside as BBQ pitmasters over their black-owned barbecue empires in a field traditionally dominated by men.

Enslaved and free Black Virginia pitmasters like Thomas Griffin, Juba Garth and his wife, Mandy, John Gilmore, John Dabney, Jasper Crouch and thousands of other nameless men and women toiled in ...