Sweet, tangy, fruity or smoky – there’s a barbecue sauce out there to match every meat. In America, the spiritual home of barbecue sauce, there are distinct styles for different regions – from the thin vinegar sauces of Eastern North Carolina to the thick and spicy tomato-based ketchups found in Kansas. Tomato, sugar, vinegar and mustard are key ingredients across the board, but it's when ingredients such as habanero chillies, chipotles, tamarind and sultanas get thrown in that flavours offer even more varied flavour profiles.
Kiwis are no less enthusiastic about cooking with fire than our American cousins and the recent interest in traditional “low and slow” Southern-style barbecue has seen it elevated from the back yard to trendy restaurant status. Condiments have been getting the premium treatment, too, with…