The Winter 2023 issue of Gravy asks questions about what barbecue is, who makes it, and how the craft is changing. From sliced beef brisket to pulled pork, from tacos to fire-roasted vegetables, barbecue speaks to the past, present, and future of the South and to the stories of pitmasters—the places they work, the smoke they conjure, and the sauces they stir.

Writer and cultural critic Latria Graham draws a through line from the transatlantic slave trade to contemporary South Carolina barbecue. Farhan Mustafa tells of Muslim American meat smoking traditions, bringing WhatsApp into the landscape of oral tradition. Columnist Hanna Raskin ponders the uncertain future of politicking around a pit. Author Daniel Vaughn examines the Texas barbecue juggernaut, and why barbecue outside the South—and outside the nation—is almost always made in the Texas style. Columnist Gustavo Arellano takes readers to a Latino backyard barbecue, and Jason McCall shares poetry. Chefs Ricky Moore of Saltbox Seafood Joint, Jiyeon Lee of Heirloom Market Barbecue, and Rob McDaniel of Helen share recipes inspired by the 2022 Southern Foodways Symposium.