If barbecue is the show dog of Southern cooking, then Brunswick stew is the mutt.
Barbecue has pedigrees.
It has history. There are barbecue societies, barbecue books, barbecue competitions. But Brunswick stew is the poor cousin in the barbecue world. Always hanging around in the background, hoping somebody will notice it. Tucked on to a plate of barbecue more to round out the meal than to actually be eaten.