While going out for barbecue is a favorite Southern pastime, backyard barbecues are a great way to get friends together for a relaxed gathering. Mark White shares some tips and a recipe to help you improve your barbecue skills.

1. White recommends soaking chicken in a brown sugar and saltwater brine overnight. Don't overcook it. Stop cooking chicken as soon as it reaches 165 degrees.

2. Pork is different. To achieve tender pulled pork, smoke a Boston butt until it gets nice and crispy on the outside; then put it in a Crock-Pot with a splash of liquid — water, Coke, whiskey or beer — and let it sit on low overnight. “You should be able to pull the bone out (of the Boston butt) with no resistance,” White says. “If it's not easy to get that bone out, put it back in the Crock-Pot.”

3. At Moe's, ribs are smoked until “the outside color gets to where we like it,” and then are wrapped in foil and placed back into the smoker. “The flavor and moisture is contained because of the foil, and that's really what tenderizes the ribs,” White says.

4. The most important virtue in barbecue is patience. It takes almost a full 24 hours to cook a Boston butt at Moe's, White says. Good barbecue takes time.

Moe's Original Bar B Que White Sauce

Ingredients

• 1 jar heavy duty mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon dry rub
• A couple of dashes of hot sauce
• A couple of dashes of Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• Pinch of white pepper
• Dash of cayenne
• 1/4 lemon, juiced (make sure no seeds make it into the sauce!)

Preparation

Mix all ingredients in bowl and mix well until smooth.