UK vs US BBQ cutswhat to ask your butcher for

Walk into a British butcher and ask for "a packer brisket and a rack of baby backs", and you'll get one of two reactions: a knowing nod, or a polite look that suggests you've wandered in from the wrong country. Neither means they can't help. It usually means the names are different, and sometimes it means the animal has been divided a little differently, so the cut you want is sitting inside a joint with a different name.

Why the names don't match

American and British butchers carve up beef and pork along slightly different lines. The meat is the same; the boundaries move. A cut that's a standard item in the US might be split between two British cuts, rolled up inside a roasting joint or simply sent off for mince. And Britain has a long tradition of selling joints for roasting and braising, which is why brisket so often arrives rolled and tied, and pork shoulder usually comes with the skin on for crackling.

None of that is a problem for smoking. It just means you need to ask for the right thing.

BeefPork

All cuts as a table

Animal	Ask a UK butcher for	US recipe name	Smoke it as
Beef	Neck and clod	Chuck (neck)	Pulled beef, or mince
Beef	Chuck and blade	Chuck	Pulled beef and chuck short ribs
Beef	Brisket (point and flat)	Brisket, whole 'packer'	The big low-and-slow cook, and burnt ends
Beef	Fore rib	Rib (prime rib, back ribs)	Rib roast; beef back ribs
Beef	Thin rib, Jacob's ladder	Short plate (plate short ribs)	Big beef short ribs
Beef	Sirloin	Short loin and sirloin	Steaks; rarely a long smoke
Beef	Flank	Flank	Quick cooks, not low and slow
Beef	Rump (and rump cap)	Sirloin, top sirloin cap	Rump cap: a quick, hot smoke
Beef	Topside and silverside	Round	Lean: better roasted or sliced cold
Beef	Shin	Shank	Smoke, then braise until soft
Pork	Shoulder (hand and spring, blade)	Boston butt and picnic shoulder	Pulled pork, the friendliest first cook
Pork	Loin	Loin, baby back ribs	Loin ribs and chops
Pork	Belly and spare ribs	Belly, spare ribs, St. Louis cut	Spare ribs and belly burnt ends
Pork	Leg (gammon when cured)	Ham	Glazed smoked gammon
Pork	Hock, knuckle	Ham hock	Smoked hocks for stock and beans

UK to US cut table

These are the common equivalents for the cuts that appear in barbecue recipes. Butchers vary by region and by shop, so treat these as a starting point for a conversation.

One trap catches a lot of people. In the UK, a "spare rib joint" or "spare rib chop" is usually cut from the shoulder, not from the ribs. It's a nice bit of pork, but it isn't the rack of bones a US ribs recipe means. Ask for "a full rack of pork spare ribs" to avoid the mix-up.

Beef

Brisket is the big one. Many British butchers sell it trimmed, rolled and tied for pot roasting, which works against everything barbecue brisket needs. Ask for a whole brisket, unrolled, with the fat on, or for the flat or point on its own if you don't need the full thing. A whole one is a big, heavy piece of meat and most shops need notice to get one in. Our brisket smoking time guide explains how long each option takes.

Short ribs in American barbecue usually means the big plate ribs, three bones wide, often called "dino ribs". In Britain, ask for Jacob's ladder or thick rib, and say you want it as a whole slab rather than cut into individual pieces. There's more in our guide to smoked beef short ribs.

Chuck is a cheaper alternative to brisket that smokes well. British butchers usually sell it as chuck and blade, or chuck steak. Ask for a whole piece rather than diced stewing beef.

Pork

Shoulder is the cut for pulled pork. The US "Boston butt" is the upper part, nearer the neck; the British collar is close to it. A bone-in half or whole shoulder does the same job, with a bit more bone and a bit more sinew. Ask for the skin off, because skin on a low-and-slow cook turns leathery rather than crisp. See pulled pork smoking time for timings.

Ribs come in two main kinds. Spare ribs, from the belly side, are bigger, fattier and meatier. Loin or back ribs, the American "baby backs", are shorter, leaner and cook quicker. Both smoke well. Our guide to smoked ribs covers both.

Belly is the same cut everywhere. Skin off for burnt ends or bacon-style cooks; skin on if you want to finish it hot for crackling.

Following an American recipe? Paste a line in and it comes back with UK cut names, Celsius and kilograms:

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Translate a US recipe

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Paste a line or two from a US recipeSmoke the 8 lb pork butt at 250°F, then wrap at 165°F. Serve with baby back ribs.

Try:BrisketPork buttRibsTurkey brine

The UK versionCopy it

Smoke the 3.6 kg8 lb pork shoulder (blade end)pork butt at 120°C250°F, then wrap at 74°C165°F. Serve with pork loin ribs (back ribs)baby back ribs.

5 changes, and why

• Weight 8 lb → 3.6 kg. Pounds to kilograms.
• Cut pork butt → pork shoulder (blade end). A US butt is the top of the pork shoulder, not the rear.
• Temperature 250°F → 120°C. Fahrenheit to Celsius, rounded to the nearest 5°C (fine for a smoker or oven).
• Temperature 165°F → 74°C. Fahrenheit to Celsius.
• Cut baby back ribs → pork loin ribs (back ribs). UK butchers call these loin ribs or back ribs.

Times stay as they are. Conversions are rounded the way you'd use them at the smoker; for food safety, follow FSA guidance rather than a converted US figure.

How to talk to your butcher

An independent butcher who cuts their own meat is your best bet for barbecue cuts, but plenty of supermarket counters will order things in if you ask. A few habits make it easier:

• Order ahead. Whole briskets, full racks of short ribs and large shoulders often need a few days' notice.
• Describe the cook. "I'm smoking it for eight hours, so I want the fat left on" is more useful than any American cut name.
• Ask for it untrimmed and unrolled. You can trim it yourself. You can't put fat back on.
• Say what weight you need. Work it out first with the BBQ meat calculator, which allows for the weight lost during a long cook, and then give the butcher a target weight.
• Ask for the trimmings. Brisket fat renders down into excellent cooking fat, and a good butcher may be glad to see it go to use.

Ask what they'd recommend for a long, slow cook. Butchers know which cuts in their shop have the fat and connective tissue that smoking loves, and some of the cheaper options are the better ones.

When the cut doesn't exist here

Some American cuts are rare in Britain. If a recipe calls for something your butcher can't get, look for a cut from the same part of the animal with a similar balance of fat and connective tissue, and cook to feel rather than to the recipe's time. Lamb shoulder, which American barbecue mostly ignores, is one of the most rewarding things you can put in a smoker; there's a guide to smoked lamb shoulder if you want a very British alternative.

Before your next cook, pick the recipe, work out the weight with the meat calculator, and ring the butcher a few days ahead with the cut name from the table above.

FAQs

What is a packer brisket in the UK?

It's a whole, untrimmed brisket with both the flat and the point attached and the fat cap left on. Ask a British butcher for a whole brisket, unrolled and untrimmed.

Is Boston butt the same as pork shoulder?

It's part of it. Boston butt is the upper section of the shoulder, close to what British butchers call the collar. A bone-in pork shoulder works just as well for pulled pork.

What are baby back ribs called in the UK?

Usually pork loin ribs or back ribs. They're shorter and leaner than spare ribs and cook a little faster.

Why is my brisket always rolled?

British butchers have traditionally sold brisket as a rolled joint for pot roasting. For smoking, ask for it unrolled and untrimmed, ideally a few days ahead.