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Brunswick Stew, Leftover BBQ

A one-pot clean-out for the day after a cook. Onion and garlic in butter, then everything else in the pot: smoked meat, tomatoes, corn, stock and BBQ sauce, boiled and simmered into a thick, tangy stew.

OriginSouthern, BBQ leftovers
Active15 min
Total45 min
EquipmentDutch oven or large heavy pot
Sweat
5-7min
Onion soft and translucent, garlic fragrant, nothing browned
Boil
HIGH
Bring everything up to a full boil once
Simmer
20-30min
Uncovered, until it coats a spoon
Meat
2lb
Already cooked -- it only needs to heat through
1 · SWEAT 2 · BOIL 3 · SIMMER 4 · SERVE
1 stick butter Melt over medium in the pot before anything else goes in.
1 Vidalia or other sweet onion, diced Into the butter, stirring, 5-7 min until soft and translucent.
2 (or 10) tbsp minced garlic In for the last minute of the onion, just until fragrant. Don't let it brown.1
2 lb ≈ 907 g leftover BBQ -- chicken, beef, or pork Chopped or pulled to bite size.2
1 can (15-28 oz) ≈ 425–794 g fire-roasted tomatoes, undrained In with all their juice, which is part of the stew's liquid.
1 can corn, undrained In with its liquid -- no need to drain.
as much as you have leftover vegetables (optional) Chopped bite-size. Beans, potatoes, okra, peppers, whatever is in the fridge.
4 cups ≈ 946 mL chicken stock Pour in, scraping up anything on the bottom, and bring the pot to a full boil. Drop to a steady simmer, uncovered, 20-30 min.3
1-2 cups ≈ 237–473 mL BBQ sauce, plus more to serve Start with 1 cup. Add more after a taste at the end of the simmer. On the table for anyone who wants it sweeter.
2 tbsp ≈ 30 mL Worcestershire sauce Into the pot with the sauce.
to taste salt, black pepper, cayenne Season at the end of the simmer, not before.4
to taste hot sauce, to serve On the table for anyone who wants it hotter.
  1. minced garlic · SWEAT The recipe says 2 tbsp; the truth is 10. You can never have too much garlic.
  2. leftover BBQ -- chicken, beef, or pork · BOIL In with everything else, then left alone to heat through.
  3. chicken stock · SIMMER Stir now and then so the bottom doesn't catch.
  4. salt, black pepper, cayenne · SIMMER The sauce and the meat bring salt of their own.
Protein
Produce
Dairy & Egg
Pantry & Grain
Spice & Seasoning
Liquid & Fat

Notes

This is a clean-out recipe, not a formula. It exists for the day after a big cook, when there is more smoked meat and leftover vegetables than anyone wants to eat plain. Use what the fridge has; the quantities are a starting point.
The meat is a slot, not an ingredient. Chicken, beef and pork BBQ all go in the same way -- they are already cooked and only need to heat through, so nothing about the timing changes with what you use. A mix of all three is traditional.
Season last. Smoked meat, BBQ sauce, Worcestershire and stock all carry salt, and the simmer concentrates it. Salting at the start is how this stew ends up too salty to fix.
Hold back half the BBQ sauce. Sauces vary a lot in sweetness. One cup in the pot and the rest on the table lets each bowl land where its eater wants it.
Original Jason's recipe, sent October 2, 2026 -- written for the days there's a lot of leftover meat and vegetables from other meals.