(CNN)Americans are perhaps the standard bearers of the "barbecue."
Come summer, US backyards and parks are full of people gathering around sauce-slathered chicken and other meats.
But famed as America's grill skills may be, many would claim it can't hold a glowing charcoal ember to the meat-charring culture of, say, Argentina or South Africa.
History isn't clear on where the term "barbecue" comes from -- one explanation is that it comes from "barbacoa," a term used by Spanish explorers to describe the Caribbean's indigenous Taino people's cooking technique.
In any case, barbecue as we know it today covers multiple cooking methods: On grills, above fire pits, under the ground and in clay ovens.
There are regional variations and customs everywhere from South America to Africa to Asia.
Read on for further proof that the lip-smacking barbecue experience is a universal tradition, not just an American one.
Braai (South Africa)
The South African braai ("barbecue" in Afrikaans) is the nation's top culinary custom.
Here, the frequent gathering of friends and family over grilled, juicy cuts of steak, sausage and chicken sosaties (skewers) cuts through all racial and socioeconomic lines.
And no place does "Sunday Funday" quite like the townships, where shisa nyama ("burn meat" in Zulu) venues elevate the braai experience with on-site butchers, cooks, drinks and party-starting DJs.
Chicago native and model Unique Love spent three years living in Cape Town and fondly recalls her first shisa nyama.
"Having a braai in Cape Town's Mzoli's Meat felt like home," she says. "After eating, I never wanted to [leave] because the community's ambience felt comforting."
Mzoli's Meat, M18/M36 Gugulethu, Cape Town Central 8001; +27 722 556 239
Asado (Argentina)
Weekly meat treat: The Argentinan asado.
Though its place as the world's top consumer of beef fluctuates each year, many would claim Argentina will forever be the grande dame of barbecued meats.
Like South Africa's braai culture, Argentina's affinity for the grill is more entrenched than in the States.
Attending a sociable, gut-busting asado ("barbecue") on an almost weekly basis is the norm.
Though a variety of meats and cuts can be experienced at any gathering, Argentinian chef Guillermo Pernot insists: "For the absolute best asado, one should cook a sweet pork and beef sausage, sweetbreads, thigh intestines and blood sausages."
Other asado tips from the two-time winner of the James Beard Award include using coarse salt to coat meats and to have the "indispensable" chimichurri -- a sauce and marinade which usually consists of parsley, garlic, oregano, vinegar and chili flakes -- at the ready.
Don Julio, Calle Guatemala 4699, Palermo Viejo, Buenos Aires; +54 1148 319 564
Yakitori (Japan)
Yakitori, a Japanese favorite, consists of diced chicken assembled onto bamboo skewers and cooked over a smoldering layer of charcoal.
Yakitori variations are labeled by chicken parts (strips of chicken skin make up "towikawa" and "negima" consists of thigh meat with leeks).
Its definition has expanded to include any grilled, skewered food, including vegetables, seafood, pork and beef.
While there are several ways to enjoy authentic yakitori in Japan, travel blogger Tanya Spaulding shares her tips for maximum enjoyment.
"The best way to savor yakitori is either from a street vendor, or sitting on the floor in your yukata (a sort of summer kimono), cooking your skewers over the shichirin (a small charcoal grill) in the middle of your table," she claims.
Yakitori Imai, 2-29-4 Sendagi, 102 City Heights Sendagi, Bunkyo, Tokyo; +81 3 3821 2989
Churrasco (Brazil)
Most visitors to Brazil get their barbecue fix at a churrascaria.
Barbecue enthusiasts with sizable appetites will love Brazil's churrasco (Portuguese and Spanish for "barbecue").
Most visitors to Brazil will get their barbecue fix at a churrascaria, where restaurant servers provide an endless supply of grilled meat cuts directly to patrons' tables.
While Brazilian churrasco might be the most famous, it's found in several other countries, including Bolivia, Ecuador, Guatemala and Portugal.
Dan Clark, a tour specialist who frequents South America, believes Brazilian barbecues offer more options for vegetarians than neighboring, meat-loving Argentina.
"At an Argentinian asado, you're really stuck with the salad and fries," he says. "But it's much better in Brazil because most churrascarias feature salad bars with dozens of kinds of fresh salads, pasta salads, pickles, breads, olives and all the other sides you could wish for."
Churrascaria Palace, Rua Rodolfo Dantas 16, Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro; +55 21 2541 5898
Lechon (Philippines)
Lechon (Spanish for "suckling pig") features a whole, impaled pig spit-roasted over a charcoal bed or in an oven.
Many Filipinos declare the tasty, porky treat to be their national dish although the same claim is made by Puerto Ricans.
The lechon cooked in the Filipino island of Cebu is often considered the best in the country, if not the world.
Fun fact: Every June 24 in Balayan, Philippines, the locals pay a special, religious-themed homage to roasted pig at the Parada ng Lechon (Parade of Spit-Roast Pig).
It involves lechons getting blessed at a church mass followed by a lively parade of floats, music, water guns (for the baptism) and lechons "dressed" in outlandish garments and accessories.
Rico's Lechon, Highway 77 talamban, Cebu City 6000, Philippines; +63 3 440 119
Tandoor (India)
It's true: that iconic Indian tandoori chicken you've known (and perhaps loved) for ages is considered a barbecue dish.
Tandoori food derives its name from the tandoor, the cauldron-like clay oven in which dishes such as naan bread, chicken, seafood and other meats are cooked under high-heat charcoal.
"The art of the tandoor originated centuries ago as a nomadic style of cooking in Central Asia [where] food was cooked on charcoal pits and meat was spit-roasted," says Manjit Gill, an Indian celebrity chef behind several acclaimed restaurants including Bukhara in New Delhi.
"The Tandoori cuisine as we know it today was introduced in the late 1940s in post-partition India, when people discovered that it was a better medium to cook meat in a tandoor rather than on the spit."
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