Great BBQ isn’t just about the smoked meat — it’s about the full plate. At J-Top’s BBQ Shop in Clayton NC, the side dishes are crafted with the same care and attention as the brisket and ribs. If you’re building the perfect BBQ sides southern style spread to complement smoked brisket, these five classics are non-negotiable.
1. Creamy Mac and Cheese
No Southern BBQ plate is complete without mac and cheese. The key to a great BBQ mac is richness — you want a three-cheese blend (sharp cheddar, Gruyere, and Velveeta for creaminess) baked with a golden breadcrumb crust. The creaminess cuts through the smokiness of the brisket and gives your palate a sweet, starchy counterpoint between bites of smoked beef.
At J-Top’s, the mac and cheese is made fresh daily using a recipe that leans into full-fat dairy and real cheese — no powdered packets. It’s the kind of mac and cheese you remember from your grandmother’s kitchen.
2. Slow-Cooked Collard Greens
Collard greens are the unsung hero of southern style BBQ sides. When cooked properly — braised low and slow with smoked turkey necks or ham hocks, a splash of apple cider vinegar, and a pinch of red pepper flakes — they become deeply savory with just a hint of bitterness that cleanses the palate between bites of fatty brisket.
The vinegar in collards also mirrors the tangy notes in a good Carolina BBQ sauce, creating a cohesive flavor profile across your whole plate. Don’t skip the pot likker — the cooking liquid left in the pot is liquid gold for dipping cornbread.
3. Pit-Smoked Baked Beans
BBQ baked beans aren’t just a side dish — they’re a flavor amplifier. The best Southern baked beans start with navy beans slow-cooked with brown sugar, molasses, dry mustard, Worcestershire sauce, and chunks of smoked brisket ends or burnt ends folded directly into the pot. The fat from the smoked meat renders into the beans during cooking, creating a deep, complex sweetness that perfectly echoes the smoky brisket on your plate.
J-Top’s baked beans are made with actual smoker drippings and leftover brisket trim — a detail that elevates them from ordinary to exceptional.
4. Vinegar-Based Coleslaw
The debate between creamy and vinegar coleslaw is real, but for brisket specifically, vinegar wins every time. Smoked brisket is rich, fatty, and deeply savory. A sharp vinegar-dressed slaw — shredded cabbage and carrots tossed with apple cider vinegar, a little sugar, celery seed, and black pepper — provides the acidic contrast that cuts through the fat and resets your taste buds.
In North Carolina BBQ tradition, coleslaw often goes directly on the plate alongside the meat, or even on top of a pulled pork sandwich. Either way, it’s a textural and flavor counterpoint that makes the whole plate better.
5. Cast-Iron Skillet Cornbread
Cornbread is the finishing touch on any Southern BBQ spread. Cast-iron skillet cornbread — made with real buttermilk, a touch of honey, and baked until the edges are crispy and the center is moist — serves as both a side dish and a utensil for soaking up BBQ sauce and pot likker from the collard greens.
True Southern cornbread isn’t sweet like a Jiffy mix. It’s slightly crumbly, savory, with a deep corn flavor and a satisfying crust from the hot cast iron. At J-Top’s, the cornbread is baked in batches throughout the day to ensure it’s fresh and warm when it hits your plate.
Building the Perfect BBQ Plate
When you put these five BBQ sides southern style alongside a generous portion of J-Top’s smoked brisket, you’ve got a full Southern meal that covers every flavor profile: savory, sweet, acidic, rich, and hearty. The sides aren’t an afterthought — they’re integral to the experience.
Come experience the full plate at J-Top’s BBQ Shop in Clayton NC, or order any of these sides as part of a catering package for your next event. Great BBQ is always about the whole picture, and at J-Top’s, every element is made with care.
