Picture a time when there was no barbecued pork in Florida—when there weren’t pigs at all.

That was the scene more than 500 years ago. It wasn’t until Spanish settlers disembarked from their ships, along with the pigs they’d brought on board, that our state’s indigenous people ever laid eyes on hogs.

Kevin Kokomoor, Ph. D., details this history in his book La Florida: Catholics, Conquistadores, and Other American Origin Stories. In the book’s final chapter, Dr. Kokomoor argues that the barbecue we know and love today traces its origins to the merging of Spanish pigs and Native American cooking methods in the 16th century.

Dalia recently spoke with Kokomoor, a Florida native who teaches history at Coastal Carolina University in South Carolina. In this conversation, they discuss why Spaniards brought pigs to North America and the consequences for indigenous people. Kokomoor also makes a case that Thanksgiving has its roots in Florida, and he shares his favorite ways to enjoy barbecue.