The director of barbecue events with the Winnipeg Barbecue and Blues Festival says a low and slow style of barbecuing meats has been increasing in popularity.
The Winnipeg Barbecue and Blues Festival, slated for tomorrow and Saturday, will feature an internationally sanctioned Barbecue Competition. Teams from across Canada will cook chicken, a pork rib, either a back rib or a St. Louis cut side rib, a pork butt and a full beef brisket.
Perry Hopkins, the director of barbecue events with the Winnipeg Barbecue and Blues Festival, says, unlike grilling, the low and slow style of barbecuing, where temperatures are set at about 225 degrees, results in an extremely tender product. Grilling has always been popular but this low and slow style, we’ve found, really has been picking up over the years. There are actually a number of people that do a fair bit of hunting and fishing that will use smoking techniques to flavor their meats but we’re finding that this low and slow style of cooking meats has really got a good set of legs on it. It’s really because people can embrace it. It’s a simple form of cooking.
Of course you can get very elaborate in your prepping with different ingredients in your rubs or if you’re going to inject your larger cuts of meat but really it’s something that the common man can embrace. You don’t need a degree from a culinary institute in order to make a really good product. It’s simple techniques that can be easily embraced by the common man and you can really get some incredible products without a ton of knowledge.
