From Mexico to Memphis: How barbecue unites cultures at the World Championship Cooking Contest

The smell of wood fire wafting on the breeze is the first sense that gets triggered at the World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest in Memphis, where smoke is as essential an ingredient as salt. Juventino Alanis of the Sociedad Mexicano de Parrillieros team prepares food for tasting at the World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest, Held last weekend as part of the Memphis in May International Festival, the annual cooking contest has also connected people across borders as food culture, both online and in-person, has spread the word about the popular event for world-class pitmasters. “And with globalization and all of this, different techniques are going across borders.” Out of the 129 teams competing this year, there were teams comprised of people from New Zealand, Norway, Canada, Mexico and Brazil, each one bringing their own culinary traditions and blending them with Memphis' food scene. His famous Rendezvous restaurant popularized dry-rubbed ribs seasoned with paprika and other spices based on his dad's chili recipe and slathered in a vinegar wash. Kenneth Richardson, head chef of the Memphis-based team When the Smoke Clears, said those Greek flavors and spices from Louisiana and other regions along on the Mississippi River all combined to influence Memphis barbecue over the decades.