Slow Food U.S.A., Brooklyn Brewery and Niman Ranch bring BBQ to Brooklyn for a Pig-Fest

Jim “Trim” Tabb’s vast experience in judging and cooking fine barbecue has taken him to Bangkok, Canada, Ireland, Italy and all over the United States. On May 12th, Jim will add Brooklyn to the list. Slow Food U.S.A., Brooklyn Brewery, and Niman Ranch are proud to announce The Brooklyn Pig-Fest, a day-long celebration of this great American tradition. Jim says there are only two times you have to move fast when cooking BBQ: when you burn your hand and when you run out of beer. So what better venue to hold the event than Brooklyn Brewery? Jim believes that to do BBQ right, one needs to use only the highest quality pork and cook the meat for at least 24 hours. So there’s no better pork to serve than Niman Ranch pork, which is raised outdoors in pasture or deeply bedded pens, raised without antibiotics or hormones, never fed meat or animal by-products, and raised on sustainable family farms. Jim calls his cooking technique “slow and low.” So what better food movement to organize Pig-Fest than Slow Food U.S.A., which is dedicated to preserving and promoting American food heritage?

Jim is the organizer for the North Carolina State Barbecue Championship in Tryon, North Carolina; he has attended both the Memphis in May and Kansas City Barbecue Society judging schools; has won numerous competitions; and has cooked on both local and national television. Julia Child proclaims “his is some of the best pork I’ve ever eaten.” Jim will lead a five-person team consisting of his wife Kathleen; Bill Eason, “one of the finest hog cookers in North Carolina”; Kevin Cowan, winner of three different state championships, and his wife Valerie; who will drive up with three cookers from North Carolina.

Niman Ranch, which is now available at Whole Foods Market and fine restaurants in New York City, is generously providing an 80-pound whole hog, Boston Butt pork shoulders and St Louis-style spare ribs from their sustainable farms in Iowa. Sustainably raised chicken will also be served. New York’s own Brooklyn Brewery will serve some of their award-winning craft-beers, and local restaurants will try their hand at traditional coleslaw and baked beans.

The event will take place on Saturday May 12th, from 1 to 5pm at Brooklyn Brewery (79 North 11th St, Brooklyn, NY 11211). For directions, log on to www.brooklynbrewery.com Tickets will be $40 each (space will be limited to four hundred). For more information or to RSVP for the event, please contact the Slow Food U.S.A. national office at: 212-988-5146. Come to Brooklyn and Pig Out Slowly.