Local rib cook captures award

Everyone who is drawn to a grill has a secret for great barbecue.

Jared Ruf from In Good Taste Foods said it’s a combination of things in terms of the ribs he served up to win the Rhythm ’n Ribs local rib barbecue competition Saturday.

“The flavour of our ribs and the texture,” he said.

Ruf added getting the flavour just right though is near art.

“It’s not just the sauce,” he said, adding the sauce is sort of the last element of a good rib. “There’s the rub to start, and the smoke.”

Ruf said the rub, smoke, and sauce come together to create the flavour, but then there is still the actual time on the barbecue which makes the perfect rib.

Ruf said the panel of judges, a mix of local tasters, and representative from the pro barbecue trucks at the weekend event, were very generous in their praise.

“They thought everybody did a good job,” he said, adding since it was a ‘blind’ taste test, a few specific views on the ribs could have been helpful for competitors to learn from.

Ruf said the competition was a fun one, and he sees only bigger and better events ahead, building on the five combatants this year.

“I think there will be many more entrants next year,” he said.

For Ruf the competition was a first, but likely not his last.

“There may be more competitions because we won,” he said with a grin.

Topping the competition of local barbecue enthusiasts was something Ruf said in his case can have a long term effect.

“It’s great for our businesses to promote,” he said, adding getting the business name out into the public eye is always a positive. “It helps getting our name out there.”

So with a win, could Ruf see himself hitting the road with a barbecue truck like those highlighting the Rhythm ‘n Ribs weekend?

“Definitely. It’s not really a dream, but a possible vision … It’s one area I could see ourselves going into,” he said. “… There are many possibilities, it’s deciding which ones make the most sense.”