Three Little Pigs Kansas City Championship BBQ Seasoning is as a standard Kansas City-style BBQ rub as you'll find.
The rub is a complex mix of sweet and spice and its flavor
profile is extraordinarily flexible on all types of meats.
There may only be 5 reviews on this site, but I've used and
tested more than I can count.
(Some aren't worthy of the words. Some were great but I can't find anymore.)
(Some aren't worthy of the words. Some were great but I can't find anymore.)
Three Little Pigs is probably one of my favorite
commercially available rubs.
It's important to note here that there are several
variations of Three Little Pigs. I'm specifically reviewing "Kansas City
Championship."
One of the things I like most about this rub is that it
plays extraordinarily well with others; meaning you can layer it
with other rubs and not have them fighting for top billing.
The rub has a deep smoke flavor that tastes surprisingly
natural with subtle hints of pepper and garlic.
I've yet to find a commercial rub that is competition-worthy. This definitely is.
For whatever reason, mass-produced rubs (even those billed as "competition") tend to taste pretty generic, but every once in a while you find one that tastes authentic. You can tell when ingredients have been added to cut costs or fill a bottle. And you can also tell when a company sticks to their guns and sells what wins Grand Championships. This rub is the latter.
I would have no reservations competing with this rub.
It is outstanding on pork, specifically ribs and butts. I also like to use it on salmon and mixed in hamburger meat.
I don't find this rub particularly fantastic on beef. It's not bad, but it doesn't stand out quite the way it does on pork.
The flavor of the beef seems to overpower that of the rub. That it mixes well with other rubs comes in handy here. I've found a mixture of Three Little Pigs and Tatonka Dust is great on a brisket.
MY RATING:
This is a textbook KCBS rub and can be used on everything; pork, beef, fish, in chili, on potatoes, in soup. You can't go wrong.
WHY DIDN'T IT GET 5 STARS? Flavor is much too light on large cuts of beef, like brisket and beef ribs.
BANG FOR THE BUCK: A 6.5-ounce bottle is generally between $6 and $7, pretty much the sweet spot for commercial rubs. It's worth every penny.
