This Friday the 26th the Fifth Festival of the Barbecue Pi’ib Petenero 2026, with gastronomic and cultural activities that will culminate on Saturday, June 27 in Poptún, Petén.
This is a guided tour to learn about the process of making and burying meat with various local families who practice this ancient culinary technique.
“The origin of this festival dates back to the ancestral technique of ‘pi’ib’ or ‘pib’, a Mayan word that means ‘buried’ or ‘cooked underground’. This tradition has deep roots in the Mayan Itzá, Mopán and Yucatecan-influenced cultures, actively practiced since the 1950s to commemorate the most important dates of the community,” explains the statement issued by the organizers.
Admission is free and participants will be able to enjoy the opening of the underground ovens, the guided tour, cultural presentations, marimba music, concerts and folk dances, as well as the sale of dishes that will cost between Q35 and Q250.
This Friday, June 26, the tour with families through the neighborhoods will take place San Francisco, Santa Fe, Ixobel, El Venado, Las Joyas, Santa María, Las Delicias, El Reformador and La Calera, and will culminate around 4 p.m. with the “burial” procedure.
“The ritual involves marinating beef, pork, chicken, duck or peligüey in a traditional marinade or recado of tomato, annatto and sour orange, and then wrapping them in maxán leaves. Everything is deposited in earthen pits with firewood and hot stones, sealing them for 6 hours,” the statement added.
On Saturday the 27th, at 8 a.m., the “disinterment” will take place in Machaquilá. Then, at 11 a.m., there will be the official opening of the Barbecue Festival in El Porvenir park. At 3 p.m. there will be cultural activities and, at 7 p.m., the group La Formula will perform in the same place.
This festival was declared Municipal Intangible Cultural Heritage by local authorities, as it is considered one of the most relevant platforms for gastronomic diplomacy in the region, aimed at the protection and dissemination of an underground cooking technique, according to the statement.
Date
Friday, June 26 and Saturday, June 27, 2026.
Hour
Starting at 8 hours.
Place
El Porvenir Park, Poptún, Petén.
Entrance
Free
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