The Pitmaster's Podcast

Pitmaster of Fire and Smoke BBQ and host of Man Meat BBQ podcast Mikey Kay stops by to talk about what he has been up to and talk bbq business.

Aaron Gonerway is a former Texan who now cooks in the challenging cold and altitude of Aurora CO. Starting out as a small operation for friends or anyone lucky enough to catch his food for sale on socials to now securing a permanent location. We get to know his story and some pointers on selling and cooking bbq

With the SCA World Championships coming up soon we talk to the winner of last year's event Marissa Ouverson. With her new tell-all class on BBQ Champs and a slew of wins under her belt, we talk to her about what got her there and some tips and tricks she has picked up along the way.

We head north to have a live chat with Angie Cammack Butcher over at BBQ Pitstop of Logan. We talk about meat cuts and get a butcher's take on good and bad meats. Rusty even gets schooled on porterhouse. If you like meat and wanna learn a thing or 2 about where it comes from, check out this episode.

This week we have the legend of pits David Knight founder of Ole Hickory Pits. We get into how he started in the pit-making business and about the journey that lead him to the BBQ Hall of Fame and how Ole Hickory became one of the best cookers out there. Download where ever you get your podcasts.

We check in with John Linsdey of All Q'ued Up and Arkassippi Smoke Live. Co-creator of the now-famous Arkassippi combo. John recently won the prestigious Hog Drop put on by none other than Myron Mixon. A lot has changed since john was on the podcast last, so come catch up and learn what is new with the master of steak

This week we chat with the legendary rub maker and bbq competitor Stephan Franklin of Simply Marvelous. His rubs are used by the best cooks on the circuit and we get to know the man behind one of the best rub lines in history. He drops a lot of info about how to be a successful competition cook so don't miss this one.

This week we have Tony Roberts a very accomplished BBQ cook and owner of Proud Souls Barbecue and Provisions. We chat with him about his adventures in owning a bbq shop, tips and tricks on the comp circuit, and elevation cooking. We cover a lot more and could have gone on for another hour. so we will have to have him back. We hope you enjoy it.

Thermoworks has been busy making some new toys to take your cooking game to the next level. We talk to Amanda McGrath and Kyle Halverson about said toys and what you need to know about them before you buy. As always Themoworks knocks it out of the park and we are excited to share this info with you.

One of, if not the best rib cook in the world James Cruse chats with us about his win at Memphis in May, his new adventure in to rub development with Deep South Blenders and cajun land brand, his wins at Hogs for a Cause, the Saints, which chicken is better out of Popeyes or Churches, what could be the best documentary series ever, and his future in bbq competitive or otherwise. In our opinion probably the most underrated cook in the bbq world right now but that looks like that is gonna change soon.

This week we are catching up with Sunny and Jeff Moody. Sunny is fresh off her World Championship win at World Foods and they are getting their hands in all sorts of things. A lot has changed since we last spoke. Download and find out what they are doing these days and see how much they know about pointless bbq trivia!

This week we are catching up with Sunny and Jeff Moody. Sunny is fresh off her World Championship win at World Foods and they are getting their hands in all sorts of things. A lot has changed since we last spoke. Download and find out what they are doing these days and see how much they know about pointless bbq trivia!

We chat with the legend Kelly Wertz of 4 legs up BBQ about the new KCBS National Steak Championships, sausage, and how to be a better competitor. If you have been interested in knowing more about the new KCBS Steak competitions we went right to the source to get the breakdown.

Phil Breeden of LC BBQ is one of the best cooks on the circuit with an excellent rub line used by some of the top cooks. We chat with him about BBQ of course. We also talk with him about his extensive travel this past year (he cleared more than 50) and what gas stations to avoid in Atlanta. Give him a follow and try some of these rubs, you will love 'em.

One of the best brisket cooks on the circuit Brian Dywer of BBQ Bus sits down with us and talks bbq, tools of the trade, and his favorite cookers. He is also the inventor of the Brisket Holder and Bus Boards, 2 great accessories for any comp cook. Come hang out with us as we get to know Brian and learn a thing or 2 along the way.

Christie Vanover of Girls Can Grill is fresh off her GC in Indio CA. She just got back judging The Jack and is running SCA competitions. We run through her process and hear about her experience at the Jack and much more

Joel Fleetwood is an accomplished BBQ competitor and has recently been nominated to be on the KCBS board of directors. We chat with him about how he hopes to improve KCBS and BBQ in general.

If you can spell BBQ you know who Fred Robles is and what he has accomplished. The owner of Rio Valley Meats in Weslaco, TX took a stab at a bbq contest 10 years ago with borrowed equipment and has since become one of the best competition cooks in the world. He now is the head of the Champions Barbecue Alliance. We chat with the 2019 American Royal Grand Champion and learn more about the man and the myth!

Arnie has a combined 100 Grand Champion and Reserve GCs he is one of the top brisket cooks in Texas AND is an International Barbeque Cooker's Association Hall of Famer. He has a really great online bbq class as well that you can find here

Scott Nardi is an SCA cook who has 9 wins this season which is an SCA record. He also got a perfect score so to say he is one of the best out there is an understatement. We walk through his process and get a few tips we can use in our game.

We catch up with our good friend Lynna Oxley of Sugars BBQ. She has a new rub a new food trailer and made an appearance a the Jack! Check out what Lynnae has been up to since her SCA Golden Ticket. So sit back and relax after you download the episode of course.

First, we talk about Rusty's experience at the Jack then we get some advice on branding and how to get and retain sponsors. Megan walks us through all that and what she and her husband Jason have going on in the busy world of Burnt Finger BBQ.

YSB aka Your Steel Booty is one of the hottest teams on the circuit right now. Winning almost every comp they enter or damn close. They are fresh off of a 3rd place finish at the American Royal Invitational we chat about that and so much more. Get your hands on the book by the world champ Sterling Smith from Loot n Booty here

This week we talk to Jack Danials Senior Brand ambassador Jed Lirette. So pull up a chair and pour yourself some Gentleman Jack and listen as we talk about the most prestigious bbq contest in the world and the most recognized whiskey brand on the planet.

This week we are replaying one of our old, but one of our favorite episodes. We are replaying the Chris Lilly episode. If you haven't heard it before now is your chance to listen and if you have heard it, trust us, it is as awesome the 2nd time. Great content by one of the most genuine dudes in BBQ.

This week we talk to the winners of the BBQ Pitstop Championship series Nate Benson, Steak Grand Champion and Reserve Grand Ancillary, and Kyle Matuszewski Ancillary Grand Champion. We learn to origins of Turnip soup and learn a thing or two from these elite comp cooks.

Thee Anthony Lujan Takes over the Pod this week and chats with Slingin' Meats is an SCA Golden Ticket and Backyard GC winning husband and wife team from Utah. Watch out for these two they are on a roll and looking to step up their game even further.

This week we chat with Mark Avalos of SLAB bbq. A BBQ man in the middle of the "craft" bbq scene making BBQ his way. Mark takes his craft BBQ and turns it into his favorite food which happens to be sandwiches. He walks us through his journey from grilling in the backyard to opening a successful restaurant.

This week we talk with BBQ food truck owner, competition cook, and owner of Trauma Hogs rubs Jason Cottingham. He shares his experience with starting a food trailer and a little comp talk as well. Check out Trauma hogs traumahogsbbq.com

Erica Blaire is a pitmaster and soon-to-be restaurant owner and so happens to be the reigning champ of BBQ Brawl. Taylor Shulman is an accomplished pitmaster. Also, is a restaurant chef and consultant who had a strong showing on the show. We chat with them about their experience and things they are doing with their talents after the show.

Morgan Strunk fresh off his SCA double which he took down not only a Golden Ticket but a 2nd place call as well. We chat with him about his short rise to glory and he shares all the info he learned that landed him on his path to Forth Worth.

This week Steve Brewer aka Cast Iron Steve reached out to us and wanted to ask us some questions on the podcast about backyard completion, so we got Matt Hanson to join us and let Steve fire away. If you have a backyard comp coming up download the pod and we hope you learn all the things you need to get those calls.

Nate Benson has been crushing the SCA circuit this year and we sit down with him and talk about his success in steak and ancillaries. We hope you can get a good tip or two to help up your game.

After a long week of food truck madness, we decided to record an episode about farts, promote certain contests, and food truck talk. We call it the BS episode. We hope you enjoy our ramblings. But an episode is better than no episode right?.......right?

There is a lot going on in the world of Hey Grill, Hey. New website, new TV shows, new branding but most importantly a new sauce and rubs also.......New headbands. There is a lot to talk about so download where you get your podcasts and catch up with Susie and Todd.

We chat with Jared Hooker of Hooks Rubs and Spices. A Utah company with Texas roots. If you want some great rubs to make your food 4000% better you need to try these. These rubs are in our rotation when we cook so if you need any recipes just reach out. If you enter promo code: pitpod10 when you order you can get a sweet discount.

Bill Purvis may be fairly new to the competition BBQ world but he came in like a wrecking ball. He is currently 4th in the KCBS points chase. We talk to him about his quick success, tips, and stories about his journey up till now.

Chris Webb of Bushmaster BBQ is on a roll these days. He has racked up a slew of GCs and RGCs in his short comp BBQ career. We dive into his methods and hear some great stories as well.

This week we have Brennon Nielson of Sevier BBQ Addicts. He is fresh off a Golden Ticket win in Ogden UT. Brennon is a great SCA cook and he is laying it all out for us this week.

This week we talk with two of the best cooks the west coast has to offer Jerry Aguliar of Burnin' and Lootin' and Matt Hanson of Crooked Pigs. We discuss meat selection, trimming, and other basics to help get you started in KCBS bbq competitions, and also if you're a veteran of the comp bbq scene we have a bunch of tips for you as well

Marcio Borguezan of Hog Addiction BBQ Competition Team is a whole hog world champion, steak champion, bbq competition cook, and Tribal Fire ambassador. He is basically who we want to be when we grow up. We chat whole hog and winning steaks comps over live fire

We talk to John Bolton of The Wolf Pack a killer SCA cook and an all-around great guy. He walks us through some of his processes and shares some steak cooking tips.

We chat with The Steak Princess Rylee Wright. She is a 14-year-old multi-champion in streak and ancillary as well as being a fierce entrepreneur. She shares some tips and tells us about her journey in food sport.

Today we sit down with Clint Mitchel, Mardy Rich of Voodoo Coffee Roasters, and AJ Maudsley of Slowpoke BBQ. AJ will be judging his first comp and we talk with him about what he expects to see and try and get into the mind of first-time judges and then of course we break down what are other judges are looking for.

Steve Conaway is a very consistent SCA cook. A former bbq competitor who has settled into the SCA world quite nicely. We chat with him about his history and success.

The BBQ Ninja Craig Verhage has been cooking over live fire in almost every way imaginable for decades. We chat with him about his adventures in cooking. Craig is always a good time and we hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

On the pod this week we have KCBS Emily Detwiler and President Rick Wagner. We chat about all the things KCBS has going on and what the future holds for this organization that is celebrating its 35 year anniversary! So download where ever you get your podcasts.

Mike Wozniak of QUAU BBQ has won more comps than most teams combined. One of the most prolific cooks on the circuit we try and tap into the magic and glean what we can from one of the legends of bbq.

We have Ray Lampe on the show today. Ray got started in competition bbq and now is a household name in the BBQ world. We chat with him about comp bbq and here some great stories from the legend himself!

Jake Gross is the rancher and co-founder of E3 meats He walks us through what happens to our meat from birth to store. They raise Angus beef and have one of the best programs out there and we get a behind-the-scenes look at the cattle-raising process.