Thanks To Big Poppa Smokers - Johnny Trigg Class

I want to give a huge thanks to Big Poppa Smokers for hosting a wonderful BBQ class this weekend featuring BBQ legend Johnny Trigg!

Sterling, Jody, Brad, John, Jessie and crew put on a first class experience and treated the students, Johnny and Trish like royalty.

First, the facilities are top notch. A real classroom environment including ceiling cam and huge monitors so we could learn in a very productive environment. Non stop refreshments at our fingertips. Catered dinner, early morning donuts and ginormous breakfast burritos.

We were also provided with a goody bag full of everything Johnny used in class (well, there was no Jambo in my bag, but all the rubs/sauces etc!). We received a CD of all the pics taken throughout the room and even a poster signed by Johnny and Trish! Out of towners had their gifts shipped home free and everyone got to shop in the BPS store with a nice discount as well!

The class itself was top notch. It was Johnny going through a full KCBS cook, teaching us everything he does at a contest down to the smallest detail and answering every question asked. Add to that almost 24 hours of non-stop Johnny Trigg stories from his 20+ year BBQ cooking career and you have an amazing experience. The class size was very small so there was lots of one on one time and by the end everyone felt like Johnny's personal friend.

I can't wait to try out some of Johnny's techniques in the future and find ways to integrate some of his methods into my own cooking. I am sure it will do nothing but kick it up another notch!

To me, the experience was as much about getting to meet Johnny as it was about learning his recipes and techniques...this was BBQ fantasy camp for me and I loved every minute of it. Class went until past 10pm Friday and I was back at 2:30am to witness the lighting of his iconic Jambo. Getting to spend an extra 3-4 hours with Johnny before most of the other students arrived was priceless.

Thank you Big Poppa Smokers for putting together this wonderful experience that I will never forget!

There were students from several states so if you get the chance to go to another one in the future, don't hesitate to sign up. You won't regret it!

Big Poppa said:

Thanks so much Adam..There is another live thread about the validity of classes..especially from cooks that aren't red hot. I would not go to the expense.,...and it is an expense, trust me. I make nothing off the class fee.....have ten bps employees working overtime....and all the other production costs....if I didnt believe that getting a chance to spend 22 hours with Johnny and Trish would not at the very least be a cherished memory.

A vewry small minority will critique Johnny...and miss the point...There is tons to learn spending that time with him.

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I don't know what folks could possibly criticize him for. He tells everything he does and answers everything straight up. Yes, he does get a bit carried away with the stories sometimes, but honestly, getting to hear Johnny's stories was one of the main reasons I was there.

He showed us his whole process and we got to taste the results at the end. He wasn't there to cater for us, so you have to consider the circumstances when you are tasting the food. The ribs, for example, were a bit under done. That was because he cooked 30 pieces of chicken when he normally does much less and that brought the cooker temp down. But you know what, the flavor was still there. I got to taste Johnny Trigg's ribs. How cool is that? No one can teach you how to cook meat perfectly on your cooker anyway, and anyone who thinks they can go to a class and replicate everything the teacher does with the same results is sadly mistaken.

You have to learn the techniques and then carefully and thoughtfully integrate what makes sense into your own routine.

Learning from Johnny is a real "old school" BBQ experience. Does everything he does work in every contest in today's BBQ world? Probably not. But Johnny is all about getting back to basics and that was the big lesson of the weekend. Sometimes we get too caught up in the latest gadget, or complex cooking technique but Johnny gave me some much needed perspective on what good BBQ really is all about.

At a time when BBQ is seeing exciting growth and lots of new teams, the old school cooks are becoming few and far between. Johnny won't be cooking forever, so do yourself a favor and get in one of his classes while he is still willing and able to teach what he does. I am sure he will be around for a good many years, but why risk missing out on such an amazing opportunity?

Thanks again to BPS for allowing me the opportunity to learn from a true legend!