Johnny Trigg
| Johnny Trigg | |
|---|---|
| Born |
1938 Texas |
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Culinary career | |
| Cooking style | Barbecue |
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Television show(s)
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Award(s) won
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Johnny Trigg (born 1938) is an American celebrity chef and competitor on the competitive barbecue circuit. He is a two time Grand Champion of the Jack Daniels World Championship Invitational, and has appeared on TLC reality television show BBQ Pitmasters.
Career
Johnny graduated from Cisco High School in Cisco, Texas, and afterwards went to the University of North Texas.[1] Trigg worked for Fireman's Fund Insurance Company in San Francisco as an insurance executive,[2] and retired in December 1996. He was introduced to BBQ whilst at the insurance company after he was impressed by a fellow executive's briskets, and bought his first trailer BBQ in 1984. After attending a competitive BBQ event in 1989, he entered his first BBQ event in 1990 in Denton, Texas,[1] and jokes that BBQ is his "golf game".[3] After entering contests in his home state of Texas, he began competing at Kansas City Barbeque Society events in 1999 as the prize money was better.[1] He annually enters around 45 contests each year,[4] spending between 225 and 230 days each year on the road.[1]
His BBQ team is called "Smoking Triggers",[2] and he has been nicknamed the "Godfather of BBQ" and has also been called "the New England Patriots of barbecuing".[3][5] He has twice been named the Grand Champion of the Jack Daniel's World Championship BBQ Invitational in Lynchburg, Tennessee, in 2000 and 2003.[6] It was the first occasion any competitor had won the competition more than once.[1] The event is considered to be the most prestigious championship in competitive BBQ.[7]
He appeared in the first two series of TLC reality television show BBQ Pitmasters.[2] He was one of four chefs who travelled to Kuwait to feed the US troops stationed there, cooking over a hundred briskets at each station.[2] In 2012 he was inducted into the National Barbecue Hall of Fame by the American Royal Association.[8] Johnny came back to cook in season 3 of BBQ Pitmasters. He not only placed 1st in the turkey and pork belly competition, but advanced onto the finale and became overall Grand Champion and won the title of BBQ Pitmaster.
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 "My conversation with Johnny Trigg". The Ellis County Press. 25 February 2010. Retrieved June 17, 2012.
- 1 2 3 4 "Colorful Johnny Trigg to Travel from Texas to Nevada for $40,000 Smokin' in Mesquite BBQ Championship". San Francisco Chronicle. August 24, 2011. Retrieved June 17, 2012.
- 1 2 Safi, Ahmed (May 3, 2008). "Can you smell that flavor? ; Competition heats up at Apple Blossom Barbecue Festival". St. Joseph News-Press. Retrieved June 17, 2012.
- ↑ McCanna, Ben (August 30, 2010). "2 Craig area cooks win awards alongside national BBQ talent". Craig Daily Press. Retrieved June 17, 2012.
- ↑ Sakai, Shuji (July 28, 2011). "BBQ Pitmaster Johnny Trigg's BBQ Class This November". OC Weekly. Retrieved June 17, 2012.
- ↑ "Jack Daniel's World Championship Invitational Barbecue Grand Champions". Jack Daniel's BBQ Media. Retrieved June 17, 2012.
- ↑ "Unadilla Man Sets Off For International BBQ Competition". 41 WMGT. October 20, 2011. Retrieved June 10, 2012.
- ↑ "American Royal Names National Barbecue Hall of Fame Class of 2012". Food & Beverage Close-Up. May 16, 2012. Retrieved June 17, 2012. (subscription required (help)).