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Richard Fergola - Fergolicious BBQ - ENCORE
25th January 2025 • BBQ Nation • JT and LeeAnn Whippen
00:00:00 00:42:53

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Richard Fergola from Fergalicious Barbecue shares his journey from a high school wrestling coach to a successful competitor in the world of barbecue. He emphasizes the importance of preparation and consistency, highlighting how meticulous planning and execution can lead to success in competitions like the American Royal. Throughout the conversation, Richard discusses his unique approach to trimming meats for competitions, focusing on uniformity and presentation to impress judges. He also describes his commitment to using quality ingredients, including aged pecan wood and high-quality meats, which contribute to his award-winning results. With insights into his upcoming barbecue classes and new partnerships, Richard's passion for barbecue shines through as he prepares for more competitions ahead.

Links referenced in this episode:

Companies mentioned in this episode:

  • Painted Hills Natural Beef
  • Fergolicious Barbecue
  • Sugarfire
  • Snake River Farms
  • Green Mountain Grills
  • Old World Spices
  • Proud Souls Barbecue


This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy

Transcripts

JT:

It's time for Barbecue Nation with JT So fire up your grill, light the charcoal, and get your smoker cooking.

JT:

Now from the Turn It, Don't Burn it studios in Portland.

JT:

Here's jt.

JT:

This is an encore.

JT:

Hey, everybody.

JT:

Welcome to the nation, this barbecue Nation.

JT:

I'm JT along with my co host and hall of famer, Leanne Whippen.

JT:

And we're coming to you from Turn It, Don't Burn it studios here in the Portland, Oregon area.

JT:

We'd like to thank the folks at Painted Hills Natural Beef Beef the way nature intended.

JT:

Well, it's a unique name for a unique company that's led by a unique guy, Richard Fergola from Fergolicious Barbecue over in Kansas.

JT:

And they're getting ready for the royal.

JT:

And Richard, welcome, buddy.

Richard Fergola:

Hey, thanks for having me, guys.

Richard Fergola:

Pleasure.

JT:

Yeah.

JT:

Leanne says good things about you.

JT:

Is that true?

Richard Fergola:

I don't know, man.

Richard Fergola:

I don't know.

Richard Fergola:

She may not have seen the real me yet.

Richard Fergola:

I don't know.

Leanne Whippen:

I've been around you quite a bit.

Richard Fergola:

You have, you have, you have.

Richard Fergola:

I appreciate that.

Richard Fergola:

Thank you.

Richard Fergola:

Huh.

JT:

So let's kind of start from the top.

JT:

How did you get started in this crazy business?

Richard Fergola:

Oh, wow.

Richard Fergola:

You know, well, you know, it's.

Richard Fergola:

It's funny.

Richard Fergola:

So the wife and I used to sit here on the couch at the house and, and watch barbecue pitmasters.

Richard Fergola:

And of course, you know, Leanne was on those first couple season, so, you know, we got.

Richard Fergola:

We got addicted to watching the show and, you know, watch those first few seasons and just never, you know, I was a college and high school wrestling coach.

Richard Fergola:

I was a full time teacher.

Richard Fergola:

And when I retired from.

Richard Fergola:

Well, when I left teaching and went into the administrative.

Richard Fergola:

Administrative role, my colleagues got me a.

Richard Fergola:

A seat for a CBJ class to become a KCBS certified barbecue judge.

Richard Fergola:

And so I went and did that and went and judged my first contest, and kind of the rest was history after that.

Richard Fergola:

We kind of judged five contests to get things started and.

Richard Fergola:

And where we were just blown away by how cool this.

Richard Fergola:

This whole competition barbecue thing was.

Richard Fergola:

We were kind of blown away by it and started Fergalicious.

Richard Fergola:

And actually our son, our youngest son, he's a senior now, but when he was six years old, we were just driving by an empty restaurant here in town, and he just out of nowhere just kind of blurted out, you know, daddy, you should buy that place and call it Fergalicious Barbecue.

Richard Fergola:

And I don't know how he knew what Fergalicious was at 6 years old, but we were like, we were like, that's our song or that's our name.

Richard Fergola:

And, and then just a few short later years later, I'm, I'm on Barbecue Pitmasters myself for the first time.

Richard Fergola:

So everything happened really fast.

Richard Fergola:

I mean really, especially after being on Pitmasters, it just, everything kind of started to steamroll and we had our first rub come out and then, you know, a couple years later I was on Chopped and actually I think Leanne was on the same season of Chop that I was on, just a different episode.

Richard Fergola:

And you know, then we were just recently on Food Network again on Barbecue usa and you know, we're, we're talking to some other people about some other shows.

Richard Fergola:

So it's just all happened in a quick 10 year time Spanish.

Richard Fergola:

And here we are, you know, it's 160 contests later and, and just running and gunning.

JT:

Well, that sounds truly like the American barbecue dream right there, buddy.

Richard Fergola:

Yeah.

JT:

So, you know, it's a big step and I'm not going to say anything that you don't already know and Leanne can verify me a thousand percent of this, but it's a big step to jump into the restaurant business.

JT:

It's one thing to compete, but when you jump into the restaurant business, I'm sure there's times when you said maybe I'm out of my mind.

Richard Fergola:

Well, I don't, we don't have a restaurant.

Richard Fergola:

I never, I, yeah, we never did that.

Richard Fergola:

So that was definitely one thing that I stayed away from.

JT:

Okay.

Richard Fergola:

Just because I didn't want to do that.

Richard Fergola:

So in:

Richard Fergola:

And, and I just, and actually the original idea of the store was going to be a Fergalicious barbecue restaurant and a barbecue store in one.

Richard Fergola:

And I just told the people that I was going to do this with that I wasn't interested in the restaurant piece.

Richard Fergola:

Just make the whole thing a barbecue store and I'll be the face of it and run it.

Richard Fergola:

And so that's what we did.

Richard Fergola:

So from:

Richard Fergola:

And then I left there in April to kind of pursue Fergalicious full time.

Richard Fergola:

And actually back in February I met, well, I didn't meet them, I already knew them.

Richard Fergola:

But a couple of the owners from Proud Souls Barbecue in Denver came to take my, my class in February and we just started chatting and we decided that we wanted to partner up and so we are actually opening a new store.

Richard Fergola:

In Kansas City, Missouri, up north, Proud Souls Barbecue, kc.

Richard Fergola:

And so I'm.

Richard Fergola:

I'm officially working for that crew now.

Richard Fergola:

And.

Richard Fergola:

And it's.

Richard Fergola:

It's awesome.

Richard Fergola:

They've got two stores in the Denver area, and we're going to open up a third location in Kansas City.

Richard Fergola:

So it's been really.

Richard Fergola:

A really exciting six months.

Richard Fergola:

I had to keep that secret for quite some time, so I'm just glad we were finally able to.

Leanne Whippen:

Congratulations.

Leanne Whippen:

Yeah, that's awesome.

Richard Fergola:

Yeah.

Richard Fergola:

Thank you.

Richard Fergola:

Yeah, thank you very much.

Richard Fergola:

So, yeah, the restaurant business, I've got a lot of friends that have barbecue restaurants.

Richard Fergola:

One of my really good friends is Mike Johnson from sugar fire in St.

Richard Fergola:

Louis, and he's got sugar fires all over the country.

Richard Fergola:

And even Mike's always like, ferg, do not.

Richard Fergola:

Do not do that.

Richard Fergola:

So I just didn't want to.

Richard Fergola:

I just didn't want to put in the time for that.

Richard Fergola:

And running a barbecue supply store is enough.

Richard Fergola:

It's enough.

JT:

Billy and I told you he was a really sharp guy.

Leanne Whippen:

Absolutely.

Richard Fergola:

Absolutely.

Leanne Whippen:

So you're continually.

Leanne Whippen:

I mean, you're hitting the competition circuit pretty hard.

Leanne Whippen:

Are you going to continue to do so once the store opens in Kansas City?

Richard Fergola:

I mean, for the first year, I probably won't hit it as hard, but that was one of the really attractive things with this partnership was Tony Roberts, the main.

Richard Fergola:

One of the main owners of Proud Souls.

Richard Fergola:

You know, he.

Richard Fergola:

He brought me on the crew to do what I do best, and that's promote and market and do events and.

Richard Fergola:

And go out and compete and put our name out there.

Richard Fergola:

And so they want me to continue to do what I do, and that's competing.

Richard Fergola:

And, you know, this year, when I left the other store in April, kind of when the season was just getting going, I decided to hit it hard.

Richard Fergola:

So I think we just completed our 21st contest for this toy year, and we've got about 10 more to go.

Richard Fergola:

And, you know, that includes both Royals and the Jack and some other big.

Richard Fergola:

And the World Championships in November.

Richard Fergola:

So, you know, I think we're number six in toy right now in team of the year.

Richard Fergola:

So I'm just trying to, you know, try to see if I can sneak in one or two more GCs and see if we can finish up there in the top five, maybe top three.

Leanne Whippen:

Yeah.

Leanne Whippen:

That's great.

JT:

So we need to check something right now.

JT:

You're.

JT:

You're one of the judges, Leanne, at the World Food Championships.

JT:

Are we bribing you?

JT:

Are we bribing you today?

Leanne Whippen:

No, I'm looking forward to going there.

Leanne Whippen:

They're going to have, yeah.

Leanne Whippen:

A few of us out there.

Leanne Whippen:

It's going to be fun.

Leanne Whippen:

I was out there last year.

Leanne Whippen:

That's quite the event, I must say, as is the Jack and the Royal.

Leanne Whippen:

I'll see you at the Royal and you'll be at the Invitational and the Open out there.

Richard Fergola:

I will be, yes.

Leanne Whippen:

And you made that.

Leanne Whippen:

You made the draw for the Jack, too.

Richard Fergola:

Finally, after.

Richard Fergola:

After 18 grand championships and seven years, I finally.

Richard Fergola:

I finally got my name drawn.

Leanne Whippen:

That is amazing.

Leanne Whippen:

I mean, what are the odds of that?

Leanne Whippen:

That's just extreme.

Leanne Whippen:

I mean, I felt bad because I was like, in the draw three times and I didn't get it.

Leanne Whippen:

And I was like, you know, I finally made it in, but 18.

Leanne Whippen:

Well, good for you.

Leanne Whippen:

So good as well.

Richard Fergola:

Yeah.

Richard Fergola:

Thank you.

Leanne Whippen:

Your line of products, what are you carrying right now?

Leanne Whippen:

Like what.

Leanne Whippen:

How many rubs do you have?

Leanne Whippen:

Do you have any sauces?

Richard Fergola:

Yeah, so we have six rubs on the market right now.

Richard Fergola:

And we have the original, we have our sweet, we have our Red Hot, we have our spg, we have our American Pie, and our newest one is our Smoke Show Sauces.

Richard Fergola:

My co packer that does my rubs, Old World spices, they weren't in the sauce business until now.

Richard Fergola:

They kind of.

Richard Fergola:

They bought out Head country, so they now have access to those.

Richard Fergola:

To those.

Richard Fergola:

The plant there where they.

Richard Fergola:

Where they make their sauces.

Richard Fergola:

So we are in discussions for 23 to come out with a couple sauces ourselves for fertilizer.

Richard Fergola:

Fantastic.

JT:

Very good.

JT:

What's been the biggest part of your learning curve?

JT:

You're a retired teacher, so you obviously got a handle on that.

JT:

But, Rich, what's the.

JT:

What's been the toughest part for you in all this?

Richard Fergola:

Probably being away from family.

Richard Fergola:

You know, it's.

Richard Fergola:

It's.

Richard Fergola:

You're definitely.

Richard Fergola:

You're definitely on the road a lot.

Richard Fergola:

You know, when I was a college head wrestling coach, you know, I had to be out recruiting all the time and traveling and.

Richard Fergola:

And our kids were young then, and so it was a little harder to do that then.

Richard Fergola:

And just you're giving up a lot of time.

Richard Fergola:

And, you know, I struggled with that.

Richard Fergola:

It was.

Richard Fergola:

It was tough.

Richard Fergola:

It's tough on everybody.

Richard Fergola:

And I think now that our kids are older, it's a little better.

Richard Fergola:

And then just.

Richard Fergola:

Just staying on top of everything.

Richard Fergola:

I mean, sometimes I feel like, you know, like this week and next week, I can assure you that's how I'm going to feel is, you know, you're being pulled, you know, 30,000 different directions.

Richard Fergola:

I mean, I think I've got four of these interviews just this week on top of preparing for a contest this weekend and getting ready for next weekend's, you know, because it's not.

Richard Fergola:

It's not even next weekend.

Richard Fergola:

It's all of next week.

Richard Fergola:

The royal.

Richard Fergola:

Pretty much the entire.

Richard Fergola:

The entire week.

Richard Fergola:

So, you know, that's kind of.

Richard Fergola:

It's.

Richard Fergola:

It's a lot.

Richard Fergola:

It's a lot on your plate.

Richard Fergola:

It's a lot to keep in your head and keep organized.

Richard Fergola:

And on top of that, we're entering the party of the year, and so there's a lot happening, a lot going on there that you got to keep track of.

JT:

So you need a personal assistant.

Richard Fergola:

Yeah, I mean, that would help.

Richard Fergola:

I mean, my wife does help with a lot of that stuff since, you know, she.

Richard Fergola:

She works with.

Richard Fergola:

With Fergalicious full time, so she helps me with a lot of those side things and take some of that off my plate.

Richard Fergola:

But, yeah, I mean, we.

Richard Fergola:

I could use a few more.

JT:

Always.

JT:

An extra set of hands is always very helpful, you know, Very helpful.

JT:

I don't compete, but I do cook.

JT:

And whenever you can get, you know, free labor, it's always good.

Richard Fergola:

That's exactly.

JT:

That's been my motto for a long time.

JT:

We are talking with Richard Fergalow from Fergalicious Barbecue in Kansas.

JT:

You said Olafy.

JT:

Olaf.

JT:

He's got a.

JT:

I don't know if they're still there, but I used to buy boots from the Leafy Boot company years ago.

JT:

So just a little trivia question there.

JT:

Our tidbit there.

JT:

They made great boots.

JT:

I don't know how they did with their barbecue, but they made great boots.

JT:

Anyway, we are gonna take.

JT:

We're gonna take a break.

JT:

We're gonna be back with Richard Fergaloa from Fergalicious Barbecue in Kansas right after this.

JT:

Please stay.

JT:

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JT:

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JT:

This is an encore.

JT:

Hey, everybody, it's JT from Barbecue Nation, and I've got a little update for you.

JT:

As you know, if you've been watching the news, Hurricane Ian is pounding Florida in various areas.

JT:

And I got a message from our friend Stan Hayes from Operation Barbecue Relief.

JT:

Stan's trucks are already up on The Tennessee Georgia Line ready to go down into Florida.

JT:

They expect to be there for two to three weeks.

JT:

And they have the capacity to serve up to 60,000 meals a day.

JT:

That's right, 60, 60,000 meals a day.

JT:

But they're going to need a little help.

JT:

So I'm letting all you folks know that listen to our show, that you can help them.

JT:

If you want to sign up as a volunteer or if you want to donate, just go to obr.org obr.org of course, that's Operation Barbecue Relief.

JT:

You can also share this out with your friends, family, maybe even your local media.

JT:

With the increased cost of fuel and food, this will be one of their most costly deployments down there.

JT:

So Stan Hayes and his crew at OBR are going to need a little support, and I encourage you all to reach out and help them.

JT:

Again, just go to OBR.org and you can volunteer or you can send them some money, or you can at least just wish them well.

JT:

We're talking with Richard Fragola today from Pergalicious Barbecue there in Kansas.

JT:

Tell us about your process, Rich, when you're getting ready to go, how you told us before we actually started recording today about you were, you know, going through selecting pork butts and different things like that.

JT:

Give our listeners an idea of what you do to get prepped to go to a competition.

Richard Fergola:

Yeah, it's pretty extensive.

Richard Fergola:

You know, I've got the probably the world's greatest pork sponsor in Pray Fresh.

Richard Fergola:

And, you know, that's what I'm doing right now.

Richard Fergola:

I'm literally standing out here with four cases of pork shoulders and I'm picking through them and, you know, finding out what I want to use for the royal.

Richard Fergola:

And just, you know, I think, I think the lesson behind that piece is preparation, you know, barbecue contest.

Richard Fergola:

Not saying that you can't just go pick something out of the grocery store and, you know, just show up and cook.

Richard Fergola:

I mean, there's a lot of people that do that.

Richard Fergola:

But when you're wanting to compete at a high level and you're wanting to do really well, preparation is key.

Richard Fergola:

And if you are going to show up to a contest like the American Royal, where you're going to have, you know, not just the nations, but the world's best cooks there, you need to have.

Richard Fergola:

You need to have something prepared, something ready, and you need to bring your A game.

Richard Fergola:

And so that's, you know, that's what I'm doing right now as far as just a normal week of contest, you know, getting the trailer Clean, refilling it with supplies, making sure the smoker's clean and back and ready to go.

Richard Fergola:

Getting all my meats in order.

Richard Fergola:

Yesterday was Sunday, so I get all my butts and ribs and briskets out of the freezer and they're in the fridge, you know, getting ready.

Richard Fergola:

Tomorrow we'll pick up chicken and our garnish and we'll get that home.

Richard Fergola:

And then Wednesday morning we trim.

Richard Fergola:

So Wednesday morning is my trim day.

Richard Fergola:

Tuesdays we make sauces and then Thursdays we make injections and, and then Friday we hit the road and we're ready to roll.

Richard Fergola:

So there's a whole plan in place.

Richard Fergola:

Everything's got its, you know, got its place and we try to stick to that and stay in order and, and execute our, execute every mark.

Richard Fergola:

So when we show up at a contest, you know, it's flawless and it's stress free.

Richard Fergola:

That's always what I say to people is when you're at a contest, if you can remain stress free and stay consistent, then you've got a good chance of being successful.

Leanne Whippen:

You know, there's a lot of people that go to these contests and they strive to be the best and get their GCs like yourself, and you're very consistent.

Leanne Whippen:

You win a lot.

Leanne Whippen:

How did you get to that level?

Leanne Whippen:

How did you learn what sauces, rubs to use?

Leanne Whippen:

Methods, cookers, There had to be something that brought you to that next level.

Leanne Whippen:

Did you go to other cookers and have them help you out, give you tips?

Leanne Whippen:

Did you learn online?

Leanne Whippen:

Are you self taught?

Leanne Whippen:

Like, how did you get to the level that you're at?

Richard Fergola:

Yeah, I've never officially taken a class.

Richard Fergola:

Never done that.

Richard Fergola:

You listen, you put your ear to the ground, you learn things.

Richard Fergola:

You know, I had an opportunity to learn some things from Tim Grant from Truebud, probably one of the greatest teams of all time.

Richard Fergola:

And other than that, just trial and error, you know, learning and you know, when I started developing my own rubs, I mean, I wanted to make sure that they were world class product that could go to these events and win.

Richard Fergola:

And I think we've proven that.

Richard Fergola:

And you know, you just gotta keep cooking.

Richard Fergola:

You know, a lot of people that come and take my comp classes, you know, they'll say, oh, we cook, you know, three, three or four comps a year.

Richard Fergola:

And I'm like, you know, then I'll ask them, what's your goal?

Richard Fergola:

Is your, is your goal just to go do that and have fun?

Richard Fergola:

If it is, that's fine.

Richard Fergola:

But if your goal is to hear your name called and have people handing you checks and trophies and.

Richard Fergola:

And to be one of the best teams in the world three or four times a year is not going to do it because you're not getting in a rhythm.

Richard Fergola:

And I feel like that's an important thing, is getting in a rhythm, getting in a routine.

Richard Fergola:

That's why, you know, people.

Richard Fergola:

Some people ask me if I'm competing this weekend, the weekend before the row, and I go, absolutely.

Richard Fergola:

I want to stay in my routine so that when I show up at the Royal, because when I'm at the Royal, as you will know, Leanne, it's a crazy.

Richard Fergola:

It's a crazy place.

Richard Fergola:

There's lots of distractions.

Leanne Whippen:

Absolutely.

Richard Fergola:

You know, not just.

Richard Fergola:

Not just from a party standpoint, but everybody's there.

Richard Fergola:

And so there are people that want to see you while you're there, because they may not see you any other time of the year.

Richard Fergola:

So, you know, when I'm doing my prep, I basically have to have my wife or somebody that's with me, you know, tell people to come back, you know, at this time, that's when I'll be done, so that I can just do that and not be bothered at all.

Richard Fergola:

So, you know, that that's.

Richard Fergola:

Those are all little steps that you take to, you know, make sure you can be successful at that level.

Richard Fergola:

And consistent.

Richard Fergola:

I go back to that same word.

Richard Fergola:

You got to be consistent.

Richard Fergola:

You got to.

Richard Fergola:

You got to learn how not to chase your tail.

Richard Fergola:

You know, if you're running.

Richard Fergola:

Running a flavor profile and it's not hitting, you know, don't.

Richard Fergola:

Don't change automatically.

Richard Fergola:

You know, I mean, for example, my last four contests in chicken, I changed something four contests ago, and we went first place with a 180.

Richard Fergola:

We went third place.

Richard Fergola:

We were 19 from a 180.

Richard Fergola:

We went second place.

Richard Fergola:

We were 19 from 180.

Richard Fergola:

And then this last weekend, I got 14th in chicken.

Richard Fergola:

So that's a perfect example of how not to panic.

Richard Fergola:

You know, I know my chicken profile hits three out of those four comps.

Richard Fergola:

I'm not going to go and change anything.

Richard Fergola:

I'm going to run it again this weekend.

Richard Fergola:

You know, so just little things like that and understanding that psychology of competition, barbecue can really definitely help improve your game.

JT:

We're going to take a break.

JT:

Excuse me.

JT:

We're going to take a break here on Barbecue Nation on the USA Radio networks, and we're going to come back with Richard Fergalowa from Fergalicious Barbecue in just a couple of minutes.

JT:

Please stay with us.

JT:

Hey, everybody, it's JT and I have eaten.

JT:

If you've ever looked at me, you know that.

JT:

But I have eaten seafood all over the world, and I can tell you there's no place better than here in Oregon and our Dungeness crab.

JT:

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JT:

Check it out.

JT:

This is an encore.

JT:

Welcome back to Barbecue Nation.

JT:

And the name is Forgola.

JT:

How's that?

Richard Fergola:

I got.

Richard Fergola:

There you go.

JT:

We got it out there.

JT:

We'd like to thank the folks at Painted Hills Natural Beef, as always for supporting this show.

JT:

And some of the actual best beef in the country is Painted Hills Natural Beef, just like your grandfather used to raise.

JT:

If you raised cattle, you can check them out online at painted hills natural beef.com and also guenter Wilhelm knives.

JT:

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JT:

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JT:

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JT:

They work for me, they work for Leanne, they work meathead.

JT:

They work for a lot of people.

JT:

So you can check them out online@gunterwilhelm.com and of course, one time really quickly here before we get back to Rich.

JT:

You can find us on most all platforms.

JT:

Whether you use Apple products or you got a Android or whatever, we're out there.

JT:

You can find us.

JT:

All you got to do is, is if you're going to search, just do Barbecue Nation, BBQ Nation, jt, and that'll bring it up.

JT:

Anyway, we are talking with Rich Vergola.

JT:

See, I got it twice in a row now, buddy.

JT:

And there you go.

Richard Fergola:

You got it.

Richard Fergola:

You're on a roll now.

JT:

I'm on a roll.

JT:

Watch out, world from Fergalicious Barbecue.

JT:

When you're, when you're prepping, and I know we don't get too much down into the real minutiae of this very often, but I'm really curious because of your success, walk us through the trim process.

JT:

Now, if somebody doesn't know what that is and they're flipping channels right now, Rich is going to tell us how he preps his.

JT:

Well, let's just take brisket.

Leanne Whippen:

He might not tell us.

JT:

He might not.

JT:

Well, when I'm talking about trimming, you know, no secret ingredients here, but give us the overview of that.

Richard Fergola:

Yeah, sure.

Richard Fergola:

You know, it's when you're trimming, when you're trimming for a barbecue competition, it's important to, that you are always aware of what exactly you're.

Richard Fergola:

What is your end result?

Richard Fergola:

What is it that you are trying to achieve with that.

Richard Fergola:

With that trend method that you're going for?

Richard Fergola:

You know, for chicken example, I'm looking for similarity in size.

Richard Fergola:

I'm looking for similarity in weight.

Richard Fergola:

I'm looking to take off the stuff that I don't necessarily want, that I don't want the judges to have, you know, so I'm looking for uniformity is what I'm really going for.

Richard Fergola:

And then with ribs, it's kind of the same thing.

Richard Fergola:

I'm looking for uniformity in that rib.

Richard Fergola:

You know, a lot of people, when they're coming to my class for the first time, they always kind of freak out because they're, like, watching me trim all this stuff off, and I'm like, well, I want it to cook evenly, and I'm only concerned about the parts that I want.

Richard Fergola:

So I really have to take my ribs, those slabs, down to the parts that I want to turn in for a barbecue contest.

JT:

Sure.

Richard Fergola:

And so that's.

Richard Fergola:

That's.

Richard Fergola:

That's an important thing.

Richard Fergola:

And you really got to know the anatomy of your ribs to get.

Richard Fergola:

To get that where you want it through the marbling, through the thickness, all those things come into play.

Richard Fergola:

They're all very variables for that.

Richard Fergola:

So when I'm trimming that, I'm trying to get any surface fat off that's visible.

Richard Fergola:

You know, that's gonna.

Richard Fergola:

That's gonna make the appearance look difference.

Richard Fergola:

I try to get rid of that and get down to the brass packs of the rib that I want.

Richard Fergola:

And I do four slabs of ribs for a contest, and, you know, it's pretty.

Richard Fergola:

I don't know.

Richard Fergola:

It's pretty.

Richard Fergola:

Ribs are pretty easy.

Richard Fergola:

And same thing with butts.

Richard Fergola:

You know, a lot of.

Richard Fergola:

A lot of teams out there that do butts, they take the bone out.

Richard Fergola:

Now, with the way the new KCBS rule is on pork now, a lot of guys are just hacking off with money, muscle and just cooking that by itself, which I've done this year, and I will do a couple of those at the Royal, too, just to have some extra money on hand.

Richard Fergola:

But you're exposing that money.

Richard Fergola:

You're exposing the piece.

Richard Fergola:

The pieces that you want to get to get smoke to and get color to.

Richard Fergola:

And then with brisket, I'm trimming down.

Richard Fergola:

I'm separating the flat in the point, and I'm trimming that flat down to box width for me.

Richard Fergola:

And I don't really cook the point anymore.

Richard Fergola:

I only cook the flat and turn in slices I have a whole philosophy on that, too.

Richard Fergola:

But, you know, it's all about cleaning it up, looking, making sure that when you put that on the pit, it's going to cook clean.

Richard Fergola:

It's going to cook even.

Richard Fergola:

You're going to get smoke and color and flavor on all the parts that you want.

Richard Fergola:

So then you turn that in, the judges, they get the best.

JT:

Well, I saw on your website that you work with Green Mountain Grills.

JT:

They're a great grill.

JT:

Is that what you're using in comp now is a pellet smoker, or what are you using?

Richard Fergola:

No, I am an ambassador for Green Mountain.

Richard Fergola:

I do a lot of that stuff in the backyard here at home.

Richard Fergola:

But I've been competing on the same type of pit for.

Richard Fergola:

Oh, this is probably my seventh season.

Richard Fergola:

Now I compete on a Meyer Nixon gravity feed smoker.

Richard Fergola:

So it's charcoal.

Richard Fergola:

It's charcoal and wood.

Richard Fergola:

And it's also a water cooker, but it's.

Richard Fergola:

It feeds itself.

Richard Fergola:

So I've got like a barbecue guru fan system because it's a fully insulated smoker and I love it.

Richard Fergola:

It's won me a world championship.

Richard Fergola:

It's won me a lot of every grand championship I've won has been on.

Richard Fergola:

On that poker.

Richard Fergola:

So I love it.

Richard Fergola:

It's mounted to the back of our.

Richard Fergola:

Of our porch on our trailer, and I set my temperature on that guru, and it just does its thing, you know, just.

Richard Fergola:

And the water pan is phenomenal.

Richard Fergola:

Really makes a huge difference in a lot of areas.

Richard Fergola:

Heat, balance, moisture, the color, everything.

Richard Fergola:

Fantastic.

JT:

Cool.

JT:

Well, you said you don't cook the points.

JT:

So are you.

JT:

When you're.

JT:

When you're looking at briskets and I'm to take with you, how many are you taking?

JT:

And are you.

JT:

Go ahead.

JT:

And are you trimming the flat off before you go?

JT:

And then are you just taking the whole thing and cutting it there so you know exactly what you want, how it looks and feels that day?

Richard Fergola:

Oh, I do.

Richard Fergola:

I do all trimming at my house.

Richard Fergola:

I don't trim anything on site.

Richard Fergola:

So like I said earlier, on Wednesday mornings is when I do my trimming.

Richard Fergola:

So on Wednesday mornings, that's when I have all my meats laid out and I'm ready to roll.

Richard Fergola:

For example, for the next month or so, I've already trimmed all my brisket.

Richard Fergola:

So all my briskets for the royal are trimmed.

Richard Fergola:

All my brisket for the jack is trimmed.

Richard Fergola:

And so I basically got a freezer full of Cryovac Snakeware Farms Gold Wagyu points.

Richard Fergola:

But I've just I think we've gotten to a point now where, no pun intended, that I think the Snake River Farms gold briskets are so good, their points are so good, they're so well marbled that you can turn in six of the best burnt ends in the world.

Richard Fergola:

And I think we still have some judges that struggle with that.

Richard Fergola:

With that texture.

Richard Fergola:

I don't think they understand, like, when it's melting in your mouth like that, but that's a good thing.

Richard Fergola:

I think sometimes it gets interpreted as fatty, but that's just kind of what I've noticed.

Richard Fergola:

The trend over the last couple years is I think some judges struggle to judge really good burn in, so I just decided just to leave them out.

Richard Fergola:

So I'm just giving them, you know, six, seven, eight, nine of the best slices I can turn in.

Richard Fergola:

And it's really fared well for me.

Richard Fergola:

So I think right now in brisket, I think I moved into the number 10 brisket team in the world, so.

JT:

Well, something's to be said for that, certainly.

Richard Fergola:

Yeah.

Richard Fergola:

I mean, it's just, you know, you just got to pay attention to the trends, and.

Richard Fergola:

And I mean, I.

Richard Fergola:

I love cooking the burnt ends, and I think they're fantastic.

Richard Fergola:

I just think that.

Richard Fergola:

I just think it's harder for them to judge.

JT:

So how does it differ from what you cook at home?

JT:

I mean, just Tuesday night, you're not going out this week to a comp or anything.

JT:

So how.

JT:

How does that.

JT:

How does that balance with each other?

JT:

Are you doing the exact same thing at home for your family, or are you toning down the seasoning?

JT:

Are you.

JT:

Are you shortening the cook times?

JT:

I mean, what are you doing there?

JT:

Because that's something that people that listen to this show, Rich, have asked me.

JT:

You know, they're like, well, you talk to a lot of competition people, but we're never going to do that.

JT:

So, you know, what are we doing at home type thing?

Richard Fergola:

Sure, sure.

Richard Fergola:

Yeah.

Richard Fergola:

When I cook at home, no, I different.

Richard Fergola:

I'm not being as aggressive on my trimming.

Richard Fergola:

I'm not.

Richard Fergola:

I'm not using all the different flavor profiles.

Richard Fergola:

I simplify it.

Richard Fergola:

I cook in the smoke a little bit longer than I do, you know, before I wrap than I would in a competition, so.

Richard Fergola:

And I'll push the temps a little further, a little harder than I would in the competition because, you know, I don't have to worry about my family taking one bite and writing the score down.

Richard Fergola:

So.

JT:

Right.

Richard Fergola:

You know, I'm giving them.

Richard Fergola:

I'm giving them some really, really, really good backyard Barbecue.

Richard Fergola:

And.

Richard Fergola:

And typically when I'm at home, I'm cooking on my drum or I'm cooking on my GMG pellet grill.

Richard Fergola:

So different flavor profiles there than what my competition pit does.

JT:

Sure.

Leanne Whippen:

So your competition pit.

Leanne Whippen:

I find this interesting because I bring a whole bunch of different cookers to comps because I like certain meats on certain cookers.

Leanne Whippen:

And you can vary your temperatures, whatever.

Leanne Whippen:

So you're cooking all of your meat on one cooker?

Richard Fergola:

Yep.

Leanne Whippen:

And are you using, like, a key temp or like 275 or are you.

Leanne Whippen:

What are you doing?

JT:

What are you doing?

Richard Fergola:

I cook everything at 275.

Richard Fergola:

My smoker is running at 275 for the entire competition.

Richard Fergola:

And like I said, it is a water cooker.

Richard Fergola:

So it has a water pan in the bottom, which is a huge.

Richard Fergola:

It's a huge factor in that cook.

Richard Fergola:

And I use pecan wood only.

Richard Fergola:

It's.

Richard Fergola:

And I is very aged.

Richard Fergola:

So I have a.

Richard Fergola:

I mentioned my.

Richard Fergola:

My pork sponsor earlier, Vaughn Wood Products out of Missouri.

Richard Fergola:

They give me all my wood.

Richard Fergola:

And so what I do is I have wood like I have wood in my garage right now that I will use for next season.

Richard Fergola:

And so it's aging right now.

Richard Fergola:

So the wood I'm using now I got over a year ago and let it age.

Richard Fergola:

So I get good smoke, I get good color.

Richard Fergola:

But the thing about pecan is it's not.

Richard Fergola:

It's not overly smoky.

Richard Fergola:

It's not like it's from the same family as hickory, but hickory is a lot more bold.

Richard Fergola:

So I use pecan and, you know, and I use royal oak lump charcoal.

Richard Fergola:

So I don't really.

Richard Fergola:

I don't push the smoke super hard.

Richard Fergola:

I mean, I'm using little tiny chunks, maybe the width of my two fingers.

Richard Fergola:

And I'm giving it.

Richard Fergola:

I'm giving it the color it needs, and I'm giving it the little blast of smoke that it needs, but I'm not overpowering it.

Richard Fergola:

And I think that's where sometimes people that are getting into competition barbecue make their first mistake is they feel like they got to be, you know, tossing tons of wood in this fire.

Richard Fergola:

And fire management is probably one of the main things I talk about in my comp classes or any class backyard or comp, you know, because whether you're cooking in your backyard for your family or cooking at the American Royal for a world championship, I mean, you still got to know how to run proper fire and make sure that you're, you know, it's getting oxygen that it needs.

Richard Fergola:

So.

Richard Fergola:

So that you're not seeing any smoke coming out of your.

Richard Fergola:

Out of your stack, you know, and that means you're running clean.

Richard Fergola:

And, you know your food is going to be banging.

JT:

We're going to take a break.

JT:

We're going to be back with Richard Fergola.

JT:

Let's see.

Richard Fergola:

You got it.

JT:

I did it that time from Fergalicious Barbecue down Rich lives a little ways down, kind of south and west from Kansas City, but he is all over the map.

JT:

So we'll be right back on Barbecue Nation.

JT:

Please stay with us.

JT:

Hey, everybody, it's jt.

JT:

You know, I talk about painted hills all the time, and we always say beef the way nature intended.

JT:

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JT:

Put a big, bright smile on your face, and whoever's at your dinner table will have a big, bright smile on their face.

JT:

And you can thank me for that later.

JT:

Just go to painted hillsbeef.com and find out more.

JT:

You won't regret it.

JT:

Hey, everybody, J.T.

Richard Fergola:

Here.

JT:

I want to tell you about Hammerstahl knives.

JT:

Hammer Stahl combines German steel with beautiful and functioning designs.

JT:

They're part of the Heritage Steel Group, which also does their pots and pans.

JT:

So go to heritagesteel us.

JT:

Check out the Hammer Stahl knives.

JT:

If you're really into cooking, I think you're really gonna like them.

JT:

This is an encore.

JT:

Hey, everybody, I wanted to let you know that we've added another feature here on Barbecue Nation.

JT:

Our good friend Kel Phelps from Barbecue News magazine and the NBBQA will be sharing with us here on the show.

JT:

Twice a month, update stories, news features, and upcoming events from both NBBQA and the Barbecue magazine.

JT:

So without any further ado, here's Kel Phelps.

Kel Phelps:

Hey, welcome, y'all.

Kel Phelps:

I'm Kel Phelps, publisher of Barbecue News magazine and managing partner of the National Barbecue and Grilling Association.

Kel Phelps:

Thanks for listening.

Kel Phelps:

And here's what's smoking now.

Kel Phelps:

e hall of fame inducted their:

Kel Phelps:

John Marcus of Manhattan, New York, Ed Mitchell from Wilson, North Carolina, Joe Traeger from Mount Angel, Oregon, and Leanne Whippen from Tampa, Florida, were all inducted in recognition of their notable impact on the barbecue craft through achievement.

Kel Phelps:

And additionally, Bobby Mueller from Taylor, Texas, Karen Putman from Kansas City, Missouri, and Adam Scott, Goldsboro, North Carolina, have all been selected as legacy members to the hall of Fame as well.

Kel Phelps:

Congrats to each and every one of you on this monumental achievement.

Kel Phelps:

released details about their:

Kel Phelps:

Orlando, Florida will be the location for the February 15th through the 18th event.

Kel Phelps:

And you can find more details on this event at the website mbbqa.org sure to have lots more information coming about this event as well.

Kel Phelps:

Are you serious about your barbecue and grilling game, but looking to dive a little deeper?

Kel Phelps:

Man, we'd love to have you join up with us at the national barbecue and Grilling Association.

Kel Phelps:

Learn more now@mbbqa.org hey, thanks as always for listening.

Kel Phelps:

And until next time, you guys, keep it smoking.

JT:

If you would like more information regarding either barbecue news magazine or the NBBQA, just go to barbecue news.com or nbbqa.org simple as that.

JT:

Welcome back to Barbecue Nation.

JT:

I'm JT along with hall of Famer Ms.

JT:

Leanne Whippen.

JT:

And if all you folks are headed to Kansas City here in a week or so, and you're gonna run into Leanne, probably, and you're gonna run into Richard, probably, and you won't run into me because I won't be there this year.

Leanne Whippen:

But we'll miss you.

JT:

You'll miss me.

JT:

I know you say that to me once in a while.

JT:

You know.

Leanne Whippen:

I do.

JT:

Yeah.

JT:

Miss my, My charm and my.

JT:

Debonair.

Leanne Whippen:

Yes.

JT:

Is that the right word for me?

JT:

Debonair?

JT:

Anyway, Rich, you were talking about, you know, no bark on your, on the, The.

JT:

Your wooden stuff and that you use a, A lump charcoal from.

JT:

I think you said Kingsford.

Leanne Whippen:

No.

Richard Fergola:

Royal.

JT:

Excuse me.

JT:

Sorry.

JT:

Bad Jeff, how long did it take you to really figure out your fire management?

JT:

Is a question I wanted to follow up on from the last segment, because what I've seen is sometimes people hit it right on the money, and then other times, no pun intended, they're kind of all over the map.

JT:

So how long did it take you to kind of get that nailed down?

Richard Fergola:

It's not something that you learn overnight, for sure.

Richard Fergola:

It probably took me a few years to really get settled in and understand the airflow and the oxygen and running the dampers and, you know, looking for that clean.

Richard Fergola:

And also just tasting things, you know, and tasting what too much smoke tastes like and what, you know, the, the mild tastes like, and just getting that.

Richard Fergola:

That palate formed and understanding, you know, what.

Richard Fergola:

What it's supposed to be like.

Richard Fergola:

And so it took a few years.

JT:

Was that a big job for you?

JT:

And.

JT:

Let me finish that question.

JT:

You just said something that I found very indicative of palate.

JT:

Right.

JT:

You know, when somebody walks in off the street, and they.

JT:

You hand them a rib from a competition, that's probably not what they're used to if they've never done it before.

JT:

So how much palate exercise, meaning how much did you have to eat to get this nailed down to where you.

JT:

You thought you had it?

Richard Fergola:

You know, again, it's probably a few years.

Richard Fergola:

You know, you just gotta.

Richard Fergola:

You gotta keep playing with it.

Richard Fergola:

You gotta.

Richard Fergola:

And that's cooking all meats, you know, whether it's chicken wings or.

Richard Fergola:

Or pork loins or pork butts or ribs or briskets or whatever.

Richard Fergola:

You really got to put that time in to kind of understand, you know, what that is that you're looking for.

Richard Fergola:

And I think.

Richard Fergola:

I think that palate is definitely something you have to get.

Richard Fergola:

And, you know, people always ask me, what's your favorite, you know, what's your favorite barbecue to eat?

Richard Fergola:

And I'm like, I really don't go eat barbecue that often just because I'm around it so much, you know, and I don't.

Richard Fergola:

And when you've got your face buried in a.

Richard Fergola:

In a smoker as much as.

Richard Fergola:

As much as I do, you kind of just, you know, you want to go eat tacos or you want to go eat, you know, pizza.

JT:

Yeah.

Richard Fergola:

Chinese food.

Richard Fergola:

Yeah, I love Chinese food.

Richard Fergola:

So, you know, just trying to.

Richard Fergola:

Trying to stay on top of all that.

Richard Fergola:

You know, I think we're at.

Richard Fergola:

I'm at a point now where, I mean, I've got a pretty good understanding of what.

Richard Fergola:

What I'm trying to hit, what I'm looking for.

Richard Fergola:

And, you know, I know when I.

Richard Fergola:

When I do hit it, and I know when I don't hit it, so.

Leanne Whippen:

It gets a little easier, I think.

Richard Fergola:

Yeah, for sure.

Richard Fergola:

I mean, you know, it's like anything, you know, the more you do it, the more.

Richard Fergola:

The more time you put into it.

Richard Fergola:

I mean, I think it goes back to what we were talking about at the beginning of the conversation is, you know, everybody talks about practice.

Richard Fergola:

For me, it's not really practice because I don't.

Richard Fergola:

I don't really practice competition at home.

Richard Fergola:

I think when you're in a contest, that's your learning ground right there, you know, because you got.

Richard Fergola:

You're under the gun.

Richard Fergola:

You got.

Richard Fergola:

You got time frames you got to meet, and, you know, you still got to be able to attack and hit every mark that you set forth for yourself for that contest.

Richard Fergola:

And I think that's where it's the hardest place to do.

Richard Fergola:

When you're at home, you don't have any of those pressures And I don't think you can.

Richard Fergola:

You can learn as much.

Richard Fergola:

You know, anything you can learn at home is okay.

Richard Fergola:

It's going to take me approximately this much time to do this profile that I've been working on and whatnot.

Richard Fergola:

And.

Richard Fergola:

But when you're under the gun, that's when you're really learning.

Richard Fergola:

That's the, the best.

Richard Fergola:

That's the best learning place.

JT:

Obviously, you've never been to my house because I always seem to be under time constraints, especially around the holidays.

JT:

Family pressure, timeline, family pressure, time, you know, and they're all sitting in the kitchen.

Leanne Whippen:

Yeah.

Leanne Whippen:

Richard, you've taught some classes.

Leanne Whippen:

I know.

Leanne Whippen:

Do you have any upcoming classes that you're going to be teaching?

Richard Fergola:

Yes, I just, just at the end of the week.

Richard Fergola:

Last week, I just announced my three dates for my competition.

Richard Fergola:

Class is going to be at our new store here in Kansas City, Missouri.

Richard Fergola:

All that you can find on my website@sugarliciousbbq.com it's on all my social media.

Richard Fergola:

But we'll be doing a date in December, a date in January, and a date in February.

Richard Fergola:

So like I said, all that can be found on our website and all the registration can be.

Richard Fergola:

Can be handled there, too.

Leanne Whippen:

Isn't it a little cold in Kansas City, then?

Richard Fergola:

Yeah, but that's the best time for comp classes, you know, because you can, you know, you're basically the off season.

Richard Fergola:

So people have, you know, they have the time to go do that where we're not, you know, messing with contests or anything like that.

JT:

Real quick, Rich, where can people find you, find out about you if they need to contact you or they want to.

JT:

How do they do that?

Richard Fergola:

So on social media platforms, we are on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter are under Fergalicious bbq, and that is Fergalicious with an O.

Richard Fergola:

And we also have our website@fergaliciousbbq.com you can order all of our products from there as well as find out anything else that's going on.

JT:

There you go.

JT:

Rich, thanks for being on the show.

Leanne Whippen:

Today and best of luck at the Royal, at the Jack, at the Worlds.

Leanne Whippen:

I'll see you two out of the three.

Leanne Whippen:

So awesome.

Richard Fergola:

Awesome.

Richard Fergola:

Best of luck.

JT:

It's all good.

JT:

All right.

Richard Fergola:

Thank you very much.

JT:

You bet.

JT:

We'll be back next week with another edition of Barbecue Nation with Leanne and myself.

JT:

Until then, remember our motto here.

JT:

Turn it, don't burn it.

JT:

Take care, everybody.

JT:

Barbecue Nation is produced by JTSV, LLC.

Richard Fergola:

Productions, an association with Envision Networks and Salem Media Group.

JT:

All rights reserved.

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