The Art of Grilling

Local entrepreneur serves up gourmet grilling products

BY:Roxanne Avery

Whether you like needlepoint, folding origami, baking bread or have no idea what to do with all the extra time you have now, there couldn’t be a better time to start a new hobby. Or revisit an old one like upping your grilling game, perhaps?

J.R.’s BBQ Supply Company offers everything a backyard chef needs to grill at home.

J.R. Hatfield opened J.R. BBQ Supply Company after retirement when he moved from Kansas to Oklahoma to take care of his mom.

“She was 89 years old and told me I needed to get a job because I was too young to retire,” Hatfield said. “I may have been too young to retire but I was too old to find a job, so mom suggested I start a business. I couldn’t think of anything I wanted to do but I had been grilling for a long time and did a lot of cooking. Fortunately, there are not a lot of places like ours, so it just worked out and we opened in April 2019.”

J.R. BBQ Supply features Green Mountain pellet grills and although the company is 14 years old, the grills are just now taking hold. Founded in 2006 when the Traeger Grills patent expired, Green Mountain grills are known for their revolutionary three-position controller that put wood pellet grills and “techie grilling” on the map.

“They are a great grill as far as taste, ease of cooking and convenience,” Hatfield said. “Charcoal and wood take a long time to get started and get the grill up to temperature and it takes a long time to cook. The Green Mountain can be started in a matter of minutes and finished in an hour. On a pellet grill, all you do is push a button and you’re ready to start.

“It’s all wood heated and wood smoke, so the flavor is great.”

Offering rubs, seasonings and sauces from six Oklahoma companies, J.R.’s offers over 100 different flavors. Best-sellers include products from the Butcher Barbeque line in Wellston as well as Elk Creek, an all-purpose rub from Elk City. And Hatfield started his own line a few months ago, Magic Dust BBQ rub.

Selecting a rub depends on the meat, he advised.

“Then it goes back to convenience,” he said. “Start your smoker, set the temperature and put your food on. Ribs take about five or six hours. Pork butts and brisket take 10-12 hours, but you can cook pork tenderloin in about an hour and a half. I can cook a pizza in 20 minutes.

“The reward isn’t just the food, but also the scent of the meat as it cooks.”

Chicken wings are a favorite for football watch parties as well as burgers and steaks, pulled pork and ribs.

“Sides can be cooked on the grill too and you can put everything on at the same time,” Hatfield shared.

With the holidays just around the corner, Thanksgiving is perfect for smoking the family turkey and prime rib is great for Christmas dinner.

“You can do everything on a grill. Smoke, grill, dehydrate and barbeque. The possibilities are endless,” he said.

First-time customers are a favorite of Hatfield’s as he enjoys helping them get started in their new endeavor.

“There has been a big increase in customers during COVID,” he said. “People are tired of eating the same old thing and want a variety. They are also tired of fast food.”

Hatfield tells “first timers” the only absolute in barbeque is internal temperature.

“Food has to be safe,” he advised. “Chicken has to be cooked to 165 degrees and pork to 150. Everything else is personal preference. Play with seasonings and ingredients; it’s a lot of fun.”

Hatfield is planning to host basic smoking and cooking classes soon at J.R. BBQ Supply.

“A lot of people tell me they’d like to learn to grill but don’t know how to get started,” he said.

J.R.’s BBQ Supply Company is located at 123 SE 4th in Moore, at the corner of 4th Street and Broadway.

To learn more about grilling products and upcoming classes, call 2373099. J.R.’s also offers shipping. –19SM