Still known as John Hayden and Mike Boam, residents of Nibley and fathers of three and four, respectively, the duo gave themselves a joint name a few years back when they started a podcast -- "Fat Guys with Smokers."
When the partnership started...well, they didn't really remember when it officially started.
"This is the best part -- we have no idea," John said, drawing a laugh from both.
After further review, Hayden and Boam first began preparing for their podcast in December of 2022, with the first official episode airing on March 9, 2023.
By the time the guys came out with their first episode, they had been friends for approximately eight years.
While The Herald Journal will pass no judgement on the accuracy of the podcast's name, Boam and Hayden insist it suits them, and that they still have no idea what they're doing.
Reflecting on the first day of recording, Boam said, "We set up on his couch downstairs.
"I mean we were so nervous...and we still didn't have a name for it. We were trying to think of something clever and punny, and (John) just goes, 'I guess we just get on here and say 'Hey, we're not professionals, we're just a couple fat guys with smokers.'"
Admittedly, the two said the podcast went through its growing pains, but their product has vastly improved from what it was.
"It was really awkward for a little bit and then all of the sudden, there was just like a switch that flipped," Hayden said. "It became really natural to hang out and I think that's why we've stuck with it for so long... If it goes wrong, it goes wrong and we post it."
Though the focus of their podcast is centered around all things smoking and barbecuing, life topics find their way into the empty spaces.
"More often than not, it ends up being Mike and I complaining about something or just talking through... all the stuff you run into with parenting and 'How do you deal with this,'" Hayden laughed.
Returning to the bread and butter, the men who once smoked an entire 170-pound pig said all roads lead to Rome when it comes to smoking.
While Hayden feels the 3-2-1 method -- three hours uncovered, two hours covered and one hour unwrapped -- is relatively failsafe for ribs, a person's smoking preferences should only come as a result of their own failures and successes.
"You're going to find a million different things," Boam said. "Just pick one and try it, and then you'll know if you like it or not."
"I think the biggest thing for all of barbecue is it just takes time," Hayden added. "This is a lesson in patience, first and foremost, so don't expect it to go fast. If you try and rush it, it's not going to work. There's a joke in barbecue; people say, 'What time is dinner?'
"When the meat is ready."
The duo recommends taking on a pork shoulder as a smoker's maiden voyage, due to its low cost and lack of overall difficulty.
Thanksgiving: 'The mecca for smokers'Tip No. 1: Spatchcock and smoke your turkey -- no questions asked.
"What can you cook out there?" Hayden asked. "Everything and anything. What should you absolutely cook out there? Your turkey."
"100%," Boam added.
Tip No. 2: Use your smoker as another oven, if necessary.
"I've cooked an entire Thanksgiving dinner -- from the rolls, green bean casserole, sweet potato pies, the ham, the turkey, you name it and I've cooked it on the Traeger," Hayden said. "And it doesn't have a heavy, bitter smoke flavor to it."
Tip No. 3: Only after brining the turkey overnight, get creative with seasonings.
"Turkey is a blank canvas," Hayden said. "You can go traditional and do the herbs, you can do sweet barbecue, you can do hot barbecue, you can do cajun, literally anything you can think of you can do with a turkey and it'll just be awesome."
"I think the number one thing is you have to brine it," Boam added. "We talk about this all the time, just put it in a brine. It doesn't have to be complicated -- there's a million different recipes out there -- but you just need a little salt, sugar and water. Soak it overnight and it just makes your turkey moist and puts some flavor into it."
Tip No. 4: Buy a meat thermometer and do not trust the popup thermometer in the turkey.
"The first thing you do when you unwrap the turkey should be to pull that out and throw it in the garbage," Hayden said.
Hayden and Boam's favorite side dishes include; smoked jalepeno poppers, smoked macaroni-and-cheese, stuffed mushrooms, baked beans and cranberries -- though Boam believes the canned version is far superior to a homemade version (he's right).
To watch their podcast, visit "Fat Guys with Smokers" on YouTube or search the name on your preferred podcast platform.