Huggins residents Mike and Julie Anderson have turned a love for smoking meats into a mobile business, “Mike and Julie’s Smoked Meats.”
It all started with some people they knew prodding them to share their food with the public. Huggins residents Mike and Julie Anderson peer through the serving window of their “Mike and Julie’s Smoked Meats” trailer last Saturday during the annual “Aleiversary” at the Piney River Brewing Co. in Bucyrus.
“Our families were starting to say that and then some friends,” Julie said.
“So we decided to give it a roll,” Mike said.
The Andersons acquired their now familiar trailer from Salty Jack’s in Eminence in March 2014. Prior to that, they set up a booth at a couple of festivals and noticed that folks seemed to like what they had to offer.
“We really weren’t a business until we got the trailer,” Julie said.
Now the Andersons bring their trailer to events and festivals several times a year in the general area. They’re a fixture outside the Piney River Brewing Company’s BARn in Bucyrus, often serving food there on weekends when a live music act is playing at the venue.
Last Saturday, the Andersons worked Piney River’s 7th annual “Aleiversary – their sixth Aleiversary.
“We like breweries,” Mike said.
Julie is a Rhode Island native who grew up in Nebraska and came to Texas County in the early 1990s, while Mike is a Columbia native and a former Marine who has lived “all over the place.”
Mike’s past includes lots of work in lumberyards, while Julie has worked for years with a Licking-based government contractor involved in high-tech projects.
In a large smoker at home, Mike smokes plenty of brisket and pork for their popular sliders and other dishes. To produce their mouth-watering meats, the Andersons use a dry rub and “injectables” they created and two of their own barbecue sauces.
“Then it comes down to slow smoke and low heat,” Mike said.
The smoke and heat are provided exclusively by fruitwoods, mainly apple.
“Hickory and mesquite are kind of bitter to me,” Mike said.
When it comes to smoking brisket, Mike said it’s about being attentive.
“The injectables and rub give it a lot of flavor, but the key is keeping an eye on it because all cuts of brisket are different,” he said. “Some cook up faster, but with some you just have to cook the heck out of them to get them where you want.”
The Andersons’ pork is coated with a bit of mustard before it’s smoked.
“That helps it hold in the dry rub,” Julie said.
The Andersons prefer acquiring meat from sources where it’s visible prior to purchase. Julie Anderson (of “Mike and Julie’s Smoked Meats” of Huggins) prepares to serve up plates of pork and brisket sliders and Irish nachos during the annual “Aleiversary” at the Piney River Brewing Co. last Saturday in Bucyrus.
“If you can look at it, you just kind of know,” Mike said.
The Andersons consider “Irish nachos” as their signature offering; it’s “ribbon fries” with cheddar cheese sauce and either smoked pulled pork, brisket or corned beef. They recently added “street tacos” to their menu (consisting of smoked meat with sauce, sour cream, lettuce and shredded cheese) and even offer cheesecakes as a sweet alternative.
Between their two main meat selections, Julie prefers the pork, while Mike is a brisket fan.
“I love it all, but I like the texture of the pork better,” Julie said.
“I think I basically just like beef better than pork,” Mike said. Mike Anderson, of Mike & Julie’s Smoked Meats, sits with his mobile meat smoker.
Whether savory or sweet, the Andersons’ foods are built from the ground up.
“One of our main goals and what we pride ourselves in is the fact that we provide products that are made from scratch and are made fresh for every event,” Julie said. “Mike spends a good portion of the night before our events tending the smoker to make sure our meats are as fresh as possible each time.”
Julie said that so far, people seem to like that approach.
“We always look for constructive criticism and ask people what they would do better,” she said, “but we just hear a lot of ‘awesome’ and ‘fantastic’ and that kind of thing.”
The Andersons notice of peoples’ positive reactions and don’t take it lightly.
“It’s that look on peoples’ faces when we serve them,” Mike said.
“We do this because we just love serving people good food,” Julie said.
Mike & Julie’s Smoked Meats also does catering, with ribs, wings and prime rib as additional options.
Customers gather around the “Mike and Julie’s Smoked Meats” trailer last Saturday during the annual “Aleiversary” at the Piney River Brewing Co. in Bucyrus.
Mike and Julie Anderson can be reached by phone at 573-201-3132 or email at mikeandjuliesbbq@hotmail.com. Information about the company can be found on Facebook.
“We do this because we just love serving people good food.”
JULIE ANDERSON