Today we’d like to introduce you to Josh Hunt.
Hi Josh, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
In March of 2020, the pandemic hit our world and everything seemed to get turned on its head. Prior to this point, our family enjoyed eating out…. maybe a little too much. When the pandemic hit and the world shut down, there was no other option than to cook at home. I had always had a passion for cooking, but let the business of work and raising a family become an excuse as to why I didn’t cook at home.
I work as a Police Detective, and we were unable to work from home like so much of the world was doing at that time. One day, while talking about what we were going to make for dinner that evening a fellow Detective recommended this new Blackstone Griddle he had recently purchased. He talked about how he could get an entire meal cooked up at the same time and feed his family of four in no time. I was intrigued.
I immediately started researching Blackstone Griddles on the internet and quickly came across a model with a large 36-inch cooktop and two built-in Air Fryers. I was sold! I quickly called my wife and got the green light, with one stipulation. She said, “If you are going to spend that much, just make sure you are gonna use it!”. I assured her I would and hit the buy now button.
I picked up my new Blackstone from my local Walmart and got it put together that night. That weekend I got it seasoned up and then just starred at it. What do I cook first? Well… it was hamburgers and then pancakes the next morning. We’ve all been there…
Proud of my first burger off the Blackstone, I posted the picture to my Facebook account. Another friend who had been. Cooking on a Blackstone for a year or so, recommended some Facebook groups where people get together and share their Blackstone creations and recipes. I joined the Blackstone Griddle – Recipes & Videos group run by my buddy Andy Wilson. I was blown away at all of the awesome creations being made on these griddles. Pictures of griddles full of proteins, vegetables, and all the fixings filled my screen. I was hooked.
The Facebook group led me to posts from Blackstone’s very own Griddle Crew. This Crew made up of Desiree Ruberti-Dukes “Blackstone Betty”, Chef Nathan Lippy, CJ Frazier, and Todd Toven were just pumping out recipes and content surrounding the Blackstone. I must have watched hours and hours of videos in that first month, trying to learn the ins and outs of cooking on a griddle. They have been huge in inspiration along this journey.
Wanting to make good on my promise to my wife to use this purchase, I decided I was gonna cook every meal on this griddle for a month. A month turned into two which turned into six. I was amazed at the creativity and recipes that this outdoor cooking appliance had sparked in me. Wanting to share my creations with the online community that helped inspire me initially, I started to study food photography and what elements made a picture of food desirable to the eye.
The same friend at work who recommended the Blackstone, to begin with, recommended that I start an Instagram account to share some of my Blackstone Creations. In July of 2020, what is now known as @JoshHunt_Griddlin was born. I found a great community of home cooks, chefs, and foodies who all had a love for making, and eating, great food. I was captivated by just how versatile this piece of rolled cold steel could become in various cooking styles and techniques.
The Instagram account quickly grew and became way more than I ever would have imagined. As I’m writing this today, I have over 50,000 followers on Instagram. It has opened up so many relationships and opportunities with people around the world.
Through social media, I was exposed to other styles of outdoor cooking which of course included BBQ. Through Instagram and YouTube videos, I taught myself how to barbecue. I found some success in that avenue as well and I have had the opportunity to partner with some incredible companies and brands, including Traeger Grills, Meat Church, and Blackstone, along this food creation journey.
What I have learned is that food is a common language that crosses socioeconomic, political, religious, and geographical boundaries and brings us all together!
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The main obstacles I have come across on this journey have been self-doubt. It’s hard to be in the process of learning new skills all while putting yourself out there. There are definitely people out there on social media that only want to cut people down. Fortunately, there are way more people that want to be supportive and help build each other up.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
It’s the food for sure. I would say that I was initially known for some killer food photography pics. I loved taking photos of not only the finished product but the steps throughout the process. I felt like sharing the steps helped to enable people to feel like they could be successful in recreating these dishes too. Over time, as social media evolves into more of a video-based platform my content has morphed into how to type videos that still have a photographic type style, but also still include those crucial step-by-step processes from before.
If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
Definitely the quiet and shy type. That’s why putting myself out there can be a challenge. I’m constantly trying to push my boundaries and take my content to more personal levels.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @joshhunt_griddlin
- Facebook: @joshhuntgriddlin
