Article by Debra Freeman
Photos of Theresa Bell by Fitz unless otherwise stated
While watching the first season of the reality cooking show BBQ Pitmasters, Theresa Bell said to herself, “I can do that…I watched and I said, I know I can do that.” When she spoke to her friends about getting into smoking meat as more than just a casual hobby, she pointed out, “if you do NASCAR, you come home with a broken car, but in barbecue, you come home… No matter how bad you do, you come home with food.” Not only did Bell learn how to barbecue, she has become an award winning Pitmaster and the owner of Big Dog Barbecue VA in Virginia Beach, along with her husband of 13 years, Larry Bell.
Before she started barbecuing competitively, Bell decided to become a judge for a year to better understand what was appealing in competitions. With plans to compete herself she saw judging as a way to learn the circuit and get an idea for what it took to win awards. After judging over 30 competitions up and down the east coast, she is considered today to be a master judge and still judges on occasion.
In 2014, Bell entered her first competition at the Chesapeake Jubilee. She hoped to place in the Anything But category, and created a stuffed shrimp with a hollandaise sauce dish. She also hoped not to place last in any other category. Although she came in last place in the Anything But category, she came in first place in the chicken category. From that moment on, her competitive spirit was fueled. “Every week my goal is to have my name called and to walk. I want to represent female teams and show that we can do it just like the guys can…I have to be the best, and I want to be taken seriously…I always cook in a skirt and am fully made up. That’s what I’m known for,” she said.
However, some of her rivals are also some of her closest friends on the barbecue circuit. Bell notes, “I have met some of the most fantastic male competitors, and they have become huge friends. The camaraderie and professionalism have been stellar. It’s like, I love you to death, but I’m still going to kick your ass every chance I get, and I expect you to try and do the same.”
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At the 2016 World Food Championships in Alabama, Bell had an opportunity to compete against the top ten female-led pitmaster teams from all over the country in the inaugural Cowboy Charcoal Fire and Ice Women’s Championship Barbecue series. With only five days prior notice, Bell attended and was able to “play with the best,” and finished sixth overall.
After 2016, she purchased a custom built trailer to make the grueling barbecue circuit schedule more comfortable. Bell elaborated, “we’re not cooking in snow, we have a shower…we can do catering, there’s a high end refrigerator. And bunks in the back, so I don’t have to go outside.”
Bell also believes in giving back, and it’s important to her to help others. In competitions she asks to be put next to new teams so she can help with any issues or questions they may have, and in her local community, the leftover food that she brings back from events are given away to those who are less fortunate. “We take 40 pounds of pork, 20 pounds of brisket, 20 pounds of ribs, 24 pieces of chicken; I can’t use all that food three to four times a month…I have a doctor who deals with a lot of unfortunate people and the Foodbank can’t take our food, so we are able to give it away. It’s touching. These are people that don’t get food, these are people who don’t get protein, and I’m able to help them with that, I’m able to satisfy my ambition for competition and feed people, and that is satisfying,” she said.
Photos of Theresa Bell on the competitive circuit courtesy of Larry Bell
Bell’s philosophy is that she always wants to be better, always wants to improve, and always wants to help someone. At 59 years old, she is proud of what she has been able to accomplish and what she is capable of doing. As she puts it, “I just want to set the example that ladies can do this and you don’t have to be a good old boy.”
For more on Theresa Bell and Big Dog Barbecue VA, visit bigdogbbqva.com
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