Thyron Mathews of ‘Barbecue Showdown’ says social media got him noticed

This is part of an occasional series about Iowa influencers who are finding new ways to tell the state’s story through social media.

Thyron Mathews remembers standing in front of a flaming pit of coals and meat when he was 10 years old in Royal, Florida. He watched what would be his family’s dinner after his father asked him to watch the food for a few minutes while he ran to the store.

Mathews didn’t cook on a pellet grill or smoker. Instead, he helped his father prepare their family’s dinner in a brick pit, throwing coal into it to maintain the heat. Without realizing it at the time, Mathews was learning a family tradition of Southern barbecue.