He used to fear mixing passion with work. Now, this 29-year-old barbecue pitmaster is only getting more fired up

Meeting Mr Chua Jett Yong in person, the first thing I noticed about him was the dark, puffy bags underneath his eyes.

The 29-year-old was in the middle of a busy period when CNA TODAY visited him at his workplace – an obscure food factory in the middle of an industrial area – in early August. 

He'd spent the last 24 hours caring for his newborn son, helping out at his wife's new business, and smoking over 300kg of meat overnight in preparation for another hectic day at Sentosa GrillFest.

It sounds like a brutal schedule, but this is the kind of work ethic that has enabled Mr Chua – affably known as "Jett" – to grow his delivery-only cooked meats gig into a word-of-mouth success. 

At the time of this story's publication, Jett Barbecue has garnered nearly 30,000 followers on Instagram alone, quickly turning it into a mainstay at major food festivals in Singapore. 

Earlier this year, Sentosa GrillFest and Gastrobeats saw hundreds of eager fans and curious customers alike flocking to Jett Barbecue's stalls, all of them willing to stand in line for upwards of an hour for a taste of Mr Chua's perfectly smoked, fall-off-the-bone USDA prime ribs.

Despite the lack of sleep, he greeted us with a big, warm smile. His passion for all things Texan barbecue was instantly evident when I set foot in his sweltering kitchen, thanks to the two sleek, bright red smokers sitting along the wall.

Mr Chua had them flown in from a renowned smoker company based in Texas, United States. The price tag? A cool S$65,000 each. 

"It's the Rolls-Royce of smokers," he said, equal parts loving and proud. 

Even cooler: he has a third smoker, which was at the time temporarily relocated to his Sentosa GrillFest stall. 

Machines aside, Mr Chua gets his specially dried post-oak logs shipped into Singapore all the way from – you guessed it – Texas. 

Showing off cuts of Texan oak, he rambled on excitedly about the wood's water content, how it directly affects the amount of smoke produced when burned, and how it gives his smoked meats their unique flavour. 

Beaming enthusiastically, Mr Chua turned to us and asked: "Do you want to hold some wood?"

It was hard to picture the man before me rambling on excitedly about the water content of the hunk of wood in his hand in a sombre, cushy office job – but that was exactly what he'd given up in December 2020, walking away from his role in a Big Four accounting firm to pursue barbecue full-time. 

DISCOVERY OF A DREAM

Born into a family of serious foodies, Mr Chua is no stranger to bustling kitchens. 

He fondly recalls Chinese New Year gatherings where everyone would cook a dish to bring to the dinner table. "I was always in the kitchen from a young age," he said, recalling a burnt lasagna he served up when he was 10 years old. 

At the stove, he quickly found himself drawn towards meats, often opting for Western dishes heavy on beef and pork.

When he was 14, his family visited the United States on holiday. He no longer remembers most of the trip, but Mr Chua still vividly recalls his first taste of Texan barbecue, juicy meats smoked to perfection. 

It launched him into full-fledged obsession. He begged and pleaded with his parents to buy him a smoker.

"When I got my first smoker, I felt like I was above the world. (I felt) like my cooking was damn good," he said with a cheeky smile. "But honestly, it wasn't that great."

After some time, he turned his hand to ribs and started giving away smoked meats for free when he couldn't consume all that he was cooking. Not long after, he received a message on Instagram from a follower asking if he would sell her his smoked ribs instead of giving them away. 

He scrolled back through his phone calendar to show me a reminder he had set for that first order on May 30, 2021, at 11.30am. 

"At first I didn't want to ... I wasn't sure if I wanted to mix my passion with work," he said. "But my friends eventually convinced me to sell."

It took about 48 hours for Mr Chua to sell out his first tranche of smoked ribs. 

It wasn't long before he cut that down to 24 hours – and then again to 12 hours, and then again to four. Within months of being in "business", he was selling out within seconds of posting sale announcements.

He still sees that first customer from time to time, he said with a big smile. She often patronises his pop-up stalls at festivals and events, and he even handled the catering for her wedding.

HEATING IT UP

In February 2022, he further honed his skills with a month-long trip to Texas, learning from renowned pitmasters such as Brett Boren by smoking meats with them on their ranches and backyards – a "sacred experience for any pitmaster", declared Mr Chua.

This was also when he sought out suppliers who could secure him access to the post-oak wood he now uses. 

Typically, Jett Barbecue is only open for service every Friday, Saturday and Sunday. 

At first glance, it seems like a light work week for Mr Chua and his team of seven – but really, it's no simple task to serve up hundreds of kilograms of meat on those days. 

He smokes his ribs overnight for at least eight hours, a process that involves cutting off the burnt ends of meat, spritzing it down with a secret liquid concoction of his own making, and meticulous monitoring throughout to ensure that temperatures stay consistent.

The kitchen isn't just Mr Chua's second home – it's practically his first, the place he spends far more time than anywhere else. Unfortunately, this rarely left room for much else. 

In 2021, as the business was gaining some serious traction online with more than 400 people on their monthly waitlists, he met a girl on a dating app.

"Her friend told her that I was 'the barbecue guy' and she asked me for (an order) slot," he said. "I told her to try and see her luck."

The girl managed to get a slot the next time Jett Barbecue opened up orders. "But actually, I had decided to save her one for that month," he said with a boyish grin.

Even so, it didn't quite work out between them. He was too focused on building Jett Barbecue, and she was too busy growing her career in banking. 

Despite not pursuing a romantic relationship, they decided to stay friends. She even helped him beef up his dating profile by suggesting he add Jett Barbecue to his description.

"A year later, when I was a bit less busy with the business, I somehow swiped (on) her again on another dating app," recounted Mr Chua with a smile. "We began dating then, in July 2022."

What followed was not the most conventional courtship. 

She worked 18-hour days in a bank, while he worked 18-hour days smoking meats. While other young adults their age were enjoying dinner dates in romantic restaurants, their own dates typically consisted of takeaway food she picked up near her workplace in the central business district, eaten together in the small, air-conditioned office above Mr Chua's kitchen. 

"She would (even) help with the chores in the kitchen like mopping the floors," he recalled. "It's who she is as a person – a very kindhearted person who (makes me) smile."

The couple eventually tied the knot in November 2023 and welcomed their first child in June 2025.

STILL CHASING DREAMS

At the beginning, Mr Chua had told his father that Jett Barbecue would be a six-month gamble to make his passion a sustainable career.

"Truthfully, I never dreamed it would become so big. I thought I would just be smoking meats over the weekends," he said. 

At the time, Mr Chua's dream was simply to own a single big smoker. 

Now, he's at the head of a thriving business, one that's already raking in orders for the year-end festive season months ahead of time.

Mr Chua credits his wife with being "extremely understanding" about him spending so much time in the kitchen. "She's sacrificed so much for me," he said. 

Recently, he has been returning the favour by encouraging her to walk away from banking to pursue her own dream: opening a preschool. 

More than just providing emotional support and business guidance, he walks the talk, pitching in to help her run the newly opened Peperhouse Preschool and planning the weekly menu to feed the students. 

"We do things together," he said, his voice buoyant with pride. "But she picks up things really quickly, so she's doing great."

It's admirable, but I found myself wondering where he finds the time to do all this on top of smoking meats, running a burgeoning business and spending time with his infant son.

"I often have to drive late at night between home and the kitchen. I've lost count of how many times I've been stopped at (police) spot checks," he said with a laugh.

He keeps a mattress tucked away in his office, so he can grab a nap between smoking meats. He relies on quick meals to keep him going – his current go-to is a simple combination of eggs, corned beef and rice he can whip up in under five minutes, a far cry from the hours he spends on the food he serves to others.

Nevertheless, Mr Chua shows no sign of exhaustion or slowing down. 

When I ask if he has ever experienced or worried about burnout, he shrugged and said simply that he has always been a "go-getter". In fact, he's now toying with the idea of opening a restaurant for Jett Barbecue, something many of his customers have clamoured for over the last few years. 

Many might fear the risks of running a brick-and-mortar establishment in the current economic climate. While that does weigh on his mind, Mr Chua's chief concern takes on a different shape. 

"It's quite hard to find a restaurant space that can fit a smoker," he mused. 

BEING TRUE TO HIMSELF

Jett Barbecue loyalists often rave about the authenticity of Mr Chua's offerings, and for good reason. One bite of his flavourful, tender smoked ribs had me feeling like I was a cowboy out on the Texas plains, kicking up my booted heels after a long day of ranching and hankering after an ice-cold beer.

I asked: Is it a keystone of Jett Barbecue's success that Mr Chua himself is such a Texan barbecue purist?

With a smile, he said his goal was simply to serve a meal he could be proud of.

"I can tell the difference if I cut corners," he explained. "I just can't see myself taking a piece of meat and putting it in the oven (instead of smoking it), or just turning on the timer and being done for the night instead of watching and ensuring the meats are cooking well.

"And customers trust me (because they know) that I won't take any shortcuts."

He also readily offers advice about smoking to budding barbecue enthusiasts across the region, largely via social media. It's yet another thing that seems impossible for anyone with his schedule to make time for but the way Mr Chua sees it, it's in line with "the Texan culture of giving", he laughed.

Despite his sunshiny disposition, there are the occasional dark clouds in Mr Chua's skies. Almost weekly, he finds himself receiving messages from people complaining about the food they thought they had bought from Jett Barbecue.

"When I asked for a photo, I realised it's someone copying my packaging, but the meats aren't the same," he said.

"Most don't actually smoke the meat but use an oven to cook it, so the flavour isn't there."

Instead of fretting over the Jett impersonators, he's trying to focus on the true Jett: His business and family, both of which are still growing.

Right now, he's looking to expand his catering capabilities, which will allow him to sell different menu items besides his signature ribs.

He has hopes for expanding his little family, too: "I grew up with three brothers, so I do want a bigger family if (possible)."

Lately, he's also been paying more attention to his well-being outside of the kitchen. 

Years of copious barbecue consumption have added a few more kilos of meat to his own frame. "I don't really look like the man in my logo anymore," he said sheepishly.

He's starting small by cutting back on the beers he cracks open at events and while working the smoker. "I'm trying to take care of my health."

From what he's shown of his remarkable drive and determination, perhaps we can expect him to clear this hurdle too soon enough.