Chef J.R. Reed Gets Back in the Kitchen with Purple Chin Condiment Co.
After recovering from a stroke nearly 25 years ago that detoured him from a line of business that was also his passion, J.R. Reed of Webb City, Missouri, returned to work in a most comfortable and familiar setting. He says, “I launched Purple Chin in 2022 because I really wanted to get back in the kitchen at my own pace.
“Throughout my career, I was the sauce guy. I learned the foundations of making sauces in high school. I started with three barbecue sauces (Ozark’Q, Spicy Peach and Mango Habanero) and two hot sauces (Chipotle Lime and Jerk Mango). Now, I have four barbecue sauces, four hot sauces, four spice rubs and a rotating lineup of pestos, soups and empanadas.”
Purple Chin Condiment Co. is a web-based operation (www.purplechin.com), and J.R. takes his work on the road at Joplin’s Empire Market, 931 E. Fourth St., every Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Starting in April, he also plans to set up shop at Carl Junction’s weekly Farmer’s Market on Thursdays, 4-7 p.m.
As for what led to going with an online company instead of a brick-and-mortar location, J.R. says, “I missed being in the kitchen but knew there was no way I could handle a restaurant grind. I started thinking about what I could do and making sauces and selling at farmer’s markets seemed to be a logical choice for me.”
Initially, though, J.R. wasn’t sure farmer’s market settings would prove to be a good solution for him.
“When I first started, I didn’t think about being in a crowded, noisy environment, which isn’t ideal for my autism,” he says. “I left Los Angeles and moved here to reduce my sensory overload and now I was doing this. At first, it was stressful, but I’ve been able to get into a routine, which greatly helps me to stay productive.”
Now, it seems taking his show on the road is working just fine, and J.R. says, “At first, I used the kitchen at Wagon Wheel restaurant in Forsyth, Missouri. Last year, I moved my production to the Newton Kitchen at Joplin’s Empire Market.
“It’s nice to have my kitchen 50 feet away from my primary selling spot. It’s been a long journey to get from there to here. But, now this summer, I’m doing the second farmer’s market (Carl Junction) and possibly a third. And my empanadas have become extremely popular.”
Purple Chin is “a handcrafted food brand that brings bold, creative flavors to life. I make everything in small batches. Most of my produce comes from local farmers in the Four-States Region.
“I make everything from barbecue and hot sauces to spice blends, fresh pizza dough and sauce, as well as empanadas and seasonal soups. Some items are ready to eat, and some things people can cook with them at home. What sets it apart is that everything is made from scratch, flavor-driven and built around quality ingredients.”
In considering a key component to his cooking, J.R. says, “Texture is a huge thing for people with autism. There are certain foods that don’t do it for me texturally.
“When you’re eating food, you want different textures in what you eat. If everything is the same texture, it would all be boring. The textures I create are as important as the flavors. In my sauces, you can see pieces of onion, garlic and peppers.”
About the products his customers seem to like best of all, J.R. says, “I sell, on average, a dozen balls of pizza dough and a dozen jars of sauce per farmer’s market. Two families have regular family pizza night and get multiple balls of dough, so everyone can do their thing.
“I started making 40 empanadas per market last summer and now I’m at 200 each week. During the fall and winter, I sell out of my soups every weekend, and during the summer, pestos in five varieties just fly out of the fridge.”
What J.R. likes best on his menu depends on what he’s hungry for at the time.
“People comment that I must eat a lot of empanadas, but the truth is that the last one I had was before Christmas. That’s because customers clean me out every week and there’s nothing left.
“Pizza dough is a different story. There’s always an extra eight ounces of dough leftover. The pizza dough and sauce are ‘favs’ because that’s where it started for me. There are stories behind almost every product I make.”
Although, perhaps, not a popular choice for many 15-year-old boys, this impressive story for J.R. started at an early age.
“I cooked at home as often as I could. My mom showed me a few things and for some reason, food made sense in my brain.
“We liked going to the Italian place, Romack’s Italian Deli, and at the end of my freshman year (in high school), I applied for a job in the kitchen. I started where everyone does, washing dishes, slicing meats/cheeses, and then carefully cleaning the very sharp slicer.”
J.R. continued to be given more responsibility, and he says, “Later that summer, I graduated to helping with pizza dough, 50 pounds at a time, as well as both pizza sauce and marinara. There is a distinct difference between the two. Traditional pizza sauce is thicker, so it stays on the crust without dripping off.
“The next summer, I made both on my own and worked on the line preparing individual dishes for customers. The third and fourth summers (after junior and senior years in high school), I would prep in the mornings and then be on the line for lunch or dinner.
“After high school, I cooked at Red Robin for a couple of years. Then, I got a job at Moe’s, a small burger/sausage/sandwich joint owned by two brothers who didn’t know their way around the kitchen. A couple of months later, I was ordering food, creating specials and updating the menu.
“After a couple of years doing that, I decided to work in other types of kitchens, as well, to hopefully add to my arsenal. Those included an authentic Mexican restaurant, a sandwich shop, where there’s a proper way to build them, a breakfast place, and then a couple of all-night diners.”
Things were going well for J.R. until his unfortunate health issues, and he says, “When I was 38 years old, my blood pressure climbed to 265/159 and I had a stroke that affected the right side of my body. Four years later, at 42 years old, I was also diagnosed as having autism.
“Between the stroke and chronic arthritis, I now only have 30% strength and mobility on my right side and just 50% on my left side. At the time, I was a chef at a diner. But that’s now been closed for 15 years.”
While the road to recovery might have been slow at times, J.R. is on a roll with Purple Chin and wants to do more. But he is moving forward cautiously, and he says, “I would love to grow this more and do different events with my empanadas.
“Ideally, I’d hire other people with autism or who are neurodivergent because it can be tough for people within this spectrum to find and maintain jobs. No matter how I grow, it will always be with an eye towards not pushing myself too hard. If I get burned out, it’s too hard to get back to where I had been.
“For me, the biggest challenge is staying in a routine as much as possible and not letting myself get overwhelmed. If I can keep doing those things, the hiccups that naturally happen are dealt with much better.”
Considering everything J.R. has gone through, there’s so much reason for him to beam with pride.
“I love seeing people post their food pics on social media. I love when customers come in excited about what they cooked the previous week. I also love getting pre-orders for market pickup because I know that the person ordering is thinking about my food even when they’re not in front of me.”
It’s the joint ventures in this business that make J.R. most pleased, and he says, “I love partnering with local farms to get my food. My two primary places are Oakwoods Farm in Granby, Missouri, and Blackberry Moon Produce in Baxter Springs, Kansas.
“I also get produce from Four States Greenhouse in Neosho, Missouri, as well as Braker Berry Farm (Oronogo, Missouri), Misty Morning Farm (Mulberry, Kansas, and also sells products in Webb City, Missouri) and Elder Farms (Mount Vernon, Missouri).”
No doubt about it, J.R. is cooking up something good at Purple Chin with all the best flavors and ingredients to make your next meal delightfully delectable.
Purple Chin Condiment Co./Chef J.R. Reed Fast Facts
Family: Daughter Cameron
Hometown: Seal Beach, California
Current Hometown: Webb City, Missouri
High School Alma Mater/Year Graduated: Valley Christian (Cerritos, California) High School/1984
College: Long Beach, California City College
College Degree: Associate in Arts/Journalism
Jobs Held During Most of Adult Life: Chef
Mentor/Influence in His Life: “I don’t really have a mentor. But I started reading cookbooks early on and watched the early days of cooking shows on PBS. The first influences are Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger, better known on TV as the ‘Too Hot Tamales.’ Their cookbook was the first cookbook I bought for myself. I also learned a lot from a young Bobby Flay, who turned burgers and tacos into a restaurant empire. More recently, it was Anthony Bourdain. I loved his approach to food and life, and he’s a culinary rule breaker who inspired me to do what I do now.”
Hobbies: “Before moving to Missouri, I played recreational ice hockey. Now, I mostly study cookbooks, tweak recipes and figure out the next way to bend/break the rules of food.”
