This text is part of the special book Plaisirs
After ten years of hard work, chef and teacher at the Institut de tourisme et d’hôtellerie du Québec (ITHQ) Samuel Sirois will represent Canada at the final of the Olympics of Gastronomy on Sunday in Lyon. Portrait of an extraordinary culinary artist.
When he decides to enroll in the kitchen, following a short stint in law at the University of Sherbrooke, Samuel Sirois is refused. He therefore turned to the bakery at the Calixa-Lavallée vocational training center. This goes without saying, since he has always cultivated an unconditional love of bread. “When I was a child, I preferred to eat bread rather than dessert,” he says.
Once a baker, he enrolled again in the kitchen at the ITHQ. Once again it is refused. It was not until the second round that the Institute granted him a place in Italian cuisine.
Nature enthusiast
Right from the start, Samuel Sirois took a liking to cooking, food and where it came from. Even the place itself is a refuge for him in which to work hard, describing himself as excessive. “I’ve found that I’m a very competitive person,” he says. Competition cooking is therefore an opportunity to stuff myself with knowledge and learn at high speed. »
For many great chefs around the world, the Bocuse d’Or represents the challenge par excellence. For Samuel Sirois, this goes beyond the professional challenge. “In 2011, I was in Lyon and I had the opportunity to attend the Bocuse d’Or final. I fell in love with this competition,” he says. He discovers a whole other world related to cooking, far from televised cooking competitions. “I think it’s impossible to imagine the scope of this competition until you’ve been there already,” he adds. I wanted to be part of this adventure and go to the maximum of my abilities. »
Conceived in Lyon in 1987 by the late chef Paul Bocuse, the competition brings together every two years 24 chefs from different countries who compete in a tough culinary test. Everyone must first win the national selection, then the continental one. A limited number of teams per continent can then qualify for the final in Lyon.
On D-Day, the team leader and the clerk — aged 22 or under — must create a dish served on a plate, in addition to a main piece accompanied by three garnishes (accompaniments), all presented on a large tray. There must be enough servings for the 12 members of the jury. the coach, who is outside the kitchen, guides the team through the many stages of preparation, which they must complete in five and a half hours. It is a monumental challenge!
Humility and perseverance
In 2013, Samuel Sirois applied for the Canadian final of the Bocuse d’Or for the first time, but he quickly realized that he was far from the goal. “I thought I knew what I was getting into, but this competition cannot be done without a team,” he explains. At the time, I had no coach, no financial support, nothing. »
In 2016, he tried his luck again. From a distance, chef Laurent Godbout — established in Florida at the time — serves as his coach. The latter also represented Canada at the Bocuse d’Or in 2015. But at the time, it was Toronto chef Trevor Ritchie, a regular in culinary competitions, who qualified.
“I came back to Montreal depressed, exhausted. But Samuel Sirois has unparalleled perseverance and he’s going back there. During the 2019 Canadian selection, he presents himself with a solid team, including renowned chef and teacher at the ITHQ Gilles Herzog as coach. He qualified hands down and put together a file to propose to the ITHQ to support the Canadian team at the Bocuse d’Or 2021. It was then that Chefs Canada was created with the aim of supporting national teams in culinary competitions. global.
Spectacular turn of events ! The COVID-19 pandemic put the team on hiatus for more than a year. Samuel and Gilles return to teach. It was then that they met Léandre Legault-Vigneau, one of their exceptionally talented students.
In the summer of 2022, they claim second place in the Americas Finals in Santiago, Chile, behind Team USA. On Sunday, January 22, the Canadian team, made up of three Quebec chefs, will have the honor of representing the country at one of the world’s most prestigious gastronomy competitions.
To watch the final live: bocusedor.com/fr/streaming
Note that the Canadian team begins its streak at 3:31 am!
This special content was produced by the Special Publications team of the To have to, relating to marketing. The drafting of To have to did not take part.