BBQ 101 to the rescue | The Press

Are you an expert on tough as boot sole steaks and charred chicken? Online or in person, barbecue pros are waiting to help. The Press attended the BBQ 101 course offered by BBQ Québec.

Veronique Larocque
The Press

Let’s put our cards on the table: we’ve never touched a barbecue in our lives. With a spouse whose name was predestined to handle “Laflamme”, we quite naturally left the cooking on the grill in the hands of the gentleman. It is therefore with our rookie status that we enter the classroom located at the back of the BBQ Quebec store in Boucherville.

The lesson doesn’t start for 10 minutes, but already Jean-Philippe Lavoie, alias JP, is busy around his two barbecues, one gas, the other charcoal. The “BBQ Master” blows air over the circular device. Flames rise. The show-like course begins.

“I was really looking forward to seeing you again,” says Jean-Philippe Lavoie, with a smile on his face. Pandemic obliges, the courses in person offered at BBQ Québec have been interrupted for two years. The grill master, who has given more than 1,000 classes in his career, is happy to reconnect with his audience.

Lesson number 1: it is essential to have clean barbecue grills. “If I don’t clean my grid, it might stick,” insists JP Lavoie, vigorously rubbing the cast iron.

Lesson number 2: “The important thing about a barbecue is not the number of burners, it’s understanding how they work,” says our one-night teacher. Some areas of the device are warmer. Essential information for successful cooking.

Caveman Steaks

With the basics of how barbecues work laid out, it’s time for the enthusiast to cook.

“We’re going strong with the caveman steaks,” says Jean-Philippe Lavoie, showing the three large pieces of meat in front of him. Pot of spices in hand, he cheerfully seasons the pieces of beef before placing them on the grills of his two barbecues. Slather on a little marinade? Especially not. “We put the sauce at the end, at the end, at the end,” insists the ace of flames. “The secret isn’t in the sauce, it’s in the spices,” he added later.

While his steaks cook, the man who doesn’t have an oven, microwave or toaster explains that a very common mistake is over-grilling the meat. Better to give preference to indirect cooking. “She will become your best friend. »

On the equipment side, the thermometer is essential.

The cuts of steak served minutes later at each table prove him right. Bursting with flavour, the strip of meat melts in your mouth. “It’s on the mark”, sums up one of the participants.

Steaks are just the first of many foods prepared throughout the three-hour training. Potatoes, pork tenderloin, asparagus, chicken, sausages, pineapple follow one another on the barbecue grills then on the tables of the dozen spectators. Jean-Philippe Lavoie even reheats a frozen pizza and the result is amazing: it is simply delicious.

Our favorite of the evening? The meatball topped with cheese curds. As JP Lavoie would say, “let’s face it, cheese curds are delicious”.

Educational and entertaining

Talkative, the energetic cook is not only good behind the barbecue, he is also an excellent entertainer who skilfully entertains his guests. The jokes are numerous and despite some easy puns, the laughs are there. “I wanted to be a teacher when I was younger because my teachers were flat,” Jean-Philippe Lavoie tells us in an interview after training. I try to give a barbecue lesson that is catchy, that you will remember in technical terms, but that you will be entertained by. »

The formula seems to work. The participants interviewed at the end of the course had enjoyed their experience. ” It was very good. Very user-friendly,” says Louis Linteau. “We learned a lot of things,” adds his spouse, Louise Vachon.

More accustomed to cooking on the grill, Mario Doyon also learned things, especially with regard to cooking pizza and pineapples. Proof that even though it’s called BBQ 101, the course can reach more than just beginners. “It’s really for all levels,” believes Jean-Philippe Lavoie, who has also just launched a new cookbook with his brother Max, The art of BBQ.

BBQ Québec, which also offers other lessons in person and online, is not the only company to offer courses to learn how to master the barbecue. Clément Chiasson, alias Monsieur BBQ, has been presenting a seven-hour training course entirely online since January 2021. For his part, Doyon Després offers various participatory courses in its branches during which everyone is invited to come and test their skills on the grill. Online courses are also offered.