Saint-Jean-Baptiste BBQ: Celebrate with these 10 products from Quebec

Quebec’s National Holiday is always worth celebrating. This year, celebrate Saint-Jean-Baptiste with a barbecue featuring local products.

For flavourful festivities, get inspired with these 10 local products to throw onto the grill.

Happy National Holiday!

1. Butterflied chicken

Chicken slowly cooked on the BBQ is always a winning dish, loved by old and young alike. For a delicious twist on a classic, try making butterflied chicken. This cut of meat is in fact a whole chicken, sliced down the back and pressed flat.

For a perfectly grilled butterflied chicken, opt for indirect cooking. Place your poultry, skin-side down, onto the grill adjacent to the heat source. This will prevent the fat from dripping onto the flames and the flames from over-charring the meat. Cover and let the chicken soak up all the flavours for 40 minutes or so. Flip and continue cooking for 15 minutes.

You’ll know when the meat is thoroughly cooked once the wings and thighs come off easily. If using a meat thermometer, make sure the chicken’s internal temperature has reached at least 77°C (170°F).

For a ready-to-cook option, try RICARDO’s butterflied chicken. This backless, whole chicken comes seasoned and ready to go; all you have to do is choose between Greek, Portuguese, or Korean BBQ flavours!

2. Vegan sausages

Plant-based sausages are all the craze! Whether you’re a fan of vegetarian cuisine or simply curious about it, you’ll love the taste and texture of these vegan wheat sausages. Gusta sausages may take your taste buds to faraway lands, but they are made right here in Canada.

For a successful BBQ, try this recipe for vegan hot dogs with grilled peach salsa by Trois fois par jour. Throw some Gusta basil pesto sausages and a few buttered buns onto the grill. For the salsa, chop up some grilled peaches and mix them with diced tomatoes, a little mint, olive oil, and lime juice.

Finally, top your vegan hot dogs with your grilled peach salsa.

3. White fish filet

With a white fish from Fruits de mer du Québec, you can be sure that it was caught close to home, in the Gaspésie region.

To make it the star of your BBQ, try this white fish papillote with caprese salada recipe by Trois fois par jour. Place a filet of white fish covered in pesto sauce in the centre of a piece of parchment paper. Top the fish with tomatoes and cheese, and season. Close the papillote and let the flavours come together on the grill.

Serve your fish with an olive oil, pine nut, fresh herb, and lemon sauce.

4. Strip loin steak

Bœuf Québec offers meat from Quebec, produced in a perspective of sustainable development. This is sure to add a local touch to your BBQ.

The best cut for the barbecue is a AA+ strip loin steak, which is super tender, with fine marbling. Because this beef, aged 21 days, is already brimming with flavour, you have very little to do. Let it sit a few hours in the fridge in a simple marinade made with Quebec apple cider, or season it with your favourite spices.

Next, place your steak on a hot grill. The cooking time varies depending on the thickness of the meat. Avoid all the guesswork with a meat thermometer; simply insert it into your piece of beef. Your meat is medium rare when it reaches an internal temperature of 145°F (63°C).

5. Quebec lobster

Each year, the arrival of Quebec lobsters at our fish counters is a happy event… as it should be! These lobsters, from Gaspésie and the Côte-Nord region, are truly delicious.

Make this crustacean your BBQ pièce de résistance. Serve it with light sauces and sides that will bring out the flavours of the lobster’s delicate flesh without overpowering it.

For the grill, small lobsters—under 450 g or 1 lb —are ideal for an even cook. This format also makes it easier to caramelize.

6. Stefano’s Tuscan sausages

Sausage is a BBQ staple. To keep with the tradition and explore a variety of flavours, consider using deli-style sausages.

Stefano’s Tuscan sausages are made of Quebec pork, lightly seasoned with black pepper, cilantro, and mace. Since they’re ready to cook, you can grill them right away and serve them on a brioche bun.

For another delicious alternative, slice the grilled sausages and throw them onto a platter of Quebec cheese, fresh veggies, and baguette slices for a delicious, shareable appetizer.

7. Veggie meatballs

Discover Quebec’s own Vegeat meatballs. Labelled as “plant-based meat,” they’re actually made of vegetable protein, such as yellow peas.

They’re 100% meat-free and 100% delicious. Try them with this recipe for Italian polpetta brochettes. Simply skewer small mushrooms, meatballs, onions, peppers, and zucchini, and let them marinate in the fridge for 3 to 4 hours.

Next, grill your skewers for 8 to 10 minutes to reveal all the sundried tomato, lemon, and oregano flavours of these delicious veggie brochettes. A tasty treat, guaranteed!

8. Local asparagus

Quebec asparagus is crunchy and refreshing. Impress your guests with this recipe for asparagus and Le St-Vallier cheese brochettes.

This grilling cheese pairs perfectly with the tasty vegetable. The light lemon, mint, and Espelette pepper seasoning elevates the natural, juicy flavours of Quebec’s asparagus. 

Assembling asparagus this way gives it a fun new look and optimizes its cooking, preventing it from burning. Cook one minute each side, until grilled to perfection.

9. Romaine hearts

Can’t decide between a BBQ dish and a salad? With this recipe for grilled deconstructed Caesar salad, you can have both!

You might not think of lettuce as something that goes on the grill, but it’s delicious! Simply cut the Quebec Romaine hearts and grill them, cut side down, for 10 to 20 seconds. 

The lettuce retains a smoky flavour that pairs perfectly with toasted bread slathered in Caesar vinaigrette. 

10. Quebec strawberries

Strawberries from Quebec are super sweet and fresh—a summer must-have. So why not end your festive BBQ with a seasonal dessert! Adapt the traditional shortcake using this recipe for strawberry shortcake brochettes on the grill.

Skewer pieces of angel food cake and juicy Quebec strawberries, and season them with honey and a hint of cinnamon. Put them on the grill and… voilà!

We bet this will become a new BBQ favourite!