Mama G is in the house at Season’s Pharmacy and Culinaria later this week teaching the fine art of casing wild meat sausages.
Gaetanne Larocque, or Mama G as she is known on East Link Community television and at Season’s Pharmacy, is a chef by trade with an extensive background in both Sudbury and previously in the Ottawa region.
These days, Larocque likes to share her talents and trade secrets in the best way possible, with her hands and local grub.
“No one gets paper literature in my workshops. It’s all hands on deck,” she said.
Customers who sign up for the wild game casing sausage workshop can come with deer, bear, beaver or moose meat, and hopefully a grinder, to learn the proper technique this Wednesday, Jan. 22.
The hunters will mix their traditionally lean wild meats with pasture raised pork from Rocha Farms in Whitefish.
Larocque said after generations of war, parents entered the workforce and cooked less so the fine art of some cooking techniques were lost.
“It became all about convenient foods and suddenly people didn’t know how to make casings for sausages” and she wants to bring those skills back, Larocque said.
With her infectious laugh and big personality, Larocque said she likes to speak in layman's terms in the kitchen with an effort to bring common sense back to the kitchen.
“It’s scary to visit a grocery store and see people loading their cart with boxes. I think it is important for us to know the origins of our food,” Mama G said. “I like to know the farmer, the hunter, the forager, the berry-picker, because a lot of health issues can be fixed with good, wholesome foods.”
Mama G, who considers herself a “robust woman”, said people may look at her and see an unhealthy person, but the reality is she is eating good wholesome foods and uses flour without preservatives and additives.
Interestingly, Larocque was kicked out of ‘home ec’ (economics) in high school. But it was for good reason — she said she was seen as knowing too much.
Fast forward a few years later, she enrolled in culinary school at Algonquin College.
“Those were the best years of my life. Like a sponge I was soaking it all in working as an apprentice in the downtown core of Ottawa, the Byward Market, Parliament Hill, museums and an environmental farm,” she said. “I also spent time working with the Chateau Laurier chef.”
After school wrapped up, Larocque spent 17 years cooking at an isolated camp in Algonquin Park, feeding upwards of 325 kids per day. Off seasons were spent running a catering company, working in restaurants, until life took a turn to Sudbury.
Here, Larocque has worked at Laura Fratelli’s, Perkins and the new Steelworkers Hall. Now, she’s networking with Collège Boréal, running weekend kids cooking camps and cooking shows while moonlighting as the executive chef at Knowhere Public House, on Elm Street downtown, near the courthouse.
Look out for more of Mama G’s cooking classes.
“My best classes are bone broth soup, homemade pasta that’s fresh with the texture of playdough, and meat pies,” she said.
This week’s mouth-watering wild game sausage making class runs this Wednesday, Jan. 22, from 5:30 p.m. to about 8 p.m.
This will be the very first combined online and in-person class, which allows for anywhere to take from anywhere to take part in the learning.
Those interested in attending, still have the option to join online or in person by visiting SeasonsPharmacy.com to complete the registration form.
Also, Mama G’s third season on Eastlink TV has just begun and will feature dumplings stewed with lamb and oyster mushrooms.
Anastasia Rioux is a writer in Greater Sudbury. Let’s Eat! is made possible by our Community Leaders Program.