The Malta Barbecue and Grilling Association team is travelling to Estonia to compete at the Good Food Festival Grillfest. After having achieved two runner-up positions last year, this time around they are aiming for top plate, Ronald Cassar says.

Despite the differences in age, culture, nationality and personality, James Muscat, Andrew Treglown and Andres Toompere share two things. The first is that they all live in Malta. And, secondly, they all have a passion for cooking outdoors.

The three men represented the Malta Barbecue and Grilling Association (MGBA) at Grillfest, which was held in the second week of June last year at Parnu, Estonia. This event attracted 50,000 visitors who went to this beautiful resort to savour the culinary talents of scores of teams competing for various titles in different meat categories.

After their successful participation, the Estonian Grilling Union invited the Malta team back for this year’s festival, which is going to be bigger than ever and perhaps more interesting than previous years.

One of the main attractions this year is Marco Peerdeman, a world-renowned butcher from the Jamie Oliver stable. Peerdeman will be giving sessions about beef and meat cuts with live cooking performances.

The Malta team, consisting of Muscat, Treglown and Toompere, are flying to Estonia on Wednesday, and will be participating in eight categories, with the hope of bringing home a first title.

During these events we were quite surprised how many people are actually interested and already involved into barbecuing, meaning they are building their own equipment and trying different meat cuts

Besides competing, the trio will also be promoting the Maltese islands as a travel destination and will introduce Maltese products to the jury, including wine, beer and Maltese sausages.

To support this initiative, the association is organising a grand barbecue buffet at Ġnejna Bay on Monday and everyone is invited to participate and help the association gather funds.

The MBGA was created in 2013 with the aim of raising awareness about the art of barbecuing and grilling in a healthy way. The association organises various activities during the year to teach this kind of cooking as a form of culinary art and recreation.

“Barbecuing and grilling are two different cooking methods. Saying that, most people here in Malta actually grill their food and do not barbecue it,” said Toompere.

“Although we like to say ‘let’s have a barbecue’, the word ‘barbecue’ stands for a social activity (coming together and cook some food) not to the actual cooking method.”

The team: Andrew Treglown, James Muscat and Andres Toompere with their runners-up certificates last year.

According to Toompere, grilling equates to direct heat, high temperatures and short periods of time.

Barbecuing, on the other hand, involves indirect heat, low temperatures and long cooking time.

“Therefore different equipment is needed for barbecuing and grilling,” he says.

Past events by the association included a Barbecue Show and Dinner, held in 2014, with world-famous grilling and barbecue guru Enn Tobreluts, who held a seminar and prepared various recipes. Tobreluts, from Estonia, is a barbecue trainer and private chef who owns a chain of restaurants in Estonia and the UK.

A Maltese delicacy with a twist: Andrew Treglown grilling and basting rabbits during last year’s competition.

It was a great starting point for the association and served as a launch pad for future activities.

In 2015 they organised a series of grilling and barbecue school activities. During four consecutive weekends the association promoted different cooking methods with an average participation of 60 people per session.

“During these events we were quite surprised how many people are actually interested and already involved into barbecuing, meaning they are building their own equipment and trying different meat cuts,” Toompere said.

“Another objective of the MBGA was to create a national team to compete in different grilling and barbecue competitions abroad.

“This aim was achieved last year when the Malta barbecue team participated at the Good Food Festival Grillfest in Estonia . The team came back with two runner-up positions, one in grilling and one in barbecuing.

“Grillfest is one of the biggest of its kind in Europe and is all about food. Besides competing, the association set up a Maltese stand where Maltese cuisine was introduced and promoted,” Toompere said.

It is the intention of the MBGA to take part in similar competitions in the future and also to entice barbecue enthusiasts to participate in outdoor events.

The association is also planning a number of fundraising and educational activities in the coming months with the scope of promoting this style of cooking in a social and philanthropic way.

• Road to Grillfest Fundraising BBQ is being held at Ġnejna Bay on Monday at 6pm. Price: €15 per person. Everyone is welcome. For more information, visit www.facebook.com/events/1715354558712882/