[/floatr]The Japan BBQ Association - "Let's enjoy bbq more smart and stylish" - is offering barbecue training courses. Students can study for three levels of certification: Elementary Instructor, Advanced Instructor and Barbecue Master. The basic level involves a thirty minute lesson on barbecue fundamentals, a ninety minute practical and ends with a twenty minute written examination. Successful applicants get an ID card issued by the association. So far, 65 people have passed the elementary course, 2 the advanced level and one individual has made it to Barbecue Master status. Gravure idol Aki Hoshino (she of the "boobical mystery") and comedy duo Summers are among those reported to have taken the initial course. Association chairman Tamio Shimojo (right) says that most Japanese barbecues are little more than variations on yakiniku and so the meat rarely gets cooked properly. He hopes that people taking his course will cut down on the time spent in preparing and tidying up and instead spend more time on cooking the food. The association's site has a quiz that prospective students can take to see whether they have what it takes to pass the course
