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Saturday Kitchen Season 2025 Episode 41
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Transcript
00:00:00Welcome to the show. Now then, Matt is away, so I have recruited a trio of top chefs, Bryn
00:00:14Williams, Andy Oliver and Raveny Gill are delivering a menu full of dream dishes and
00:00:21Ollie Smith here will satisfy all your drinks wishes like a genie in a bottle. There you
00:00:26go. I'll do the best. Now our multi-talented multi-award winning special guest has been at the top of the world of entertainment for over 40 years as a performer and a writer of novels, plays, musicals and sitcoms. He's responsible for some of Britain's most influential and iconic comedy projects, The Young Ones of course, Blackadder, The Thin Blue Line and Upstart Crow. He's finally telling us all what he's done and who he's done it with in his autobiography. Please welcome Ben Elster.
00:00:56It's great to see you.
00:00:59Oh, morning Ben. It's really good to have you here with us.
00:01:02Well, it's always such a pleasure to come on this show. I love watching it, but I tell you, the best thing is being on it, let me tell you.
00:01:07Yeah, I mean, I'm thrilled. We watch at home every week, but to be here is fantastic, isn't it? And it's the second time this week I've seen you.
00:01:14And your autobiography, I mean, Ollie knows this. I really came to see you talking last night. It's jam-packed, full of stories. It's great that you've waited this long to write it.
00:01:24Yeah, 66 years in the making, this autobiography. Most people, most people seem to do them when they're, I suppose, at the height of their fame.
00:01:31But I've waited until I'm, I'm in the twilight, shuffling towards old days.
00:01:36Well, I tell you what, we barely scratched the surface on Thursday, so today is nice of a bit more time to drive it.
00:01:42Well, exactly. Right then, let's see what's on today's menu. So Bryn, bora da. Bora da, the Welsh contingents are in.
00:01:51You've got a lovely autumnal recipe this morning. Yes. So we're going to do a beef pie with mushrooms and onions.
00:01:58We're going to wrap that in puff pastry, or puff pastry on the top. A bone marrow inside as well.
00:02:02I'm going to bake that, salt and pepper, some chives in it. So a slow-cooked pie with pastry, and on the side, a nice portion of carrots glazed in honey.
00:02:09Oh, my God. It's like a warm hug. Yeah, it is. Yeah, it definitely is. But time of year, just great to have a pie this time.
00:02:15Yeah, really nice. And Andy, you're taking us to sunnier climbs with a Caribbean treat.
00:02:19I have one foot in the Caribbean, one foot firmly in Suffolk, really, which is where I grew up.
00:02:24I'm making a spice-poached ham hock, and I'm going to make marmite soldiers and little chilli-pickled onions and cucumbers to go on top. Delicious.
00:02:32Oh, marmite and pickles. Delicious. And I guess the best show on the side.
00:02:36Marmite, marmite. Marmite, marmite, marmite.
00:02:39I mean, yeast, sex, sex.
00:02:42And Rav, oh, my goodness, I'm looking forward to yours. It's a retro treat, isn't it?
00:02:48Yeah, I'm going to be making a Black Forest Gato, and I'm going to show you to make my fall-proof chocolate sponge.
00:02:53We're going to layer it up with some Chantilly cream, a bit more ganache, tinned cherries, and then decorate it with some chocolate shards.
00:02:59What more do we want on a Saturday morning?
00:03:00What a new. Tremendous. Well, yeah, some wine.
00:03:03I know you love a red, a nice big red.
00:03:06Yes, I do, a big red wine.
00:03:07Well, it's time for the winter warmers, and with Brin's dish, I've got a red wine.
00:03:11It's so velvety, and it makes you feel like, you know when you're on holiday, you get off the plane, and the warm air just encircles you.
00:03:18It's that beautiful feeling of comfort and cosiness. I love it.
00:03:21I know exactly what you mean, the warmth when the doors open.
00:03:25It's like that, and for Rav, I've got a non-alcoholic blackcurrant spritz, which I'm super excited about.
00:03:30Not only is it utterly scrumptious, it's a total bargain.
00:03:33There you go.
00:03:34Look forward to that.
00:03:34Looking forward to that.
00:03:35Well, yes, definitely.
00:03:36And I've also asked you all to expand my wine knowledge, because I think it's the thing, Ben, isn't it, that we all feel we want to know about it.
00:03:42You know.
00:03:42But do we know enough?
00:03:43I do love wine, but I know very little about it, and I'm always confused, particularly with the European wines, because they don't tell you what the grape is.
00:03:51They tell you where it's made, and so I cannot wait.
00:03:54I've been talking a lot about this new book that you've done, where you're going to give us this sort of a simpler but a clear view of how to enjoy our wine.
00:04:01I can't wait to read it.
00:04:02I think it's all about informality, enthusiasm, and accessibility for everybody.
00:04:07You know, your palate never lies.
00:04:08You know what you love, so I'm going to show you how to save money and taste the best.
00:04:11Excellent.
00:04:11Very good.
00:04:12Very good.
00:04:12And, of course, you know the format of this programme, Ben.
00:04:16At the end, the viewers will decide whether you're going to have your heaven or your hell to eat.
00:04:20Come on.
00:04:21It's better out of heaven.
00:04:23I'm sure.
00:04:23I do hope they'll be kind, because this week, my heaven is going to be so heavenly, because I've asked for proper fish and chips.
00:04:31Oh, nice.
00:04:31I'd love to have that to eat.
00:04:34I've got to be honest, in terms of hell, I don't, you know, I hate being negative, but I don't really like a sweet potato.
00:04:39No.
00:04:39And I don't like the way they're encroaching on proper potatoes.
00:04:42Suddenly, you know, you go to a bar and they're so proud they've got sweet potato crisps.
00:04:47No, I want proper crisps.
00:04:48I want cheese lulli and any preference.
00:04:49I think it's fair enough.
00:04:50You know, I find them a bit glutinous, I don't like the fibrous nature, and I don't really like the sweetness.
00:04:56I have to say, I'm not a friend of the sweet potatoes, so I'm really hoping I'm not forced to eat them.
00:05:01Well, I mean, you put up a good argument there, and you'll be glad to know it's not me cooking, because that really would be hellish.
00:05:07We've handed the task over to Bryn.
00:05:09So, let's start with Heaven.
00:05:11Fish and chips.
00:05:11Heaven.
00:05:12Fish and chips.
00:05:13Great.
00:05:13So, nice piece of cod.
00:05:15We're going to take the skin off.
00:05:16I don't like skin in batter.
00:05:17No.
00:05:18Take the skin off.
00:05:18No.
00:05:19Dip it in beer batter, so made with pale ale, nice and crispy, in the fryer.
00:05:23Double-cut chips.
00:05:24We're going to cut the chips into finger-sized, into water, then cool down, then deep-fry them again, and some crushed peas.
00:05:31We're going to crush some peas in the machine, butter, salt, pepper, no water, just cook in their own juices.
00:05:35It's the ultimate pea flavour to go with fish and chips.
00:05:38Oh, my goodness.
00:05:39A pint and a load of it.
00:05:40If I don't get this, I'm going to visit every single place.
00:05:42It's a million times.
00:05:44What did you vote for me?
00:05:45I'm sure you will, but just in case, how will you transform Ben's health?
00:05:49Health.
00:05:50You know, it's quite strange when you're writing a recipe for something that doesn't like something.
00:05:52So, you work twice as hard, that's it.
00:05:54So, we're going to do baked sweet potato in the skins, scoop them out, salt, pepper, butter, and some parmesan to offset the sweetness that you're talking about.
00:06:02A pound-fied piece of halibut, I know you like a bit of fish, and then we can do a mushroom sauce with cream, chicken, fish stock, a nice belvety fish, velvety, a load of herbs at the end.
00:06:12So, it should all balance against the sweetness.
00:06:14If you could just leave the sweet potato out, that sounded beautiful.
00:06:18That's not the deal, that's not the deal.
00:06:20So, two very tasty dishes there.
00:06:22So, just log on to the Saturday Kitchen website, where you can view the terms and privacy notice, and have your say on what Bryn has to cook for Ben at the end of the show.
00:06:31Good luck, Ben, on that one.
00:06:33Thank you very much.
00:06:33Right then, Bryn.
00:06:34Good luck, Ben.
00:06:36Good luck.
00:06:37Good luck.
00:06:38Come on then.
00:06:39Right, we'll swap places.
00:06:40Now, for everybody at home, that is, of course, let's start cooking.
00:06:42Yep.
00:06:43Do we do it in Welsh or English?
00:06:44Well, I think we should do it in English.
00:06:45Yeah.
00:06:46I mean, the thing is, it's really odd, doesn't it?
00:06:48Because you and I have known each other for a very, very long time now.
00:06:51Very long time.
00:06:52And this is the first time that we've actually spoken English to each other.
00:06:56I know.
00:06:57We normally speak Welsh people, so it's quite strange to speak English to you.
00:07:00Yeah, but we'll give it a good go.
00:07:01Definitely, we'll try.
00:07:02Right.
00:07:03Okay.
00:07:04Tell me now then, everything we need to know about this pie.
00:07:05Okay.
00:07:06So, we use a shin of beef.
00:07:07We're going to use the bone marrow as well.
00:07:08Some mushrooms, onions, and you're going to pick some thyme for me to go on top of the
00:07:12pastry at the end.
00:07:13Lovely.
00:07:14Okay.
00:07:15So, this is all about the quality of the beef.
00:07:16So, we use the shin, because I think the shin's a beautiful pie.
00:07:18It takes about two hours to cook.
00:07:19Yeah.
00:07:20So, you've got to cook it nice and slow.
00:07:21So, the key is, great ingredients to start off with.
00:07:24And we always use our own pedigree else-backed beef in the restaurant.
00:07:27So, this is...
00:07:28Yeah.
00:07:29Well, you were saying it's all about, really, the success of this pie really rests on the
00:07:34quality of the meat.
00:07:35Of the raw ingredients, yes.
00:07:36100%.
00:07:37And I think the key, really, is that any good beef, it's got to be hung.
00:07:40It's got to be hung on the bone, I sort of say, at a minimum of 28 days.
00:07:44So, if you've got the best pasture, all our cattle get fed on a herbal lay.
00:07:49So, there's grass and herbs and everything in there.
00:07:51But it's the hanging process at the end that just brings that beef into a better flavour.
00:07:56Yeah.
00:07:57You just said there, our herd.
00:07:58Yes.
00:07:59Now, hang on.
00:08:00This is news.
00:08:01What do you mean?
00:08:02Well, up in North Wales, we've got a little farm and we have a herd of our own cattle,
00:08:06Pedigree Welsh-backed beef.
00:08:07So, for the new restaurants, all the beef that we have there comes from our own land.
00:08:11Because I knew you were growing all your own veg.
00:08:13Yep.
00:08:14You've got a really big veg garden there, haven't you?
00:08:15Yep.
00:08:16Well, the beef really get the best of both worlds.
00:08:17They get the leftover veg.
00:08:19Mm-hmm.
00:08:20They get the best pasture.
00:08:21And then we leave all the veg to flower at the end of the season.
00:08:26All the bees take all the flowers and the pollen from there.
00:08:28So, it's all about making sure we keep everything in the same vicinity.
00:08:33And, as a chef, able to have everything on your own farm.
00:08:36Yeah.
00:08:37It's really priceless.
00:08:38Really, really priceless.
00:08:39And this dish has been really popular.
00:08:42You've just opened a brand new restaurant.
00:08:44Yeah.
00:08:45Which has been a long time in the making, hasn't it?
00:08:47Yeah.
00:08:48About four years in the making.
00:08:49Wow.
00:08:50But it's my first approach and first start talking about it.
00:08:52So, we've just opened in Theatre Clearies and Moulds, which is a brilliant theatre up in
00:08:56North Wales.
00:08:57Oh, we're looking at Moulds and Prudian Range.
00:08:59So, I'm lucky to have one restaurant looking over the sea.
00:09:02Yeah.
00:09:03That's all fish.
00:09:04This one looks over all the mountains.
00:09:06So, all the fruits and veg and the meat comes from where you're looking at.
00:09:09It's just perfect.
00:09:10Oh, beautiful.
00:09:11Really good, yeah.
00:09:12And we should say as well that the theatre is one of only three, isn't it, in Britain now,
00:09:15where they still make their own sets.
00:09:17Yeah.
00:09:18They have so many productions come through.
00:09:19Yeah.
00:09:20It's just proper workmanship and skills there.
00:09:22It's really, really good, yeah.
00:09:23Lovely.
00:09:24Really good.
00:09:25Okay.
00:09:26So, this is one of the most popular dishes in the few days that you've been open.
00:09:30Definitely, yes.
00:09:31We did two weeks of soft opening.
00:09:32Yeah.
00:09:33So, friends and family came in there.
00:09:34And then, this is, we've really been open about two weeks, but only to the public last
00:09:39week.
00:09:40And when you open a new restaurant, you never know what's going to be the top sellers.
00:09:44You have no idea.
00:09:45And straight away, we have realised this is the top sellers straight away.
00:09:49My gosh.
00:09:50And having people suggested as well that they come in and they buy it frozen and take it away.
00:09:53Yeah, definitely, yeah.
00:09:54How are you feeling about that?
00:09:55Well, we can't cope at the moment.
00:09:56We're just about to get on a table.
00:09:57So, it's about, maybe in a couple of weeks time, we'll start selling it raw.
00:10:01But at the moment, it's all in the restaurant.
00:10:03Yeah.
00:10:04It's an extra little thing, isn't it?
00:10:05How much is, um, farming your own produce and using your own veg, how much has that changed
00:10:12the weight?
00:10:13I think it's a, you know, massively changed the way you approach it.
00:10:16You walk around the garden, and then you start seeing what's in season, and then you
00:10:20start writing a menu.
00:10:21And weirdly, normally as a chef, you start with the protein and meet the fish.
00:10:25Now I start with the vegetables.
00:10:26Right.
00:10:27So, what's in season, and then I go, so it's turned on his head, really.
00:10:30Yeah.
00:10:31So, we're eating this with some carrots.
00:10:33Yep.
00:10:34Um, in honey.
00:10:35Is it a good time, Ben, do you remember what you told me?
00:10:39About carrots?
00:10:40Can we share that you don't like sweet veggies?
00:10:42Well, I think from Brynn, the way he talks about food, I think I'm even going to enjoy
00:10:46his health.
00:10:47Look, I don't mind a bit of, on the whole, I like my veggies quite plain, because I sort
00:10:52of want to feel I'm getting all the health possible, you know.
00:10:54Yeah.
00:10:55I like to eat chocolate, I like to eat cake, you know.
00:10:57So, if I'm having my veggies, let's just keep it healthy.
00:11:00Yeah.
00:11:01So, I tend to just blanch them al dente.
00:11:02If I'm going to have, make a sandy roast, make my carrots, I just al dente, chop them
00:11:06up in the batons, just boil them very quickly.
00:11:08But look, a little bit of glazed honey.
00:11:10I presume you've nurtured your own bees and literally...
00:11:13We do have our own bees as well.
00:11:15I was joking.
00:11:16You've got it on, he's living the good life.
00:11:18All the good life, yeah.
00:11:19And you put some stock and wine in there, and it's hot already, right?
00:11:22Yes, we've browned off the meat, add the onions, add the mushrooms, red wine, reduce,
00:11:27then I'm going to pour in beef stock.
00:11:28So, again, using the entire animal, using all the bones up.
00:11:31And we bring that to the boil now.
00:11:33And normally when you make a pie, people add flour to it, but we do a brown flour.
00:11:37So normally you would roll your raw meat in flour, and then you would seal it in a frying
00:11:43pan, but you burn the flour, and you get lumps of white flour.
00:11:46So what we do here is, it's already been cooked out in a frying pan, so we call it brown flour,
00:11:50and we just literally strain it in.
00:11:52And we have more control of the thickness of the pie mix at the end.
00:11:57That's the key to it, and you don't have that floury taste at the end.
00:12:00I mean, it's a good tip, but is this a Bryn Williams, you know, revelation?
00:12:04No, I would say this is when I worked for the great Michel Roux and Albert Roux de Gavroche,
00:12:08which is now sadly closed out.
00:12:09Well, if anybody knows, they know.
00:12:10This is one of the tips that we use there.
00:12:13This is you thickening the great, the innards, it's not the pastry you're making, no?
00:12:18No, no, no, no, no.
00:12:19I'm just wondering, because you were saying the pie mix, but you mean the inner bit?
00:12:23Inner bit, yeah.
00:12:24So this is the mix.
00:12:25It takes about two, three hours to cook, then we let it cool down.
00:12:29And once it's cold, you have this beautiful mix of...
00:12:33It smells like a cosy Sunday afternoon, doesn't it, in October.
00:12:40That's what it smells like.
00:12:41Yes.
00:12:42You can smell a bit of the wine, it's lovely.
00:12:44It's food that you want to eat, I think.
00:12:45I think as I get older, especially as a restaurateur,
00:12:48you want to be able to eat the things that you want to...
00:12:50You want to cook what you enjoy eating, I think that's the key.
00:12:53Even that, even that, a spoon in there, you know.
00:12:56And it's cold, and that's the key now.
00:12:58So once it comes to the boil, you cook for a couple of hours,
00:13:01until it's nice and soft, and it's got to be cold now.
00:13:03So when you add the puff pastry on it, if it's warm,
00:13:05the butter will start seeping out of the pastry, so it has to be cold.
00:13:08So basically, the day before is always better as well,
00:13:10because any sort of slow cooking dishes, always better the next day.
00:13:15You know, you've just got to make sure we...
00:13:16Well, the flavours have infused then, haven't they?
00:13:18Good word, Alex, Diane.
00:13:19Oh, Diane.
00:13:20I don't know what infused isn't Welsh, actually, I couldn't tell you.
00:13:23But this is controversial, and you've had a little bit of kickback, haven't you?
00:13:28Because people are like, Bryn, this is delicious, but it's not a pie.
00:13:31No, some people want pastry all the way around, and I get that,
00:13:34and I think, while we're chatting, you can split two egg yolks for me, please, Alex.
00:13:38Do you know what? I would love to help with this.
00:13:40I'm cracking eggs, no problem.
00:13:41Oh.
00:13:42But I'm not sure, I'm confident of splitting. Anybody?
00:13:45Shall I show you?
00:13:46Well, Ollie's like, of course.
00:13:47Well, yes.
00:13:48I'll show you one, then.
00:13:49Go on.
00:13:50One hand.
00:13:51Give us a trick.
00:13:52So the key is, get the shell in half, and then you can put the yolk from one to another.
00:13:57Oh, yeah, like that?
00:13:58Yeah.
00:13:59Without the shell, then?
00:14:00Without the shell.
00:14:01Yeah.
00:14:02And then once you're done...
00:14:03In it goes, yeah.
00:14:04I can do that.
00:14:05Okay, fine, no problem.
00:14:06Yes, so we've got beautiful carrots, so the Chardonnay carrots, and I get what Ben's saying
00:14:11about the honey with the carrots.
00:14:14I think sometimes, when you have too much sweetness, again like a sweet potato, but we're
00:14:20going to caramelise the...
00:14:21Right there, Alex?
00:14:22Yeah.
00:14:23There's a bit of...
00:14:24But we'll just put that under there.
00:14:25I mean, don't worry about it.
00:14:27But it's yellow in there.
00:14:29Yellow in there.
00:14:30So we're going to put puff pastry on top.
00:14:32Yeah.
00:14:33So imagine the puff pastry on top, we're running over a bit of time, put the bone around
00:14:38the middle, wrap the puff pastry in the oven.
00:14:40Lovely.
00:14:41So that would be in the oven for about 40 minutes to cook the pastry, really.
00:14:44Okay.
00:14:45And then while we're cooking, carrots are cooked, we drain the water off, and the key is now
00:14:52make sure that we caramelise the honey so we have bitterness with the sweetness.
00:14:57Very nice.
00:14:58Oh, that's best.
00:14:59You don't add more sweetness to the pan, you add a bit of bitterness there.
00:15:01Okay.
00:15:02All right.
00:15:03Interesting.
00:15:04In with the carrots.
00:15:05Well, if you want to make Bryn's comforting pie at home, and I know I do, you can find
00:15:09his recipe at bbc.co.uk slash Saturday Kitchen, or you can scan the QR code below and it'll
00:15:15take you straight to the dish.
00:15:17Nice and easy for you there.
00:15:18How's it going Bryn?
00:15:19Oh, the carrots are in.
00:15:20Carrots are in.
00:15:21Is it a pie?
00:15:22If it's only got the top top?
00:15:24It's debatable.
00:15:25Definitely debatable.
00:15:26I think it's...
00:15:27I like the whole surround.
00:15:29And I'll tell you why.
00:15:30Because when you've got the surround bit, you've got the sort of soggier...
00:15:32I love a crispy pastry on top, but I do love a kind of gravy-rich soggy base, you know.
00:15:38Yeah.
00:15:39Chewy, yeah.
00:15:40I mean, the lid will be exquisite, but...
00:15:42How can you say that's not a pie?
00:15:43Look at all bubbing away.
00:15:44I think it's about what...
00:15:46So that's puff pastry.
00:15:47Puff pastry on top and nothing underneath.
00:15:49Yeah.
00:15:50Acceptable.
00:15:51Short crust pastry all the way round.
00:15:52Suet pastry all the way round.
00:15:53And I think that's the case.
00:15:55There you are.
00:15:56Andy Oliver's broken.
00:15:57Loving the marabone.
00:15:58It's like a chimney sack.
00:15:59Yeah, no.
00:16:00Pastier stuff.
00:16:01So we can make the honey.
00:16:02Bit of salt.
00:16:03Bit of butter.
00:16:04And that's it.
00:16:05We're not actually burning the sugar at all.
00:16:06We just want to get the sugar, or the honey, to go from sweetness to bitterness.
00:16:10That's all we need to go against the carrots.
00:16:12And that is it.
00:16:13That's it.
00:16:14Done.
00:16:15Just very, very simple.
00:16:16And this time of year, you could have greens with it.
00:16:17You could have anything with it, but I just love...
00:16:19I love greens.
00:16:20A bit of texture to go with it at the moment.
00:16:21And I love the bone marrow in the middle.
00:16:22Yeah, that's great.
00:16:23It's just, you know, you're using all the bits then, aren't you, and all the flavour.
00:16:26Yeah.
00:16:27I think the important thing with beef at the moment, you've got to use the entire animal,
00:16:30otherwise people are not quite happy with the, you know, the calvin footprints.
00:16:33You know, Welsh...
00:16:34Leave that one there.
00:16:35Don't worry about Alex.
00:16:36Don't worry about it.
00:16:37And I think Welsh farmers are doing a great job, and we support everything that they do.
00:16:40Nice bit of salt.
00:16:41Okay.
00:16:42So, Bryn, what have we got here?
00:16:44Beef, onion and mushroom pie with glazed carrots.
00:16:47Yum.
00:16:48Oh, yeah.
00:16:53I'll take the pie.
00:16:54You take the piece de resistance, and I'll take the carrots over.
00:16:58Lovely.
00:16:59Go on, Bryn, after you.
00:17:00Oh, look at this.
00:17:01There we are.
00:17:02It really does.
00:17:03Yes, Bryn.
00:17:04Wow.
00:17:05Pie for the family.
00:17:06There you go.
00:17:07It's like desperate Dan.
00:17:08It's like...
00:17:09Rav, will you do the honours?
00:17:10I'll bring it closer, look.
00:17:11Oh, my God.
00:17:12Look at that.
00:17:13I do love a pie.
00:17:14Thank you so much.
00:17:15I only do shortcrust pastry myself, but I love all pastries.
00:17:18Me too.
00:17:19Oh, God.
00:17:20Right.
00:17:21Tell me about the electric blanket of the wine world.
00:17:24Warmer.
00:17:25It is the warmer, yeah.
00:17:26So, this is a wine from the Rhone Valley in France.
00:17:29What you need with a dish like this is something hearty, something rich, belvety, a bit spicy.
00:17:34This is called Specially Selected Caran.
00:17:37Caran is the name of the village, and it's £9.99 an album.
00:17:40Now, if you have heard of a wine like Chateauneuf-du-Pape, this is very similar, but from a village that is less well-known, and it costs a lot less.
00:17:49Yeah.
00:17:50And I think it is gorgeous with pie.
00:17:51It's full of deep fruit.
00:17:53It's wonderfully velvety, but at this time of the year as well, it really is just so warming.
00:17:59Proper red wine.
00:18:00I think your word, how you described it, is absolutely on the button.
00:18:04Isn't it?
00:18:05It's so sort of warming, cosy, the spices to it.
00:18:07Yeah, beautiful.
00:18:08Have you said that you didn't like wines that are too spicy?
00:18:11No.
00:18:12It's not, is it?
00:18:13It's more of a blend, is it?
00:18:14It's a blend, exactly right.
00:18:15So, at Caran is the village, the blend of grapes is Syrah, Mourvedre, Carignan, and Grenache.
00:18:20And those grapes are all pretty spicy, but the way they've made the wine, they've tamed that spice out a bit.
00:18:26It's just a lovely autumnal wine.
00:18:28Do the balance, very well balanced.
00:18:30Do the balance, yeah, exactly.
00:18:31Okay, pie.
00:18:32What are we thinking?
00:18:33I love it.
00:18:34Ben, go on.
00:18:35It's amazing.
00:18:36I do love a beef pie, and this is absolutely exquisite.
00:18:40And you know, there's such a, there's fat in there, you know, juicy meat.
00:18:44And that bone marrow just melts in there, gives you all the flavour.
00:18:47Oh, good for you bone marrow, so good for you.
00:18:49Really?
00:18:50Very good for you.
00:18:51The way the meat is cooked is beautiful.
00:18:52There's still a bit of kind of robust tension in it, and the marriage with the wine.
00:18:56I think the shin is a really good cup.
00:18:57Yeah.
00:18:58It doesn't break apart in the pine, which is sort of saison.
00:19:00Delicious.
00:19:01And that gravy, that, you know, the way you did your smooth as silk, and, God, I love a gravy.
00:19:05Yeah, exactly.
00:19:06Remember to eat your carrots.
00:19:08Oh, no, I've got a, yeah, I'll have a carrot.
00:19:10I'm sure they look lovely.
00:19:11The beef is beautiful.
00:19:12If you don't like carrots, what's going on there?
00:19:14Well, don't forget.
00:19:15What's going on with the sauce?
00:19:16You're in charge.
00:19:17Shantanay carrots.
00:19:18Shantanay carrots.
00:19:19Okay.
00:19:20Don't forget you're in charge of what brain cooks for Ben at the end of the show.
00:19:22But would you prefer to make Ben's idea of food heaven, be your battered fish, chips
00:19:26and crushed peas, or his idea of food hell, pan-fried halibut with sweet potato mash
00:19:31and a creamy velouté both sound very lovely to me?
00:19:33Delicious.
00:19:34Log on to the Saturday Kitchen website now and have your say.
00:19:37Right then, let's catch up with Rick Stein.
00:19:39He's in Vietnam making a scenic cruise along the Mekong River.
00:19:43Cheers.
00:19:50I'm on the mighty Mekong River in Vietnam and almost instantly crossing the border from
00:19:56Cambodia, I can sense a difference between the two countries.
00:20:01Vietnam is more populated.
00:20:03The river banks are crowded with houses.
00:20:06But just over 30 years ago, this was probably one of the most dangerous places to be.
00:20:11Reminiscent of that film Apocalypse Now.
00:20:13But today, it's full of life.
00:20:16People fishing, bathing and farming.
00:20:18Because the Mekong is not just a highway, it's the source of everyone's livelihood.
00:20:23We've just turned off the main Mekong River into this canal and then we're going to join a smaller
00:20:28river called the Basak, which is the name of the boat as well.
00:20:31But it's so densely populated now and this is really interesting.
00:20:35All those little huts there, or most of them, have actually got fish pens under it.
00:20:40Seems to be some sort of row going on over there.
00:20:43I know, they're shouting at me.
00:20:45Hello!
00:20:50Seems it might have been Mekong whiskey maybe?
00:20:54In just a few hours, I've lost count of the number of fish farms.
00:21:01These floating shacks that line the Mekong's banks.
00:21:04I was interested to have a look inside one, so Ang, my guide, took me to a friend of hers to have a look.
00:21:10What sort of fish are we going to see today?
00:21:14In this firm, we can find tilapia.
00:21:18Tilapia?
00:21:19Yes.
00:21:20In supermarkets in England, there's fillets of Vietnamese fish.
00:21:25They call it Vietnamese cobbler fish.
00:21:28Do you know what that means?
00:21:31I'm not sure.
00:21:33I'm blown if I know what it means.
00:21:35Never heard of a cobbler fish.
00:21:37What you've got to remember is that these are not just farms, they're people's homes too.
00:21:46A bit like the farms in the Alps, really, where the cattle live downstairs and the family live above.
00:21:52Everyone seems to have a couple of dogs.
00:21:56I imagine there's quite a bit of fish rustling going on.
00:21:59What do you call them?
00:22:08What do you call them?
00:22:09This fish we call cá chim.
00:22:11Cátim.
00:22:12Cátim.
00:22:13Cátim.
00:22:14Cátim.
00:22:15Yes, cá chim.
00:22:16It means fish of bird.
00:22:19Fish of?
00:22:20Bird.
00:22:21Like a bird.
00:22:22Bird.
00:22:23Bird fish.
00:22:24How big does that grow to?
00:22:25Cátim.
00:22:26Cátim.
00:22:27About 600 grams.
00:22:29About 600 grams.
00:22:31600 grams.
00:22:32600 grams.
00:22:33Yes.
00:22:34That's a really nice fish.
00:22:35Yes.
00:22:36Smells good.
00:22:37So how would you cook this, sir?
00:22:40Here we like very much.
00:22:42It's the fish cooked with tomato sauce.
00:22:45Tomato?
00:22:46Yes, and sometimes we fry, just fry with some lemongrass and chili.
00:22:51Uh-huh.
00:22:52Yes.
00:22:52What, deep fry or just in a shallot pan?
00:22:56Deep fry.
00:22:57Yeah, yeah.
00:22:58And serve with fish sauce.
00:22:59Oh, yeah, I like that way.
00:23:01So the skin's a bit crisp.
00:23:02Yes.
00:23:03Yeah.
00:23:04I like the way they cook fish out here.
00:23:06They sort of hard fry it.
00:23:08This is a great sauce made with garlic, shallots, diced chili, finely chopped lemongrass.
00:23:14And I'm using tinned tomatoes, which is what Aang told me to use.
00:23:19After all, when in Vietnam, do as the Vietnamese.
00:23:23And now, plenty of fish sauce.
00:23:26The sauce that glues everything together in Southeast Asia.
00:23:30And also, funnily enough, when we were filming a fish sauce factory in Cambodia,
00:23:36I actually tasted the fish sauce that came out of the barrel, the fermenting barrel.
00:23:42And all the crew said, no, don't touch that, don't touch that.
00:23:44And it was the clearest, purest, sweetest taste I've ever had.
00:23:50So there we go.
00:23:51Now, some palm sugar.
00:23:53Now, you can use brown sugar for this, light brown sugar.
00:23:56But I love the taste of palm sugar.
00:23:58Of course, it's more authentic.
00:24:00So there we are, palm sugar.
00:24:03And now, some lime leaves.
00:24:06Thinly shredded.
00:24:08Like that.
00:24:10Easiest sauce in the world to make.
00:24:13Some lime juice.
00:24:14Don't bother with getting a squeezer there.
00:24:17They're lying in your thumbs.
00:24:18And now, some slaked cornflour.
00:24:22That's cornflour.
00:24:23Slaked with a bit of water.
00:24:25Just to thicken it up a little bit.
00:24:27And just add that.
00:24:30Just let that cook out.
00:24:33Finally.
00:24:35And most importantly, a little taste.
00:24:41Honestly, I just, it just always beguiles me, I suppose,
00:24:47how easy it is to make things taste nice in the Far East.
00:24:51Simply because a mixture of sugar, lime, fish sauce,
00:24:56all those things together.
00:24:57And chilli, of course.
00:24:58It just creates this absolutely Moorish taste.
00:25:03Good.
00:25:04That's done.
00:25:05Let's rock on and do the fish.
00:25:07Strangely, I couldn't get birdfish in Padstone.
00:25:10So I'm using bass.
00:25:11As you can see, the tail's still sticking out a bit.
00:25:14I'm using a wok because that's what they use over there.
00:25:17You might be better off with a very large frying pan.
00:25:20I don't have one quite as large as this.
00:25:22So I quite like cooking in a wok because it looks right.
00:25:26But just be so careful with it.
00:25:28I mean, you know, an open pan like that and the gas flame
00:25:32and lots of hot oil, dangerous stuff.
00:25:36On the whole, if you're cooking on a four-ring burner
00:25:39or a five or a six, keep it at the back.
00:25:43I'm crazy for a gizmo.
00:25:45Trouble is, I keep losing them.
00:25:46Not hot enough yet.
00:25:48It needs to be about 60 degrees centigrade.
00:25:51Actually, for a fish this size,
00:25:53if you fry it until the skin is crispy,
00:25:55it's going to be about right in the centre.
00:25:57Now you simply nap it with this zingy tomato sauce.
00:26:02All you need is some steamed rice and an ice-cold beer.
00:26:06I quite like serving a whole fish like this
00:26:08with everyone helping themselves.
00:26:10And, you know, I really like eating fish with chopsticks.
00:26:13It makes you look for every morsel.
00:26:15Oh, I love Rick.
00:26:22Not good with chopsticks, though, me.
00:26:24I need to practice.
00:26:25Yes.
00:26:26Now, what we've done this morning, right,
00:26:28is recruit different chefs for different parts of the show.
00:26:31And, Andy, we got you here because, of course,
00:26:33you and Ben have a connection that goes back years and years.
00:26:3740-odd years, maybe 45 years.
00:26:39Oh, to 44 years.
00:26:4044 years.
00:26:41Making my back hurt.
00:26:42So, you were in a group called Rip, Rig and Panic.
00:26:45Well done!
00:26:48And the band played on the young ones in the kitchen, didn't you?
00:26:51We were the band in the kitchen and the party.
00:26:54And the party episode.
00:26:55My goodness.
00:26:56Well, guess what, everybody?
00:26:58Of course we have a clip.
00:26:59Oh, goodness.
00:27:00Oh, goodness.
00:27:01Pig smashed the high-fi and we've got no music.
00:27:03No music, my braces.
00:27:05What about Rip, Rig and Panic?
00:27:10I mean, I'm a bah- I'm, like, 18 or something.
00:27:32How old were you?
00:27:33I was 21.
00:27:34Right.
00:27:34Yeah.
00:27:35The funny thing is, it's still on brand because you're talking about heaven and hell.
00:27:40Kitchen, heaven, hell, still cooking.
00:27:42There you are.
00:27:43Okay, so kitchen wise, you're going to make your beautiful recipe.
00:27:46I'm going to make a spice poached ham hop because it's a really great cheap cut.
00:27:51It really is a cheap cut steel brin.
00:27:53And it's a beautiful way to use ham.
00:27:56And we're going to make marmite soldiers and a little mescal gazpacho.
00:28:00A green gazpacho shot.
00:28:02So East Extract is the star here.
00:28:04Yes, the soldiers are really, they're sort of looking forward to that.
00:28:09Tell me what you need to do.
00:28:11Do you know what, could you roughly chop these things for me?
00:28:14That would be really lovely.
00:28:15Lovely.
00:28:16Here's your egg technique.
00:28:17Oh Ben, let's not bring that up.
00:28:20Let's not bring that up now, is it?
00:28:23That's rough chopping.
00:28:24Chopping, that's great.
00:28:26I love it.
00:28:27Do you want the ends or not?
00:28:29Ends are fine, it's all going to get blitzed up.
00:28:32Brilliant.
00:28:33So Ben, oh my goodness, your book.
00:28:35Congratulations.
00:28:37Andy, you must read it.
00:28:38I will.
00:28:39And you've waited until the time was right really, haven't you?
00:28:42I've waited until I've lived the majority of my life.
00:28:44I'd like it to have lived to a thousand, but I don't think so.
00:28:47I know it's 66.
00:28:48I wrote it last year, so it was kind of the old official retirement age.
00:28:51And it just felt a good time to reflect on, you know, a generally very happy and very fulfilled life.
00:28:57There's some less happy bits in it, but on the whole, you know, it's certainly written with love.
00:29:02And I don't know why, I think perhaps my mum dying the year before, like that left, you know, suddenly you're the generation, the next one, frankly, you know, the next one to die.
00:29:14Being an orphan, isn't it?
00:29:15Yeah, I was orphaned at 65.
00:29:17I had almost written it.
00:29:19I'd sat down and write a biography about 12 years ago after Rick died.
00:29:24My dear friend, so beautiful to see him on the young ones there all those years ago.
00:29:27So young and full of life.
00:29:28And, of course, we lost him far too early.
00:29:30Yeah.
00:29:31And it made me very reflective then, and I started writing it, but I realised I was kind of in an angry and sad mood, and that's very not like me at all.
00:29:37No.
00:29:38So I didn't write it then, but now I've written it, and it's been a very joyful experience, and people seem to be enjoying it.
00:29:44And that joy really does come through in the pages, especially right at the beginning.
00:29:48I mean, how do you remember?
00:29:49I don't know, but you go back to being sort of 17, 18, meeting Rick Mayall for the first time at university.
00:29:55Absolutely, yeah.
00:29:56And what was that moment like?
00:29:58Well, do you know, in the book I talk about it, it was a bit like love at first sight.
00:30:02I mean, of all the very extraordinary talented people I've had the privilege of working with and becoming friends with over so many decades,
00:30:11I think the one whose immediate charisma, his star quality, was most instantly apparent was Rick.
00:30:18Yeah.
00:30:19And I went to university, I was 18, Rick was just 20, I think he was 13 months older than me.
00:30:24And he was a third year, and they put on a little entertainment for us first years.
00:30:28And he walked on, and just, there was a natural, I mean, he was just a scummy student in a big jacket with a, you know.
00:30:35He was so handsome, you say.
00:30:36Yeah.
00:30:37Oh, very good.
00:30:38He was so handsome.
00:30:39Yeah.
00:30:40Rick and Ade were both very, because Ade Edmondson was also at university in the same year as Rick,
00:30:45so the young ones team kind of formed at Manchester University.
00:30:48And, yeah, Rick came on first, and he just said, he just said, hi, I'm Rick Mayall.
00:30:53And he said, he was like this student, he was, you know, like we're all poor, streaming breath in the cold,
00:30:57and yet he told it like he was saying, hi, I'm Brad Pitt, you know.
00:31:00Yeah.
00:31:01That confidence.
00:31:02Amazing.
00:31:03I mean, I have to say, something of Rick's extraordinary comic confidence, sometimes I think, you know,
00:31:08he wasn't always the best judge of his own talent.
00:31:10No.
00:31:11I feel very proud I was able to help, to a certain extent, to bring out the best in Rick.
00:31:15And when he was the best, it was the best of all.
00:31:18I mean, if you think of his flash heart in Blackadder, I mean, that in a way, if you think of Blackadder and Flashheart,
00:31:24that's kind of how Rick was when I met him at university.
00:31:27That huge a personality.
00:31:29It's very beautiful.
00:31:30There's a quote in the book, isn't there, Ben, about how he felt about you and about how you felt about him,
00:31:33which I think really sums it up.
00:31:35Well, yeah.
00:31:36I mean, look, it's a serious book.
00:31:37There's lots of laughs in it, lots of great anecdotes, I hope, I think.
00:31:40But it is quite serious.
00:31:41And I do unpack, as young people say, my relationship with Rick, which wasn't entirely happy.
00:31:47I mean, Rick's drinking came to be a factor in his life.
00:31:50And I can say that because I've spoken to the lovely Barbara, his wife, who I know, has said that's fine.
00:31:55It was part of all our lives.
00:31:57But, yeah, Rick needed words.
00:31:59He could write a bit, but he needed writers.
00:32:02And not everybody could do for Rick what he needed.
00:32:05And at a time I felt almost pressured.
00:32:08It was difficult for me.
00:32:09And I say that, you know, the thing about me and Rick, there was a sort of love.
00:32:13And we felt the same way about each other.
00:32:15He, he, I felt he was one of the greatest comic performers ever, a great comic genius.
00:32:21And that I could really serve him.
00:32:23And he felt exactly the same way about me.
00:32:25He thought he was one of the greatest comic performers.
00:32:28And that I could really serve him.
00:32:30And that was kind of our relationship.
00:32:32And it was a wonderful, our friendship lasted all our lives.
00:32:35But our professional relationship actually fractured in the young ones.
00:32:38And we, we never really did much after that.
00:32:41And it was a source of huge regret to us both.
00:32:43But, and of course then he died and there wasn't a chance to do it.
00:32:46Yeah.
00:32:47It's a serious, there's a lot about my relationship with Rick.
00:32:49Yeah.
00:32:50It's beautifully though.
00:32:51I mean, you know, when you read about that friendship, it's something we can all empathise with.
00:32:54Isn't it?
00:32:55A friendship going in and out of love.
00:32:56Yeah.
00:32:57It's really beautifully done.
00:32:58Talking of love, we're just going to talk about the yeast extract in the saucepan over
00:33:02here.
00:33:03Yes.
00:33:04So they're full soldiers.
00:33:05So you melt and melt the yeast extract into the butter.
00:33:08Oh my God.
00:33:09And roll them up so they get properly soaked.
00:33:11Yeah.
00:33:12Like day old sourdough is the best because it holds its shape.
00:33:14Right.
00:33:15And then you really saturate them.
00:33:17Look at that.
00:33:18Well I was just going to say earlier Ben, I thought Andy was going to cut some toast.
00:33:22And butter.
00:33:23And put some, yeah.
00:33:24Just put some butter and yeast extract on it.
00:33:26But no.
00:33:27No, no.
00:33:28Posh Marmite soldiers.
00:33:29You're going to do it, get involved.
00:33:30Absolutely.
00:33:31So these go in the oven or in the grill?
00:33:32They're going to go in the grill just so that they get a little bit of texture on the
00:33:35top really.
00:33:36Very nice.
00:33:37Andy, I've done the chopping here.
00:33:39Oh look, that's going to go into here.
00:33:41Right, alright.
00:33:42Come on.
00:33:43Bring all that over here dear.
00:33:44Okay.
00:33:45Whack it into there for me.
00:33:46And Ben, the thing is, you know, you honestly, it's quite unbelievable when you're talking
00:33:51because you've got so many, it's like, you know, people drop names.
00:33:56But you actually know these people.
00:33:58Thank you darling.
00:33:59Sir Stephen Fry.
00:34:00Oh yes.
00:34:01There's a whole chapter.
00:34:02He pops up continually throughout it.
00:34:04I've known him.
00:34:05I met him when I was 21 and he was 22.
00:34:07But did you save his life?
00:34:08I did.
00:34:09There's a good chapter there.
00:34:10Honestly, I literally saved Stephen Fry's life.
00:34:13And where would everybody's fantasy dinner parties be?
00:34:17Where would the celebrity traitors be without him?
00:34:20Exactly, without dear Stephen.
00:34:21There's a lot.
00:34:22I think the thing I'm proudest about in my life, because anyone who's in the public eye,
00:34:28you always get told what you're most proud of.
00:34:30And I think it's the friendships that I've made and sustained.
00:34:33Everyone I've worked with, the Blackadder team, the Young Ones team, right up to the Upstart Pro team.
00:34:38You know, I've made a lot of wonderful friends and I've written some good stories about them.
00:34:45But that's testament to you as well.
00:34:47Yeah, and we're all still friends and most of them have given me a nice quote for the book.
00:34:50So that's pretty lovely if you want to read those.
00:34:52I mean, look, there's some grit in the Pearl.
00:34:54Oh, there is.
00:34:55I won't go as far as to say enemies, but I haven't always been, you know, it hasn't always been plain sailing.
00:35:01And some people have been mean about me and maybe they, maybe I deserve it.
00:35:04I don't know.
00:35:05But I've talked about that.
00:35:06Yeah.
00:35:07And how painful sometimes it can be.
00:35:08And, yeah, but I think friendship is the overbiding, overriding theme of the book.
00:35:14I think so.
00:35:15Yeah.
00:35:16And the lovely thing is, you've done obviously some interviews.
00:35:18Some of your friends who appear in the book have interviewed you.
00:35:20Ollie went last night to see you with David Mitchell.
00:35:22I did.
00:35:23David Mitchell interviewed me about a book.
00:35:25It was astonishing.
00:35:26Sometimes, you know, autobiographies, they're a bit of a lap of honour.
00:35:29This is so much more than that.
00:35:30This is a lap of insight.
00:35:32It's just the most inspirational, packed full of tales where you're literally just eking out every last opportunity from the moment.
00:35:40And you said something last night that inspired me.
00:35:42You said, it should always be about nourishing your soul.
00:35:45And I think that links right back to hospitality.
00:35:48Because if you do things sincerely and with love, as you've clearly done by writing this beautifully crafted book, then it actually connects.
00:35:55We were talking about what to speak to young people about how best to approach writing.
00:35:59And above, you have to be true to yourself.
00:36:01Yeah.
00:36:02You have to express yourself.
00:36:03Put all your love, all your talent into it.
00:36:05Oh, my God.
00:36:06I can't wait.
00:36:07It's not going to happen.
00:36:08The same goes for cooking.
00:36:09They say the secret ingredient of Yorkshire puddings is love.
00:36:12You know, if you want them to rise, you've got to love them.
00:36:14I do.
00:36:15OK.
00:36:16You have to love what you do, because I think things get hard anyway.
00:36:19And if you don't love it, then you lose your heart halfway through things.
00:36:22There you go.
00:36:23That's exactly what we were talking about last night with David.
00:36:25So, just recap on this recipe.
00:36:26Right.
00:36:27Oh, my goodness.
00:36:28This looks like a taste of it.
00:36:29So, that's very hot.
00:36:30If you don't mind me, that would be really great.
00:36:32So, this is the ham hop that's been poached with the spices and some lovely herbs.
00:36:38And then I put some of the stock back through it with a little bit of cream.
00:36:41We're going to pile that up.
00:36:42Oh, my God.
00:36:43On top of the soldiers.
00:36:45Wow.
00:36:46Like that.
00:36:47That's a lot of meat.
00:36:48Yes.
00:36:49Well.
00:36:50And then, oh, I've got a lovely pickle I made here, like a little chilli onion.
00:36:53Oh, cut them up and grease.
00:36:55Yeah, cut food for you, won't it?
00:36:56Yes, because you need something sharp to kind of counteract that.
00:36:59Now, you've all got the shot of gazpacho over there.
00:37:02Is it alcoholic?
00:37:03Is this?
00:37:04It's got mezcal in it.
00:37:05Yes, it is.
00:37:06Shall we have a go of that?
00:37:07All right.
00:37:08Knock it back out in one.
00:37:09Cool.
00:37:10There you go.
00:37:11There you go.
00:37:12There you go.
00:37:13There you go.
00:37:14There we go.
00:37:15I'm not going to knock it back in one.
00:37:16I've got a long day today.
00:37:17Have a little sip.
00:37:18See what you think.
00:37:19It looks really fresh.
00:37:20The colour is incredible.
00:37:22Yeah.
00:37:23Yeah.
00:37:24Quite perfect, isn't it?
00:37:25I really like that.
00:37:26It's a drink of sheer vitality.
00:37:27You second.
00:37:28Oh, I can't have that.
00:37:29That'll wake you up.
00:37:30Well, what would you like Ben to eat at the end of the show?
00:37:33Now then, Bryn, how are we going to translate sort of Ben's idea of heaven, the fish and chips?
00:37:39What are you going to do to them?
00:37:40They're just complete classic fish and chips in batter, crispy chips and crushed peas.
00:37:45I just think we're not going to mess about with it.
00:37:47Good tart, good potato.
00:37:48Just cook it with a lot of love like we've just been chatting and that's it.
00:37:51It's the simplicity of it that makes it a beautiful classic.
00:37:54It's not us as a chef trying to put a spin on things.
00:37:56Just beautiful ingredients.
00:37:57Okay.
00:37:58And then if the viewers, for some unknown reason, Ben, give you hell, what will we do with Ben?
00:38:03Well, it's that sweet potato thing you're talking about, too sweet, the fibrous.
00:38:07You're going to bake it, scoop it out, put grated pans on it to balance the sweetness.
00:38:11The saltiness will balance it out.
00:38:12A nice piece of halibut pan fried and a mushroom sauce with white wine, fish stock and cream and a load of herbs at the end.
00:38:19It sounds alright.
00:38:21Frankly, I'm already in heaven.
00:38:23I'm handy.
00:38:24Go for fish and chips though.
00:38:25Fish and chips is great.
00:38:26Yeah, well, I hope I'll get the fish and chips, but meanwhile, my fingers in the air.
00:38:29It's your new heaven, isn't it?
00:38:31Oh my God.
00:38:32Well, the choice is y'all, so just log on to the website now and have your say.
00:38:36There we go.
00:38:37Okay, we are going to take a trip to Ireland now.
00:38:39Anna Hawes rustling up a mighty mussel supper for my very good friend, Angela Scanlon.
00:38:50It's time to head back to the kitchen to cook Angela some mayo mussels to remember.
00:38:55So, these obviously still have some beards left on them.
00:39:02Mmm.
00:39:03So that's the bit that connects the mussel to the rope and you hold them really tight and you go real quick.
00:39:08Okay.
00:39:09Alright, so you continue doing them and I'm going to toast the spices.
00:39:12The key to it is essentially mixing sweet spice with hot spice.
00:39:15Okay.
00:39:16And knowing how much of what you like.
00:39:18So, for example, I'm doing coriander seed and I think coriander seed is one of those really special spices because it gives like a kind of citrusy aroma.
00:39:26Mmm.
00:39:27So, it complements loads of other spices.
00:39:29But when you have something like clove, clove is very sweet and we really associate it with desserts.
00:39:34Yeah.
00:39:35But it gives a great depth of flavour.
00:39:36Oh, it's a lot.
00:39:37So, you want to toast your spices until they change in colour.
00:39:39Yes.
00:39:40So, it's what releasing.
00:39:41So, what this does is that we call it tempering the spice.
00:39:45And what it does is it reignites the flavour that is within the spice.
00:39:49So, I'm going to do cumin.
00:39:50Okay.
00:39:51So, you can hear that kind of crackling.
00:39:52Yeah.
00:39:53So, that's another sign that your spices kind of…
00:39:54And you roast each of them separately.
00:39:56You can't bang them all in at the one time.
00:39:58Do you know, you could probably bang them in at the same time.
00:40:00But I can't help myself, Angela.
00:40:02I believe that the flavour is different when you grind the spice separately.
00:40:06Well, you're grinding them separately as well.
00:40:08I want to grind them.
00:40:09She's a glutton.
00:40:10Right.
00:40:11Do you know how to grind?
00:40:12Oh, we'll soon find out.
00:40:14Now, I think I've done an exceptional job.
00:40:17It smells delicious and you have to keep going.
00:40:19Is it still…
00:40:20Oh, do I?
00:40:21Okay.
00:40:22I was thinking it's not smooth.
00:40:23We're not at exceptional yet.
00:40:24Okay, fine.
00:40:25In my bespoke spice mix, I'm adding powdered ginger, turmeric, paprika, mild chilli powder
00:40:31and white pepper.
00:40:32You are good.
00:40:33And then my roasted and ground fresh spices, cloves, coriander, cumin and cardamom seeds.
00:40:39So, for me…
00:40:40There's a bit of a kick to that.
00:40:42It's really spicy, Anna.
00:40:43There's a little bit of a kick to it, but we'll obviously cook it out and there'll
00:40:46be other flavours going in.
00:40:47First, we're going in with our garlic.
00:40:48And what will happen is that you're just going to flavour the oil.
00:40:51You can see that the garlic is changing colour now.
00:40:54And then the shallots or your onions go in.
00:40:56So, I'm going to start off with like a heaped teaspoon.
00:40:59Okay.
00:41:00I'm going to add it in here.
00:41:01And then…
00:41:02So, relatively dry pan at this stage.
00:41:04Relatively dry pan as it's going in now.
00:41:06Yeah, definitely.
00:41:07So, once that's done, we're ready to take our mussels.
00:41:10Yeah.
00:41:11Okay.
00:41:12So, with mussels, when I was younger, there used to be this concept that you have a raging
00:41:20hot pan with your mussels and you put a lid on it and you shake them and you go crazy.
00:41:25Right.
00:41:26But I actually really like the idea of taking your thyme, stirring your mussels and I'm
00:41:32going to add vermouth to this.
00:41:34Oh!
00:41:35That's surprising.
00:41:36Yeah.
00:41:37And it gives it a nice kind of layer of complexity of flavour.
00:41:40You don't have to use it.
00:41:41There is lots of flavours in this.
00:41:43And then all I'm going to do is just slowly stir this until the mussels start to go…
00:41:48Look, here we've got some action here.
00:41:51That's amazing.
00:41:52I've never seen this before.
00:41:55It smells delicious.
00:41:58So, we have some bowls here.
00:42:00This one's going to be for our flesh and this one's going to be for our shells.
00:42:03And you take your first…
00:42:04Like, take a big sized mussel and then you're just going to pull that one out.
00:42:08Okay.
00:42:09And then from then on, you're just going to open your shell and then use that like a little
00:42:13tongs.
00:42:14Right.
00:42:15So, as this reduces down, the flavour gets stronger.
00:42:18The colour is stronger as well.
00:42:20The colour gets stronger.
00:42:21So, I'm going to add like a drop of cream.
00:42:23I'm going to add in our gorgeous butter beans.
00:42:25Gorgeous.
00:42:26You could use chickpeas.
00:42:27Gorgeous.
00:42:28You could use actually whatever you want.
00:42:29So, who did the cooking in your house?
00:42:32My mum.
00:42:33Did she rub you guys in on it?
00:42:35Not really.
00:42:36So, you're just like enjoying your childhood?
00:42:37No.
00:42:38We were doing the clean up.
00:42:39So, my mum and dad would often head out for a Sunday drive, i.e. a bit of sanity.
00:42:44There was a little shop up the road from us called Sheila's.
00:42:47And they had a list…
00:42:48Sheila's.
00:42:49Sheila's.
00:42:50And they had a list system there.
00:42:52So, you could nip in on the way home from school and get whatever was needed and you
00:42:56didn't always have to have money, you know?
00:42:58Sheila knew no sweets were allowed on the list.
00:43:01Oh, Sheila knew.
00:43:02Sheila knew.
00:43:03Sheila knew.
00:43:04So, we would on a Sunday go up to Sheila's and buy baking ingredients and chance our arm
00:43:13at a bit of baking and then slog the cakes to the neighbours and then go back to Sheila's
00:43:18and buy the sweets.
00:43:19That is incredible.
00:43:20I know.
00:43:21And like the effort and the love was there.
00:43:24So, people bought your…
00:43:25Oh, they all bought them.
00:43:26I don't know whether it was out of pity or curiosity, but like we had some repeat
00:43:30customers.
00:43:31So, you really have like an entrepreneur kind of spirit, don't you?
00:43:35Very much.
00:43:36Like when you look at how your career started, like…
00:43:39Yeah.
00:43:40I worked in shop, like a lot of retail.
00:43:42Then I set up a stall.
00:43:43Yeah.
00:43:44So, I have always kind of enjoyed that idea of creating something yourself.
00:43:49Yeah.
00:43:50And it takes a long time to become an expert in your field.
00:43:53Yeah.
00:43:54So, when did you feel like you…
00:43:55I don't think I'm there.
00:43:56Answer it.
00:43:57I don't.
00:43:58When did you feel you became an expert in your field?
00:43:59I think I'm still learning.
00:44:00Wrong answer.
00:44:01You're allowed to grow and develop.
00:44:02I have grown and developed for sure.
00:44:04Watch my older stuff.
00:44:07With the sauce reduced a little, it's time to add the finishing touches.
00:44:11Lemon zest, the shelled mussels, broad beans and fresh dill flowers.
00:44:18Ready to serve on toast.
00:44:20These look like a little coral reef vibe.
00:44:23Yeah, I can see that.
00:44:24And you're only humouring me now.
00:44:25I am.
00:44:26But obviously, if you worked for me, we'd have a different relationship.
00:44:29You'd absolutely kill me.
00:44:30No!
00:44:31If you worked for me…
00:44:32What are you doing there, Chef?
00:44:33Yeah, exactly.
00:44:34That's what I'd be like.
00:44:35Get back there.
00:44:36Right.
00:44:37Are you hungry?
00:44:38I'm starving.
00:44:39These are both for me.
00:44:40Okay.
00:44:41I'm joking.
00:44:42I'm joking.
00:44:43Let's go.
00:44:44Let's go.
00:44:45Oh my gosh.
00:44:46It looks gorgeous.
00:44:47Oh, this is romantic.
00:44:49Only the best for you, my dear.
00:44:52Okay, how do we go into this?
00:44:54I'm going to copy you.
00:44:55Pick it up with your hands and eat it if you want.
00:44:57Do whatever you want.
00:44:58Okay.
00:44:59I'm going in.
00:45:03I get a lovely hint of the cumin in there and also the turmeric, which I really, really
00:45:09love in it.
00:45:10And the creaminess of the sauce and the butter beans are very lovely with it.
00:45:16Those mussels are little jewels.
00:45:24Oh, thank you, Anna and Angela.
00:45:27That looked so delicious, didn't it?
00:45:29Now then, still to come, Ollie Smith is sharing his wine wisdom with info we all need to know,
00:45:34like to decant or not decant.
00:45:38Can cheap wine really be good?
00:45:40And why on earth is wine now sold in cans?
00:45:42I mean, for me, that's wrong, but I'll, you know, I'll hold that thought.
00:45:45Okay, but Rav, in the meantime, we are making one of my favourite desserts ever, which I'd forgotten
00:45:52about you're bringing back a classic.
00:45:54I'm bringing back the Black Forest Ghetto today for you.
00:45:56Yes.
00:45:57And I'm going to show you how to make a really foolproof chocolate sponge, some ganache,
00:46:00some cherry compote together and assemble the whole thing.
00:46:02Okay.
00:46:03Yes.
00:46:04All right.
00:46:05Oh my goodness.
00:46:06So this sponge, though, can be used for anything.
00:46:07Anything.
00:46:08And that's why I wanted to show it, but I'm getting my ganache on just so that I can show
00:46:11you the process.
00:46:12So just heating up the cream.
00:46:13But then this chocolate sponge is going to change your life and I'll show you why.
00:46:18So it's a wet mix and a dry mix.
00:46:20Right.
00:46:21What was in that ganache sauce for now?
00:46:22Oh, I forgot.
00:46:23Sorry.
00:46:24It's malt extract, which you don't need to use.
00:46:26You can use something else that's the same texture, like honey, perhaps.
00:46:30You can use...
00:46:31Treacle, maybe?
00:46:32Treacle.
00:46:33You can use golden syrup.
00:46:34Okay.
00:46:35I always say if you're substituting and you look at a recipe and you think, oh, I haven't
00:46:38got that.
00:46:39If you can find something that's the same texture and maybe perhaps similar, then it will work.
00:46:43Texture is key.
00:46:44Okay.
00:46:45Yeah.
00:46:46And you're making this without butter.
00:46:47Without butter, we're doing all the wet ingredients today.
00:46:50So oil.
00:46:51And in this bowl, it's all the dry ingredients.
00:46:53Cocoa powder, two different types of sugar, flour, baking powder, bicarb and salt.
00:46:58All in there.
00:46:59And you just stir it with a whisk.
00:47:01So the good thing about this and why people like it and why people stop me in the street
00:47:05about this cake is because you don't need any equipment, just a whisk in a bowl.
00:47:08So that's the dry mix.
00:47:09Okay.
00:47:10And I'll give that to you because in here, you just put in a wet mix, which is oil.
00:47:14Mm-hmm.
00:47:15How much oil is that then?
00:47:17It's sort of equal quantities of the oil to the buttermilk and the water.
00:47:21Fine.
00:47:22It all goes into a bowl.
00:47:23I was going to ask you to crack the eggs, but I'll do it.
00:47:25Is it all a bowl?
00:47:26Yeah.
00:47:27It's olive oil, but you can actually use neutral oil.
00:47:29It doesn't have to be olive oil.
00:47:30No.
00:47:31Okay.
00:47:32So it can be whatever you've got at home.
00:47:33Yes.
00:47:34And a little bit of it sticks up.
00:47:35So you think, oh my goodness, it's so-and-so's birthday tomorrow.
00:47:36Whatever you've got.
00:47:37Whatever you've got.
00:47:38Texture.
00:47:39And if you haven't got buttermilk, use some yoghurt and some milk together to make your buttermilk
00:47:41or squeeze a bit of lemon in some milk, you'll be absolutely fine.
00:47:43Okay.
00:47:44So then I'm going to get you to just pour this.
00:47:45Sure.
00:47:46I'll pour it into there and you're just going to mix it together with a whisk.
00:47:49There's no trust here, is there right?
00:47:50There's no...
00:47:51There's a little bit.
00:47:52There's a little bit.
00:47:53Okay.
00:47:54And then that's your cake batter done.
00:47:55Delicious.
00:47:56And is it right that with the Black Forest Gatto, you've got a little bit of buttermilk
00:47:58and it's not a little bit of buttermilk?
00:47:59Right.
00:48:00So you think, oh my goodness, it's so-and-so's birthday tomorrow.
00:48:01Whatever you've got.
00:48:02Whatever you've got.
00:48:03Texture and...
00:48:04If you haven't got buttermilk, use some yoghurt and some milk together to make your buttermilk
00:48:05There's a little bit.
00:48:06There's a little bit.
00:48:07And then that's your cake batter done.
00:48:09Delicious.
00:48:10And is it right that with the Black Forest Gatto, you ask your mum when you were a little
00:48:15girl to take you and get a slice after school?
00:48:17Yes.
00:48:18I've always loved it, haven't you?
00:48:19It's my favourite.
00:48:20So today we're not going to put any alcohol in it, but usually you can put some kirsch
00:48:23in there just so it's like kid-friendly.
00:48:25And you can make a nice soaking syrup.
00:48:27Now, do you want this properly whisked?
00:48:30As whisked as you can.
00:48:32Oh, you've asked for it now.
00:48:34You watch the elbow grease now, okay?
00:48:36Just get rid of all the dry bits.
00:48:38I've got a question for you though, because I followed you.
00:48:41We met actually a couple of years ago doing this show.
00:48:44Yes.
00:48:45And I followed you on Instagram and absolutely love all the desserts you make.
00:48:49You make it look like ballet making cakes.
00:48:52Unbelievable.
00:48:54But how have you got time to be here?
00:48:57I mean, not being rude, we are thrilled that you're here, but you've got a lot going
00:49:01on.
00:49:02You've got a brand new restaurant.
00:49:03You've got a little toddler's nearly two.
00:49:05Yeah.
00:49:06And you've been following the journey of creating this restaurant for the Food Network.
00:49:10Yeah.
00:49:11So we have actually filmed the whole thing.
00:49:13Right.
00:49:14From start to finish of how to open a restaurant with Food Network.
00:49:16And it's out now.
00:49:17So it comes out every Thursday, two episodes at a time.
00:49:21And they followed my whole life.
00:49:22So they followed us, you know, in our flat, making recipes, going to visit our suppliers,
00:49:27opening the restaurant, doing the renovations, stressing out the builders, all of it.
00:49:31But that is really hard when you've actually got a build going on.
00:49:35You know, we've all been there where you're trying to do an extension or whatever, or even
00:49:38a home renovation.
00:49:39And when you've got a camera crew in there, that's a different dynamic, isn't it?
00:49:44Yeah.
00:49:45Was it stressful?
00:49:46It was very stressful.
00:49:48Absolutely.
00:49:49My husband doesn't like cameras or TV.
00:49:52He's very shy.
00:49:53So he found it really daunting.
00:49:55But by the end of it, you can see in the show that he really loosens up and it's quite
00:49:59funny.
00:50:00And tell us about the menu then in Gina, the new restaurant, which by the way is named,
00:50:04isn't it, after your husband's late mother?
00:50:07Exactly.
00:50:08Yeah.
00:50:09So it's in Chinkford and it's a British chop house.
00:50:11We really focus, like Bryn, on really good quality ingredients.
00:50:14So amazing cuts of beautiful way-fed pork and really nice beef.
00:50:18We always have different cuts of beef on the blackboard.
00:50:21And our fish comes from Cornwall.
00:50:23All our flour is freshly milled in baths.
00:50:26And we make everything in-house.
00:50:28The roaring greens is the key, isn't it?
00:50:30Exactly.
00:50:31Start off with good, roaring greens.
00:50:32Hopefully there's a restaurant where everything builds from there.
00:50:35So if you start off with great ingredients, normally you have a great lunch or dinner.
00:50:38Well, you could get some beef from Bryn.
00:50:40I would like to.
00:50:41You know?
00:50:42I would like to if he's up for it.
00:50:43Yeah.
00:50:44Good quality stuff.
00:50:45I just, I mean, that's why I wash my hands because I, I, I did have a little taste of
00:50:49that.
00:50:50Oh my gosh, it's lovely.
00:50:51Is this texture okay for you?
00:50:52Yeah, that's brilliant.
00:50:53See, it's very easy.
00:50:54See.
00:50:55And that just needs to go into the cake tins.
00:50:56See.
00:50:57And the thing about this.
00:50:58Legend.
00:50:59Legend.
00:51:00They were all worried Ben, weren't they?
00:51:03I think we had a quiet confidence that you could do that.
00:51:06Matt's blowing at home I think.
00:51:09Can you put it in?
00:51:10The ganache is on.
00:51:11Yes, the ganache is on.
00:51:12Okay.
00:51:13All you do is I just added in my chocolate and I stirred it with a whisk and that's ganache
00:51:17done.
00:51:18Lovely.
00:51:19And I've put some in the bottom of the cake now.
00:51:20So if you divide it between those tins that go in the oven.
00:51:23Half in each, isn't it?
00:51:24Yeah.
00:51:25Okay.
00:51:26And then you can just add a little bit of cream to the middle, but you never want to
00:51:28add too much because it will spill out of the edges.
00:51:30So kind of.
00:51:31Isn't that nice?
00:51:32Mmm.
00:51:33Yeah.
00:51:34But only when you're cutting it, not when you're cutting it.
00:51:36Yeah.
00:51:37Exactly.
00:51:38We like fresh cream.
00:51:39So a bit of that.
00:51:40And then some cherries on top.
00:51:43Now I've used tin cherries, but you can use like a cherry jam, you can use those lovely
00:51:47Amarina cherries and when they're in season, you can make your own jam.
00:51:52But at the moment, it's much easier to get tinned and I really like them.
00:51:56Yeah, delicious.
00:51:57Do you serve this in the restaurant?
00:52:00We serve, we've got a chocolate cake on the menu that we can't take off because it's
00:52:03our best selling item on the whole menu is chocolate cake.
00:52:07Yeah.
00:52:08Like everybody has a chocolate cake at Gina.
00:52:10It's really funny how different restaurants have different dishes that you can't take off
00:52:13the menu.
00:52:14We've got beef pie, we have squid in North Wales.
00:52:18It's funny how a restaurant gets a classic without even trying.
00:52:21The customers just phone in on something and you can't take off the menu.
00:52:24Well, it's like the pie now, isn't it?
00:52:26In the new one.
00:52:27Ours was those Marmite soldiers.
00:52:28Is it, yeah?
00:52:29With beef tartare.
00:52:30You just keep changing it.
00:52:31Well, Andy, I've got to tell you, Ben did say when he was standing here eating that,
00:52:34this is the best thing I've ever eaten.
00:52:36It was orgasm.
00:52:37Apart from the beef pie.
00:52:39Well, that was incredible.
00:52:40That was in brackets.
00:52:41I've had a lot, I've had some wonderful beef pies and that was one of them.
00:52:44But these Marmite soldiers were all genuine original.
00:52:47I mean, they're not, I love it, normal white bread and butter and Marmite.
00:52:50But this was a succulent.
00:52:52So cute.
00:52:53It was a huge taste.
00:52:54It was a huge taste.
00:52:55Beautiful.
00:52:56Okay, now this is the bit.
00:52:57Right.
00:52:58And people at home, you're going to love this.
00:53:00Because you've got your own sort of technique here.
00:53:03Yeah.
00:53:04And you've got something else like this.
00:53:05Yes.
00:53:06And you have to believe that.
00:53:07Well, yeah, it's the process, isn't it?
00:53:09Yes.
00:53:10Kind of trust the process, this one is.
00:53:11So you make your ganache, and if you're not good at icing cakes, which a lot of people
00:53:14are not, and might not have confidence to, is you take your cake like this, you take your
00:53:19ganache and you just pour it all over the top.
00:53:21Right.
00:53:22It looks bad!
00:53:23It looks bad!
00:53:24It looks bad!
00:53:25So, when you're at that point, you keep the rest, and if you've got any leftover, keep
00:53:30it.
00:53:31And you just spoon it all over.
00:53:32Right.
00:53:33And you have to use a plate with a lip.
00:53:36You get that in the fridge.
00:53:37Close your mouth.
00:53:38Get it in the fridge.
00:53:39Handling.
00:53:40Oh.
00:53:41In about an hour, it will be pliable enough that you can take a spatula and spoon it up
00:53:44the sides.
00:53:45Right.
00:53:46So then you'll be done.
00:53:47It's quite hardcore, this cake.
00:53:48Once it's dried, you can sort of manipulate it.
00:53:50Absolutely.
00:53:51And because the ganache has that malt in there, it doesn't split so easily, so you're
00:53:56quite safe.
00:53:57Okay.
00:53:58Alright then.
00:53:59Well, if you want to make Rav's gorgeous gato at home, you can find her recipe at bbc.co.uk
00:54:03slash Saturday Kitchen, or of course, you can scan the QR code below, and it'll take you
00:54:08straight to the dish, and who doesn't want to make this?
00:54:11So, if you want to put some cherries on there.
00:54:13That would be great.
00:54:14So, cherry on each little peak?
00:54:15Yes.
00:54:16Yeah.
00:54:17Lovely.
00:54:18Well, Rav, it's literally like 1978 glorious.
00:54:21But honestly, Rav, I don't know how you do it, but you make things like icing.
00:54:28Easy.
00:54:30We just finished it with some nice chocolate shards.
00:54:32There you go.
00:54:33On the top.
00:54:34Wow.
00:54:35Look at that.
00:54:36It looks so elegantly done.
00:54:37From a patisserie, isn't it, in France.
00:54:38So beautiful.
00:54:39It's a really nice mixture of, like, the vino, and really cheap.
00:54:42I love that.
00:54:43I love that.
00:54:44Go.
00:54:45There it is.
00:54:46Remind us of what we have here.
00:54:47So, this is a really simple, lovely chocolate sponge, and it makes black foscato, cherry compote
00:54:51in the middle, and some Chantilly cream.
00:54:52Beautiful.
00:54:53Beautiful.
00:54:54Nice.
00:54:55Hey.
00:54:56Right.
00:54:57Let me get nice big wedges.
00:54:59I like how deep it is.
00:55:00I don't think they want any over here.
00:55:01Oh, no.
00:55:02Look, I will fight you, Alex.
00:55:03Wow.
00:55:04It's cutting wonderfully.
00:55:05Look at that.
00:55:06Amazing.
00:55:07It has to be our guest.
00:55:08Oh, no, no, no.
00:55:09Give it to me.
00:55:10Well, I'm not going to be able to eat it.
00:55:11Share.
00:55:12Share it.
00:55:13I've got a chocolate.
00:55:14All right.
00:55:15Oli, this is what we're excited about, isn't it?
00:55:16I'm so excited about this.
00:55:17You have your own.
00:55:18Can we stop?
00:55:19You may.
00:55:20You may.
00:55:21You may.
00:55:22Rav.
00:55:23You have that one.
00:55:24On each.
00:55:25What a...
00:55:26We're not...
00:55:27We're not sharing.
00:55:28No.
00:55:29What a...
00:55:30What a...
00:55:31What a...
00:55:32What a...
00:55:33What a...
00:55:34What a...
00:55:35What a...
00:55:36What a...
00:55:37Wow factor.
00:55:38When you cut open that cake.
00:55:39It's unbelievable.
00:55:40This is also a bit of a wow factor.
00:55:41This is a 0% blackcurrant spritz.
00:55:44So no booze in this.
00:55:46It's four quid in Sainsbury's.
00:55:47And it's made in Burgundy, which is famous for blackcurrants.
00:55:51They used to grow loads of it and make the Kears.
00:55:53Isn't that good?
00:55:54Yeah.
00:55:55Tastes really like a cassis.
00:55:56So when you first taste it, what I love is it's not too sweet.
00:55:59And then you get this almost sharp, bright, proper true blackcurrant flavour.
00:56:03Made from Muscat grapes by a really reputable Cremon sparkling wine producer.
00:56:07As I say, zero booze, but all the enjoyment.
00:56:10And what a bargain at four quid.
00:56:11Well, I was a bit sceptical because of that.
00:56:13Four pounds.
00:56:14Yeah.
00:56:15You expect it to be sort of a bit like Ribena with a bit of lemonade on it.
00:56:18Which we love.
00:56:19Which we love, Ben.
00:56:20But it's a different thing.
00:56:21But it's not.
00:56:22This is a grown up drink, isn't it?
00:56:23And what's great is it's got the sharpness.
00:56:25It is a grown up drink.
00:56:26Yeah.
00:56:27It's not fighting the sweet.
00:56:28No, it's actually a compliment.
00:56:29It's a good combo.
00:56:30Yeah.
00:56:31It's a great combo.
00:56:32So how is it, Ben?
00:56:33Oh my God.
00:56:34The spongy.
00:56:35It's just, this is a heavenly, heavenly cake.
00:56:37I haven't had a chocolate gatto cake in a long time.
00:56:40It's so beautiful.
00:56:41Friend, can I have the spoon so I can dig it?
00:56:42I'm desperate to have it.
00:56:43Go.
00:56:44I don't like to.
00:56:45Not at all.
00:56:46But this is incredible.
00:56:47Because it's not too, this is also not too sweet.
00:56:50It's chocolatey and rich.
00:56:52And salt.
00:56:53Nice amount of salt.
00:56:54Yeah.
00:56:55Somebody said, Tommy, they season your dessert.
00:56:58Yes.
00:56:59Always.
00:57:00Well, that was a hit.
00:57:01Oh my gosh.
00:57:02So delicious.
00:57:03And this is so good, Ollie.
00:57:04Thank you, Matt.
00:57:05Cheers.
00:57:06Cheers, everybody.
00:57:07Right then, let's catch up with Matt's new BFF, Marcus Waring.
00:57:09He's rustling up some cheesy appetites.
00:57:11Stop laughing for a bunch of balls.
00:57:13There is one thing in France which seems even more important than food.
00:57:25A sporting spirit.
00:57:27Be it football, tennis, or even petonc.
00:57:31Well, I'm going to be combining both of these French passions, food and sport, over a match
00:57:38with the locals.
00:57:39They know us Brits are also fantastic at footy and tennis.
00:57:43But petonc, and a dish to win them over, I've got my work cut out.
00:57:48I already have a classic taste of Provence in mind, but to really set my dish off, I'm
00:57:59on the hunt for something both we and the French adore.
00:58:03Cheese.
00:58:04Versatile and cost effective, a little can go a long way on many dishes from a classic
00:58:10Welsh rabbit to a French onion soup.
00:58:13But with over a thousand varieties to choose from, finding the perfect fromage won't be
00:58:19easy.
00:58:20Luckily for me, if there's one person who knows what the locals like, it's Monique.
00:58:26Bonjour.
00:58:27Who's been selling cheeses in St. Remy for 50 years.
00:58:30Oh, paradise.
00:58:32I would really love to know all about the cheese of this region.
00:58:38What's the cheese up here?
00:58:40C'est le fromage de chèvre.
00:58:41The goat cheese?
00:58:42Provence is said to produce the best goat cheese in France, and Monique sources all hers
00:58:47locally, offering something to suit everyone's taste, including selection boxes flavored with
00:58:53fruit, herbs, and spices.
00:58:56This we do specially for our aperitif.
00:58:57But it's an aperitif, so at the beginning of your meal, not at the end of the meal.
00:59:08That must mean that the goat's cheese is quite light in flavour.
00:59:19It's very light.
00:59:20It will not have the same taste fresh and matured, you know?
00:59:23How old is this?
00:59:24One day.
00:59:25One day.
00:59:26Okay.
00:59:27Monique doesn't only add her own flavours.
00:59:30Celui-ci, il a huit jours.
00:59:33She ripens the cheeses in-house to give them extra depth.
00:59:36Two months.
00:59:37Two months.
00:59:38Two months.
00:59:39Two months.
00:59:40I love the shape.
00:59:41The form will change the flavour.
00:59:43Really?
00:59:44When it's round, small, big.
00:59:46It's firm.
00:59:47You have another kind of taste.
00:59:48C'est firm, oui.
00:59:49C'est firm.
00:59:50I'm not sure a strong cheese is what I'm after.
00:59:52I need something to please a crowd.
00:59:54It's like a little collection.
00:59:55It's like a...
00:59:56It's almost...
00:59:57It reminds me of Petit Four.
00:59:58Beautiful.
00:59:59They're all flavours of the region.
01:00:01It's all of the region.
01:00:02Exactly.
01:00:03It's not just to sell.
01:00:05It's to make better.
01:00:07Yeah, exactly.
01:00:08Which would you recommend for me?
01:00:10Oh, ça, peut-être.
01:00:11C'est pour moi?
01:00:12Oui.
01:00:13Yep.
01:00:14I'm going to try that.
01:00:15Can I buy one of those, please?
01:00:16Monique may be a keen supporter of local producers,
01:00:19but does she share an appetite for France's most popular pastime?
01:00:24I've been invited to play petongue.
01:00:26Ah, petongue.
01:00:27Petongue.
01:00:28It's my accent.
01:00:29Mm-hmm.
01:00:30Petongue.
01:00:31Petongue.
01:00:32It's easy to do?
01:00:33It's easy.
01:00:34You have to drink a little bit of pastis.
01:00:37Oh, no.
01:00:38I'm not good with liqueurs.
01:00:40Do you play petongue?
01:00:41Oh, no.
01:00:42I don't have time.
01:00:43No?
01:00:44Just cheese, just cheese only.
01:00:45Cheese, cheese, cheese for my clients.
01:00:47Just cheese for the customers.
01:00:48C'est ça.
01:00:49Merci beaucoup.
01:00:50Merci.
01:00:51Merci.
01:00:52Au revoir.
01:00:53Au revoir, monsieur.
01:00:55Monique's goat's cheese will help me to win some friends later.
01:00:59But to seal the deal, I want to show you a simple yet delicious recipe
01:01:03that's purely Provence.
01:01:05Tapenade.
01:01:06A quick no-cook condiment to pep up a vinaigrette will take a simple tomato sauce to the next
01:01:14level.
01:01:16Whipped up in a flash, it all starts with shallots.
01:01:20Quickly just chop them up.
01:01:22I'm going to put that into my blender.
01:01:27Think of tapenade as a Provencal pesto, a rustic sauce to super boost any dish.
01:01:33There we go.
01:01:37So that's the base.
01:01:39Now to build the flavour.
01:01:42I always think that olives are pretty much of a love-hate thing.
01:01:45You love them or you hate them.
01:01:46But I know one thing here in Provence, everyone loves olives.
01:01:50Fresh is nice, but the cheaper jarred olives will do just as well.
01:01:55A few little anchovies in there.
01:01:58Pinch of salt.
01:01:59Now you have to be careful with the salt because olives are naturally salty.
01:02:04Your anchovies are salty.
01:02:06But what breaks it through are these little capers here.
01:02:09That's a lovely little bit of acidity.
01:02:11A touch of vinegar.
01:02:13And a gluck of olive oil.
01:02:15Just a pepper.
01:02:18To bring everything together, gently pulse.
01:02:25This is great through pasta, dip, sandwiches.
01:02:28Lovely with just a little bit of cheese and bread.
01:02:30It's so versatile.
01:02:32Great on a ploughman's too.
01:02:33Really, really delicious.
01:02:35Right, I better get this into jars.
01:02:39Tapenade is as Provencal as you can get.
01:02:42So I'm hoping this will make the perfect half-time Petonk snack.
01:02:45I know they take it really seriously in this part of the world.
01:02:49So I'm not going to win them over with this little bit of tapenade.
01:02:52I better make some more.
01:02:53Deliciously simple.
01:02:54There we have it.
01:02:55I hope it's enough.
01:02:57I brought some tapenade and some baguette to say thank you for inviting me.
01:03:13The caviar?
01:03:14The caviar?
01:03:15The caviar.
01:03:16Okay.
01:03:17Never happy.
01:03:18Never happy.
01:03:19I always get it wrong.
01:03:20Everyone's tucking in.
01:03:21But has the Brit pulled off taking the French a classic Provencal dish to eat?
01:03:28C'est parfait.
01:03:29C'est parfait.
01:03:30C'est parfait.
01:03:31It's perfect.
01:03:32Santé de tapenade.
01:03:33I'm sure that's a legitimate toast.
01:03:34Right?
01:03:35Thank you very much.
01:03:36Merci.
01:03:37Merci beaucoup.
01:03:38Cheers to tapenade.
01:03:39I'm not sure about that one, Marcus, but lovely.
01:03:41Right then, the website vote is now closed and we'll soon find out whether lovely Ben
01:03:45will be tucking into his food heaven or food hell.
01:03:48Now, whenever I'm on this programme, I always learn such a lot about food and drink,
01:03:53as everybody does who's watching.
01:03:55And we'll soon find out whether lovely Ben will be tucking into his food heaven or food
01:04:01hell.
01:04:02Now, whenever I'm on this programme, I always learn such a lot about food and drink, as everybody
01:04:07does who's watching.
01:04:08But wine, I still feel there's more to learn.
01:04:12I love wine of all colours, but just not sure.
01:04:15And you've got this brilliant new book.
01:04:17Honestly, it's not highbrow.
01:04:19It's not scary.
01:04:21It's friendly.
01:04:22And it's everything we need to know, isn't it?
01:04:25From glassware to decampton, all of it.
01:04:27It is.
01:04:28I've always felt wine should be about having fun.
01:04:30It's about informality, enthusiasm, and your taste buds never lie.
01:04:34So, there are various ways to get the best value out of wine.
01:04:37And I'd say the first place to look is by going to the supermarket-owned label range
01:04:41where they have the off-the-beaten-track wines.
01:04:43Yes.
01:04:44Because the thing about that is, you know, we've all noticed, I think, the price of wine
01:04:47has gone up, hasn't it?
01:04:48It really has.
01:04:49Expensive now.
01:04:50Yeah.
01:04:51So, can you make sure that we are getting value for money, something good for our cash?
01:04:54I think the best way is either by looking for a region that is not very fashionable
01:04:58or that we don't see a lot of the wines of, or you could have a great variety that you've
01:05:01never heard of, or a style of wine that is completely unique and bold.
01:05:05So, I've got three to start with.
01:05:07Andy and Alex, you've got the Sparkling Garda, which is a sparkling wine from Italy.
01:05:12If you love Prosecco, you're going to love this.
01:05:14This is £6.97 in Asda.
01:05:16And it's one of those wines which just has so much vibrancy to it.
01:05:19And for Brin, you've got a wine from Romania, Feti Asca Alba from M&S.
01:05:23That's a really fragrant white grape variety.
01:05:26Again, not a grape we've heard of, so terrific value for money.
01:05:30And we've also got the red wine for you, Ben, of course, because I know you love your reds.
01:05:34I like a bit of white, but I love a red.
01:05:36I had to do it.
01:05:37So, this one is Loved and Found Castellaro, Portuguese grape variety.
01:05:41Really robust.
01:05:42Nine quid, £9.25 in Waitrose.
01:05:45Unique, fantastic bowl flavour.
01:05:47Perfect for autumn time if you're having stews.
01:05:49So, all of these, off the beaten track, place, grape or style, that's going to get you the best value for money.
01:05:54Very nice.
01:05:55£6.95 for a fizz.
01:05:56You can't go wrong.
01:05:57I know.
01:05:58See, I'm getting excited now.
01:05:59We're getting to the end of the show and I feel relieved that it's going down rather too quickly.
01:06:03And that won a silver medal at the International Wine Challenge.
01:06:05It's great quality.
01:06:06It's like Prosecco, a lovely Prosecco.
01:06:08Yeah.
01:06:09It's nicer than the Prosecco because it's more gentle.
01:06:11I find Prosecco a bit harsh.
01:06:12Exactly the same.
01:06:13A bit acidic.
01:06:14This is way more gentle and much more kind of honeyed almost.
01:06:17Yes, fruity.
01:06:18Really fruity.
01:06:19You know earlier, Andy, you asked a really good question about cork versus screw cap.
01:06:24Yeah, because I'm looking at what you've got lined up over there.
01:06:27And you've got a cork, a screw, and then you've obviously got the fizzy one.
01:06:30But back in the day, if wine had a screw top, we thought it wasn't quite as nice or shee-shee.
01:06:37Yeah.
01:06:38It was a bit kind of perhaps down.
01:06:39Looked down upon.
01:06:40Yeah.
01:06:41Do you have any more?
01:06:42Well, I think the supermarkets, they do a lot of the hard work for you.
01:06:44So with those ranges that are off the beaten track, you can trust the buyers.
01:06:47And I think similarly, you can trust the screw cap.
01:06:50In the old days, yes, it was an emblem of good value.
01:06:53Now, if I think of a country like New Zealand, almost like 98% of their wines, even their high-end fine wines, are under screw cap.
01:07:01So I love a screw cap because it seals the wine as the winemaker intended, so you get it in good condition.
01:07:06They're really convenient.
01:07:07If you aren't going to finish the bottle, you can reseal it.
01:07:09Or, you know, I'll help you finish it if you need.
01:07:11But I think they are the future.
01:07:13I think they're absolutely wonderful.
01:07:14I love a cork.
01:07:15And if you want to mature and age your wines, they're very good.
01:07:18All that happens when you mature a wine is it gets more savory.
01:07:21So if you like fresh, fruity wines, screw caps are fantastic.
01:07:24And they're very convenient.
01:07:25I remember, like, trying to get through bath time when we had three kids under 18 months.
01:07:29I'm not saying you should drink too, but just a little answer.
01:07:32You can open a screw top while holding a baby.
01:07:36You can do that.
01:07:38Yeah, exactly.
01:07:39Yeah, it's much better.
01:07:40Now, the big question is decanting, right?
01:07:43So should we decant, to decant, not to decant?
01:07:46Our decanter is kept in a very high cupboard, so I only decant once a year, Ollie,
01:07:50because I can't be bothered to get the stool to get it done.
01:07:53So only at Christmas is the decanted wine on our table.
01:07:56Is it really important?
01:07:57I think any wine can be decanted, even the cheap and cheerfuls.
01:08:00It just turns up the volume on the aromas and on the flavours.
01:08:03So if you imagine a rose petal in springtime, it's very nice.
01:08:06But if you decant the wine, pour it into a jug, those petals will open up.
01:08:10More aroma, more flavour.
01:08:12So glass A in front of you is not decanted, straight from the bottle.
01:08:15Okay.
01:08:16Glass B is decanted.
01:08:18Same wine, a decent level Rioja.
01:08:21And I think decanting doesn't cost you anything extra.
01:08:24It's the act of pouring that gives more to the wine.
01:08:27And you don't need to invest in a fancy decanter.
01:08:30Any old jug will do.
01:08:31It's smoother, isn't it?
01:08:32Yeah.
01:08:33I always think it's great.
01:08:34I often let a red wine...
01:08:35You know, if you're in a restaurant, you might have a glass of champ or white or whatever
01:08:39to start with your starters, then you want a red.
01:08:41They say, shall I bring that with your mains?
01:08:43I say, no, bring it now.
01:08:44I like it to sit in the glass for 20 minutes.
01:08:46The red gets a chance to...
01:08:47Yeah.
01:08:48Yeah, yeah.
01:08:49I think swirling it around, that gets the air to it.
01:08:51Open its petals.
01:08:52Open its petals.
01:08:53And a lot of the supermarkets, when I'm doing my press tastings and I taste all the wines,
01:08:56they will pour them into another bottle and then back into the bottle.
01:08:59So they're kind of double decanted to just give more aroma, more flavour.
01:09:02It's just like turning the volume up to 11 on the wine.
01:09:05So what do you think?
01:09:06Decant or not decant?
01:09:07Which tastes best?
01:09:08I like the decant, because actually the not decanted one, the oakiness of it was heavier
01:09:14on the palate.
01:09:15Yes.
01:09:16And on the decanted one, the oakiness is still there, but it's way more subtle.
01:09:18Yeah.
01:09:19It's more velvety.
01:09:20Yeah.
01:09:21It softens the texture.
01:09:22We agree.
01:09:23That tastes better decanted 100%.
01:09:24Yeah.
01:09:25I mean, you know, you can't always do it, but it is definitely getting a bit of air into
01:09:28a red wine, I think, helps.
01:09:30All I think about is how to clean that.
01:09:32There are glass balls, there are all sorts of tricks in the way to do that.
01:09:36Yeah.
01:09:37I'll show you.
01:09:38Or a baby bottle brush.
01:09:39A baby brush.
01:09:40There you go.
01:09:41Just shake it with a bit of water in it.
01:09:42Or that, Ben.
01:09:43Yeah.
01:09:44Now, this is the controversial bit, I feel, of this item.
01:09:47Yes.
01:09:48Right.
01:09:49Cans and cardboard boxes.
01:09:50So, you know, cans, it's brilliant for the environment, isn't it?
01:09:53And I love a gin and a tin.
01:09:54Gin and a tin, it's fun.
01:09:55Yes.
01:09:56Is that a fizzy wine?
01:09:57Yeah, and I think fizzy, sparkling wines, they really work in cans, because psychologically
01:10:01you hear that ksh noise and then you're pouring it out.
01:10:03I think the serving size is very handy.
01:10:05If you don't want a whole bottle, it's good for a picnic.
01:10:07If you drop it, it's not going to smash like a bottle.
01:10:10No.
01:10:11It keeps it away from the light, away from the air, so it's in great condition.
01:10:16And cans are infinitely recyclable, so it's also good for your carbon footprint, it's
01:10:20lighter than glass.
01:10:21There are a load of reasons.
01:10:22This is a home-grown fizzy, this is the uncommon bubbly, and I think it's great.
01:10:26It's a blend of different grapes, Bacchus and Chardonnay, really scented, very easy,
01:10:30but served chilled as well.
01:10:31Cans keep it nice and cold for a bit longer.
01:10:33Well, for a summer picnic.
01:10:34A summer picnic.
01:10:35This is what we need.
01:10:36Yeah.
01:10:37Ooh.
01:10:38Very nice bubble, that.
01:10:39Well, that's better than I thought.
01:10:41There you go.
01:10:42That is very nice, actually.
01:10:43Yeah, you wouldn't think it was out of a can, would you?
01:10:45Never.
01:10:46Never.
01:10:47This is the thing, and if you have a can of red or a can of white, you could always
01:10:50pour it to your guests, you know, in a glass and stuff like that.
01:10:52For a minute, though, a can of white, it's fine by me, but the only other can of red,
01:10:56I don't know why, but it's just the aesthetic doesn't seem to add up quite so much.
01:11:00It's maybe because we associate air with the red, and breathing, and cans are quite
01:11:05closed and tight, but yeah, I did once have quite a mature red wine in a can, and it worked,
01:11:09but boxes are, of course, the other one.
01:11:10Well, boxes, as Dad would call this, chateau cardboard.
01:11:13Chateau cardboard, I love that.
01:11:14And, you know, it just takes me back to being a young child, and Dad ringing out the last
01:11:19for getting the bag out and ringing it all out, but, you know.
01:11:23Is he blowing it up and using it as a pillow at a festival after?
01:11:26Well, I've busted it.
01:11:27But, you know, I mean, the thing is, if you've got a lot of people over,
01:11:30Oh, it's great.
01:11:31Sometimes you don't want them to have the good stuff after the first one or two, do you?
01:11:35No, well, this is, this is some box stuff is great, and I think independent wine merchants
01:11:39are doing an increasing job of getting the quality up.
01:11:41This is the Wine Society's Portuguese red.
01:11:43It's a delicious drop, and, you know, you can pour it into a jug, you can pour it straight
01:11:47into the glasses.
01:11:48Again, lighter for the carbon footprint, keeps the wine in really good condition.
01:11:52Christmas parties coming up, I've said the word, festive events, all of that stuff,
01:11:55couldn't be more convenient.
01:11:57I don't know about the carbon, there's a lot of plastic in the boxes,
01:11:59because of the journey bag and the tap and all of that, but, you know.
01:12:02We need to recycle all of that, but I think cardboard shouldn't necessarily be equated
01:12:07with just poorer quality.
01:12:09I think the better the wine, obviously, the happier I am.
01:12:12But I'm really delighted to see the value on offer as well in this case.
01:12:15Quality, value, and it's convenient.
01:12:17We always use wine in the restaurant out of a box, for glue vine.
01:12:20Oh!
01:12:21Oh!
01:12:22Yeah, yeah.
01:12:23I thought you could say all of our restaurants have other wine in the box,
01:12:25but we just don't show people.
01:12:26I'll tell them all, I'll tell them all.
01:12:27I'll tell you who loves a box, they're wine teenagers.
01:12:29They love it.
01:12:30Yes!
01:12:31You'd see these horrible crushed...
01:12:34That is just brilliant.
01:12:36All of this is in your book, and more.
01:12:38It's literally everything I need to know about wine.
01:12:41It's a fantastic book, and it looks beautiful.
01:12:43It's beautiful.
01:12:44Cheers, Ollie.
01:12:45Congratulations.
01:12:46Thank you so much.
01:12:47Well, we'll soon find out whether you voted for Ben to enjoy Bryn's cooking,
01:12:51his food heaven, or challenge him to make Ben's food hell more appealing.
01:12:55But first, Dave's taking sight on a trip down memory lane in Banborough.
01:12:59Magnificent, isn't it?
01:13:06It's hugely important to me, this beach.
01:13:08It's part of my family history and heritage, really.
01:13:12Because when my sister was three, she got polio.
01:13:16Mm-hm.
01:13:17And Dad walked up and down this beach for six months in the waters.
01:13:21Just packed his job in.
01:13:23Six months.
01:13:25My sister walked from Stal Rock, which is just over there.
01:13:28Yeah.
01:13:29All the way to sea houses at the other end of the bay, three times a day.
01:13:34Maybe the sea water helped.
01:13:37You know, she was an Irish dancing champion.
01:13:39Yeah, she was an Irish dancing champion.
01:13:41Ran for the county, ran cross country for the county.
01:13:44Remarkable.
01:13:45So, it's an important place, and all the comings and goings of our family,
01:13:49you know, we all, everybody comes here.
01:13:52You know, it's just, you know, this is where we, this is where we walk
01:13:55and where we talk and where we catch up with each other,
01:13:58and it's just wonderful to have this perspective, to be honest.
01:14:01Cheers.
01:14:02Cheers.
01:14:03Needs to not thumbling, mate.
01:14:04Cheers.
01:14:08Right, to the kitchen.
01:14:11The fact we're in Bambera Castle, we can elevate the humble potato
01:14:15from the field to royalty.
01:14:17This is one of the posher soup we've ever made.
01:14:19It is.
01:14:20This is flour with black truffle.
01:14:22Start by melting some butter in a pan.
01:14:26Thinly slice some leeks.
01:14:28I reckon for the potato scones, because I don't want them too soft,
01:14:31I want them quite floury.
01:14:32Yeah.
01:14:33I'm going to steam a couple of potatoes.
01:14:35That's a good idea.
01:14:38Right.
01:14:40This is going to take about half an hour to steam, isn't it?
01:14:44I'll tell you what.
01:14:45What?
01:14:46You know what?
01:14:47People make the mistake of using black pepper with leekin potato soup.
01:14:50No, you're white.
01:14:51I agree white pepper in this.
01:14:53Yes, absolutely.
01:14:54I also like white pepper in mashed potato.
01:14:56I do too.
01:14:57You don't want speckles, isn't it?
01:14:58It's a sharper taste, isn't it?
01:14:59Yes, it is.
01:15:00Add the leeks, peel a potato, I'm using my fauna.
01:15:07What a magnificent spud.
01:15:10Right, I'm going to put these diced potatoes in now, Neil.
01:15:15So we've got 300 mils of chicken stock, and then the same of whole milk.
01:15:29The milk will give a really creamy texture to the soup.
01:15:32Leave the soup to simmer for about 30 minutes.
01:15:35Ooh, let's see if these are done.
01:15:38You see, steaming the spuds gives them more texture and less moisture.
01:15:44Right, let's weigh the flour.
01:15:47150 grams of flour.
01:15:53A teaspoonful of baking powder, BP.
01:15:58Mash or rice the potatoes.
01:16:01Right, that's the butter melted.
01:16:03So all I've got to do now is to add the butter and one egg into the mixture to make a dough.
01:16:10Very lovely.
01:16:12I love potato cakes, there's just something there.
01:16:15Yeah, they're just great.
01:16:17Melted butter.
01:16:20Knead it all together till you get the consistency of dough.
01:16:25Look at those.
01:16:26I think I can get four of these in the pan at a time.
01:16:30Always remember that.
01:16:31You put oil with the butter to stop the butter burning.
01:16:35You put butter in with the oil to make it go golden brown.
01:16:40Gently lay the cakes in the hot butter and fry till golden.
01:16:44Oh nice, look at those.
01:16:45Now I know you're going to garnish your soup with luxurious truffle, so I'm going to top these potato cakes with my fermented tomatoes.
01:16:54What you do is you make a weak brine solution, a couple of tablespoons of salt with water.
01:16:59Right.
01:17:00It's a bit like a battery.
01:17:01Got you.
01:17:02Yeah.
01:17:03Yeah.
01:17:04So then you put some black peppercorns.
01:17:05Yeah.
01:17:06Your tomatoes.
01:17:08Some bay leaf.
01:17:09Yeah.
01:17:10More tomatoes.
01:17:11More peppercorns.
01:17:12Yeah.
01:17:13Make sure it's full to the top.
01:17:14And then you put cabbage leaf.
01:17:16In this case, cavallonero, because that's what was growing in the top.
01:17:20Now the cabbage, as it kind of goes and gives off gases, it starts to ferment the tomatoes in the brine.
01:17:26So, every day for four days, you burp it, because you can see the bubbles rising.
01:17:33As it ferments, you've got to let the gas off.
01:17:35Got you.
01:17:36And then you just keep them in the fridge, and these will keep for months.
01:17:39Shall we try some?
01:17:40I just think, obviously everything's very white.
01:17:44The potato scones.
01:17:45Yes.
01:17:46The vichyssoise, the licking potato and truffle.
01:17:48Yeah.
01:17:49Black and white.
01:17:50I just think a bit of colour and a bit of umami goodness.
01:17:53So let's taste this fellow, shall we?
01:17:56Mmm.
01:17:57Oh yeah, that's great.
01:17:58Yeah.
01:17:59Mmm.
01:18:00Bit of umami.
01:18:01I'm chuffed with these.
01:18:02Yeah, I know.
01:18:03They're great, mate.
01:18:04Jars and jars of these.
01:18:06Right.
01:18:07I think the soup should be ready, so in with the blender, and blitz it all into a rich,
01:18:12creamy soup.
01:18:13And I think we're ready to serve.
01:18:17I'll top these lovely cakes with a generous helping of the fermented tomatoes.
01:18:23Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with shavings of black truffle.
01:18:28How indulgent is that?
01:18:30Ah, well thank you boys.
01:18:31Who knew that soup could be so decadent?
01:18:32Lovely with a bit of truffle in it.
01:18:33Yes.
01:18:34Time to find out whether it's food heaven or food hell for Ben here.
01:18:35Now as a reminder, heaven was fish and chips, and hell was halibut with sweet potato mash.
01:18:39Thanks to everybody who voted.
01:18:40I can now reveal, and it's not a surprise, that 73% went for heaven!
01:18:44Yay!
01:18:45Because you are a national treasure, you see?
01:18:46And it would be terrible if it was hell.
01:18:59So what are we cooking then Bryn?
01:19:00went for heaven because you are a national treasure you see and it would be terrible if it
01:19:07was hell so what are we cooking then brin so we're going to do fish and chips proper fish and chips
01:19:12so we've got a nice bit of cod here if you can make the batter for me of course so we're going
01:19:15to put all the dry ingredients flour baking powder and salt and that's a welsh pale ale
01:19:20wild horse from cladidna beautiful gives you a nice bit of nuttiness to the batter i'm going to
01:19:26put that in i will okay just mix them all together mix them all together and all what are we going to
01:19:30be drinking with this gotta be fizz i know ben that you love bubbly yes i do and with fish and chips
01:19:36fizz and chips for me is always the answer is what you did yeah if you think of the bubbly in the wine
01:19:43that goes with the crunch of the fish and catch the grease exactly yeah you don't have to brush your
01:19:47teeth aren't you don't have to so there should be one for you i think under the counter i'm looking
01:19:51i can't foster i can't foster the name no you can't no this one here is called uh tesco finest
01:19:581531 yeah blanquette de lemieux it's 10 pounds 50. 1531 is the year they claim to have invented
01:20:04sparkling wine down in the south of france so the grape here is mozac but it's made in the same way
01:20:10as champagne traditional method method champagne one exactly so tiny bubbles yeah loads of flavor saving
01:20:17yourself an absolute fortune and i i think it's great for a any kind of celebration very very
01:20:22reminiscent of champagne and absolute cheers all and thanks for voting for me except the 27 percent
01:20:27who didn't yeah we need to have a measure then we do 10 50. 10 50 it's a hidden gem isn't it brilliant
01:20:34now we mix you let it sit for a bit okay let's relax so put the piece of fish flour salt into the
01:20:39batter and now we're going to deep fry it i'll take how long we got alex about six minutes i'll take four
01:20:45there you go excellent and then we only just i mean we we still really haven't got through
01:20:50anything in terms of the book you know we've done a few anecdotes but there's so much in there
01:20:55you know when you were writing it obviously it's a chance to have a really good look back at your
01:20:59life which period were you most happy i've been generally very happy all my life i'm when i talk a
01:21:06bit about my childhood it really is only a bit because i i i came to conclude that i think if you had
01:21:11a happy childhood you don't really remember a lot of it i think if you're unfortunate enough to have
01:21:16sadness in your childhood or worse then of course it never leaves you but it's just a sort of golden
01:21:21memory really uh i i've i've been generally very happy but i've got to say i mean i do a photo of my
01:21:26wife and i on our wedding day and that was some question of the happiest day of my life so you know
01:21:30i guess that that that writing all about the the funny circumstance of meeting sophie i was with
01:21:35rick male the day the day i met sophie because her we were on a plane to australia to to do our tour
01:21:42me and rick we do half of i did first half he did the second half and on the plane the promoter said
01:21:47i've got i've got some good news and bad news fellas i said what do you he said well the the bad
01:21:51news is you've got to have four australian artists on with you literally the union insisted for every
01:21:55brit there was two aussies oh we can't do that they said the good news is we booked an all-girl rock band
01:22:01and i ended up marrying a bass player yeah that was a very happy happy time as i said so many
01:22:07stories in there with people that we all feel like we know because they're part of the sort of fabric
01:22:13of british history and popular culture you once read a script to rowan atkins and you know it was
01:22:22it was a funny experience wasn't it because he was sort of deadpan well he always he always is
01:22:26all right because i don't mind i can shout you know i didn't read rick i used to read my scripts
01:22:31to rick because i did them in long hand and and i just loved to hear him laugh and really he his
01:22:36laughter was the edit so reading to rick it was just a beautiful experience he'd just roar with laughter
01:22:41the exact opposite working with rowan and the first time richard curtis and i took our scripts for his new
01:22:47review show which we'd written to his place in the country and yeah it was like the headmaster you know he'd
01:22:52sit there and he he'd like silence an hour he'd do these elegant fingers he'd just take another one
01:22:57and occasionally he'd murmur there's there's half an idea here or this shows some promise and that's
01:23:05literally that was all you know it was by the end of it we were like this yeah he said oh bench i hope
01:23:10i wasn't that awful he was he was that uh yeah but row row is a beautiful i mean a very very dear friend
01:23:16and and incredibly kind but but but quite distant he it's you know he's not gonna he's not gonna give
01:23:23you a lot until you know until you really know him but he must have quite the presence to think that
01:23:29you and richard curtis who've done so much felt like that well we were younger then we were this was
01:23:34pre quite a lot of hits but yeah we he has got an intimidating presence because obviously you write
01:23:40something for a i don't know the word genius is banded about but if there is such a thing as a
01:23:44performance genius then then rowan is definitely one and as a writer who's going to enable that your
01:23:50job and i talk about this a lot in the book what the job of the writer is the art of writing and when
01:23:55you're lucky enough to be able to enable a special talent i mean the stuff i wrote for rowan or wrote
01:23:59for rick that no one else could do it you know it had to be them and um when the bloke who you've
01:24:06written it for is reading it and going there might be half an idea you know it is quite hard work i
01:24:12preferred rick's roars of laughter yeah because then you know where you are yeah exactly you
01:24:17turned sorry to now go on you turned blackadder around by making that switch with him being you
01:24:23know the the kind of village idiot too yeah richard and i because i didn't work on the first series but
01:24:28when richard to my great great good fortune richard curtis invited me to join him to write the second
01:24:33series the big thing we did because in that first series which as i say was well i wasn't involved with
01:24:39rowan was kind of playing the idiot more of a bean-like character and baldrick was the sly one
01:24:44and and i've i've always loved rowan's authority figures you know when he's being supercilious and
01:24:50mean and and uh so we switched it and made row the row the authority figure and baldrick the idiot
01:24:55yeah i bet um how's it all going yeah good like so we've got so we cut the potatoes so we just stick
01:25:01them into a pan of warm water up to the boil and let them cool down and then we fry them again so that's
01:25:07the tough rice cooked chips right with the fish in that'll take another 30 seconds the peas which
01:25:12i blitzed and made the noise while you were chatting so in this pan just literally blitz peas
01:25:16salt pepper butter no water at all so you get the sweetness do you like peas i do i love them
01:25:22but all forms of pain as long as you don't put honey on them well do you my dad used to love his
01:25:28joke i eat my peas with honey i've done it all my life it makes the peas taste funny but he picks them all
01:25:33at night he used to love that so that's honey and peas i don't know what made me think of that
01:25:37but i suppose thinking about my parents from their book yeah was it hard to know what to leave to
01:25:42decide what to leave out there's there's not a lot i've left i mean i've written it it was 200 000
01:25:47words now it's about 165 that all right sophie read it and she said you took you're going too deeply
01:25:53into plots of plays that never saw the light of day and student stuff so i cut a bit of that but um
01:25:58no i i pretty much it's a very honest book it's not all all roses by any means i think though you
01:26:04know because it it's so special to have all of that chronicled into one book when is the knighthood
01:26:10coming back yeah because i think sir ben elton rolls off the tongue i've never been offered so much as
01:26:17an obe the aussies gave me an order of australia i'm an a-o well we'll start a campaign this morning
01:26:23yeah but no nothing and we should say because lots of people will be watching this and they'll
01:26:27think oh my goodness i'd love to watch those programs again and of course thin blue line
01:26:31upstart crow they're all there on iplayer aren't they well they come and go but i think i think
01:26:36upstart crow's on at the moment as i was with with david last night and oh we love doing that show so
01:26:42much we love that show about shakespeare it was such a wonderful way probably to end my sitcom career
01:26:47at the bbc i don't know i'll get another one now hey it's not ended yet come on yeah when you're
01:26:52sir ben there'll be i don't think i don't think that's happening anytime soon well here we are your
01:26:57heaven is ready oh my gosh and you've got it here oh yeah nice and thin and of course oh my goodness
01:27:05a little bit of vinegar a few times here you are minus a clean boy look there we are this thank you
01:27:11brin oh i'm so great just a little bit of vinegar on the little bit there we go yeah yeah and a lemon
01:27:21a lovely big which would you lemon i cannot wait oh my gosh oh listen tack into that oh that is such
01:27:27a crunch oh oh perfect this is good hot so good and of course when you make this kind of thing in
01:27:36portairs i've got restaurants on the beach we're literally looking at the sea but we do fish fingers
01:27:40as well we're quite firmly as far fish fingers daily in a sandwich in a back potato sauce and with
01:27:46these pizza chips oh my fish finger sandwich on the beach i'm coming to wales i'm coming to wales
01:27:52uh well you know that is all from us today on saturday kitchen live thanks so much to rav
01:27:57andy ollie my sous chef brin and of course to sir ben i'm gonna go on the website bbc.co.uk
01:28:06slash saturday kitchen matt's got more best fights for you tomorrow morning at 10am on bbc 2
01:28:12and he'll be back here live next week with theo randall adijoke baccaré and reigning strictly
01:28:17charm oh you're so lovely chris mccausland enjoy the rest of your weekend and bye for now
01:28:23thanks there you go
01:28:33you
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