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00:00:02G'day! I've bounced back like a boomerang with a delicious array of recipes and a fun-filled
00:00:07line-up of incredible guests guaranteed to deliver you some sunshine. This is Saturday Kitchen Live.
00:00:33Hi, welcome to the show. Paul Ainsworth, Jess Philby and Tom Parker Bowles are serving up recipes that
00:00:38would definitely put a spring in your step and as always Ollie Smith's pouring the perfect pairings
00:00:43to sip alongside. Now our special guest today already had an army of fans worldwide thanks
00:00:48to her iconic roles in ER and Doctor Who before she entered the Strictly Ballroom but her dazzling
00:00:53display on the dance floor bought her whole new fandom. She's currently gearing up for a busy
00:00:58five-week run at the Hampstead Theatre so let's get her well fed for that. Please welcome the
00:01:02brilliant Alex Kingston. Welcome, welcome. Hi Alex. Hello. How are you? I'm very well thank you. Happy to be here.
00:01:10Well nice to have you here. I can't believe it's your first time on the show. Yeah I know. Huge
00:01:14admission on our part. Now Alex, you're in rehearsals. Your play starts in a couple of weeks. Yes. It's pretty
00:01:20intense I hear. Yes, very intense. It's quantum mechanics and the nuclear bomb. Yes, yes.
00:01:27It couldn't be further from Strictly. Yeah. Or this show. So a bit of light relief for you this morning.
00:01:33Yeah, yeah. Well listen we're going to talk all about that latest fascinating play as well. I was doing my
00:01:38homework on it last night. Right, let's see what else is on the menu today. Paul Ainsworth, you're embracing spring
00:01:43with a Roman classic.
00:01:44I am. So we're going to do some Cornish Gurnard with a Vignorella stew which is as you say like
00:01:49a stew of vegetables like broad beans, peas, asparagus, some smoked bacon and smoked butter in there. Very nice. Loving
00:01:56the coat. Thank you. Thank you.
00:01:58Sweet. Yeah, yeah. Thank you. Interesting choice. Fat. You might get fat on it. Yeah, yeah. Do you know what
00:02:04though? If you get fat on it, the talcum powder. You've been away and I wanted to really make an
00:02:09effort for you. That's so sweet. You really have. I have, yeah. And I just have to say how handsome
00:02:13you all look. All right. The tan. It's just, I'm loving it. Thanks man. Yeah. Thanks. Yeah.
00:02:19Let's, that's about us. Yeah. It's all about Jess. Jess felt your first time on the show. Welcome along. Thank
00:02:25you. Angela Hartner's a huge fan of yours. As is the man here, Tom Parker Bowles. Love the restaurant. Thank
00:02:30you. What have you got for us today, Jess? I've got a slow cooked sausage ragu and then I'm going
00:02:36to show you how to make fresh cavatelli and then I've got a beautiful spring salad with new season peas.
00:02:40Beautiful. I'm loving the way the food's going. It's much lighter now. Yeah. Bit of sun. Tom, what you got
00:02:45for us, Tom? Laotian chicken lard. It's like an elaborate.
00:02:48Right. A meat salad. It makes it sound, so it's herbs and it's lime juice and it's chilli and it's
00:02:52chopped chicken and it's sort of fresh and springy. That's more like it. Meat salad, everyone. Look forward to that.
00:03:00It's more like you and me. Hot, hot meat salad. That's us. Yes. Anyway, before we go on with our
00:03:05usual nonsense. Yes, yes. We should say how well Alex did last week. Alex Jones. Well done, Alex Jones. Well
00:03:11done, Alex Jones. Well done, Alex Jones. Well done, Alex Jones. Bit too good for my liking, but hey. What
00:03:17have we got? What are we drinking? We've got all sorts.
00:03:18So I've got two Italian wines for Jess and Paul. Yeah. For Tom, I've got a historic lager beer from
00:03:24Germany, which is totally scrumptious. And also Alex is in rehearsals, so off the booze at the moment. So I've
00:03:30got non-alcoholic choices for you as well. Fantastic. There's something for everybody, Matt. Good. Yes. And they're all rather
00:03:35lovely. Look at you. You're very laid back. Australian, mate. It is this vibe. Yeah, it's this country. You basically
00:03:40are an inner Australian already. I like it. Aggressively friendly.
00:03:43I like it. Now, Alex, at the end of the show, our viewers will decide what you get to eat.
00:03:51So food heaven, food hell. What sort of food do you love?
00:03:54Well, I lived in Los Angeles for 22 years. Nice. So there was a lot of Asian food all around
00:04:01me there. A lot of sushi, raw fish, everything. So I think my palate really changed during that time.
00:04:07Sure. So I would say my food heaven is something that's sort of more Asian-y, Japanese-y inspired.
00:04:13OK. Food hell is going to be anything sort of... Actually, really, heavy red meat. So I don't particularly eat
00:04:22steak any more.
00:04:23OK. Can't stand kidneys. Root vegetables, I'm not great on. I like carrots, but, you know, I can take a
00:04:32lever or lever parsnip.
00:04:34Swede. So that's not my cup of tea. Yeah. And steamed suet puddings. No. No.
00:04:41OK. There you go. Quite a collection of ingredients. So what Alex gets to eat at the end of the
00:04:45show is down to you folks at home.
00:04:47But will you go for her food heaven? Taste of Japan. If so, I'm going to marinate a thick fillet
00:04:52of cod in some miso, some sake and mirin.
00:04:54I'm going to roast it in a pan until it will be charred. And I'm going to serve it on
00:04:58a bed of wild rice, sushi rice, edamame beans and wasabi dressing.
00:05:01Or will I be able to convince her that steak and swede aren't that hellish?
00:05:06If so, I'm going to make a classic steak tagliata, which combines rare sirloid steak with some rockets and parmesan
00:05:11tomatoes.
00:05:12For an extra hellish touch, I'm going to toss in some crispy fried swede gnocchi.
00:05:17That looks delicious.
00:05:18Right?
00:05:20But the other one's nicer.
00:05:22Er, love all of the Sunday kitchen website where you can view the terms of privacy notice and have your
00:05:26say.
00:05:27Right, Paul, spring has sprung.
00:05:28Let's do it.
00:05:29Let's make this happen.
00:05:30Let's do it.
00:05:31Er, so where do we begin?
00:05:33Right, so we're going to start with a stew.
00:05:35So you can see what some lovely ingredients here.
00:05:37The peas, the broad beans.
00:05:38If you could chop the leek for me.
00:05:40I fried off some bacon here and you can see we've got the lovely residual bacon fat.
00:05:45The nice little crispy bits in the bottom.
00:05:46We're going to add those back in.
00:05:47Smoked bacon or not?
00:05:48Smoked bacon, absolutely, and a nice kind of salty bacon.
00:05:52Nice dry cure on it.
00:05:54Now, the beauty of this recipe I love, it's for me, it's midweek tea or it's something special at the
00:05:59weekend,
00:06:00but it's the way that the peas and the broad beans and the asparagus and all the vegetables really cook
00:06:05down in stock.
00:06:06This isn't something that's, as you said earlier, you know, that's kind of, you know, you want it sort of
00:06:10like bright green.
00:06:11It's a real big flavour dish.
00:06:13And we've got some lovely pickled artichokes in here as well.
00:06:15Okay.
00:06:16So the first thing I'm going to do, and I really want to talk about, is this amazing Cornish Gurnard.
00:06:21And we absolutely love it.
00:06:24It's in season right now and I just urge everyone, you know, cod had it great, but please try Gurnard.
00:06:31It is absolutely delicious.
00:06:33So, a little bit of seasoning, both sides.
00:06:34One of those fishes that in the past, it was used as a spiket bait.
00:06:38Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
00:06:40I think, because it looks quite scary, it comes out of the sea, it's got red and, you know, it's
00:06:44not a particularly attractive fish, but I'm with Paul, it's so delicious.
00:06:47Now, this is, like, literally how I cook fish at home.
00:06:51Alex, I know you're a big fan of fish.
00:06:53Yeah, I am.
00:06:53So, I've just browned some butter.
00:06:55So, that's giving you the roast flavour.
00:06:57So, the milk solids have caramelised.
00:06:59You take it off.
00:07:00You can keep that in your fridge.
00:07:01We put the fish on top.
00:07:02Now, I think sometimes for, you know, fish cookery for people can be a bit daunting and, you know, like,
00:07:08how do they do it without overcooking it and getting that sort of cotton wool texture.
00:07:12Baking it in the oven like this is amazing.
00:07:16So, I've got the oven there on 200 degrees.
00:07:18We're going to bake that for about six minutes, but the butter will caramelise a little bit more, but it's
00:07:23just slower than the sort of fierceness of the stove and the pan, you know, like, in a restaurant environment,
00:07:28that's fine.
00:07:29But at home, this is a great way to cook fish.
00:07:33So, we'll turn up the heat.
00:07:34I've seen you talk, maybe I've read you talking about that in a book before.
00:07:38Yeah.
00:07:38That's your thing, isn't it?
00:07:39Brown butter.
00:07:40Yeah.
00:07:40Yeah, I love brown butter.
00:07:42I mean, we make, we make cakes with it.
00:07:44It's, it's just, it's just that lovely hazelnut flavour that you get from it.
00:07:48It's just delicious.
00:07:50So, we're back to our pan.
00:07:52All that lovely flavour of the bacon that's been cooked in there, we've added in the leek.
00:07:55Two cloves of garlic, grated in.
00:07:58And again, I'm normally at this sort of stage, at the beginning, I'd put a bit of salt in, but
00:08:03that bacon, it's got such a lovely salt content that we don't need to add any salt at the beginning.
00:08:38Okay.
00:08:39Here's the one that's finished, but I'm going to show you all the way.
00:08:41So, bacon fat, we've got our garlic, our leeks.
00:08:44Here, I've got some smoked butter, which is absolutely delicious and just, for me, really brings this recipe together.
00:08:53Did you smoke it yourself?
00:08:54At this stage.
00:08:56Did you smoke it yourself?
00:08:56You can.
00:08:57We actually use a lovely smokery in Cornwall, where we get this from, and it's amazing, because it's obviously a
00:09:03cold smoke, and it's in a big, like, they've got amazing equipment to do it.
00:09:08So, that's on full heat.
00:09:10Now, I'm going to start adding the vegetables.
00:09:12Yeah, you go back.
00:09:12Because I want these vegetables to cook down.
00:09:14I'm not looking for, like, bright green.
00:09:17We want, like, the flavour and all the lovely stock and everything to soak into these vegetables.
00:09:23Smells amazing.
00:09:24To absorb.
00:09:24Yeah.
00:09:25Really nice.
00:09:25So, if you can just, can you put those artichokes in here as well, please, mate?
00:09:29If anyone's worried about my finger at home, by the way, the old blue plaster, we've got brand new knives.
00:09:36And I managed to cut myself on the brand new knife.
00:09:40And I had two weeks off.
00:09:42Uh, right.
00:09:43Where are we at?
00:09:44Right, you want to shine?
00:09:45So, fish is in the oven.
00:09:46We've got our lovely stew happening in now.
00:09:49The butter's melted.
00:09:51Now, I'm going to add in that smoked bacon.
00:09:53And, again, when you're using really good quality smoked bacon, you know, a nittle goes a long way.
00:09:58The gurnard, though, is sustainable.
00:10:00It's, I cannot, sort of, speak more highly of this fish.
00:10:04For me, it's almost got, like, a texture of, like, John Doreen, like a real prime fish.
00:10:08It's super expensive.
00:10:09Yeah.
00:10:09But the gurnard is inexpensive.
00:10:11The texture of it is beautiful.
00:10:13And, yeah, it's just amazing.
00:10:16So, now, white wine.
00:10:17Okay.
00:10:18Goes in.
00:10:19Okay.
00:10:20Heats on four.
00:10:21We'll reduce that white wine.
00:10:22When would you use, um, you know, coming with your Michelin-style background, when would you use white wine over
00:10:26something more floral, like a noily, noily pratt?
00:10:30Yeah.
00:10:31Noily would be lovely in this.
00:10:33Yeah.
00:10:33I mean, I'm keeping it really, really classic, so the white wine with the lemon, but I love noily.
00:10:37I love vermouth and stuff like this, and especially, especially putting fish with it would be, that would be lovely.
00:10:42Okay.
00:10:43So, the white wine's in.
00:10:44We're going to reduce that down.
00:10:45I've got chicken stock.
00:10:46You want to use fish stock, veg stock.
00:10:47I personally like the white chicken stock, and then all the trimmings from the bacon I've infused into the stock.
00:10:53So, that's a nice, smoky broth already.
00:10:55Mm-hmm.
00:10:56We've got some time in there.
00:10:58So, um, congratulations, by the way.
00:11:01The Michelin Awards have just, uh, come out.
00:11:04Yes.
00:11:04You've retained your staff for 13 years.
00:11:06Yay.
00:11:06Go for it.
00:11:07Well done, you.
00:11:09How are you feeling about that?
00:11:10Yeah, it's amazing, and it's never, ever, ever taken for granted, and it is all, it is just all down
00:11:17to the teams, as in 13 years of teams and different people and the team right now, and it's a
00:11:25good point you make.
00:11:25It's something that is, you know, it's a year.
00:11:29It's not something that is just you get and then you have.
00:11:32You must maintain that.
00:11:33Yeah.
00:11:35Consistency, personality in the food.
00:11:37So, now I'm going to add in the stock.
00:11:38I mean, a year would be nice, but longer would be better.
00:11:41Yeah.
00:11:42So, I think that's a great, congratulations to you.
00:11:46Yeah.
00:11:46What else is going on?
00:11:47St. Enadoc, you're revamping the hotel.
00:11:50Yeah.
00:11:50So, each time I see you, it's, I mean, what do I say about St. Enadoc?
00:11:56I mean, St. Enadoc is huge.
00:11:58It is the biggest thing that myself and my wife have ever done.
00:12:02The whole team that's involved, it's just amazing.
00:12:05It will perhaps be the biggest thing that we ever do, you know.
00:12:09My background has always been, like, independent restaurants and sort of opening a hotel and all the things that go
00:12:17with a hotel, but I don't want it to be labelled as a hotel.
00:12:19I want, this, St. Enadoc is for everybody.
00:12:22Okay.
00:12:22It is, it's not about if you're staying with us.
00:12:25It's about if you're in Cornwall.
00:12:26Yeah.
00:12:27Come up that, come up the driveway and come and see us and have a drink and just take in
00:12:32the views of poor Philly and the estuary.
00:12:35It's, it's magical.
00:12:37You've been there.
00:12:37I have been up there.
00:12:38And you also, you've raised it.
00:12:40So, you've got this beautiful platform now.
00:12:41Yeah.
00:12:41So, you can see over Gordon's house and onto the estuary.
00:12:44Yeah, basically, yeah.
00:12:47Yeah, it's, yeah, it's, it's beautiful.
00:12:49It's, can I just show you that, I mean, that's just, like.
00:12:52What's he off with that?
00:12:53Look at that.
00:12:53He's trying to say that.
00:12:54Look at that.
00:12:54He just smells the nuttiness of that butter.
00:12:57Amazing.
00:12:58It's just beautiful.
00:13:00And then.
00:13:00The thing I love about you is you have all the ambition, all these places, whether it's number six, Regiano's,
00:13:04St. Enadoc's, you know, everything you do, you bring people with you.
00:13:07I salute you, mate.
00:13:07Honestly, it's tremendous.
00:13:08You're down there quite a lot, aren't you?
00:13:09I am down there a lot.
00:13:10Yeah, I was down there just before Christmas at number six and I had a fantastic meal on your team.
00:13:14You know, a lot of young people, really well trained, but their service is impeccable and their knowledge, passion.
00:13:18And it's all from the top down.
00:13:19So, bravo, Paul.
00:13:20Well done you, Paul.
00:13:21What's going on here?
00:13:22I don't know.
00:13:23I have no idea what's happening.
00:13:23There was a slight, like, you know, well done you, Paul, enough of you.
00:13:27Greasy hands.
00:13:27Yeah, yeah, hang on a second.
00:13:29But, like I say, do you know what, I've not seen you for a while, I've seen you, you're radiant.
00:13:34Thanks, sir.
00:13:34You're looking good, you're looking chilled.
00:13:36Yeah, fair play to you.
00:13:37I mean, yeah.
00:13:38It's been an easy week.
00:13:40Yeah.
00:13:42So, at this stage, Alex, it's now just, we're just going to adjust the flavour so we've got some lovely
00:13:47pepper going in there.
00:13:49We'll add, could you add in the herbs, please, Matt?
00:13:51You can throw them in now, the herbs you've chopped.
00:13:53Yeah, thank you.
00:13:54So, I'm just going to add in some lemon juice to kind of, with that richness to the smoked butter,
00:13:59lemon, peas, Matt's just put in there, chervil, mint and chives.
00:14:05Okay.
00:14:05And now we're just going to turn that heat down, stir in, and now you just let everything settle.
00:14:12Are we using this?
00:14:13Yeah.
00:14:13What are you looking for in a temperature of a...
00:14:15So, you're looking for around 45, and we're just letting that fish kind of, like, just beautifully rest up.
00:14:19Now, I'm just going to hit the fish with a little bit of lemon zest.
00:14:24It's beautifully flaky.
00:14:25Oh, it's incredible.
00:14:26But look at the texture of it.
00:14:28Then I'm going to add a little bit more lemon juice on it.
00:14:30All right?
00:14:31Mm-hmm.
00:14:32Some lovely sea salt just to finish.
00:14:35Nice.
00:14:35If you pack that up, if you want to make Paul's seasonal Italian stew at home, you can find the
00:14:39recipe at pbc.co.dk forward slash Saturday kitchen, or scan the QR code below, and it'll take you straight
00:14:44to this dish.
00:14:45Get it in a pan and a bowl, Paul.
00:14:47That is, uh, that is lovely.
00:14:50Yeah, thank you.
00:14:51Nice one, mate.
00:14:53And that's it.
00:14:53Just dish that up.
00:14:55I mean, I put this in the middle of the table, and the fish on top, and everyone digging in,
00:15:00helping themselves.
00:15:01But you're right about the green colour.
00:15:03People are so obsessed now because of food photography.
00:15:05Yeah.
00:15:05Everything has to be bright green.
00:15:07But you're going to get the flavour when it's all there and it's kind of, you know, melted in.
00:15:12So we then just put the fish on top, and then that lovely, just borrow your spoon, that lovely, all
00:15:17the juices from the gurnard, the brown butter, just all over like that.
00:15:22It's that simple.
00:15:24Beautiful.
00:15:24All in real time.
00:15:26Right, what have we got here, Paul?
00:15:28Cornish gurnard, vina rola, spring stew.
00:15:31Nice.
00:15:31Well done.
00:15:32I love you.
00:15:37I'm loving this morning.
00:15:38I love you.
00:15:38Alex, are you hungry?
00:15:41There you go.
00:15:41You know what?
00:15:43You tuck into that?
00:15:43I am salivating.
00:15:45I was sitting here thinking, what on earth is going on in my mouth?
00:15:49You're a big cook, aren't you?
00:15:51I really enjoy cooking, yeah, I do.
00:15:54And I like experimenting and make my own pasta.
00:15:57Very good.
00:15:58Well, you just dive into that.
00:16:00I'm eating a Michelin star dish.
00:16:02Yeah.
00:16:02Right?
00:16:03Dish.
00:16:03For free.
00:16:04Oh, my God.
00:16:06What's in here?
00:16:07Well, we've got white wine from Italy, and you want to have some freshness to go with
00:16:11the fish, but you also need some richness to go with all of those veggie-infused, that
00:16:15wonderful kind of richness of the sauce and the stewiness.
00:16:18This one is Verdeca, which is, you mentioned actually vermouth would be nice in the dish.
00:16:22Yeah.
00:16:22It was a grape that went into making vermouth in Puglia.
00:16:25So, it was nearly extinct.
00:16:27Now, it's having a huge comeback.
00:16:28This is Masseria Pietrosa Verdeca, nine quid in Morrison's.
00:16:31I just love it because it's sort of, it's got a silkiness and a richness, and it's
00:16:35almost like a peach in gold leaf pyjamas.
00:16:38You know, it's that kind of bright, but, you know, fruity.
00:16:41But it does the job with the dish, and I think Verdeca also has this lovely, slight,
00:16:45aromatic character.
00:16:46The oak, they put it in oak for a short time, so it sort of makes a texture, but it
00:16:50doesn't interfere too much.
00:16:50I think it's beautifully balanced and a real Italian gem.
00:16:53Off the beaten track, good value for you.
00:16:54Very nice.
00:16:55Very good.
00:16:55Oh, you're Alex.
00:16:56Oh, yeah.
00:16:57Well, for Alex as well, I've got...
00:16:58There's lots of history on it.
00:16:59I've got a jar kombucha for you, which is £3.25 from the Whiskey Exchange.
00:17:03All organic ingredients, oolong tea, green tea, and it's basically like a sherbet gooseberry.
00:17:08It's nice and bright and effervescent and kind of the venous alternative.
00:17:11And good for your tummy.
00:17:11And that actually tastes delicious with this.
00:17:15Yes, good pairing.
00:17:16How was that, Tom?
00:17:17You tried that in rehearsal?
00:17:18Any thoughts?
00:17:18Absolutely.
00:17:19It's like spring on a plate.
00:17:20Spring has sprung sped.
00:17:22Very nice.
00:17:23Jess, what about you?
00:17:24What do you think?
00:17:25I thought it was absolutely delicious as well.
00:17:27I love Gurnage.
00:17:27So I think it's quite underrated.
00:17:29And Jess, could you pronounce it properly, please?
00:17:30Well...
00:17:31I'd pronounce it Vignola, but I'm not sure what that's the right way, though.
00:17:34And I'd pronounce it Vignola.
00:17:36That's right.
00:17:36It's Britallian.
00:17:37Yeah, we will.
00:17:38Yeah, Britallian.
00:17:39I like it.
00:17:40It's now a thing.
00:17:40You're happy with that, Alex?
00:17:41Mmm.
00:17:42Good start?
00:17:43Mmm.
00:17:43Great.
00:17:44Sorry, I won't ask you to talk.
00:17:45Remind us what you're doing.
00:17:46I'm doing a slow-cooked sausage ragout with fresh cavatelli and a spring salad.
00:17:51Beautiful.
00:17:51Don't forget, you're in charge of what I cook at the end of the show.
00:17:54Will you go for Alex's idea of food heaven, miso cod with wild rice and edamame salad,
00:17:58or her idea of food hell steak tagliata with crispy fried sweet gnocchi?
00:18:03Log on to the Saturday Kitchen website now and have your say.
00:18:06Right, let's catch up with Rick now.
00:18:07He's in Sri Lanka visiting an incredible fishing port.
00:18:10Ollie, that's a beauty.
00:18:16I have to say that I've never been happier anywhere on my travels than when I was here.
00:18:23Everywhere I went, I was greeted with smiles and enthusiasm.
00:18:31I had been told that some of the fishing scenes in Sri Lanka would be some of the most visual
00:18:37I was likely to see anywhere, but I must say it's exceeded all my expectations.
00:18:42I mean, it's like central casting, fishing rides.
00:18:47I mean, when I first saw it, I just thought of Newland, of those Newland school of painters,
00:18:52people like Stan at Forbes from the last century, from Victorian times,
00:18:57because all those boats are still powered only by sail.
00:19:01These ones here, which have motorised, just bring the fish into the shore from the bigger boats.
00:19:06But to me, it's just like, I can hardly believe I'm here.
00:19:11I met up with Darshan, a famous chef here, half Sri Lankan and half Japanese.
00:19:17Darshan, I've just arrived here.
00:19:19I am totally knocked out by what I'm seeing.
00:19:22I mean, there's lovely, plenty of fish, lovely-looking fishing boats.
00:19:27What are they fishing for?
00:19:29These windplot boats are catching shrimp and prawns, and they bring it out here and then take it back to
00:19:35the market.
00:19:36Most of the time, all these prawns are alive, and it's a wonderful thing to have so close to the
00:19:41capital city of Bologna.
00:19:42I mean, being half Japanese, half Sri Lankan, it must mean everything to you.
00:19:49It's inspiring.
00:19:51I think food, any kind of food, starts with ingredients, not with the other sauces or spices you add.
00:19:56And as long as you have good ingredients, you can do any kind of food, it'll turn out better.
00:20:00And it's very true for Japanese food and much stronger.
00:20:04Naturally, where fishing boats land fish, there's a market.
00:20:07I only wish I'd bought my old copy of the Observer Book of Tropical Fish.
00:20:12But that's all part of it.
00:20:13I'd never turn down a trip to a fish market.
00:20:16I'd just like to see how different it all is.
00:20:20From where you come, what's the fish market like out there?
00:20:24Well, it's nothing like here, the fish market at home, but, I mean, this is as fresh as you could
00:20:29ever see fish.
00:20:30One of the things we have at home, of course, is refrigeration, as you do in Tokyo.
00:20:35And that is a good thing and a bad thing, because once you've got fish refrigerated, it keeps longer, but
00:20:42all the time it's getting...
00:20:43Out here, the market goes around 1.
00:20:45Yeah.
00:20:45And refrigeration, yes, it would be nice to have it, but right now, if it gets sold by 1 o
00:20:50'clock, we don't need to have it.
00:20:51So that's why we're not using refrigeration.
00:20:52What is really impressing me is there's no smell of fish here.
00:20:55It's all smells of the sea.
00:20:56Everyone thinks seafood smells. It doesn't.
00:20:59It smells only if it rots.
00:21:00Absolutely.
00:21:01So I'm very impressed.
00:21:02I'm enjoying it immensely, Darshan.
00:21:09And let go!
00:21:12And let go!
00:21:19I was asked if I fancied a trip with a bunch of fishermen further south of the island, near the
00:21:24town of Gaul.
00:21:26There's not many harbours here, so everything is launched with quite a bit of effort off the beach.
00:21:42The boat is called an Oru, and one of this size could certainly cope with ocean storms, but many of
00:21:48them are much smaller than this,
00:21:50And I was told that up to 80% of the local fleet was lost in the tsunami.
00:21:57Anyway, this turned out to be a sort of seine net fishing, with the boat laying out the net in
00:22:02a great big circle.
00:22:06And then they all started to jump ship.
00:22:09This is the strangest way to catch fish I've ever seen.
00:22:15So the reason they keep jumping into the sea is to scare the fish into the back of the net.
00:22:20This is the open end of the net, so they're making as much splash and as much movement with their
00:22:25hands, so the fish will all swim down that end.
00:22:28Must be a great job, that. I feel like jumping in myself, actually.
00:22:34Go on, then.
00:22:42Well, I am a water baby, and it was very hot, and it did feel really good to join in.
00:22:49I don't know how effective I was, but I love to get involved.
00:22:54Mind you, getting out again is a whole different ballgame.
00:23:03I know a thing or two about fishing, and I'm not expecting a huge catch here.
00:23:08But the general air of expectation sort of burst into frantic excitement,
00:23:13as it became more certain that we're indeed fishing the net, and lots of them.
00:23:34Well, I have to say this is a great moment for me, the number of times we go out fishing
00:23:39and never catch any fish.
00:23:40I think it's testimony to how much, how rich the fishing grounds are around Sri Lanka, that there's so much
00:23:48good quality fish landed there.
00:23:49And those ones, they're called Parawa.
00:23:52Parawa.
00:23:53Parawa are really good, really good money, so they've done very, very well, and I'm very happy.
00:23:59I really enjoyed that.
00:24:01I mean, like fishermen all over the world, they really bond together, you know, it's one big family here, they
00:24:06look after each other.
00:24:08So Buddha's just told me they're feared, because they're really tough, they're quite chunky, I wouldn't like to cross them.
00:24:17Ah, I'm not quite finished yet.
00:24:19But I still have to help get the Uru back in again.
00:24:27This is the hardest part on top, and what this chanting is, we want to go to the land, we
00:24:36want to go to the land, we want to go to the land, we want to go to the land.
00:24:45Right, oh, action man there, Rick, diving, shifting boats around, all round.
00:24:51Right, I haven't mentioned it much, just got back from Australia.
00:24:54Did you?
00:24:55Yeah, Queensland in fact, absolutely loved it, had a great time.
00:24:59First time there, but I found that the food scene in Brisbane was incredible.
00:25:04If you haven't been, you've been.
00:25:05I bet you haven't.
00:25:05You've been.
00:25:07Anyway, so I went to this wonderful restaurant called Stanley's, fantastic chef called Louis Tickerum, you can find him on
00:25:14Instagram, and I had these two dishes.
00:25:16So the first one, I've got some lamb belly here, and it was braised, and then it's tossed in lots
00:25:23of spices, fennel, Szechuan pepper, coriander seeds, chilies, a bit of vinegar and soy.
00:25:29So Tom, you're going to do that, so basically it starts like this, it then gets braised in some soy
00:25:34and these aromatics.
00:25:36You could just boil it up in some water, or simmer it in some water quite frankly, for about sort
00:25:39of 60 minutes.
00:25:41And then you let it cool and set, go easy, because you know, remember rehearsal?
00:25:46Yeah, alright.
00:25:47Remember that kind of race?
00:25:49So, and then you chill it, slice it into its individual kind of riblets, and then we're going to toss
00:25:56it in these spices.
00:25:58And like I said, a lot of chilli and the vinegar.
00:26:01Right, Tom, I'm going to, so grind those up, that really well.
00:26:05And I'm going to get on with this other salad.
00:26:08Now this was, this was delicious.
00:26:10And it's very, very simple, monstu or snow peas, as they call them out there.
00:26:16Cucumber, and this kind of soy sesame dressing.
00:26:20And it's just wonderful.
00:26:22It really is super easy, but.
00:26:25Can you find that the Southeast Asian food in Australia, especially in Queensland, is just out of this world, isn't
00:26:30it?
00:26:30It's amazing.
00:26:32It's, do you know what?
00:26:32I was, it was hard, I was hard pushed to find food that wasn't sort of Asian orientated.
00:26:39But it's so fresh and vibrant.
00:26:41It's always a pie.
00:26:42Always a pie.
00:26:42I did get a pie.
00:26:43Good, Australians are a good pie.
00:26:44But you know, I didn't, I went all that way to get a pie, you know what I mean?
00:26:46You've been, you've been there.
00:26:47I have, I've been all over Australia actually, and I completely agree with you.
00:26:51The food is incredible.
00:26:55And, I mean, it's funny because so many Irish, so many Italians, you know, so many people just from all
00:27:05over the world.
00:27:06Yeah.
00:27:06But coming together and kind of living in this wonderful way where, you know, everybody is respected.
00:27:15The foods are all encouraged, all the different cultures.
00:27:20Yeah.
00:27:20It's sort of, it's an amazing country.
00:27:22I absolutely fell in love with the place, I have to say.
00:27:24Now let's, let's talk about you and your new play.
00:27:27Now we obviously, the play is called Copenhagen.
00:27:30Now we know you from, you know, we said sort of iconic roles.
00:27:33You work with some wonderful people.
00:27:34And now you, you've got a great cast in Hampstead.
00:27:39Yes.
00:27:39Yes.
00:27:39Damien Maloney and Richard Schiff and myself.
00:27:43It's just the three, three people on stage and we're on stage the entire time.
00:27:48It's intense.
00:27:48It's intense.
00:27:49Yes.
00:27:50Yes.
00:27:50There's nowhere to hide.
00:27:52And the play basically takes an event that happened where these two physicists met in 1941.
00:28:06And one of the physicists, Niels Bohr, was a sort of mentor to this younger physicist called
00:28:12Werner Heisenberg and the play sort of is trying to get to the bottom of why Heisenberg came back to
00:28:25meet Niels Bohr.
00:28:26It was the middle of the war and Heisenberg was basically working ostensibly for Hitler on the nuclear program.
00:28:36Okay.
00:28:36And it's, the play's kind of a thriller.
00:28:41It's, the question really that surrounds the play is, was Werner Heisenberg trying to make the nuclear bomb for Hitler?
00:28:53Or was he actually stalling so that he wouldn't make the nuclear bomb for Hitler?
00:28:59And it's a, that's the question that is examined.
00:29:02And, and your role in the play is pretty pivotal.
00:29:08Because you're the translator.
00:29:10Yes.
00:29:10Between these two absolute boffins.
00:29:12Yes.
00:29:12To the public.
00:29:13Yes, completely.
00:29:14And they, you know, they were physicists.
00:29:16She wasn't.
00:29:17So everything that was, she wrote, she transcribed everything.
00:29:22Um, and basically, uh, her husband, Niels Bohr, uh, insisted that she understood what it was they were researching, what
00:29:36it was they were coming up with, the calculations.
00:29:39So it had to be understandable for her.
00:29:42Okay.
00:29:43Which, so in a sense, Mark, her name's Margareta.
00:29:46She's the bridge between the play and the audience.
00:29:49Okay.
00:29:49And, as you say, boffins.
00:29:51I mean, I have miscalcula.
00:29:53I didn't even know that that's what it was called.
00:29:54I just thought it was, you know, very bad at maths and numbers.
00:29:57Well, I'm terrible at maths.
00:29:58So how does that manifest?
00:29:59Well, I, I just freeze.
00:30:01I go into a panic when, when I see numbers.
00:30:05Yeah.
00:30:05Yeah.
00:30:06I mean, I still, Vegas.
00:30:07Oh my gosh.
00:30:08I mean, I have to count on my fingers.
00:30:10So I'm useless at anything like, you know, blackjack.
00:30:14I can only do the slot machine.
00:30:16Um.
00:30:17But, um, yes.
00:30:18So I can count on my fingers.
00:30:20And I can.
00:30:21LAUGHTER
00:30:24But, you know, pie or percentages or, you know, I just, it may, I literally freeze
00:30:30in terror in my head.
00:30:31So that apparently is discalcular.
00:30:34Okay.
00:30:35Um, so me in a play about quantum physics and, and all of these, um, mathematical calculations.
00:30:43It's actually.
00:30:44Is that a genuine struggle on stage?
00:30:46Well.
00:30:47Or once you're getting your head around in rehearsing?
00:30:48No.
00:30:48Well, the thing is, because I'm not a physicist, I don't have to pretend to be a physicist
00:30:52on stage.
00:30:53I'm just the, I'm not just, but I'm the woman who's typing it all out.
00:30:57And, and, uh, so I feel quite relaxed that, uh, I mean, she did understand and I am beginning.
00:31:03We've been rehearsing now for four weeks and I'm starting to understand what it all means.
00:31:08Are you enjoying that element?
00:31:09I am actually quite, yes.
00:31:11Something really to be had when you're, when you're an actor and you're sort of, you know,
00:31:16rehearsing new roles and taking on new information.
00:31:18Yeah.
00:31:18It's quite exciting.
00:31:19I mean, I, I'm starting to learn all about nuclear fission.
00:31:23Uh, and the U235 and U238 and, you know, how to enrich plutonium or enrich uranium to make plutonium.
00:31:31Do you, do you know too much?
00:31:33I mean, don't put yourself on a watch list.
00:31:35No.
00:31:38It's, it's an amazing cast though as well.
00:31:40I mean, there's you, I mean, Adam, Adam Schiff.
00:31:42It was the, Richard Schiff, sorry.
00:31:43Yeah.
00:31:44From the West Wing.
00:31:45Yeah.
00:31:45Just amazing to have that line up.
00:31:48Yeah.
00:31:48Extraordinary to be rehearsing with them.
00:31:50Well, the thing that's, um, that's, uh, quite funny is that, um, uh, when I was doing ER.
00:31:57Yeah.
00:31:57Uh, we were on the same studio lot when Richard was doing the West Wing.
00:32:01Yeah.
00:32:01And, um, John Wells was our showrunner and he was the showrunner for, uh, West Wing as
00:32:07well.
00:32:07So, Richard and I kind of would cross over, um, at Warner Brothers, um, and end up at the
00:32:15same sort of weekend parties and things.
00:32:18But, uh, I haven't seen him, you know, for decades.
00:32:22Yeah.
00:32:22Uh, so it's sort of quite nice because it, it kind of reminds me of that time.
00:32:27Yeah.
00:32:28Yeah.
00:32:29It's good.
00:32:31And, um, Damien is, I think he, he's Bergerac.
00:32:34He's the new Bergerac.
00:32:36So, he's, uh.
00:32:36I'm sorry.
00:32:37They're bringing back Bergerac.
00:32:38Yes.
00:32:39Yes.
00:32:39I'm sorry.
00:32:40Yes.
00:32:41Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
00:32:42Yes.
00:32:42Hang on.
00:32:43Here I am banging on about Queensland and food.
00:32:45They're bringing back Bergerac.
00:32:47Yes.
00:32:47Yeah.
00:32:47I didn't know that.
00:32:49Yeah.
00:32:49My brother's a huge fan of Bergerac.
00:32:50How excited are you?
00:32:52Very excited.
00:32:52My brother did the tower of Bergerac on Radio 4.
00:32:55It's a great show.
00:32:55So, I'm glad it's back.
00:32:57Oh, Lord.
00:32:58Right.
00:32:59Okay.
00:32:59Let's, let's talk about food.
00:33:01Uh, okay.
00:33:01So, Tom, uh, is very masterfully.
00:33:03Not burnt this time.
00:33:04Not burnt them this time.
00:33:06Uh, and, uh, so into the wok.
00:33:08All those spices, uh, with the, um, the, you seal off the, um, uh, the lamb ribs, make
00:33:13them nice and crispy, because they're soft and then you make them crispy.
00:33:16Toss in all those spices.
00:33:17A bit of vinegar, a bit of soy, chilies.
00:33:19Uh, in here we've got, uh, all the ingredients.
00:33:23I can't remember.
00:33:24Cucumber, uh, monstu, the enoki mushrooms, sesame seeds.
00:33:28That's the dressing.
00:33:29A bit generous for that.
00:33:31Uh, and then give it a mix.
00:33:33But, yeah, I mean, in terms of the food, it's just light.
00:33:36It's fresh.
00:33:37It's exciting.
00:33:38The Asian food, I think some of the best Thai food on earth, um, outside of Thailand is
00:33:42in Australia, but, you know.
00:33:43Oh, really?
00:33:44It's just the freshness of the ingredients and everything.
00:33:46I love that country.
00:33:47Right.
00:33:48There you go.
00:33:50Oh, excuse me.
00:33:51Try some of that.
00:33:53Let us know what you think.
00:33:54Do, do I squeeze lime over it?
00:33:55Yes, exactly.
00:33:56Squeeze a bit of lime over the ribs.
00:33:58Um, but I, I think, uh, I think it's delicious.
00:34:02I mean, lamb ribs, they're not, uh, they're not expensive.
00:34:05No.
00:34:05And lots of flavor.
00:34:06So good.
00:34:07Stealing that one, Matt.
00:34:08Yeah?
00:34:09I'm stealing that one.
00:34:10You're welcome.
00:34:11That is a cracking dish.
00:34:12Nice, isn't it, the salad.
00:34:13So fresh and crisp and lovely.
00:34:15Right.
00:34:15Oh, you haven't tried it?
00:34:16No, no, I'm going to have a go now.
00:34:18Um, your salad.
00:34:20It's so good.
00:34:21Yeah, we all fell in love with it in rehearsal.
00:34:22It's just full of flavor.
00:34:24Mmm.
00:34:25It's okay?
00:34:26Salad.
00:34:26The salad is so good.
00:34:27Nice, right?
00:34:28Mmm.
00:34:28Mmm.
00:34:28So that dressing's delicious.
00:34:30Absolutely delicious.
00:34:31And now I pick this up with my fingers.
00:34:33Yeah, yeah, please do.
00:34:34Mmm.
00:34:35Oh my gosh.
00:34:35You know, nobody's looking.
00:34:37Um, yeah, Louis Tickerum.
00:34:38Don't check him out for me.
00:34:39Uh, what do you want me to make at the end of the show?
00:34:41Uh, will it be Alex's food heaven, miso cod?
00:34:43If so, I'm going to marinate a thick fillet of cod in miso.
00:34:46Look at that for a shot.
00:34:48Um, miso, sake and mirin.
00:34:51I'm going to roast it in a pan until it's chiles.
00:34:53I'm going to serve it on a bed of wild rice sushi.
00:34:55Can I tell you?
00:34:56Yeah, go on.
00:34:57Um, I don't have a problem with eating on camera.
00:35:00No?
00:35:01That's what we like, yeah.
00:35:02That's what we like, I guess.
00:35:04Uh, anyway, always thinking of the food that else is steak and swede.
00:35:07So, I'm going to make a classic steak tagliata,
00:35:09which combines rare soda steak with some rocket parmesan tomatoes.
00:35:13Uh, for an extra headish touch,
00:35:14I'm going to toss in some crispy fried sweet gnocchi.
00:35:17Uh, the choice is yours.
00:35:18Log on to the website now.
00:35:19How have you said?
00:35:20Could we stop focusing on Alex?
00:35:22Let him eat!
00:35:24Right, grab me life jackets.
00:35:25It's time bobbing along the Thames now with Dame Mary Berry
00:35:28to visit a river community with their own fruit and veg growing gardens.
00:35:32Take a look.
00:35:33Oh my God!
00:35:39The Tidal Thames has some wonderful hidden gems.
00:35:43This is Tarbridge Moorings, one of its oldest river communities.
00:35:50Seven of the barges here have stunning gardens,
00:35:54growing an amazing array of fruit and vegetables.
00:35:59I promise you, I'm as sober as a judge.
00:36:02It's very difficult coming along here.
00:36:05It's just like this.
00:36:06But I'm here.
00:36:09I've been invited to have a look round by Suj,
00:36:12who's lived here for 14 years.
00:36:17What an amazing view!
00:36:19It is.
00:36:19It's beautiful.
00:36:21I feel so blessed and lucky to call this place my home.
00:36:24How many barges are here?
00:36:26We have about 50 barges and over 100 people living here now.
00:36:31And do you all get together for sort of occasions here?
00:36:35We do have a communal barge.
00:36:36So we have a lot of community events like book clubs, film clubs.
00:36:41Yeah.
00:36:42Hello, you've just popped up from nowhere.
00:36:46They grow everything here from citrus fruits to green leaf veg.
00:36:51There's a crab up here.
00:36:52Yes.
00:36:54I'm going to get out of the rain and whip out something simple and delicious for Suj and his friends.
00:37:02I've cooked in some very strange places in my time, never on the Thames.
00:37:07And I've got tar bridge on my right.
00:37:10But what better than a warm chicken salad?
00:37:14Very simple.
00:37:15The heart of this delicious salad is the mouth-watering dressing.
00:37:20First of all, creme fraiche.
00:37:22And you know me, always full fat.
00:37:27Then I'm going to add some Dijon mustard.
00:37:31Gives a bit of bite.
00:37:32And you need a bit of bite when it's chilly like it is today.
00:37:35A touch of sugar for sweetness and a squeeze of lemon juice will bring out the freshness I'm looking for.
00:37:42Some Parmesan cheese gives it bite, which makes it extra warming.
00:37:52This is so quick and simple, I just need to layer it up.
00:37:56Some iceberg lettuce, which I'm going to start at the bottom.
00:38:00Some spring onion and sprinkle that all over the top.
00:38:04I've got sweet pickled cucumber, the kind that come in a jar and add a bit of sweetness to it.
00:38:10And then I've got this dill, bright green and fresh.
00:38:14The star ingredient is my pan-fried chicken glazed in honey with paprika.
00:38:21Some extra Parmesan shavings are always welcome.
00:38:26Then a few pea shoots on top.
00:38:30It's looking good, isn't it?
00:38:33Finally, that creme fraiche Parmesan and lemon dressing.
00:38:37And plenty of it.
00:38:42All I need now is a few hungry people to try it.
00:38:50All I need now is a few hungry people to try it.
00:38:52I hope you're starving.
00:39:10I like nothing better than a warm salad.
00:39:14And my idea of indulgent comfort is a rich citron tart to follow.
00:39:22I've made my sweet shortcrust pastry, but you can buy some ready-made if you want to.
00:39:28If you find it difficult to roll it round the rolling pin, get the base of your crunch sandwich tin,
00:39:35slip it underneath.
00:39:38And then, to transport it, just pull that forward and no fear of it cracking.
00:39:51Lift up the edges, gently pressing the pastry into the tin.
00:39:58I'm now going to prick the base because if I don't, it domes up and I wouldn't get my filling
00:40:03in.
00:40:04Blind-bake the pastry for 15 minutes at 180 fan, then without the beans for a further five.
00:40:18There it is, just as I wanted it to be.
00:40:21All crispy around the outside, pale golden, beautifully cooked.
00:40:26Pastry's cooling and now I'm going to make the lemon posset filling, which is to die for.
00:40:32In goes the cream, double pouring cream.
00:40:36Nothing but the best.
00:40:38150 grams of caster sugar.
00:40:41And then the zest of three lemons.
00:40:45And just stir until the sugar has dissolved.
00:40:52My tip is to let the lemon cream cool slightly before adding some lemon juice to stop it curdling.
00:41:00And the lemon juice has a magic setting quality.
00:41:04You don't need any gelatin, you don't need any corn flour, it's just the lemons that make it set.
00:41:09And you can actually see it's beginning to thicken like magic.
00:41:23Chill in the fridge for a minimum four hours, but ideally overnight.
00:41:37Look at that. Perfect set.
00:41:42Let's hope if I push that down it'll come off.
00:41:47It did, didn't it?
00:41:51For a finishing touch, some sweet raspberries will work a treat.
00:42:00That is pure lemon indulgence.
00:42:03Happiness on a plate.
00:42:12Thanks for that, Mary.
00:42:13Still to go, Tom Pogba Bowls brings a taste aloud to the table with his delicious chicken larp.
00:42:18And what do you want me to make at the end of the show?
00:42:20Will it be Alex's Food Heaven miso cod with wild rice and edamami salad?
00:42:23Or her idea of food house steak tagliata with crispy fried sweet gnocchi?
00:42:26Log on to the website now and have your say.
00:42:29Right Jess, past course, what are we making?
00:42:31So we're doing a rich slow cooked sausage ragu and we're making fresh cavatelli.
00:42:37Nice.
00:42:37Which I'm going to show you first and you're going to do a spring salad for me.
00:42:40Salad affair.
00:42:41OK, so what's in this pasta there?
00:42:43So this is super simple, it's just durum wheat, semolina flour and water.
00:42:48And you need it for about six minutes and then let it rest for about half an hour under a
00:42:53bowl so it doesn't dry out.
00:42:54So, do you do that instead of wrapping in cling film?
00:42:57I do, save the planet.
00:42:59Sure, fair enough.
00:43:01So this is quite a basic pasta dough.
00:43:04Very basic, yeah.
00:43:05Where's it from?
00:43:05The quantities are two to one, so 400 grams of semolina flour to 200 mils of water.
00:43:11It's from Puglia originally.
00:43:14And it's called cavatelli because they're shaped like little caves so it captures the sauce really beautifully.
00:43:20OK.
00:43:21So I've just cut a little wedge off and I'm just rolling it out.
00:43:25And this is a really nice thing to do at home, I think.
00:43:28You can do it with your kids if you have kids.
00:43:30You do this in the restaurant?
00:43:31Yes, I do.
00:43:34Maybe on a quieter lunch.
00:43:35I was going to say, it's quite sort of labour intensive.
00:43:38Yeah, it is.
00:43:38For a simple pasta dish, there's a lot going on, isn't there?
00:43:42So then I'm cutting each one into little centimetre nuggets.
00:43:48OK.
00:43:49Yeah.
00:43:49And then I'll show you, so with the board, you literally just push down with your thumb and let it
00:43:54roll off.
00:43:55Right.
00:43:56So you can see it's got a little sort of cave in the middle.
00:43:59Sure.
00:44:00And it's got the lovely ridges that capture the sauce as well.
00:44:02And that's the idea, isn't it?
00:44:03Yeah.
00:44:04If you haven't got one of those?
00:44:05If you haven't got a board, you can do it with your fingers.
00:44:07So I'll just show you.
00:44:08So you just push down your two fingers and drag it towards you.
00:44:11OK.
00:44:12Like that.
00:44:13I would imagine a dish, this kind of labour intensive, makes the chefs very aware of, you know, what they're
00:44:20putting in the finished dish.
00:44:22What they're throwing away, maybe, or leaving in the pasta basket.
00:44:25Yeah, definitely, I think so.
00:44:27So I'm just whacking this in, because it takes about five to six minutes.
00:44:31So I'm going to put this in the water, which I've just salted straight away.
00:44:36Alex, you're quite keen on making it in your own pasta, right?
00:44:39I am, yeah.
00:44:39I've never made that though.
00:44:40Although I think it was, that was in the last Godfather movie.
00:44:45Godfather 3.
00:44:46Good rest of course.
00:44:47Andy Garcia.
00:44:49Andy Garcia doing it.
00:44:49They're pushing together.
00:44:51That's right.
00:44:51Somebody told me that's in the cinemas again.
00:44:54What, Godfather 3?
00:44:55Godfather 3.
00:44:55Wow.
00:44:56Maybe I'm wrong.
00:44:58So now I'm going to brown off the sausage.
00:45:02Just a bit of food.
00:45:03Yeah, just a bit of food.
00:45:05It's what I do.
00:45:07So let's talk about your background.
00:45:09Yeah.
00:45:10So you started in food PR.
00:45:11Yes, I did.
00:45:12With that for a number of years.
00:45:13Yes, I did.
00:45:13How did you get into a kitchen?
00:45:15So I think I always, well I know I always wanted to be a chef.
00:45:18I was just, I think a bit intimidated of professional kitchens.
00:45:21Mm-hmm.
00:45:22And so I worked in food PR for a few years.
00:45:25And then I realised I needed to bite the bullet and follow my passion and retrain.
00:45:30That wasn't really cutting there was it?
00:45:31It wasn't no.
00:45:32Okay.
00:45:33So I retrained for six months and then I was lucky enough to get a job at the River Cafe
00:45:37where I worked for six years.
00:45:40Wow.
00:45:40Yeah.
00:45:41Okay.
00:45:41So you went, when you say you retrained you went to Leith's didn't you?
00:45:44I went to Leith's for six months, yeah.
00:45:45Okay.
00:45:46So River Cafe for six years and then you did a stint in California, right?
00:45:52Yes.
00:45:52I then went to Chez Panisse and worked under Alice Waters for several months which was absolutely amazing.
00:46:00Right.
00:46:00Similar in many ways to the River Cafe.
00:46:02Yeah.
00:46:02But just so beautiful.
00:46:04They have this whole shed outside just for tomatoes.
00:46:06Oh really?
00:46:07Yeah.
00:46:08I mean it's one restaurant I would love to go to.
00:46:11That's absolutely amazing.
00:46:12I mean, you know, and it's very much in the same kind of vein ethos as the River Cafe, right?
00:46:17Yes.
00:46:17Yeah, very similar.
00:46:18Here it's sort of beautiful seasonal ingredients.
00:46:20Yeah.
00:46:21Heroing the ingredients.
00:46:23Okay.
00:46:23So I've just added my sofrito there which I'd already fried off for a really nice long time.
00:46:28And that's got onion, fennel, garlic.
00:46:32I've put fennel in this one which is I suppose a little bit unusual but I just think the fennel
00:46:38and sausage go so well together.
00:46:39Right, and it's got that kind of spring feel.
00:46:41Yeah, exactly.
00:46:42You could put leek in it or you could put carrot in it if you're a carrot aficionado.
00:46:47Okay.
00:46:47Carrot aficionado.
00:46:49Yeah.
00:46:49Alex likes carrot.
00:46:51You told me earlier.
00:46:53And you're very much about championing women in kitchens.
00:46:56Yes.
00:46:56Like the River Cafe, like Chez Panisse.
00:46:59I've been very lucky that I've worked for a lot of very inspirational women.
00:47:03Ruthie at the River Cafe and then Alice and Angela Hartnett's been really supportive of me since I've opened Canteen.
00:47:10So I knew that when I started Canteen I wanted to create a restaurant that really sort of supported and
00:47:17empowered women.
00:47:18Okay.
00:47:18And bearing in mind, you know, Angela runs some exceptional Italian restaurants.
00:47:22Yeah, she does.
00:47:23She did say recently on a podcast that you're the, you know, the restaurant that's doing the best Italian food.
00:47:30She gave me a shout out, which was so kind of her.
00:47:32Yeah.
00:47:32Yeah, which was lovely.
00:47:33She comes a lot.
00:47:34And last weekend we actually did a collaboration for International Women's Day.
00:47:38Okay.
00:47:39Um, yeah, I have 14 chefs and 11 of them are women at the moment, which is great.
00:47:43Wow.
00:47:44Yeah.
00:47:44Oh, cool.
00:47:45I mean, how that's changed since the 90s.
00:47:48Yeah, of course.
00:47:48Wow.
00:47:48How many do you have in your kitchen, ladies?
00:47:50Uh, when I worked in London?
00:47:52No, when you cooked in your restaurant.
00:47:54One.
00:47:55One out of four.
00:47:56All right, that's right.
00:47:56You know what I mean?
00:47:57That's not bad.
00:47:58It's changed massively, hasn't it?
00:47:59Yeah.
00:47:59Yeah.
00:48:00Absolutely.
00:48:00But, Tom, you're a big fan, aren't you?
00:48:02I thought canteen is just what you want.
00:48:04It's laid back, beautifully cooked, seasonally, produce-led, all those words.
00:48:09But, you know, it's just food you want to eat.
00:48:11It's really lovely.
00:48:12You sit, linger over a long lunch.
00:48:14I'm hearing tales also of a fantastic bar, which I want to visit as well.
00:48:18You can sit at the bar as well, can't you?
00:48:19Oh, upstairs.
00:48:20Upstairs is a bar, yes.
00:48:21The Fat Badger, which has, they have a comedy night, and they have live music, and it's
00:48:26really fun.
00:48:26Oh, that's cool.
00:48:27Yeah.
00:48:28Uh, make pizzas.
00:48:30Yeah, we've got two wood ovens, so we do fresh pizzas.
00:48:32Uh, we make fresh pasta every morning.
00:48:35We have a changing menu, it changes every day, which is really nice, so that regulars and
00:48:39locals can come back every day, which is great.
00:48:42And then we've also got a, um, a farm in the Cotswolds, which provides us with loads of
00:48:48our produce, which is amazing as well.
00:48:50Okay.
00:48:50And you're doing a pop-up?
00:48:51Yes, we are.
00:48:52We're doing a pop-up near the farm.
00:48:54Busy, aren't you?
00:48:55Yeah.
00:48:57A little.
00:48:58Uh, so that's opening in, uh, at the end of April.
00:49:02Okay.
00:49:02Until September.
00:49:03Yeah.
00:49:04That sounds great.
00:49:04Right, okay, so where are we at with this?
00:49:06So, sorry, yes.
00:49:08Pork goes in.
00:49:09Uh, exactly.
00:49:09The pork goes in, and then we'll put the, a little bit of nutmeg, bit of dried chilli,
00:49:13red wine, let that cook off a little bit.
00:49:15Okay.
00:49:16I mushed up the tomatoes in my hand, I always think that makes it a bit nicer and more
00:49:20emulsified.
00:49:21Is that because you're not blitzing the seeds?
00:49:22Yeah, exactly.
00:49:22A lot of people say that makes it bitter.
00:49:23Yeah, and you don't want big lumps.
00:49:25Okay.
00:49:25Um, and then I'm gonna whack that in the oven for two hours.
00:49:28Mm-hmm.
00:49:29Uh, and then this is the finished product.
00:49:32Um, and you say in your, in a restaurant you've got these beautiful wood ovens.
00:49:35So when they're, when they're calming down overnight, after they've done their work,
00:49:38this is the sort of thing you would put in overnight.
00:49:40Yeah, exactly.
00:49:41So we always have a ragu on the menu, um, and different one every day.
00:49:46And at night time we, uh, put it in the oven.
00:49:49Yeah, we do lovely chicken stocks, veal stocks, um, overnight and come in the next morning
00:49:55and they're absolutely perfect.
00:49:57Really?
00:49:57Yeah, it's so lovely having two wood ovens.
00:50:00That's, um, well there's a lot of heat there to be utilised, isn't there?
00:50:03Yeah, so much.
00:50:04I mean, they stay warm all night.
00:50:06It's crazy.
00:50:07Any, um, was that a bit trial and error?
00:50:10Yeah.
00:50:11Yeah?
00:50:12Definitely the first week we came in a few times to find some dried up chicken bones.
00:50:16Right.
00:50:17And not a lot else.
00:50:19You have to get the quantities, the liquid quantities right.
00:50:21Getting used to, uh, new, new environments and stuff like that.
00:50:25Yeah, exactly.
00:50:25Uh, right, so this salad we've got, uh, radishes, we've got fresh, uh, peas, pea shoots, gem lettuce,
00:50:32shallot.
00:50:32Um, I liked your, the little touch where you, you throw the mint into the water.
00:50:37Yes.
00:50:37And even though the peas are in there for a short time.
00:50:42Just to get a bit of essence.
00:50:43Right, okay.
00:50:43I'm just finishing this with a little bit of seasoning.
00:50:46Okay.
00:50:47And, uh, you've got some cream there.
00:50:49Does that go in right at the end?
00:50:50Yeah.
00:50:50So once it's been in the oven for around two hours.
00:50:53Yeah.
00:50:53Then a good glug of cream just to make it nice and thick.
00:50:57So is this a traditional recipe or is this your kind of take on?
00:51:00Mmm, I would say a bit of both.
00:51:03I think I've slightly developed a traditional recipe.
00:51:05Okay.
00:51:06Yeah.
00:51:06That's, uh, is delicious.
00:51:08I want to get a spoon in it, but you can't because I've got to read this.
00:51:10If you want to make Jess's cracking cavatelli at home, you can find the recipe at bbc.co.uk
00:51:15or scan the QR code below and it'll take you straight to this dish.
00:51:19Right.
00:51:19Just going to finish it with a lashings of parmesan.
00:51:24That's delicious.
00:51:25That's so delicious.
00:51:28How long does the pork cook for?
00:51:29A little bit of pepper.
00:51:30Yeah.
00:51:30Well, ideally around two hours.
00:51:32Yeah.
00:51:33But if you can leave it for longer or even overnight, if you have enough liquid red wine
00:51:37tomato in there.
00:51:38Yeah.
00:51:38Then it'll be great.
00:51:40That looks beautiful.
00:51:40Jess, remind us what it's called.
00:51:42This is slow cooked sausage ragu with fresh cavatelli and a spring salad with new season peas
00:51:48and pea shoots.
00:51:49Awesome.
00:51:49Now relax.
00:51:56There you go.
00:51:57There's a glass of wine under there for you, Jess.
00:52:00There you are, Alex.
00:52:02Dive into that.
00:52:03Salad.
00:52:04What have we got, Al?
00:52:05Well, it's such a delicious dish.
00:52:07I fell completely head over heels with it in rehearsal, Jess.
00:52:09It's a smasher.
00:52:10It really is.
00:52:10It's kind of in my magic cupboard along with Frenchy's dish.
00:52:12Do you remember that wonderful?
00:52:13Yes.
00:52:14Anyway.
00:52:15Sousa-fee take it.
00:52:15Sousa-fee with the egg.
00:52:16Yeah, that one.
00:52:16So it's up there.
00:52:18So, got to be an Italian red.
00:52:19And this is a little bit of a bit of a bit of a bit of a bit of a
00:52:19bit of a bit of a bit of
00:52:19違atace with a bit of a bit of a bit of a little bit of a bit of a bit
00:52:19of a bit of a bit of a bit of a bit of a bit of a week.
00:52:19This is also from Puglia, as the dishes in the spare by.
00:52:22This is the Co-op's irresistible Salice Salentino Reserva, for £8.50.
00:52:27Reserva is a key word here.
00:52:28That means they keep the wine back.
00:52:30So it mellows and matures for two years, six months, an of a reserve.
00:52:34Exactly.
00:52:35So it's kind of wine's answer to mellow mocha, you know, it's got that wonderful
00:52:38richness to it and it does you know in the flavor it tastes really much
00:52:43pricier I think than eight pounds fifty you know sort of think of it like plums
00:52:47but all wearing velvet romper suits I really soft and what an image I'm
00:52:51imagining you in a velvet romper suit and how are you feeling about that strangely
00:52:56okay what am I doing am I just relaxing going yeah anyway how is it so cheap well
00:53:01I think it's because Solice Celentino people don't know really what it is it's
00:53:04an area of Puglia on the heel landlocked you get incred it's an off-the-beaten
00:53:08track grape Negro Amaro and it's made by a co-op so for those three reasons the
00:53:12price is very keen and it also has such character so it's definitely one to try
00:53:16and I would say if you're looking for a gift for Mother's Day eight pounds fifty
00:53:19well spent oh yeah good reference just saying well remember mother's room and
00:53:23for Alex also I've got the trip mindful blend blood orange which is from one
00:53:28pounds fifty and widely available and it's got all sorts of things in it like
00:53:31lion's mane and ashwagandha and magnesium but it don't basically taste rather nice
00:53:35and I think blood oranges and southern Italy kind of those bedfellows together
00:53:39actually yes it does both of your pairings have been really spot-on oh thank you
00:53:43so much I'm delighted how is the how's the food I mean I'm not really talking
00:53:49because I'm just eating so something that really delicious I just think master and
00:53:54you got that a little bit of spice creaminess it's just gorgeous beautiful
00:53:58well done I mean got a bib gourmand right yes we did absolutely thrilled to get that
00:54:03yeah pretty good soon after opening well don't you anyone else got anything to add
00:54:07that wine you find between you and how's you find these wines I always write down desperate and then
00:54:19you go to the shop and it sold out yeah I think this this should be one of those it's
00:54:23one of those
00:54:23ones I would say if you see it because you probably aren't familiar with it it's one to
00:54:26definitely try and if you're a fan of like rich oaky white reds like you things like even can see
00:54:31and
00:54:31Rioja you're gonna absolutely love this but it's turned up to the max there you go power here well
00:54:36right let's head to France now with Marcus wearing and he's uncovering what goes into the classic mix
00:54:41of her to Provence there's one ingredient we have in our cupboards and gardens all over the world that
00:54:55can totally transform a Hondron dish into a flavorful feast I'm talking about herbs where would tomatoes
00:55:04be without basil curry without coriander and lamb without mint here in Provence they've created their
00:55:11own blend of herbs and they put it in pretty much everything herbs the Provence but with no equivalent
00:55:18in Britain I want to create my own simple mix that will not only rival the French classic but turn
00:55:24any dull dish into a truly tasty meal and there's one man who can help me stephan has run this
00:55:37herb and
00:55:38spice shop for 20 years and has his own recipe for the famous local mix the herb de Provence is
00:55:45is for
00:55:46me as a chef has been something that I remember from a young chef that the chef de cuisine would
00:55:52say go get
00:55:53the herb de Provence there's always a herb that was used in so much cookery what is in it some
00:55:59people can change a little bit because there is no official appellation okay for our we have savory
00:56:07sariette we have thyme it's everywhere in France the Provence is the joker you don't know to her what to
00:56:19use put a
00:56:20little bit out of the Provence and okay it will be good lavender is a herb that I have heard
00:56:26you laughing
00:56:28at me yes yes some some people put in in of the Provence I don't use really I really I
00:56:37don't said
00:56:38it's not good but I don't like in with cooking okay and the only person who said where is lavender
00:56:47in your
00:56:47herbs the Provence are American lavender is for me one of my favorites I use it in jam I use
00:56:53it with fish
00:56:54I use it salad it's quite an unusual and what I like about it is but when you put it
00:56:59into food delicately
00:57:00carefully there's always oh what's that you can use that lavender to a topping yeah effectively in in
00:57:09salad for fish yes but for me I have the promise is really general herbs and lavender it's not a
00:57:17general
00:57:18herbs I'm a huge fan of dried herbs I think they have stronger flavor and are much more cost-effective
00:57:25than buying fresh you're also far less likely to waste them I wonder if Stefan feels the same way the
00:57:32only herbs I prefer really fresh it's busy that's it yes yes it's the only one yeah we have dry
00:57:40and it's
00:57:41really different but in winter you don't have the choice I think I agree with you this has been
00:57:47superb thank you so much before I go I just have to check out Stefan's collection of spices as well
00:57:53I feel like I'm in a sweet shop a chef's sweet shop this one brings back some memories this is
00:58:00the one
00:58:00spice that I used very happily on my egg custard tart that I cooked for the Queen on her 80th
00:58:04birthday I was
00:58:05also told that this was one of the most expensive spices that that you could buy back in the olden
00:58:11days this little nugget of deliciousness back to herbs and I want to come up with my own mix to
00:58:19rival
00:58:20the local favorite blending dried herbs is one of the quickest and simplest ways to add a super booster
00:58:27flavor to your food and mine is sure to bring a taste of Provence to your cooking even if it
00:58:33does stray a
00:58:33little from the classic I've chosen some special ones special ones because I think they're pack a punch they pack
00:58:39flavor and they're also very familiar time never got enough time rosemary there we go but I've also got a
00:58:46few
00:58:46little pink peppercorns here a they just bring a little bit of a fiery touch to this mix and I
00:58:53just think
00:58:53they just look good too just put them on your board take a knife you don't need to chop them
00:58:59or smash them
00:59:01and just break them they're quite soft you just put them in and just mix them up it looks interesting
00:59:10it's colorful and it does not smell good too so we've got here fennel seeds oregano there's something for me
00:59:21really really really nostalgic about dried herbs and I always used to remember my mum my lovely mum
00:59:27when she used to open a packet of sage and onion stuffing for our chicken dinner the memory of the
00:59:32sage flavor was magical for me and still today I use the same stuffing for my roast dinners with my
00:59:40children and my family and it is nostalgia it is lovely pepper lots of it
00:59:48you know what the way this is looking right now and the way it's smelling
00:59:52this could give herb de provence a little bit of a run for its money
00:59:56look at that I can actually smell the heat coming off those pink peppercorns fantastic this for me lavender
01:00:04is the one ingredient that I think is going to mix it up here in provence and I think it'll
01:00:09bring
01:00:09something very very special to this herb mix I'm always getting teased about how much I love
01:00:13lavender I've always loved it the day I got married my wife had the sort of little lavender plant
01:00:18flower on her wedding dress and also had some of it in her bouquet there's love for you there we
01:00:25go
01:00:25look at that there's a herb mix with the point of difference I really cannot wait to get cooking with
01:00:32this
01:00:33a little bit of sauteed chicken sprinkle it over a roast maybe even just a piece of fish put it
01:00:38in a
01:00:38marinade this will just keep giving you so much pleasure flavor after flavor time and time again
01:00:44there we have it a little flavor of provence with a twist
01:00:54host for the most marcus wearing there right the website vote is now closed i'm going to soon find
01:00:58out whether it's food heaven or food hell for alex uh tom let's make this laub guy telly gold
01:01:04love telly gold yeah let's do it what do we do this is a lot guys so laotian it's a
01:01:08natural dish of a
01:01:09lap i call it laos but lao beautiful landlocked country in southeast asia um it shares obviously
01:01:14huge similarities with thai food as i'm talking i'm gonna do it chicken stock mince chicken okay
01:01:19they have special knives to do it to chop the chicken very very finely i use chicken breast it's a
01:01:24rare time i use chicken breast actually uh but it does you you know it gives you the right so
01:01:28you
01:01:28like to um mince the chicken yourself or chop it up you chop it you just slice it into small
01:01:33bits and
01:01:34you can see it's very soothing i have a cleaver and a larm knife you just how long do you
01:01:38just spend
01:01:38over it ten minutes oh okay um but you can ask your butcher and he'll be delighted to do it
01:01:42no he won't
01:01:43or not he really won't
01:01:46chuck it in the mincer but like all these dishes it's it's about the um i'm walking over there um
01:01:52it's
01:01:52about the means a really sharp no it's a mixture of the salty the hot from the chili and um
01:01:59the
01:01:59acidic from the lime juice so it's uh here we go so it's really you know it's herby and it's
01:02:04got
01:02:04texture from the roasted rice powder now this is here stick it's the food has kind of influenced you
01:02:08the most isn't it i love thai food laotian food i don't profess to cook it like you know as
01:02:13a proper
01:02:14thai chef would do but david thompson's one of my heroes one of the great you know sort of speaks
01:02:19thai
01:02:19it's married to a thai man well not to go on about it but the fellow i was talking about
01:02:23earlier
01:02:23yeah yeah tickerham he used to work for david thompson well david has did so many in australia
01:02:27he's you know and across the world his book thai food is yeah possibly the one of the great works
01:02:33on thai food in the english language see i don't speak thai um do you still go out there much
01:02:38yeah
01:02:38once a year always oh really and go and see david um and travel around the north and the south
01:02:43and
01:02:43yeah you know and you need someone who speaks thai and understands it but it is for me thai food
01:02:48is
01:02:48the most scintillating anyone else thailand yeah yeah yeah big man yeah especially i've never been
01:02:55on my bucket list on your bucket list you no lived in indonesia for a while love that food and
01:02:59thai food i lived in indonesia for a while i taught english i'm sure you make sure i don't make
01:03:13in a university i did work in university and i'm not a spy i bet you are i'm blushing now
01:03:17somebody
01:03:17check him out uh what about you jess i have never been to thailand i'd love to go but i
01:03:21love thai food
01:03:22i had a takeaway last night actually from thai 101 in hammersmith now that's so good isn't it isn't it
01:03:29is that where we went for you no we went to fitu which is another okay really hot honestly it's
01:03:34so
01:03:34one-on-one is the best and also fitu is great as well but okay you have don't ever go
01:03:38to those places
01:03:38where they dull down make it like sweet and over sweet and boring get to know the chefs in the
01:03:43kitchen
01:03:43and say um pep mac mac which means very very spicy and not firing not firing food just okay and
01:03:49then
01:03:49you'll start tasting the true taste um regional thai food right we pick the herbs yeah i'm doing
01:03:55i'm roasting this sticky rice what what it does it brings a really nice nutty flavor and it brings um
01:04:01texture to the dish as well so you have this roasted sticky rice glutinous rice chilies as well
01:04:05when you're doing this open the windows because it's like tear gas um just if anyone's familiar
01:04:14you know we've all got a tear gas um um so yeah you're just roasting them not burning them getting
01:04:20a bit of color uh actually it's smelling rather nice this is i do i do love watching you cook
01:04:25some
01:04:25because obviously everyone knows great food critic but also you are a brilliant chef and all the
01:04:29well cook cook definitely cook sorry cook but thank you the dishes you actually prepare the thing
01:04:34i love about them is that they are always full on flavor and balanced well you're very kind to say
01:04:39that and what do you think matt here here pet mac mac mac mac mac mac okay um let's yes
01:04:47let's talk
01:04:47about uh you as a critic have you been anywhere nice do you know i went i went to seven
01:04:52oaks um
01:04:52in kent yeah in a place called shwen shwen by maria bradley i think the review's out this week okay
01:04:57i don't know anything about the food of sierra leone but my gosh it was amazing oh really it was
01:05:02okay thrilling and you know when you don't know about something and you're learning about a new
01:05:06cuisine yeah it's just brilliant and that food was out of this world well i mean how often now do
01:05:11you
01:05:11go to a restaurant and you get really excited because because i find you you know i do go to
01:05:17quite a lot of restaurants very fortunate like that yeah and it's you know they're good they're samey
01:05:21some of them and then occasionally you hit one you go wow this is stunning this is like stepping back
01:05:26in
01:05:27in time in excitement it is it's it's yeah you know there's a lot of it's a tough time for
01:05:32restaurants
01:05:32at the moment yeah as you guys all know it really is you know if the government just cut that
01:05:38this
01:05:38is going to cut that by you know 10 percent that surely would help i mean the government governments
01:05:43haven't helped restaurants over the last 10 20 years at all no and you know the amount of people
01:05:48it employs i mean you know yes we have touched on money but we have with the highest fat rate
01:05:53in
01:05:53europe don't we yeah it's ridiculous it's just really there's no support i saw a thing out the
01:05:57other day and everyone else gets a bit of a helper yeah not here not here anyway so so basically
01:06:03that's
01:06:04what we've done we've roasted it put it into your traditionalists you've done it pestle and mortar
01:06:08i'd use a spice driver um let's do the chilies so the whole thing is right let's have a look
01:06:14at this
01:06:14so so this is this done that's kind of that's that's done do you want me right i mean okay
01:06:19i'll take
01:06:20that off um these chilies you know if you can get hold of those tiny ones called mouse dropping chilies
01:06:25mouse drop it well that's his plight name um and um they have this wonderful fragrance and freshness
01:06:34okay so you have a crack at this and do you like chili me yeah you know i like chili
01:06:39well yeah you just make a conversation you say that are we dried up tom no we're in this relationship
01:06:47tom you were saying you've done this with buffalo well no you'd have it with buffalo in in in in
01:06:52out you'd have a buffalo meat buffalo skin raw buffalo yeah um and it's you know it's often a
01:06:57raw salad um but it is just i mean buffalo's fairly hard to come by around these parts so well
01:07:03not
01:07:03really i went to a buffalo farm in the uk did you oh yeah was it not that one yeah
01:07:07they use the and
01:07:10they use the dairy to make the ice cream and yes and the mozzarella and all that i'm sure there's
01:07:15one
01:07:16there's uh there's another one as well up north yeah so because they're big yeah terrifying beasts
01:07:21yeah but the ice cream what is the right ice cream thing well yeah maybe it's your spirit animal a
01:07:26buffalo yeah maybe it's that or a peacock can't decide or a buffalo with peacock's feathers i saw a lot
01:07:33i saw koala in the wild i know did you yeah where was that okay so so in uh tyler
01:07:47you would you
01:07:47would have pork lard but it would be pounded raw wouldn't it it would be really important it'd be
01:07:52raw yes so that is on region you know you're going to find um it's a great name um yes
01:07:58but it's just
01:07:59decided and the whole key is all this herbs and vitamins let me to grab this um have you got
01:08:05any
01:08:05sugar in there oh yeah you've done sugar okay all that balance sweetness yeah a bit of acidity from
01:08:10the lime you want the chili heat and all of it in some form of balance not just in the
01:08:15dish but on
01:08:15the table all the different dishes okay you know so you're gonna have bland things you're gonna have
01:08:18hot things how far away are you shall i start yeah fish it up yeah okay right we've got some
01:08:23rice
01:08:25here that was quite yeah i thought no stores where are we live what are you looking all right
01:08:31okay why are you moaning don't know it's all good saturday morning it's very chilled uh if you want to
01:08:36make tom's take on lab at home you can find the recipe at bbc.co.dk for saturday kitchen or
01:08:43scan the
01:08:43qr code below and it'll take you straight to his dish let's see put the chili powder in here
01:08:51i'm turning down the chili slightly but not massive fish sauce in there lots of fish sauce
01:08:55yeah um so how do you eat this this is like we saw it with the sticky rice with with
01:09:02your hands
01:09:03or with the lettuce so okay um let me just try this one more what are you after i'm ready
01:09:07to go just to
01:09:07try it um there you go all right happy happy happy happy happy happy it's it it's quite wet it
01:09:20is
01:09:20wet it's meant to be okay i mean you could make it a little bit dry if you want but
01:09:23you know okay
01:09:25any other any other yes chef we chef yes yes there we go and what you're doing with this um
01:09:33the
01:09:33sticky rice pie you get this nutty wonderful texture as well from it so all right happy happy happy
01:09:38we're there ace what's it called that is my take on laotian chicken log very good well done
01:09:50okay there you go tuck in alex wow let's live in but this is for all of us yes yes
01:09:56yes right there tom oh he's having a taste yeah show me how to just tuck it in uh tom
01:10:02you should
01:10:02have a drink under the counter somewhere there fantastic there we go got it nice right what
01:10:07we got well with larb because of the spice the fragrance the bold flavors you want something
01:10:11that's as refreshing as skiing in a swimsuit you basically need to feel that absolute briskness
01:10:16it's got to be quenching and you don't want something that's going to take over too many flavors
01:10:20either this is a historic lager beer from germany and i'm so pleased to see it widely available i've been
01:10:25aside from harvey's best which is my favorite beer of all time this is probably up there with my
01:10:29favorite lagers this is agostina lager beer hell it's three pounds 13 sainsbury's hell just means
01:10:34bright so if you think about all the kind of hops that make it fresh super pure just barley yeast
01:10:39water and hops and it has this magic richness to it it's nice enthralling it's drinking exactly it's that
01:10:45first sort of beer by the pool it's that feeling but it has good complexity as well they've been going
01:10:50since 13 is it 13 28 something like that uh and you were saying you know it's a monastery
01:10:54in bavaria it's the oldest brewery there still privately owned doing a magnificent job how'd you
01:10:59know that alex sorry um it was around the corner from where my ex-husband grew up that's a good
01:11:04story
01:11:04tell us more well i will i will leap in and talk about the non-alcoholic pairing which is a
01:11:10scot-free
01:11:11lager from stewart brewing it's two pounds widely available i absolutely love this because it's very
01:11:17hard to make a good lager that's alcohol free yeah they're using really interesting hops magnum sars
01:11:23tetanangular floral spicy keep going and herbie i'm keeping going um yeah for me the guys up at
01:11:28stewart brewing joe and dave they've just done a cracking job in edinburgh and it has all the weight
01:11:32the texture they're using basically a lazy yeast and you know to not ferment out too much yeah and
01:11:38the wart they're doing it so that that's the sort of base liquid they're making it so that again it
01:11:42doesn't have too much an effect on the alcohol it's hopsy exactly oh popsy full of flavor yeah
01:11:47i think an absolute icon of edinburgh i'm a big fan of those guys yeah very nice typical um this
01:11:52is a
01:11:52good bit it's nice yeah really agostina tom this is tom yeah what it is yeah thank you blown away
01:12:00love it i love that you it's so involved with your food you really love it yeah it's so nice
01:12:06yeah i
01:12:07really do i mean food yeah right life yes it is food friendship a good glass i couldn't agree more
01:12:12yeah what alcohol is it cheers that's a good on that note we're going to find out whether you voted
01:12:17for
01:12:17alex's food heaven or food hell but first the hairy bikers are rustling up a decadent treat to round
01:12:21off their trip around the north cheers
01:12:29our final cook of the trip si so let's make it special yeah and let's use the formal dining room
01:12:37and we've certainly got the ingredients for a lordly banquet we've got the best dick we've got the best
01:12:43lobster and some blooming good beer exactly what could we want really wait nothing like the fire come on
01:12:50this is going to be epic let's do it the best surf and turf fabulous fresh lobster and a magnificent
01:13:01coat de boeuf served with beer battered onion rings and a beer bernet sauce what i need to do is
01:13:09i need
01:13:09to season this beautiful steak oh and then seal it off and look you know when you get quality of
01:13:14quality of meat particularly this good that's all you need it just needs salt and pepper that's it
01:13:19so dude what i'm going to do is i'm going to take this beautiful fatty and i'm going to render
01:13:23that
01:13:23out in the pan and then we'll seal either side of it and the ends and then we'll finish it
01:13:28off in
01:13:28the oven so let's get some lovely colour on it i'm going to get on with the bernet while you're
01:13:34doing
01:13:34that kingy hi good idea what beer are you using are we using a pale ale is it yes i
01:13:39think it's important
01:13:40for the beer bernet it's not a beery beer they're a good brew real nasty right half a shallot chopped
01:13:46finely
01:13:47a sprig of tarragon half a teaspoon for peppercorns a tablespoon of white wine vinegar
01:13:57and about 50 ml of beer not too hoppy it's half a wine glass full so it's just
01:14:04i mean apart from the beer it's a pretty classic kind of reduction that's looking fabulous isn't it
01:14:11right what i'll do i'll put that in the oven and we're going to start the 25 minute countdown
01:14:16i want to get some garlic butter on for the lobsters and also for the dippies for your claws i've
01:14:21got
01:14:21about 100 grams of butter and i'm going to grate about six cloves of garlic into there a little
01:14:26pinch of salt because that's going to season the lobster tails as well some parsley i'm just going
01:14:31to warm it through nice nice now lobsters now take my poultry shears and cut down the shell
01:14:39like so and then cut down through the tail and that gives me a cavity to fill with the garlic
01:14:48butter
01:14:50beautiful now the garlic butter i'm going to spoon this on kingy because i want like loads and this
01:14:57leaves plenty for us to dip the claw meat into that looks great yeah yeah the beef is done right
01:15:04so
01:15:04that's the coat to birth resting yeah the lobster tails are ready to go in
01:15:09now it's time to make our beer naze sauce this is the reduction and i'm just going to strain that
01:15:17and whisk the eggs and heat it up emulsify it and start adding cubes of cold butter while you're doing
01:15:22that then dude yes mate i'll blanch off these claws so they're perfect to eat oh yeah eggs gone could
01:15:29you
01:15:29hold that for me dear boy and you do thank you and the reduction my god that's reduced as we're
01:15:35looking
01:15:35at it right first butter i'm doing one cube at a time when one blob's gone you put another one
01:15:46in
01:15:47and you just keep whisking
01:15:53oh look at that mate i've got a proper mayonnaise texture lovely which is what you want
01:15:59and i will just finish with some fresh herbs at the end some fresh tarragon
01:16:08i'm so pleased with the texture
01:16:12i think that's one of the best bernet sauces i've ever tasted spot on dude right i'll bowl it up
01:16:22the lobster tails are cooked time to plate up oh look at that look at that it's relaxed to a
01:16:29point of apathy give us a bit go on want that bit yeah want that bit oh oh
01:16:38it makes you go weaker than these that's good doesn't it oh yeah this is lovely and rested
01:16:43that's cooked perfectly for me these lobster tails
01:16:48right i'm going to put these claws where should we put those there oh i think so just provocative
01:16:54mate this is incredible we've got that beer bernese garlic butter the claws to dip in there
01:17:01we're serving it with some beer battered onion rings amazing the ultimate surf and turf showcasing
01:17:10the best produce the northeast has to offer a fitting last supper for our incredible northern
01:17:17adventure come on dude let's dig in i'm gonna put that lobster tail
01:17:24some of this amazing beef bernese sauce so what you did there yeah
01:17:31oh this beef is pretty spectacular isn't it
01:17:36the beer works great doesn't it say that is so good well this is a memorable meal that i
01:17:43i don't want to finish kingy that's true let's get in let's just take my time
01:18:01thanks that boys right time to find out whether it's food having a food for hell for alex so food
01:18:05heaven
01:18:05was japanese foods miso cards all here hell was swede root veg and steak thank you to everyone
01:18:15who voted uh oh it's quite close 55 of people went for heaven
01:18:24do you want to put that in the fridge of course thank you very much right let's go on with
01:18:29this what
01:18:30do uh okay so i've got um uh uh right i'm gonna do this card so the card actually paul
01:18:37if i give you
01:18:37this yeah uh can you chop that up on nice and small yeah uh we've got a little dressing here
01:18:43that's
01:18:43salad right miso card so i've got some white miso here um i've got some sugar and some sake and
01:18:49mirin
01:18:51give those a good mix together then you want to leave it uh ideally for about sort of two to
01:18:56three days
01:18:57uh there's quite obviously quite a lot of uh sugar uh in this um and that's what uh creates that
01:19:05kind
01:19:05of classic sort of black caramelized look so uh and this was well this has come from nobody right
01:19:14that called was a great it was a huge nobu dish yeah it was the one that you kind of
01:19:18yeah it became
01:19:19very famous yeah um but anyway so it's very delicious so leave that and it'll firm the the cod up
01:19:25uh so
01:19:26then when you cook it we're going to grill this it'll go sort of nice and flaky and just sort
01:19:30of
01:19:30push it apart so in there like so uh and then okay and then imagine that three days later
01:19:42and then we'll put that under grill uh paul you're cracking on with a salad yep uh thank you for
01:19:49that
01:19:49right that goes under there um so alex let's talk about there's a love of japanese food so it comes
01:19:55from
01:19:55la you spent 20 odd years there yes absolutely when i was uh working on er um although i wasn't
01:20:01on er for 20 years but i just had settled um and then started commuting actually back to england
01:20:07to work that is a commute hard to leave la i mean it sounds glamorous to be perfectly honest um
01:20:14given
01:20:15everything that's sort of happened in america um since 2017 let's say um uh i'm quite happy to be back
01:20:25yeah sure and what's the day-to-day like the day today what's the day-to-day like living in
01:20:31um i mean it's all sunshine and it's always sunshine the fun thing is it's almost like groundhog day
01:20:37because it's you wake up and it's always that same blue sky and sounds horrendous i well actually
01:20:43funnily enough i think that time passes really quickly if you don't have any markers in the year
01:20:52so for me 22 years literally felt like just two years yeah um and so i actually much prefer being
01:20:59back in england where you have proper seasons because i actually feel like that slows time down
01:21:04oh really yeah well there's a theory that that's why we're you know we produce such great musicians
01:21:08and writers and all the rest of it because the weather gives us something to talk about yeah
01:21:11shakespeare was looking at all of the kind of chiaroscuro of it all thinking oh well i think i might
01:21:17have
01:21:17done that anyway that's great well i'm not sure because it's very dramatic dark nights
01:21:25dark nights really sunny days mellow it's the way you make it makes you feel very different throughout
01:21:29the seasons right anyway i always feel amazing at the sun shining and you look amazing thanks
01:21:34i wasn't fishing for confidence but no when you wake up in the morning the sun shining it makes
01:21:39you just but you see but the thing is i think the british we're so sort of lacking in sunshine
01:21:43a lot
01:21:43of the time that when we do have it we're so grateful for it everyone's half naked everybody's out
01:21:49on the streets you know outside the pumps or whatever i mean the americans would never dream
01:21:54of going in the chilly weather just because there's a little bit of sunshine but so i feel like you
01:21:58know we
01:21:59have small things please us that's very true and i think that that's a good way to be i think
01:22:04everything should be delightable in yes talking of which i've got a drink to pour which is delightable
01:22:09in oh okay there we go great it was incredible wasn't it i mean i was getting there i completely
01:22:15forgot to go to the drink you did but no one noticed so i did my segway but now we're
01:22:20just talking about
01:22:20the segway it's fine uh this is luscombe's fiery ginger beer uh and i'm a big fan of like miso
01:22:26flavors very umami you want something fragrant and punchy this ginger beer i love it because
01:22:31it's peruvian ginger which has a lot of ginger oil in it it's a really pronounced flavor organic
01:22:35organic sicilian lemons in it as well soft down spring water you know it's not as sweet as some
01:22:41of them it's got this nice sense of zing to it it is you have to buy 12 26 pounds
01:22:4650 which is a
01:22:47you know it's an investment it is however one of the greats they were the first drinks in the uk
01:22:51uh
01:22:51producers to get the soil accreditation for being organic they've got the king's world war war
01:22:55warrants and i just love that they create something so pure and delicious it's absolutely
01:23:00delicious i think definitely worth it i think so yeah the nicest ginger bear ever but you want
01:23:06ginger beer that has a big ginger punch oh yeah you want the acidity in the back so it's not
01:23:10too
01:23:11sure this is lovely yeah and you know made here but you know bringing the world to us oh it's
01:23:16really
01:23:16refreshing as well isn't it oh my gosh sweet yeah that's exactly the thing really sweet yeah they can be
01:23:22and i think you don't need that not when you've got ingredients that really sing
01:23:25talking of singing you're all right over there invite to seaweed are you burning some seaweed yeah
01:23:29so is that a ritual like burning sage and purifying the studio
01:23:32i mean you've cut yourself you're gonna burn yourself
01:23:41just another day uh so alex how do you feel about i mean er it was a while ago now
01:23:46but now it's been
01:23:46introduced to a brand new audience it's back on netflix yes it has it's come back and uh oh i'm
01:23:52thrilled because i actually think that it holds up yeah because of the way that we filmed with handheld
01:23:58cameras that you know that it was one of the only shows that ever sort of like pushed out and
01:24:03experimented in that way and so it still has a sort of an energy and uh um an urgency because
01:24:12of the
01:24:13camera work that keeps it i think feeling very current yeah and it's netflix isn't it it's on
01:24:19netflix now yeah kind of the whole dump of everything the whole yeah yeah but it launched you and george
01:24:23clooney and you know as matt says it will introduce you to a whole you know new gamma yeah my
01:24:27daughter
01:24:28started watching it that was you know 18 never never watched it for obsessed oh my god have you heard
01:24:43of my children telling me all about the beatles and again talking about um you know learning when
01:24:50you're doing something like learn me learning now about quantum physics i learned all about you know
01:24:57medicine uh and so alongside the acting i felt like i was getting a real education okay um i was
01:25:04very
01:25:05good with the scalpel by the end so someone says is there a doctor in the house you can go
01:25:09forward
01:25:11yeah sort of no that's when they hold me back yeah i'd say that uh lovely thank you very much
01:25:18paul
01:25:19um the other thing you obviously let's touch on strictly uh another skill you got it were you a
01:25:25dancer before that no i wasn't um and oh my gosh i just had the best time and i could
01:25:31dance forever
01:25:32actually if i had the opportunity to i would just do that all the time really yeah you went down
01:25:38brilliantly i mean i was on strictly textile we were loving you all and you and jojo what a team
01:25:43yeah
01:25:43we were we were team joking you were joking is it scary doing to do no i didn't it scary
01:25:49i just love you
01:25:50asking for a friend tom i enjoyed it so much that um uh that sort of just held me through
01:26:01it uh
01:26:02uh exhausting exhausting but in a really good way uh and until you get into it then it's not so
01:26:09great
01:26:09but for me being in the studio was like just doing live theater so i it wasn't so intimidating i
01:26:16think
01:26:17for me as maybe somebody who's an influencer or something do you know what i mean um yeah but it
01:26:24was
01:26:24yeah it was an incredible experience that i will cherish for the rest of my life sort of snap decision
01:26:29or
01:26:29they've been asking you for they had been asking me for uh over the over the years they've been
01:26:34asking me and it was never like the right time um but this time was right for me yeah and
01:26:40you've
01:26:40loved it i've loved it and you know what you just got to jump in and do the things that
01:26:44you've always
01:26:45dreamt or hoped that you would do in your life but being a bit too scared to yeah you've just
01:26:49got to go
01:26:49for it because what's going to happen you're just going to regret it when you what's the worst that
01:26:55could happen what's the worst that can happen exactly you could end up hosting a live tv show
01:27:04right uh can i have a little bit of that too okay so here we go we've got that little
01:27:07salad uh
01:27:08with that dressing oh that's cool nice do the old-fashioned way um and then we got that uh that
01:27:16cods uh just keep an eye on it under the grill won't take long uh six six eight minutes something
01:27:21like that but that's that color is what you get from that sugar and the uh the mesa uh that's
01:27:27pretty
01:27:27much it we're good i've just got to say i can't wait to see you uh in the shade so
01:27:30hamster theater
01:27:31isn't it yes hamster when does it take off is march uh we first preview the 27th of march and
01:27:37press
01:27:37is 7th of april break a leg you'll be amazing thank you thank you um you tuck in suck into
01:27:43that alex
01:27:43oh my goodness think of that okay and you've got wild rice in here as well how delicious is that
01:27:50i've
01:27:50just got quite into wild rice i love it not too much of it yeah you need to mix it
01:27:55it's not a rice
01:27:56no it's a grass or a grass yes it's a grass is it a grass yeah it sounds even more
01:28:03inviting
01:28:05but once you put that dressing on it still i think it's really nice and presumably it's really good for
01:28:09wild rice oh my god it's gotta be yeah how's that is all right oh well you're just are you
01:28:15just saying
01:28:15that because you're on telly this is really good and you marinated this for three days three days
01:28:22wow yeah yeah oh nice good thanks for that that's a nice chilled show wasn't it uh that's all from
01:28:30us
01:28:30today on saturday kitchen live uh thanks to paul jess tom ollie and of course alex all the recipes
01:28:36from the studio on the website bbc.co.uk forward slash saturday kitchen i'll be back here live
01:28:40tomorrow on bbc 1 at 11 30 for a celebration kitchen eve special with fabulous food and guests
01:28:46and i'm back here on saturday kitchen live next week as usual enjoy the rest of your day see you
01:28:52tomorrow
01:28:52bye
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