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00:01The island of Ireland.
00:05Wild, welcoming.
00:06Sláinte. Sláinte.
00:08And full of stories I've only just begun to uncover.
00:11I'm so excited. We're literally on the Giant's Causeway.
00:13This place has always meant something special to me.
00:16Here am I getting home.
00:17It's where my roots lie and where some of my favourite memories were made.
00:21It's on. It's on, baby.
00:24Now, I'm back.
00:25Woo!
00:25To explore more of this extraordinary island.
00:28This coastline, isn't it? Stunning.
00:30From the rugged beauty of the Causeway coastal route.
00:33Beautiful. So gorgeous, huh?
00:34To the sweeping drama of the Wild Atlantic Way.
00:37How could you forget this?
00:39I'll be following the edge of the land,
00:41diving into the life,
00:42and occasionally, the Atlantic itself.
00:45Oh, it's incredible.
00:47Along the way, I'll be meeting the people who bring this place to life.
00:51That is cracking!
00:53The farmers.
00:54Come on. Come on.
00:56Fishers.
00:57They're lobster fish.
00:58And chefs.
00:59That's Nectar of the Gods.
01:01That is a masterclass.
01:03Slaying it.
01:03That is a dream.
01:04Who doesn't love a lobster roll?
01:06Go on, team.
01:06I'll be discovering the flavours.
01:08Like Winnie the Pooh right now.
01:10The traditions.
01:11This is so special.
01:13And the stories that define Ireland today.
01:16That was insane. It was so lovely.
01:18This is my taste of Ireland.
01:33It's the start of my journey exploring this beautiful island,
01:36and a beginning in Northern Ireland,
01:39in a stretch of coastline that's completely new to me.
01:46So, welcome to the second part of my Irish adventure,
01:48which I'm so excited about.
01:50And we've come to the north.
01:50Specifically here, Blackhead Lighthouse.
01:53It's been here since 1902.
01:56You can imagine the ships coming in and out.
02:00One has witnessed in its shadows,
02:01including the infamous Titanic
02:03coming from the Belfast shipyards on its maiden voyage.
02:07We're going to be taking the Causeway coastal route,
02:09from Belfast all the way to Derry.
02:12And just over there, only 12 miles away,
02:14you can see the Mull of Kintyre in the distance in Scotland.
02:18So much to do, so much to sample, so much to eat.
02:21Let's get going.
02:25In this first part of my culinary road trip,
02:27I'll be exploring the glens of Antrim,
02:29from Blackhead Lighthouse to Glenarm Castle.
02:35I'll sing for my supper,
02:36on a heritage farm.
02:38This is so special.
02:41Lunching on a local delight.
02:43Oh, that's great.
02:44Potato bread.
02:46And we'll visit a castle on the coast.
02:48Isn't that beautiful? Gorgeous.
02:50Where I'll have some beef.
02:51That's nectar of the gods.
02:52With Northern Irish cooking royalty,
02:55Chef Paula McIntyre.
02:57That is a masterclass.
02:58What a feast.
03:00This is going to take some beating.
03:02There are nine glens in total,
03:04each one with their own name and story.
03:07And right now, I'm off to Glenariff,
03:10which translates as the Glen of Arable Land.
03:14To meet the sixth-generation farmer
03:16who's working his 15 acres of land
03:18the way his ancestors did centuries ago.
03:22Hi, Declan.
03:23How are you doing?
03:23So lovely to meet you, mate. How are you?
03:25Very good, very good.
03:26What a great set-up you've got here.
03:28It looks so beautiful.
03:29That's great. Very welcome.
03:30What sort of farming do you do here?
03:31We model it as a heritage farm.
03:33So we're using traditional breeds,
03:34traditional methods, old machinery, old equipment.
03:37And we've tried to take a more sustainable approach,
03:40but it's all about farming with the land rather than on the land.
03:44I see.
03:44I was going to ask, what does heritage farming mean in practice?
03:47For us, it's about just going back to the older methods.
03:51It's about cutting out all the industrialisation that happened since the war, basically.
03:55Wow.
03:55And it's about taking a bit more time with it, getting the community involved.
03:59Yeah.
04:00There's obviously a want and a desire for people to get back in touch with that,
04:04and they can see you come alive when you talk about it.
04:06Definitely. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
04:07So what are we going to be doing today?
04:08Well, we're going to get you doing what they would have been doing a couple of hundred years ago here.
04:12They would have been growing potatoes, they would have been growing oats and growing flax.
04:16So the harvest has been done, we're going to get you sorting some potatoes.
04:20The potato is a quintessentially Irish crop.
04:23They've been growing spuds here for over 430 years.
04:28And in that time, it became a primary staple for the rural population.
04:32We based a lot of what we were doing on that era of about 250 to 200 years ago,
04:37and that's crossing the era of the famine.
04:40Yeah.
04:40I mean, at that time, the potato was the only crop.
04:43The farmer could save half an acre and grow enough potatoes to feed the family.
04:48The devastation caused by the Irish potato famine is etched into the identity of Ireland.
04:54It resulted in around one million deaths that led to mass immigration that fundamentally reshaped the country.
05:00I think it's hard for people in the UK to kind of comprehend just what a devastating effect it had
05:05on this island, right?
05:06I mean, the population still hasn't recovered in comparison to what it was, yeah?
05:09All right, well, happy times today.
05:11Yeah.
05:12Yep.
05:13You ready?
05:14Should we get some work done, Isla?
05:15Come on, we're going to sort some spuds.
05:17Do you use some spuds, Isla?
05:19But away we go.
05:20Now, I'm a big fan of the humble spud.
05:22My family absolutely love him, particularly my dad, who is literally obsessed.
05:28Am I back to earn my supper?
05:29Yes.
05:30The spuds have been harvested, but we need to sort them a bit.
05:32Yep.
05:32What does sorting mean?
05:34When the potatoes come out of the feeders, you might get the odd stone, but you'll get the odd one
05:38that's rotten.
05:39But you also get real small ones.
05:40I'll take it, just anything.
05:42I'll eat the stones.
05:43Well, if you want to make a start, grab a bag, hang it, and we'll get her hooked on here.
05:47So if you get the open end up there.
05:49So this was literally how people would do it?
05:51Yeah, yeah, yeah.
05:52How are you with old school weights?
05:54Well, I mean, if you mean you come to see the gun show, I mean.
05:5914 pounds of potatoes.
06:0014 pounds?
06:01Yeah.
06:02That's just over six kilos.
06:04I can do that.
06:05Grab your grape there.
06:06This guy?
06:06This guy.
06:07I'll show you there.
06:08We've got wee balls in the end there to stuff.
06:11Oh, yeah, nice.
06:12God, this is taking me back.
06:18So is that enough?
06:19Well, we're going to find out when we weigh them afterwards.
06:21All right, maybe a tiny bit more.
06:23Oh, there's some big ones as well, aren't there?
06:25Good sizes.
06:27Well, if we pick out the small ones first, we'll keep these.
06:30These go in the seed trays at the bottom.
06:32So we'll keep them to next year and they'll be planted.
06:34Good.
06:35So whenever you think you're down to about two kilos here, we can...
06:38Okay.
06:38We can bring you to the test.
06:40Yeah, I think probably.
06:41Is that all right?
06:42Pretty good, yeah.
06:43Yep.
06:43Ready?
06:44Go for it.
06:44All right, here we go.
06:47Oh, it's very therapeutic, isn't it?
06:50Now, the moment of truth.
06:55Feels good.
06:56Some of the scales will find out.
06:58I have 14 pound weight on the other side, so...
07:00Yeah, it looks like you're...
07:01So that's heavier.
07:02That's heavier.
07:02We can add a few weights and see what you do have.
07:05So that's...
07:0521.
07:06Ah!
07:07That's 21's pounds worth?
07:0910 kilos.
07:09Oh, my God.
07:11I'm so near.
07:12My eyes are bigger than my belly.
07:15It's like we're back in prison.
07:16Come on.
07:17And my back is paying the price.
07:20As a reward for my efforts, though, Declan has arranged lunch in the old homestead.
07:26A 200-year-old building that he has lovingly restored.
07:30Come on out.
07:30After you.
07:31Yeah, I think I went after you.
07:36Ah, this is so special.
07:39I didn't think it was going to be like this.
07:41Yeah.
07:43It's like a time warp.
07:48What would this have been back in the day?
07:50So this was the homestead for this small home.
07:53So this is where people would have lived?
07:54This is where they lived.
07:55Full time?
07:56Yeah, yeah.
07:56Were they slept upstairs?
07:58Yeah, they slept upstairs and it was just one living space.
08:00But this was the space where the clothes were washed and the water was churned and everyone was done.
08:05Yeah.
08:05There was something about like a quiet small room and a roar of fire that says Ireland to me.
08:11Like, you know, this takes me back to my Granny O'Leary's like front room.
08:14You know what I mean?
08:15You walk in and immediately you're hit by the smell.
08:18The smell.
08:18The feeling.
08:19Exactly.
08:19And the heat and the warmth and the welcome, you know.
08:22And a warm welcome in Ireland always, always involves food.
08:28We've sorted the spuds, so now we have the ingredients for our potato bread.
08:31Yeah.
08:32Known locally as fudge.
08:33Traditionally and 200 years ago that was the, that was a staple.
08:37Yeah.
08:37Because that was, that was your produce.
08:38You had potatoes, flour and butter.
08:41That's all the crown jewels, isn't it?
08:43I mean, come on, that's beautiful.
08:44Exactly, the Holy Trinity.
08:47And there they are.
08:49Yeah, so we're just going to get some of this onto the griddle for you and get it heated and
08:52give you a try.
08:53Great.
08:53Declan's fudge.
08:55You're just warming these now, aren't you?
08:56Just warming them, yeah, yeah.
08:57They've been pre-cut, so we're just toasting them on the griddle.
09:02Such a beautiful fire.
09:03Yeah.
09:08That's great.
09:09Good stuff.
09:10There we go.
09:12So yeah, we have a local grower who makes a market gardener, who makes a lot of chutneys.
09:19They're just on the top, yeah?
09:21On the top, yeah.
09:22May I?
09:23Go for it.
09:26Oh, that is great.
09:28Really good.
09:29It's so filling, but in a really lovely, like, wholesome way, eh?
09:34A good thick fire, you get the crispy out there and the nice worms spilled in between.
09:39Yeah.
09:39You can tell it's potatoes, isn't it?
09:41So it sort of tastes of potatoes and it doesn't taste of potatoes, you know?
09:44That's it.
09:44That's it, even if you're not keen on potatoes, it's still a nice...
09:47If you're not keen on potatoes, you have no earthly right, A, watching this show, talking to
09:52either of us.
09:53I don't trust anyone that's not keen on potatoes.
09:57Oh, thank you, Mum.
09:58It's been a real education.
09:59I've loved it.
10:01And it's also just...
10:02It's so tasty as well.
10:05So we'll just grab a seat, sit back.
10:07We might even know if we bought the poaching and hid them in the cupboard.
10:09Now we can't.
10:09Now we're talking.
10:10Get the poaching out.
10:12Get the music on, see where the night takes us.
10:14Thanks, buddy.
10:16Oh.
10:17Sadly, I can't settle in for the night because I've got a royal appointment with the Queen
10:25of Northern Irish cooking.
10:27Thank you, Sensei.
10:28Oh, thank you, darling.
10:29Bye.
10:38I'm following the Causeway coastal route in Northern Ireland.
10:42And I've arrived at the picturesque village of Glenarm.
10:46So, having put my skills to the test as a 19th century farmer, which I've got to be honest,
10:50is not something I'm entirely suited to, I thought I'd take it easy a little bit.
10:54Come and see how the other half live, or at least lived, here in the Glenarm estate.
10:59Try some wonderful produce, get cooking.
11:02This ancestral estate has been the historic seat of the Earls of Antrim for over 600 years.
11:09So good to meet you, Adrian.
11:10How are you?
11:11How are you?
11:12Good, good.
11:12Good morning.
11:13The man looking after it today is estate manager, Adrian.
11:18Adrian, what a place.
11:19Look at this place.
11:20Yeah.
11:20I'm so lucky to be able to enjoy this every day.
11:24So tell us about this place.
11:25Well, the house is home to the Macdonald family, who are the Earl and Countess of Antrim.
11:30Uh-huh.
11:31And the original size of this estate was 350,000 acres.
11:35Wow.
11:35So it went all the way from here right up to Donegal.
11:38And then in the 1904 there was an Irish land act passed.
11:42Yeah.
11:43An Irish landlord could not own any more than 2,000 acres.
11:46So they had to get rid of the other 348,000 acres.
11:50At the time that must have been seismic.
11:53It would have been painful.
11:54I can imagine.
11:55Yeah.
11:57And these are originally Scottish settlers coming over.
11:59Yes.
12:00Yeah.
12:00That's right.
12:00Let me ask you about your accent.
12:02Your accent's so unique because it sounds like half Irish, half Scottish.
12:06Yeah.
12:06I thought that was my posh accent I was putting on there so you could understand.
12:10You see, Scotland's only 13 miles across there.
12:14Sure.
12:14We've only got a road command to this part of the Glen's about 170 years ago.
12:19Right.
12:19So prior to that it was easier to go to Scotland for their groceries.
12:23Yeah.
12:23You know, they were trading with their neighbour 13 miles away rather than trying to get to Belfast without a
12:28road 35 miles away.
12:30I mean, this was an easier across the sea journey.
12:36They've farmed the 1,600 acres of land here for centuries.
12:40We've got a working farm.
12:42We keep our own beef and sheep.
12:44But I'm interested in the herd of free-roaming shorthorns.
12:49And those are shorthorns there?
12:51Those are shorthorns there now today, yeah.
12:53And they have a lovely life presumably.
12:54I mean, they look happy.
12:55Oh, they're happy, yes, yes.
12:57So these are lovely cattle too.
12:58If you're going out there today, you could just walk over there and they'll just come and they'll lick your
13:03boots and cook.
13:05Oh, that makes me feel quite bad.
13:08Makes me feel like I should be eating salad.
13:10But the salt-aged beef they produce here is known to be exceptional.
13:14And with the wonderful Paula McIntyre on a hand to cook it, I think I'll get over it.
13:20Look who you bump into in the herb garden.
13:22I know.
13:24How are you doing?
13:24Only Northern Ireland royalty.
13:26Hello, good to see you.
13:27How are you?
13:28Lovely to meet you.
13:29How's it going?
13:29Good.
13:30What about you?
13:30I'm really well.
13:31What a spot.
13:32What a spot you've got here.
13:33Isn't it beautiful?
13:34Gorgeous.
13:36This is Paula's manor.
13:38Well, not her actual manor, but she was born and brought up along this gorgeous coastline.
13:44It's just a brilliant part of the world to live in.
13:47We've got brilliant produce here.
13:49We've got beef and we've got the dairy here.
13:52It's fantastic.
13:53The fish.
13:54It's just a really gorgeous part of the world.
13:57How has the food scene here in your time evolved?
14:01Like, honestly, from really basic to completely mushroomed out of control.
14:07I think once we start to have tourists here, they want things that are grown here.
14:12Yeah.
14:12They want stories.
14:15And we're good at stories.
14:16Yeah.
14:18Luckily for me, she's also pretty good at cooking.
14:21What are we going to eat today?
14:22We're going to have salt-aged Glenarm Côte de Boeuf.
14:26Oh, God.
14:27From the farm here.
14:29And we're going to do beans.
14:30Are you going to put any of those words together in any connection?
14:33Côte de Boeuf, salted, from the farm.
14:36On a barbecue.
14:37Oh, stop.
14:37Shut up.
14:38We're going to do some vegetables for you too, because you have to have veg, don't you?
14:41Yeah, yeah.
14:41Yeah.
14:42And then, obviously, I'm going to use as many of these herbs as I can.
14:46I was thinking, you know, when we're letting the beef rest?
14:48Yeah.
14:49Going to give it, not a butter bath, but maybe like a butter puddle.
14:53A herby butter puddle.
14:54A herby butter puddle sounds marvellous.
14:56Yeah.
14:57Yeah.
14:58Butter puddle.
15:02Let the cooking commence.
15:05Can't tell you how excited I'm about this.
15:06I know.
15:07Me too.
15:07Because everything here, including you, is my favourite thing.
15:11You've become my favourite person ever.
15:13Excellent.
15:14This looks amazing.
15:15Look at that.
15:15This looks so vibrant and fresh and lovely.
15:17And then look at this.
15:18There's a butter puddle.
15:19Butter puddle.
15:22So sly?
15:23Yeah, go for it, yeah.
15:24Oh, I can't wait for that sizzle.
15:25Ready?
15:26Yeah, flip her over and do this.
15:27This way?
15:28Yeah, please.
15:28So it doesn't stick.
15:31Oh!
15:32Any bozos want to get closer to this?
15:34Oh!
15:36You said cut the buff, right?
15:37Yeah.
15:38That is a big...
15:39That is a big...
15:40What's that?
15:41Kilo?
15:42About, maybe more.
15:43Yeah?
15:43Yeah, about a kilo, yeah.
15:44So how long would that need?
15:45I suspect you're medium rare.
15:47Oh, I wish I was.
15:48What are you?
15:49I'm a medium well.
15:50So we're going to be about four hours.
15:52Are you even talking to you?
15:55I think we best go medium.
15:58You know, we'll give it about 20 minutes, probably.
16:01Whilst the barbecue works its magic, we're puddling.
16:04So we've got the bay leaf here.
16:07In goes rosemary and bay.
16:09Doesn't that love to smell that?
16:12Gorgeous.
16:12Yeah.
16:12And that's what we'll let that rest in.
16:14Good Irish mushroom there as well.
16:15Right, well, we'll have a look at this.
16:16We're not going to poke it now.
16:17We're going to be mature about it.
16:20Whoa!
16:20Oh, look at that.
16:22Look at the fat.
16:22The fat's gorgeous, isn't it?
16:23So that's cooking.
16:24Mm-hmm.
16:25What do we do with these?
16:26So I want to grill them.
16:27Oh, yeah.
16:27You know when the steak's...
16:28Oh, yeah.
16:28When the steak's sitting in its little bath,
16:30we're going to grill that.
16:31Is anything nicer than a char-grilled spring onion?
16:34Nothing.
16:34So good, isn't it?
16:35Maybe the steak.
16:35Maybe the steak.
16:37What about these?
16:38Got some runner beans.
16:38What did you grill them?
16:39Great in the barbecue.
16:40I just blanched them for about a couple of minutes,
16:42and then a bit of oil.
16:43Honestly, it just transforms them completely.
16:45Fantastic.
16:46But we'll do a dressing.
16:48All right, chef.
16:49Where do we start?
16:49Right, so just because I like a bit of hot sauce.
16:53This is a chipotle.
16:53It's a local one.
16:54Just a little bit of hot sauce.
16:55Just a nice steak.
16:56That shows you how far our food's come here.
16:58The fact you're saying it's just a little local chipotle sauce.
17:00Exactly.
17:01Right.
17:01Exactly.
17:02Right, so a bit of that.
17:03And then this is just a balsamic vinegar.
17:05No, because before we started filming, we had a go on this.
17:08This is basically balsamic vinegar aged in.
17:11Aged whiskey barrel.
17:11Stop it.
17:12It is so good.
17:13So good.
17:14Oh, that is just...
17:15Yeah.
17:16That's nectar of the gods.
17:17Right.
17:17And then just a bit of salt.
17:19And then if you whisk, this is just...
17:21Again, this is a local rapeseed oil.
17:23And it's a slightly smoky one.
17:25Hickory smoked.
17:26Is your disposition on vinaigrette like three...
17:29Yeah.
17:29Three all to one.
17:30Yeah, one to three.
17:31One vinegar.
17:32It's just...
17:32It's so simple, isn't it?
17:33It sounds like such a ridiculous thing to say.
17:36If I smash a good vinaigrette at home, I feel like an absolute don.
17:40Right.
17:40There we are.
17:41A bit of pepper.
17:41That's us.
17:42The idea is that we'll bring these out, and whenever they're nice and hot,
17:47and they'll soak up that lovely flavour.
17:51That's good, isn't it?
17:51That's the greatest vinaigrette I've ever tasted in my life.
17:53Great.
17:54That vinaigrette is destined for big things.
17:57I'm going to just brush a bit of that.
17:59There you are.
18:01Paula is applying it liberally to both sides of our steak.
18:04Yeah, turn it over again. Look at that.
18:12And once it's had enough cooking, it goes in for a wallow in our herbaceous puddle.
18:18And the barbie is ready to welcome the veg.
18:21Now, do we need to put any oil on them?
18:23Yeah, we put oil, yeah.
18:24And then if you want to fire those on, I'll just stick them on as they are.
18:27When I do these in the barbs, sometimes they go through the holes.
18:31It annoys me so much when I lose an asparagus.
18:34Yeah.
18:34Oh no, man down!
18:37I would have gone and maybe not overcrowded, but I like that.
18:41No, no, no, leave it in.
18:42Are you sure?
18:42Oh yeah, yeah, I like it.
18:44Our coitaboff has been resting in its butter puddle.
18:47How long does that guy need to rest over there?
18:49Well, we'll give him another ten minutes, and I'm sorry.
18:54Whilst the spring onions and the runner beans are having a party on the barbie,
18:58we are on to the herbs.
19:01And then we'll do a, we'll do a nice chiffonade.
19:05Just sort of roll them up.
19:06And then just go really nice and tight there and just...
19:12Nice and fine, like that.
19:14So that's a chiffonade.
19:15I'd do a chiffonade, I didn't even know I was doing a chiffonade.
19:19You're doing a chiffonade?
19:19My chiffonade technique is a little more cautious.
19:22A chiffonade?
19:22Yeah, that's it.
19:23Now a chiffonade.
19:24Now you're chiffonading.
19:25And we'll throw that in here.
19:26Is that the dressing for the veg?
19:28That's the dressing for our veg.
19:29There you go, chef.
19:30Lovely.
19:33So I'm just going to fire this in now, Dermot, while it's warm,
19:36and then I'll soak up with those lovely flavours.
19:42You'll smell those, aren't they fabulous, aren't they?
19:45We'll get the salad onto this plate and it'll all up.
19:50Salad's finito, and we're on to the star of the show.
19:53Right, beef, right.
19:57What's the best way when you've got beef on the bone like this?
19:59Oh, so we've got our bone out.
20:00Just take that down, nice and tight as you can there.
20:06Just like that there.
20:07Oh, yeah.
20:08How's that? Can you cope with that?
20:09Yeah, you can cope with that.
20:11Jeez, look at that.
20:11Yeah, really lovely.
20:13That's nice, isn't it?
20:14A sprinkling of salt.
20:16And then a bit of pepper.
20:20I like to season with pepper afterwards,
20:22because you put the pepper on before it kind of burns it.
20:24Yeah.
20:25Yeah.
20:26And then we are ready to plate up.
20:29A little squirt of the oil, too.
20:31That is a masterclass.
20:33Thank you, Paula.
20:33Thank you, Paula.
20:34That was brilliant.
20:35And now to taste Paula's magnum opus.
20:39Thank you so much, Paula.
20:42What a treat to be out here cooking with you.
20:44Oh, thank you.
20:45I really, really enjoyed it.
20:46Treat's been all mine.
20:48The veg, that salad's just come to life.
20:51The beef, okay for you?
20:52Fantastic.
20:53Yeah, all right, yeah.
20:53Really beautiful.
20:54So tender, so gorgeous.
20:56Thank you, Sensei.
20:57Oh, thank you, darling.
21:01Thank you, Paula.
21:01Thanks, Dermot.
21:03I've only just arrived, but already I'm loving this beautiful part of the island of Ireland.
21:09And my first impressions are that in these parts, there's a yearning to get back to nature.
21:15In a world where we seem to be getting farther and farther away from nature, it's lovely to see people
21:19getting closer and closer to it.
21:21And the food, so simple, but so delicious.
21:27This is going to take some being, but for you, I'll do my very best to give it a go.
21:33Next time, I'll visit a Ballycastle bakery to learn how to make a French blueberry tart with an Irish heart.
21:41I can't believe how good that looks.
21:43And I'll be down with the kids.
21:45Oh, there we go.
21:46That's some happy goats.
21:47On a very special farm.
21:49Come on.
21:49Making rose veal schnitzel.
21:51The moment of truth.
21:52Da-da-da.
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