Innholdsfortegnelse for April 2016 i Delicious UK

The quick recipe MAPLE, PARMESAN & ROSEMARY SWEET POTATO CHIPS SERVES 4 AS A SIDE OR SNACK Heat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/gas 6. Slice 3 large sweet potatoes into long thin chips (no need to peel). Toss them in 2 large non-stick roasting tins (the biggest you have) with 4 tbsp olive oil and 2 tbsp cornflour, splitting it between the tins. Scatter with sea salt and roast for 20 minutes. Drizzle over 4 tbsp maple syrup and scatter over 4 snipped rosemary sprigs, then return to the oven for 10 minutes. Grate over a generous amount of parmesan or vegetarian alternative, then cook for another 10-15 minutes, turning the chips occasionally. When caramelised, crisp and fragrant, scatter with more sea salt and serve immediately with griddled steaks, or…

RECIPES THAT WORK Every recipe is rigorously tested by our food team, using state-of-the-art Electrolux ovens, so you can be confident they work every time. INGREDIENTS We aim to use easy-to-find seasonal ingredients. We’ll tell you where to find any unusual ingredients and/or what to substitute them with. We use higher-welfare meat for testing, supplied by The Ginger Pig (thegingerpig.co.uk). This symbol next to an ingredient means there are more ideas for using it on our Loose Ends page. HONEST COOKING TIMES Unlike many magazines, our timings include prep such as chopping. Hands-on time is when you’re chopping, stirring or frying. Oven/simmering time is when you can leave the dish in the oven or on the hob. Indicates a vegetarian recipe. Indicates a gluten-free recipe. KNOW-HOW Whenever you see this…

1633 Britain’s first bananas were thought to have gone on sale at Johnson’s herbalist shop in Holborn, London. However, a banana skin was found in a Thames rubbish heap dating to 1560. No one can explain how it got there. 1912 The last meal was served on the Titanic on 14 April. The first-class menu started with oysters, and finished – 10 courses later – with éclairs, ice cream, peaches in chartreuse, and waldorf pudding. 1937 One half of the Two Greedy Italians, Antonio Carluccio, celebrates his 79th birthday on 19 April. Buon compleanno! 1952 Who’d have thought, when Mr Potato Head first went on sale on 30 April (you needed a real spud to pin the parts to), the toy would last for more than half a century?…

22-24 APRIL Exeter Festival of South West Food and Drink Eat, drink and dance your way through the weekend as chefs and producers descend on Northernhay Gardens and Exeter Castle. Watch demos from Mark Hix and Michael Caines and others, then quiz the experts at Festival Question Time and book the kids into cookery classes. The fun continues at the Festival After Dark Party Nights. Tickets from £8; exeterfoodanddrink festival.co.uk 28 APRIL TO 2 MAY Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival, various locations, Scotland If it involves whisky, there’s an event or 20 for it. Distillery tours and tastings are ticked, as well as more unusual events such as whisky tumbler carving classes, whisky brunches and off-road whisky trails. Food pairing events and ceilidhs round off proceedings. Prices vary; spiritofspeyside.com 29…

“These pages are about us doing the hard work so you don’t have to… Joy! We’re sent anything from 40 to 100 new products a month, and we really do try them all: tasting, smelling the aromas, testing gadgets. Only if they’re useful, good-looking and value for money do they get the delicious. seal of approval.” KAREN BARNES, EDITOR GOOD FOR YOU We’re sent an abundance of so-called health drinks, many of which are disappointing – but that doesn’t stop a lot of money being charged for them (I’m tutting). Here’s one that tastes good, is worth the money and is easy to get hold of: Plenish Organic Almond Milk is dairy free and unsweetened. I like it in porridge, but it’s also great frothed in coffee. There’s nothing faddy…

HOW WE TEST Our panel are taste experts. We conduct our tests without packaging, so our tasters don’t know who produced each product or how much it costs. And to prevent one tester influencing another, the panel isn’t allowed to confer during the tests, so the results are unbiased. WHAT WE LOOKED FOR An ideal crème fraîche has a thick, smooth texture, a bit like clotted cream. The flavour should be rich and creamy with a pleasing sour tang. SUPERMARKET WINNER Morrisons Crème Fraîche, 90p for 300ml This got the big thumbs up from everyone on the testing team for its thick, creamy texture and rich, just-sour-enough flavour. SUPERMARKET RUNNER-UP Tesco Crème Fraîche, 90p for 300ml Creamy but not too thick and with a good tang. It was a close…

MASTER RECIPE Cream cheese pastry ABOUT 500G. HANDS-ON TIME 20 MIN MAKE AHEAD Freeze the unbaked pastry for up to 1 month, wrapped in cling film. Defrost to use. • 80g unsalted butter• 120g full-fat cream cheese• 50ml double cream• 250g plain flour, plus extra• ½ tsp fine salt 1 Have all your ingredients at room temperature. Whizz the butter, cream cheese and cream in a food processor until smooth. Pulse in the flour and salt in 2 batches until the pastry begins to come together, then remove to a lightly floured surface and knead for 30 seconds or so to bring it together. (If you don’t have a food processor, beat the butter, cream cheese and cream in a mixing bowl with an electric mixer, then stir in the flour using a wooden spoon.)…

“What’s so special about Channel Islands milk? Partly it’s the lush pasture on which the cows graze, but it’s also down to breeds. Milk from the mainland is produced from any number of breeds (such as the black-and-white Holstein Friesian), but in the Channel Islands the milk is produced from two breeds named after the island they hail from: the Jersey and the Guernsey. The milk these little cows produce has a higher fat content than milk from UK cows (5.4 per cent compared to 3.9 per cent). It’s rich in colour, creamy in texture and often has a layer of butter-yellow cream floating on top, just like the milk I had as a child. On the mainland, Channel Island milk has fallen out of favour in this age of…

“The Ivy has been serving London’s theatre district since 1917, and the famous shepherd’s pie is one of the recipes regular diners insist stays on the menu. What makes our version of this classic comfort dish stand out is that it’s a hybrid – a cross between a shepherd’s pie and a cottage pie, given that we use both beef and lamb mince to make it. This combination gives a little more complexity, and elevates a humble dish into something special. I also think that in the face of current food trends, where everywhere you turn there are foams and gels in place of recognisable ingredients, shepherd’s pie is something people feel safe ordering – something that doesn’t force them out of their comfort zone, as so many menus do…

Fans of Spanish wine already love its diverse range, from sparkling cava to rich rioja and all the sherries. Now there are new wines to explore, made from local grape varieties in the northwest part of the Castilla y Leon region, home to many progressive winemakers. To see what they’re up to, try the mineral crispness of whites made from godello grapes, and berry-rich reds made from mencía vines. Then there are the verdejos from around the town of Rueda – lime-scented whites, refreshing with seafood or white fish. Spain’s wine scene has never been more exciting. Here are a few to get you started: Taste the Difference Marques de Almeida Godello 2014, Bierzo, Spain (£8, Sainsbury’s) Lemon-fresh and mineral, even slightly salty, this is a typical dry young godello.…

“When I was growing up, my nan Pauline was a feeder and her mum, my great-grandmother Lilly, was an award-winning baker (back in the 1920s and 30s, Woman’s Own magazine used to run cookery competitions…). It took Lilly’s death for me to find out about the awards she won. You know how it is: once they’re gone you have a mountain of regrets and ask the millions of questions you should have when they were still with you. As I was going through the belongings she left, my heart broke all over again thinking of the many baking recipes and skills I could have learned directly from her. So I took action. Now, every single time my nan bakes or is within scribbling distance of me,…

NEW MIDWEEK PROMISE Your guarantee for every recipe in this section: NO MORE THAN… • 10 ingredients • 30 min hands-on time • 650 calories per portion (but many of the recipes have fewer) • 10g sat fat per portion PLUS… • No unnecessary added sugar • Minimal washing up What is GI? A food’s GI, or glycaemic index, is a measure of how quickly it raises your blood sugar level when you eat it on its own. The index only applies to foods that contain carbohydrates. Foods that are broken down rapidly and send blood sugar levels shooting up, such as cakes, biscuits and white bread, have a high GI (56 or above). Beans, pulses and non-starchy veg cause only a gradual rise in blood sugar and have a…

SAVOY CABBAGE FROM STUFFED CABBAGE ROLLS WITH TOMATOSAUCE, P102 BUBBLE AND SQUEAK Roughly shred leftover cabbage and boil for 3-4 minutes, then drain. Heat a knob of butter in a large frying pan. Fry 2 chopped onions and a garlic clove until soft, add the cabbage and fry for a few minutes longer. Add leftover (or shop-bought) mashed potato, mix well, then leave for 3-4 minutes to form a golden crust on the bottom. Turn the mix over and fry for 3-4 minutes until golden on that side, too. CREAMY SAVOY CABBAGE Boil finely shredded cabbage for 2 minutes until just tender, drain and pat dry. Gently heat a knob of butter in a medium pan with a splash of double cream. When the butter has melted and the cream…

1 Once the dough has been made and has risen, knock it back, then transfer to a work surface. Put one lump of butter at a time in the dough, bury it, then pull the dough up and slap it down on itself repeatedly until the butter has been incorporated. 2 Keep repeating this process until the butter has been used up. Don’t add more butter until the last lump has been completely incorporated. The dough will stretch further the more butter you work in. 3 Once all the butter has been added, pull the edges up and over into the centre a few times (to distribute the air), then shape and prove or roll out, depending on the recipe. Want a brioche recipe? Try the sticky breakfast brioche…

WHICH YEAST TO USE? Fresh and dried yeast are more or less interchangeable. Dried yeast is widely available and comes in two forms. Fresh yeast is harder to find but you can get it in some health shops, bakeries and supermarkets (or from supermarket in-store bakeries). Fast-action dried yeast is a dry powdery beige substance: it can be added directly to your dry ingredients. Dried active yeast is long-lasting and comes in small, dry beige pellets that need to be activated in warm water before adding to the dry ingredients. Fresh yeast is a crumbly beige paste but it will only keep for about 2-4 weeks in the fridge. Either mix it with liquid in a jug and leave to froth or, for some recipes, rub it into the flour.…

It’s 10am and an expectant queue is forming in front of Marie Thérèse Pisano’s stand at the Cours Saleya food market. On display is an array of local specialities, including the caramelised onion tart known as pissaladière, and petits farcis: stuffed vegetables no bigger than a golf ball. The loyal customers, however, have something else in mind. Eventually it appears, hoisted by muscular arms – a giant copper tray bearing a deep golden pancake with crisp, almost blackened edges. Marie Thérèse begins, with dexterity, to tear off pieces using a small, wide-bladed knife and piles them into paper cones, which she hands out to the hungry crowd clustered round. This is socca, a beloved street food snack made with chickpea flour that reveals much about the local character of France’s…

Rosa Jackson’s socca SERVES 6. HANDS-ON TIME 10 MIN, OVEN TIME 20-25 MIN, PLUS RESTING “This recipe is adapted from a classic cookbook called La Cuisine Niçoise d’Hélène Barale .” MAKE AHEAD Prepare the batter up to 24 hours in advance and keep covered in the fridge. • 200g chickpea flour (also sold as gram flour, from large supermarkets or Asian grocers)• 1½ tsp finely ground sea salt• 500ml water• 80ml olive oil 1 Heat the oven to 220°C/ 200°C fan/gas 7. Sift the flour into a large mixing bowl, then add the salt. Add the water gradually, whisking with a balloon whisk to remove any lumps. Set the batter aside to rest for at least 1 hour – the longer, the better (see Make Ahead). 2 Heat a large (20-23cm…

If I learned anything from Horsegate 2013, it’s that I really don’t like the wool being pulled over my eyes when it comes to food. I want to know exactly what I’m eating. So why is the task of decoding contemporary restaurant menus akin to a stint at Bletchley Park? Some have become so opaque, they’re not even menus any more – more like word association games. My biggest bugbear is menus that are essentially a list of ingredients, without a clue as to how they may have been prepared and how they’re served. I realise budgets are tight and every penny counts when running a restaurant, but surely it wouldn’t break the bank to pepper the menu with a few adjectives here and there, to help diners understand what…

Smell… That’s often the first thing that entices you to eat something, isn’t it? It’s the best welcome when you walk into someone’s house and your nostrils are teased with the aroma of a casserole cooking in wine, or the warm yeasty smell of baking bread emanating from the kitchen. It sells houses; it encourages people to abandon their shopping list and detour to the bakery counter at the supermarket; it can win you friends. I have good news… Between pages 66 and 67 of this issue you’ll find part two in our Collector’s Edition series. This time the entire pull-out-and-keep 16-page section is devoted to spectacular breads. There’s a glossy challah, a ciabatta rich with olive oil, fluffy rolls, simpler white and granary loaves and special breads to…

ORGANIC FRUIT & VEG I love the feeling of joyful energy and freshness they bring. COOKING FOR FRIENDS & FAMILY It doesn’t matter whether it’s a roadside picnic, a kitchen supper or a birthday, it’s the love I feel for people close to me that motivates my cooking. SOUTHERN INDIA & SRI LANKA Where vegetarians are in the majority and not an afterthought. I found it a strangely liberating experience! AGRI-CHEMICALS These substances can damage wildlife and the dear bees. Killing any living creatures to eat or abusing them in any way... don’t get me started. RUNNY EGG YOLK I’ve never been able to face it. THE QUICK-FIX CULTURE How difficult can it be to sell food in its simple, natural form, without preservatives or additives to make it more…

PULLED PORK MIDDLE EASTERN FLATBREADS SERVES: 6, plus leftovers PREPARATION TIME: 20 minutes COOKING TIME: Around 6 hours INGREDIENTS 1.6kg (3lb 8oz) shoulder of pork, remove the rind 1tbsp paprika 1tbsp ground cumin 2tbsp dark muscovado sugar 100ml (3½fl oz) passata 1tsp each salt and freshly ground black pepper TO SERVE: 6 flatbreads 2 avocados, halved, stoned and sliced 1 small red onion, sliced finely Small handful of torn mint leaves Yogurt Paprika, to season 1 lemon, cut into six wedges 1. Preheat your oven to 220°C (fan 200°C), Gas Mark 7. 2. Mix together the paprika, ground cumin, sugar, passata and seasoning. Rub all over the pork. Roll the pork back up again (there is no need to retie the string). Place the pork directly in a roasting tin,…

1 RIGHT ROYAL RETRO To celebrate the Queen’s 90th birthday (on 21 April), Lyle’s has produced special limited-edition tins for its golden syrup (the only syrup for flapjack-making, as far as I’m concerned). Plus I’m a sucker for the wonderful heritage design. Available until July, £1.15 for 454g, from stores nationwide 2 FLATPACK CRISPBREADS Is it a truckle of cheese? No, they’re crispbreads the size of a dinner plate. For a long time, this brand has only been available in Ikea, but now you can get a slightly different (but just as good) version from Scandikitchen.co.uk (also available via Ocado for £3.95). It’s wonderfully crisp and a fine match with cheese. 3 MOREISH MISO This superb quality miso gets full marks from the delicious. food team. The organic cooking paste…

“It’s an exciting time to be in the kitchen: spring is in the air and it brings with it a wealth of cookery inspiration. Seasonal ingredients take on a whole new intensity this month, transforming any recipe they’re used in. Chickens seem plumper thanks to grazing on fresh grass, which nourishes their meat and eggs with extra goodness. Shellfish are enjoying a last hurrah before the breeding season, and green shoots are popping up everywhere – watercress is more peppery, soft herbs are more fragrant. To show off the recipes on the following pages, we commissioned food writer and artist Rosie Ramsden to create some beautiful watercolours as a backdrop.” REBECCA WOOLLARD, FOOD EDITOR Twice-baked crab and chive soufflés with quick-pickled samphire SERVES 6. HANDS-ON TIME 40 MIN, OVEN TIME…

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THEM… These sun-dried chilli flakes, ground without the seeds, inspire ardour among spice fans. They’re known as pul biber in Turkey, where a pot takes pride of place on the table next to the salt. The flakes have a rounded flavour and are a little salty and oily, with a hint of fruitiness too – a bit paprika-like. The flavour is a world away from the harsh, hot blast of most chilli flakes. In a Turkish market, you’ll see aleppo chilli flakes of different grades of heat, as well as a roasted and ground variety that has dark purple flakes and a smoky flavour similar to ancho chillies. If you buy aleppo flakes in the UK, you’re likely to find the postbox-red kind, which…

“Most people associate a roast dinner with roast potatoes, but there are so many potential accompaniments to meat that it seems a shame to limit yourself to spuds every time. This is a simple yet wonderful dish for spring – the stuffing and parma ham help to keep the tenderloin moist, while the creamed butter beans make a gorgeous alternative side dish. But the best thing is that the whole dish takes less than an hour from start to finish.” LOTTIE COVELL, DEPUTY FOOD EDITOR Stuffed pork fillet with creamed butter beans SERVES 4-6. HANDS-ON TIME 45 MIN, PLUS COOLING AND RESTING MAKE AHEAD Prepare the pork to the end of step 3 up to 48 hours ahead. Wrap the stuffed meat tightly in cling film to help it keep…

BREAD-MAKING TIPS • A wet dough is best when making bread, so we’ve included plenty of liquid in these recipes. If you’re kneading by hand, we recommend you add three-quarters of the liquid, then see if it needs the rest (some flours take more liquid than others). If the dough really is too wet to knead, add an extra handful of flour. • A plastic dough scraper is useful when hand-kneading wet, sticky dough – find them in all good cookshops or on Amazon. • Find a step-by-step guide to making brioche (and most wet doughs) by hand, as well as some more expert bread tips, in This Month In Our Test Kitchen. MAKE AHEAD For all these recipes, you can leave the dough to rise overnight in the fridge.…

Even if you know nothing about drinks, you’ll have noticed that gin is having a bit of a moment. There’s an ever-increasing number of bottles turning up on shop shelves, while classic and new gin cocktails – especially the negroni – are on the drinks menu in every bar. Gin’s fans are legion (and growing) and chef, food writer and outdoorsman Valentine Warner counts himself among them. “Gin is my absolute favourite spirit,” he declares. He likes it so much, in fact, that he’s gone and launched his own – Hepple. It’s named after the Hepple estate in Northumberland, owned by childhood friend Walter Riddell. I’m joining the pair on a chilly hike through the estate’s hills and bogs to see where the gin comes from, and to find out…

“ I never tire of making a sweet treat to share with friends and family for afternoon tea or a birthday celebration (I especially love baking with my grandchildren). I’m so thrilled to share these tried and tested recipes with you, and I hope you’ll gain as much satisfaction cooking them for friends and family as I have in creating them.’’ MARY BERRY Carrot and banana cake SERVES 8-12. HANDS-ON TIME 20 MIN, OVEN TIME 35-45 MIN, PLUS CHILLING “ This combination may sound a little strange, but I always put banana in my carrot cake to give a moist sponge. The banana also makes the texture slightly denser rather than light and springy.’’ MAKE AHEAD The cake can be fully prepared up to 24 hours in advance, then thoroughly…

“If you have an ethical angle to your job, it makes you feel proud enough to grin”HENRIETTA LOVELL, THE RARE TEA COMPANY (rareteacompany.com) Tea lady Henrietta Lovell set up The Rare Tea Company in 2004. She deals directly with responsible growers, personally knows the communities who are reliant on the harvest of the hand-crafted tea and regularly donates to charity. “When I started Rare Tea I was just thinking about bringing back great leaf tea to the UK. I was so naive… I hadn’t understood the set-up of the tea business, but working with the trade in India and Africa showed me how exploitative it can be. You see people living on £1 a day, with a life expectancy in their 30s, and it affects you. I realised there was…

Spiced spinach and potato cakes with poached eggs and stir - fried kale SERVES 4. HANDS-ON TIME 35 MIN MAKE AHEAD Make the cakes up to the point of frying in step 4, then keep covered in the fridge for up to 24 hours before cooking. FOOD TEAM’S TIPS You can use leftover mashed potato. When poaching eggs use very fresh ones as they’ll hold together better than older eggs. • 600g desiree potatoes, chopped into large chunks (see tips)• 4-5 tbsp olive oil• 1 onion, finely chopped• 1 tbsp yellow mustard seeds, toasted in a dry pan• 1 tsp ground cumin• 1 tsp ground turmeric• 200g spinach• 4 very fresh, large free-range eggs (see tips)• Small bunch fresh coriander, roughly chopped FOR THE STIR-FRIED KALE • 1 tbsp olive oil• 200g kale• 2 garlic cloves, very finely sliced 1 Heat the…

As the delicious. food team cook and test recipes, there’s constant tinkering and fervent discussion: timesaving ideas; new tricks we’ve heard of; some technique we’ve dreamed up and want to try… Then there are the questions and input we get from colleagues as they come to see what’s cooking. On these pages, our aim (with help from our regular experts) is to reproduce that test kitchen atmosphere, sharing the most useful ideas and tips we’ve discovered. It’s cookery gold! True or false? THE CLAIM FRESH PASTA IS BETTER THAN DRIED ANSWER FALSE They’re both equally good but they have different uses. Fresh pasta goes best with dairy-based sauces, while dried works with oil-based, rich or meaty sauces. It’s about texture – dried pasta holds up better against a heavy, robust…

Chetna Makan was a popular contestant on the 2014 Great British Bake Off , where her inventive flavour combinations, often referencing her Indian heritage, won over both judges. This recipe is from her book, The Cardamom Trail: Chetna Bakes with Flavours of the East , out 21 April (£20; Mitchell Beazley). Pistachio, cardamom and white chocolate cake SERVES 12. HANDS-ON TIME 20 MIN, OVEN TIME 30 MIN MAKE AHEAD Keep the cake in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Freeze the un-iced sponges, wrapped, for up to 1 month. FOOD TEAM’S TIPS To remove seeds from cardamom pods, crack them open using a rolling pin, then pick out the seeds. • 225g unsalted butter, softened, plus extra for greasing• 225g caster sugar• 4 large free-range eggs• 250g self-raising flour• 1 tsp baking powder• 1…

• Chez Pipo (chezpipo.fr) is a local’s haunt that turns out the crispest socca from its wood-fired oven. There isn’t much else on the menu, yet people are willing to queue to eat here. • At La Fougasserie (5 rue de la Poissonnerie, +33 4 9380 9245), you can taste the local flatbread with toppings that range from fresh artichoke to bacon, potato and cheese. • I go out of my way for the organic loaves at Mama Baker (13 rue de Lépante, +33 6 2391 3386), where I also love the madeleines with figs and honey. • Just when I thought Nice would never get its own speciality coffee shop, along came Brasilia (8 rue Bonaparte, +33 6 5883 3839). It’s where I go for a perfect cappuccino made with…

This month, restaurateur JAMES RAMSDEN, our London food correspondent, sits back and lets the nosh come to him Where New York leads, London follows. So when Maple, a high-end delivery service, launched last year in the Big Apple, it was only a matter of time before the Big Smoke caught up. Enter Supper (supper. london), which brings Michelin-starred grub (Benares, Randall & Aubin, Bar Boulud and many more) to your central London door. For less starry takeaways, Deliveroo (deliveroo.co.uk) has rather cornered the market, and I can only thank them for landing Patty & Bun burgers, Rosa’s Thai and Lardo Bebe pizza in my lap without me having to unglue my eyes from Netflix. There are excellent smaller operators, too. Eat First (eatfirst.com) promises to deliver delights such as white…

THE SAFFRON TALES Although she was born in London, Yasmin Khan’s Iranian heritage inspired her to write this personal book of recipes and travels. Her aim was to discover and share the food and culture from a land she loves – a land often misunderstood by others. The recipes are sumptuous and the photos of this seldom glimpsed country are stunning. £26, Bloomsbury, out 7 April THE NORDIC KITCHEN: ONE YEAR OF FAMILY COOKING Author Claus Meyer is one of the most influential people in the world of food. The restaurateur and academic co-founded Noma restaurant in Copenhagen and helped launch the New Nordic Cuisine movement, which spread its tendrils over the globe. The recipes aren’t tricksy restaurant set pieces but dishes that use foraged foods, with a Scandi flavour.…

THE GOOD LIFE My family moved to a wild stretch of coast in southern Ireland when I was very small. We were largely self-sufficient – my parents farmed and my four sisters, my brother and I used to forage. The abundance of stuff was incredible – you could walk along the beach and within 10 minutes fill your bucket with gigantic mussels. MY PHILOSOPHY I’ve done so many jobs in my time and the best piece of advice I’ve ever had is: if you’re going to do something, do it really well, throw yourself into it. And be aware that it’s possible to be a dreamer and a doer. THE JOY OF SHARING It’s comforting to sit down and eat with people you know well; there’s a feeling of security.…

THE COOKBOOK Nathan Outlaw’s Everyday Seafood (£20; Quadrille Publishing) TESTED BY Susan Low If anyone can help the fish-fearful shed their anxiety about cooking seafood, it’s Nathan Outlaw. As well as having four restaurants to his name, the Cornwall-based chef is one of the UK’s top seafood experts – and an all-round nice guy. In the book’s foreword, Jamie Oliver describes Nathan as “a big softie”, and his generous spirit shines through every page. Nice guys or not, chefs – particularly ones whose restaurants have earned Michelin stars (Restaurant Nathan Outlaw, in Port Isaac, has two) – have a reputation for not quite understanding the meaning of ‘keep it simple’. Nathan does, so there are no unnecessary cheffy complications to his recipes. This is not a fish-prep manual; most of…

“The arrival of spring is, for me, signalled by the arrival of jersey royals. Small in stature, grand in taste and named after their Channel Islands origin, these potatoes deserve the reverence bestowed on them by their protected designation of origin (PDO) status. Roasted or boiled, dressed or unadorned, they impart a rich mineral flavour that ordinary spuds can’t quite muster.” ELLA TARN, COOKERY ASSISTANT WHAT TO LOOK OUT FOR Buy jersey royals with the soil still clinging to them and take the time to clean them – they taste so much better than their pre-packed counterparts. Jersey royals can only be grown on the island of Jersey (if they’re grown elsewhere, they have to go by the less romantic-sounding name, ‘international kidney potato’). Choose firm potatoes – the smaller…

“For my new book, The A-Z of Eating , the challenge was to pick just 26 favourite ingredients for an alphabet of good food – not an easy task. ‘P’ at least was never in doubt. Few ingredients are as versatile as the spud, which pops up in the guise of my Indian-inspired scotch eggs. Breast of lamb is a woefully underused cut, and my British take on porchetta, the porky Italian classic, seems to sum up this time of year. The richness of the meat is balanced by a zesty, crunchy cauliflower and herb salad. Please save room for the grand finale, a showstopping trifle made with shocking pink seasonal rhubarb. My desert island dessert – I hope it brings you as much joy.” SPRING MENU…

“Although recipes from India and South Asia tend to spring to mind when you hear the word ‘curry’, concoctions of meat or veg simmered in a spicy, flavourful sauce are appreciated on every continent. I’ve scoured the world and, using typical spices and flavourings, created my take on classic curries – some hot, some mild.” LOTTIE COVELL, DEPUTY FOOD EDITOR Indian vegetable curry SERVES 4-6. HANDS-ON TIME 45-50 MINUTES KNOWHOW It’s not usual to find broccoli in Indian curries, but we love the flavour and texture it brings to this dish. You could use cauliflower or romanesco instead. MAKE AHEAD This is best eaten on the day of cooking, but it will keep in the fridge, covered, for up to 48 hours. Reheat thoroughly. • Sunflower oil for frying• 2 red onions,…

GRAB A BARGAIN • Vignobles Roussellet Malbec, France (£4.39, Aldi) A great-value, brightly coloured red, soft and easy-going, with notes of cherry, plum and prunes. • Domaine de Beaurepaire Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Sur Lie 2013, France (£5.99, Lidl) Fresh, succulent and citrus scented, with a hint of almond, this vivacious dry white is spot on with shellfish. • Extra Special Marques del Norte Rioja Reserva 2011, Spain (£5.48, Asda) One for new season lamb, a classic mellow rioja, oak-aged with the flavours of strawberry and clove, and very keenly priced. FRIDAY SPECIAL • Shorn Sauvignon Blanc 2014, Marlborough, New Zealand (£7, Morrisons) A new sauvignon blanc under a fun label (see p9) with lots of zesty passion fruit and gooseberry. Open a bottle with a green Thai curry. • Triade 2013, Puglia, Italy (£8.79,…

VALENTINE WARNER Originally an art student, Valentine worked with chef Alastair Little and spent eight years in restaurant kitchens before landing his own TV show. He’s written books and often appears on TV. WALTER RIDDELL He gave up being a merchant banker and returned to his family estate to take up the title of 14th Baronet of Riddell. He’s MD and chief juniper-picker of The Moorland Spirit Company, maker of Hepple gin. NICK STRANGEWAY Having learned his craft from legendary ‘cocktail king’ Dick Bradsell, Nick set up the bars for the Hawksmoor steak restaurants in London and worked with Mark Hix. He now runs Strangehill, a drinks consultancy. CHRIS GARDEN After getting his Master’s degree in brewing and distilling from Heriot-Watt in Edinburgh, Chris became head distiller at London’s Sipsmith…

Lighter chicken and bacon pie SERVES 6. HANDS-ON TIME 30 MIN, OVEN TIME 45 MIN HOW WE DID IT By using olive oil in the pastry topping instead of butter, we cut down on the saturated fat, and grating the pastry over the top uses less pastry than a rolled lid, further cutting calories. Rather than the usual white sauce, made with butter and milk/cream, we used a lighter, velouté sauce, made with stock and cider, and enriched with a little cream. FOR THE PASTRY TOPPING • 250g plain flour• 120ml olive oil• 1 tsp salt• 1 medium free-range egg, beaten FOR THE FILLING • 1-2 tbsp olive oil• 4 leeks, finely sliced• 150g chestnut mushrooms, quartered• 80g British free-range smoked bacon lardons• 6 British free-range skinless and boneless chicken thighs, sliced• 2 garlic cloves, crushed• A few fresh thyme sprigs,…

1 Soft peaks are achieved when the cream is thick enough to form soft shapes/ peaks just firm enough to hold briefly as you lift the whisk, then fall back into the cream. This is the best consistency for folding cream into other mixtures, such as the blancmange on p48. 2 Medium peaks are the best consistency for sandwiching sponges together – the cream holds its shape well but is still soft and hasn’t started to become grainy. When you lift out the whisk, peaks will form but they will bend over at the end. 3 Firm peaks This is when the peaks stand proud and don’t fall over when the whisk is lifted. You need firm, but not too firm peaks for piping, as firm-peak cream is liable to…

“Lemon curd is an old favourite for good reason. When the balance is right, it’s a perfect harmony of sweet and tart – but when it’s wrong, it can end up being a bitter mess. Fruit curd has an unfair reputation for being difficult to make but it’s really just custard made with fruit instead of milk or cream. The sunshine yellow of lemon curd brightens up breakfast, but it doesn’t have to be lemon – any punchy flavour is good, and the method is the same for all curds. Bake with them or slather them on toast.” ELLA TARN, COOKERY ASSISTANT HOW WE CRACKED IT Common problems we addressed when perfecting the recipe, and how we fixed them. As with all recipes, read it all the way through, including…

• Pierre and Anne Magnani sell their organic produce, including rare citrus fruit and heirloom tomatoes, at the Cours Saleya market on Saturdays. They also host laid-back lunches (above) at their farm in the Nice hills (lepotagerdesaquier-nice.fr) most Sunday afternoons, April to November. Featuring guest chefs and musicians, the events are held in French, but some English is spoken. “This kind of initiative helps keep agriculture alive in the region,” says Pierre. • Inspired by the microbrewery trend in the US, last year Olivier Cautain (left) revived the local beer-making tradition by opening La Brasserie Artisanale de Nice (brasserie-nice.com). “The idea is to use what’s locally available,” he says. For example, there’s Blùna, a white beer flavoured with oranges and coriander. The beers are sold in local restaurants.…