Farm-to-table eating: top five UK restaurants
We've found five farm-to-table restaurants in the UK to enjoy local produce. From feasting on cured meats at Coombeshead, to enjoying a gourmet picnic at Soho Farmhouse, we've rounded up our favourite places.
The farm-to-table movement is taking place all across the UK, with local produce being used in new and imaginative ways. From Yorkshire to Cornwall, Scotland to Somerset, there are chefs smoking, curing and pickling produce, hens laying eggs that are freshly poached as well as kitchen gardens growing fruit and veg. We've put together a list of our five favourites, including chic cabins, farmhouses and an indulgent lodge to rest after all the feasting. Coombeshead As a guesthouse with its own restaurant you’ll need to stay over in one of Coombeshead Farm’s five bedrooms if you want to enjoy a farm-to-table dinner at this Cornish farmhouse. And you definitely should. Run by Pitt Cue co-owner Tom Adams and April Bloomfield (of New York’s the Spotted Pig), the food here is exceptional. For breakfast there’s homemade yoghurt, bread, freshly milled oats and grains, preserves, butters, ham, bacon and cheeses, while dinner is served at a ‘feasting table’. It’s an apt description; produce from the farm’s smokehouse, curing and pickling rooms is served, dependent on what the farm is producing at the time. For the sweet-toothed, dessert is given as much attention as the savoury dishes. Cream cheese mousse (made by culturing raw Guernsey cream) with fresh raspberries, perhaps. And, if you want to get more hands-on, look out for a planned series of guest workshops. These are set to range from whole-carcass butchery to breadmaking, pickling and curing lessons. coombesheadfarm.co.uk Killiehuntly At this Danish-owned farmhouse in the Cairngorms (cue the building’s pared-back Scandi aesthetic) food is supplied not only from the kitchen garden but from the wider estate; guests can sign up for a catch-and-cook fishing experience or stride out on a hike through the surrounding hills to spot deer. Start the day with eggs fresh from the estate’s hens, and granola topped with homemade apple and cinnamon compote. At dinner, expect the likes of hot-smoked salmon salad with fresh peas, asparagus tops, baby beets, watercress and horseradish; roast guinea fowl with smoked tomato coulis; or roast venison, also from the estate. In between, head out on that catch-and-cook fishing experience with an expedition to Loch an t-Seilich to catch a few ‘brownies’ (brown trout) before taking them back to the kitchen where the chef will help you salt-bake your prize catch. killiehuntly.scot Soho Farmhouse Set within 100 acres of immaculately groomed Oxfordshire countryside, Soho Farmhouse is a kind of grown-up version of Swallows and Amazons, the ultimate modern-day playground with 40 chic cabins to hide away in, a spa, a cinema, a boating lake, tennis courts and, of course, a relaxed but carefully thought-through choice of eating and drinking options, whether you fancy a gourmet picnic or a perfectly mixed Negroni. The farm deli offers local cheeses and homemade pickles to enjoy from the comfort of your cabin. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are all served in the main barn, alongside sofas and log fires; try a farm cheeseburger topped with local pancetta, opt for Scottish salmon with farmhouse chard or, if you’re lucky enough to be there on a weekend, plump for one of the Farm Feasts or roast dinners. The catch? Soho Farmhouse is a members club – you’ll need to sign up if you want to join the fun. sohofarmhouse.com Middleton Lodge Amid 200 acres of North Yorkshire countryside the Coach House restaurant, part of the stylish Middleton Lodge hotel, focuses on locally sourced ingredients with a clear estate-to-plate ethos. Dinner menus are inspired by the setting, with typical starters ranging from Yorkshire rabbit & pressed pork terrine to roast heritage carrot salad with goats curd and hazelnuts, and pea panna cotta with pancetta. The cooking here has an unfaltering respect for ingredients; whether that’s cabbage, venison or truffle, everything gets the attention it deserves and there are no shortcuts or second-bests. And that ethos is set to get stronger in 2018, when the restaurant takes a further step into the farm-to-table movement, with the opening of a dedicated kitchen garden. middletonlodge.co.uk Hauser & Wirth When the Hauser & Wirth gallery, with its Piet Oudolf-designed garden, opened in the sleepy Somerset village of Bruton it was a game-changer. Not only did it attract a steady stream of high profile international artists but it also helped turn the village into a hotbed of creativity; it’s now home to several smart design stores and cafes. Foodies are just as welcome as art lovers. At the gallery’s heart is the Roth Bar & Grill, an onsite restaurant. While the vibe is decadent and fun, the food is humble at heart, with a focus on sustainably sourced produce (much of it is sourced from the owner’s surrounding estate, Durslade Farm; the herbs are grown even closer to home – in the kitchen garden at the entrance to the gallery). Look out for Somerset honey panna cotta, Godminster smoked cheddar atop a Wagyu burger or home-cured bacon with farm-fresh eggs. Roasts are served on Sundays and, as you’d expect, all the meat - native breeds such as Lleyn sheep and Oxford Sandy & black pigs - comes from the farm. hauserwirthsomerset.com/roth-bar-grill
Looking to keep the kids entertained over the school holidays? We've rounded up the best cooking courses for children in the UK. From baking and chocolate workshops for little ones to MasterChef-worthy classes for teenagers, they will learn new recipes and certainly have lots of fun along the way!
Fat Hen Wellies aren’t the first thing you might think to wear when you’re signing up for a cookery course, but they’re a good idea for this course, run by Fat Hen in Cornwall. For children who prefer learning outdoors, it focuses on the natural origins of food. The company’s Children’s Cookery Club class teaches children how to forage during a short walk to pick up safe, easily identifiable wild foods and garden flowers including blackberries, crab apples, nettles and wild strawberries. The foraging trip is then followed by a cooking session where parents and children learn together how to prepare a two-course lunch with the ingredients they have gathered. Expect to make anything from bread with wild herbs and blackberry jam to nettle pizza and elderflower ice cream. The course is for children aged 5-12 years old; those younger than seven must be accompanied by an adult. fathen.org Edinburgh New Town Cookery School Located in the heart of Edinburgh city centre, Edinburgh New Town Cookery School offers a diverse range of courses. It’s particularly good for teenagers, offering one-day and week-long courses for those aged between 13 and 17 who want to get to grips with basic cookery skills. During the one-day course, students cover topics such as weighing ingredients accurately and how to read recipes before making a range of simple, seasonal dishes to take home. The one-week course provides a more in-depth introduction to cooking skills and techniques, including pastry making, cooking meat, baking bread, cake making, cooking vegetables and more. entcs.co.uk The Little Kitchen Cookery School If you want to keep the kids entertained over the school holidays, The Little Kitchen Cookery School in Bristol regularly runs a Holiday Cooking Club for children aged 8-12 years old where they can learn how to make simple dishes from scratch and pick up new kitchen skills. Simple step-by-step instructions are given for each recipe so children should come away having learnt how to create dishes like veggie burgers in homemade buns or spring rolls with a dipping sauce (sweet treats such as homemade toffee ice cream or ice cream cone cupcakes are also on the schedule). Students can take home everything they make on the day and they will also be given recipe cards so they can recreate their new signature dishes at home. little-kitchen.co.uk The Chocolate Museum Mention the word ‘chocolate’ and the kids will be sold! The Chocolate Museum in Brixton regularly runs creative drop-in workshops for adults and children where participants can learn how to make their own delicious chocolate creations. thechocolatemuseum.co.uk Lucknam Park Within the grounds of the luxurious Lucknam Park Hotel & Spa, just outside Bath, is a dedicated cookery school. Alongside classes for adults is a general half-day skills course for both adults and children. Suitable for children aged 6-13 years old, in tandem with a parent or grandparent, it focuses on the basics of cooking and working with fresh ingredients. During the session, children will learn how to make a variety of recipes, from pork meatballs with homemade linguini to pancakes with hot chocolate sauce and blueberry cupcakes with buttercream icing. The fee includes tea/coffee, pastries, lunch, a take-home recipe folder and a cookery school bag. lucknampark.co.uk/cookery-school Becketts’ Farm Cookery School In Birmingham, Becketts’ Farm run a variety of children’s cookery courses throughout the year, designed to show 8-15 year olds how to create nutritious two-course meals as part of a healthy diet. If you’ve spent many a year rustling up children’s party food you’ll be please to hear they also arrange children’s birthday parties; guests make their own pizzas and cupcakes and decorate gingerbread men and women. Afterwards, they get to enjoy their creations along with extra party food and a personalised birthday cake. beckettsfarm.co.uk Leiths School of Food and Wine Leiths School of Food and Wine, in London, offers short, evening and one-week courses, including an exciting range of classes for teenagers. In the Let’s cook! Teen Challenge class, students can put their technical skills to the test to create a three-course menu with a special prize for the most restaurant-worthy winning dish. Through a combination of chef demos and hands-on cookery, students can expect to create dishes such as Thai salmon en papillotte or chocolate roulade with fruit coulis and put their own personal twist on the final dishes. With top tips and support to guide those along the session, this course is a great opportunity to experiment with new dishes and be creative with unique flavour combinations. dev.leiths.com The Cheshire Cookery School The Cheshire Cookery School in Altrincham holds a Kids Cookery Club over the school holidays for children aged 6-14. During the course of the workshops, students will learn about the origins of ingredients, how they are grown and what they taste like. They will then create speciality dishes from countries as diverse as England and India. And learn some tips and tricks for baking bread, cakes and biscuits. The Kids Cookery Club runs on a weekly basis from Monday to Friday but individual days can also be booked. Lunch and drinks are provided and children can take everything they make home to share. thecheshirecookeryschool.com BKD For a fun and messy afternoon, BKD offers a range of themed baking workshops for little bakers aged three years and up. Googly eyes, sprinkles, buttercream, fondant and all manner of other decorating supplies help children follow a theme (think pirate biscuits, Easter cakepops, unicorn cupcakes…) and events take place regularly in BKD’s Peckham bakery. Best of all, each child will leave with a box of delicious handmade treats to take home. bkd-london.com The Jamie Oliver Cookery School There’s a vast range of courses on the timetable at the Jamie Oliver Cookery School, in London, and some are specially designed with children (between 8-14 years old) in mind. In its Become a Pasta Master class, for example, children can get stuck in learning how to create all sorts of fresh pasta shapes from scratch. Then there is a Pizza for Pros class where children can make their own pizza dough and learn how to combine winnning toppings For truly dedicated young cooks, the school also offers a Junior Sushi Master course that covers sushi rolls with spicy wasabi and smashed avocado or pan-fried salmon and cucumber, served with a homemade cucumber pickle. Children must be supervised by an adult for the duration of the course or you can book your own place and cook along together. jamieolivercookeryschool.com Words by Eileen Malone Written April 2017
Try an Italian cooking class and master the art of making your own pasta and pizza from scratch. These are our top ten Italian cookery courses in the UK including quick tutorials, wine and cheese pairing tips and foodie weekends away
Learn about Italian coffee culture with our expert barista Celeste Wong's guide, including traditional rituals, how to order it and the perfect recipe for at-home brewing. Burro e Salvia, London If you’ve enjoyed a meal at Burro e Salvia in Shoreditch or East Dulwich, roll up your sleeves and get stuck in learning how to make your own pasta from scratch the next time you visit by signing up for one of the company’s three types of fresh pasta workshops. From lasagna sheets to tagliatelle, or tagliolini made from fresh egg and flour pasta, go for one of the basic pasta-making classes. For a more advanced session, try a filled pasta workshop and learn to work with different shapes and fillings for tortelli and cardinali. Or opt for the semolina pasta workshop and work with water-based dough and pasta shapes including ‘ear-shaped’ orecchiette. burroesalvia.co.uk Venturi’s Table, London If you fancy getting a group of friends together for some homemade Italian food and fine wine, sign up for one of Venturi’s Table cookery school’s private group classes in London. Menus are tailored to suit all types of dietary requirements and for any occasion including hen parties, stag dos, birthdays and children’s parties. Hire one of their exclusive kitchens and create a bespoke menu from a wide variety of dishes (carpaccio, fresh pasta and homemade pizza among them), and learn how to make your chosen dishes with the help of the school’s professional chefs. At the end of the class, sit down to an Italian dinner party feast and enjoy all the food you’ve made. venturistable.co.uk The Bertinet Kitchen Cookery School, Bath The Bertinet Kitchen, in Bath, runs a range of relaxed and imaginative courses for food lovers, including many that have an Italian twist. If you’re looking for an Italian pasta- or bread-making class this is the place. Learn how to make your own fresh tagliatelle from scratch, for instance, by joining Valentina Harris (author of Perfect Pasta) for an intensive pasta-making class. In this hands-on workshop, students are shown how to make various past shapes, from spaghetti to ravioli, as well as how to cook baked pasta dishes. And of course, the class wouldn’t be complete without learning how to make the perfect tomato sauce. thebertinetkitchen.com Manna from Devon Cooking School, Devon If you’re planning on buying or building a wood-fired oven to make the perfect Italian stone-baked pizza, then Manna from Devon Cooking School, in the small Devon village of Kingswear, is a good place to get to polish your technique first. Its in-depth one-day courses for beginners (or those wishing to improve their cooking skills) include an introductory Wood Fired-Mastering Your Oven class focused on how wood-fired ovens work - and how versatile they can be in cooking. If you’re keen for a more hands-on challenge, the school’s Wood Fired-Baking And Slow Cooking class focuses, instead, on baking, braising and barbecuing. Take your wood-fired cooking skills to a new level by learning how to make the perfect flatbreads, roast pork with crispy crackling and much more. mannafromdevon.com Denman WI Cookery School, Oxford In the picturesque village of Marcham, outside Oxford, Denman is the WI’s centre for learning. Among its vast range of courses (many of which, unsurprisingly, focus on baking) are day and weekend courses based around Italian cooking. The A Taste of Italy residential course is led by acclaimed cook and food writer Lindy Wildsmith and offers participants an immersive introduction to Italian cuisine and culture. Over the course of two days, students learn conversational Italian, discover the history of Italy and put their newfound knowledge into practice as they prepare a selection of classic Italian dishes. Tuition, accommodation, breakfast, morning coffee and pastries, two-course lunches, afternoon tea and three-course dinners are all included in the price and the course is open to participants of all abilities, be they WI-members or non-members. denmancollege.org.uk The Jamie Oliver Cookery School, London For an informative all-day masterclass that will introduce you to the basics of Italian cookery, London’s Jamie Oliver Cookery School is a safe bet. From beautiful focaccia breads to the perfect risotto and an indulgently creamy tiramisu, expect to spend the day creating classic Italian dishes with a glass of prosecco or two to help things along. Classes are open to participants of all levels of experience and, if you want to get all the family involved, the school also offers lessons in pasta and pizza-making for kids. jamieolivercookeryschool.com Nick Nairn Cook School, Aberdeen At the Nick Nairn Cook School, in Aberdeen, you can learn the secrets of making a fine Italian two-course meal on a gluten-free diet during a dedicated masterclass. Over the course of three hours, guests learn how to make a lightly spiced gnocchi (using potato and rice flour) with a smoked haddock cream sauce as well as a tempting chocolate, almond and pear tart with red wine syrup and creamy amaretto sabayon. nicknairncookschool.com Valvona & Crolla, Edinburgh Established in Edinburgh in 1934, Scotland's oldest Italian deli and wine store often holds good value tastings and cookery demonstrations in its Caffè Bar. This May, for instance, sees the return of Giancarlo Russo, Professor of Gastronomy, for an evening pairing cheeses with delicious new wines. Expect a really informative run-down on how to pair different Italian wines with seasonal spring cheeses from regions ranging from Tuscany to the island of Sardinia. valvonacrolla.co.uk Lime Wood Hotel, Hampshire Go behind the scenes of the Hartnett Holder & Co kitchen at Hampshire’s Lime Wood Hotel and learn how to make authentic Italian pizza from scratch. Its bite-size Pizza Perfect course is a great way to pick up new skills in a condensed and fast-paced session. In this two-hour class, participants learn how to make pizza from scratch and create delicious toppings using fresh ingredients – a great way to turn up the volume at your next pizza party. limewoodhotel.co.uk La Cucina Caldesi Cookery School, London This Italian cookery school, based in the heart of London, hosts a great variety of cooking courses throughout the year. These cover all bases with dishes from every Italian region but one of the most popular courses is the 30 Minutes Italian Menus class, which teaches students how to make great Italian food fast. In this busy class, Italian chef Stefano Borella demonstrates how to master 10 carefully selected Italian dishes that can be made in half an hour or less. Typical recipes include seasonal Italian starters, fresh pasta sauces and impressive desserts such as ‘torta caprese’ (an almond and chocolate tart). caldesi.com Listen to our cookery team as they share their expert tips on cooking perfect pasta olive magazine podcast ep61 - how to cook perfect pasta and an expert guide to sherry View oEmbed on the source website Words by Eileen Malone SaveSave
Ben Chapman, Kiln and Smoking Goat, London: chef interview
In our series of discovering the world's most exciting young chefs, we meet Ben Chapman, owner of Kiln and Smoking Goat in Central London
Ben Chapman’s career trajectory is of the kind not normally associated with a chef who opens a restaurant that has a fair claim to being the best of the year – but it’s 2017, and things don’t tend to happen like they used to. For more than 40 years, a good barometer of restaurant class has been the number of stars issued by London Evening Standard restaurant critic Fay Maschler, who famously reserves the maximum score only for something truly special. She gave Kiln – a Thai restaurant in Soho that uses only charcoal as a means of cooking – full marks. Ben, previously an art gallerist, DJ and designer, only started cooking three years ago. With its unusual and brilliant iteration of highly specific rural northern Thai cooking, Kiln is hardly the kind of restaurant we’d imagine would secure such universal approval from industry commentators, nor draw the kind of queues normally seen outside the city’s best, if populist, burger, steak and gourmet fast food restaurants. Kiln is different and reflects the learning that Ben has dedicated himself to since entering the restaurant game. His obsessive and daring quest to cook food “more pungent, sour, spicy and bitter” is in line with his self-declared attraction to “unfiltered things”. A sort of ‘why compromise when you don’t have to?’ It’s a question more chefs have the confidence to ask now, and a feature of the modern restaurant industry that’s unleashed specialised personal passion projects like Ben’s. When Ben moved to London from Birmingham 12 years ago it was to study art history. Though he didn’t finish the degree, he wound-up opening an art gallery as well as doing casual bar work. The gallery aimed to promote upcoming – but comparatively unknown – artists. Indicating his acute eye for talent, Ben recalls the last show he put on with Eddie Peake: “The next show he went on to do was at The White Cube, the biggest commercial art gallery in Europe.” He “never made any money” and subsequently moved into the music industry, hosting obscure club nights – “weird Turkish psych called Leather Boy” was one – before moving into graphic design for venues and festivals. Through this he met Charlie Carroll who would go on to open Flat Iron. Ben designed their first restaurant (his Dad and brother are architects and he gives the impression that he’d occasionally flirted with the discipline). Through his own company, King Mob, he realised his aim of doing “something with more creative control”. Alongside design commissions, he was beginning to learn more about the food he liked and – after having met Som Saa’s Andy Oliver – began cooking Thai recipes at home. Ben describes eating at Dave Pynt’s Burnt Enz in London Fields and at Pok Pok in New York as “formative”. On seeing Dave’s cooking over fire, “that was the first time I thought, I want to do that – I want to be a chef”. Pok Pok, he says, “blew me away”. The difference he could taste in the jamboree of unfamiliar ingredients it used stimulated a creative streak. His inexperience has presented some challenges in the short time he’s been cooking. His pursuit of the recondite overcomes any scepticism from those he employs (who might be, in theory, more ‘qualified’). He sees his progress in the kitchen as connected to two main factors. He is able to articulate a clear vision to his chefs: “the food is extremely specific; the recipes are taken from rural Thailand”. Candidly, he also says that he’s found “no one task in the kitchen that is insurmountably difficult”. Spending time with Ben, you quickly learn that if there’s something he wants to know, he’s going to find out how to do it. People say that Kiln is an authentic northern Thai restaurant. In some respects it is, but authenticity can be a troublesome concept, not least when you consider the real differences of a farmhouse in Isaan to a restaurant site in central London. Ben outlines his own definition of authentic in this context, saying that he wants to adhere to the key principles of Thai cooking. In the Thai countryside, he explains, “dishes are led by ingredients” relevant to their own specific time and place. One experience remains seminal: a trip to a humble country home in Isaan where he ate beef larb. Very few ingredients, flash-cooked or pulled from a plant, were casually assembled with minimal seasoning and Ben wasn’t looking forward to it, but his memory of it was that it was “amazing”. Ingredients, to Ben are key, and chillies, herbs and vegetables for the restaurant are grown domestically in Cornwall, through his close working relationship with The Modern Salad Grower, Sean O’Neill. The two invested in a growing tunnel with Kiln in mind. “Herbs-wise, at the moment we’re getting 30%; when we come into the warmer months it will be back up to 70%,” he says. The hope is to get it to 100%. Elsewhere there is meticulous sourcing via specialist Thai importers – new-season brown rice, fish sauce, fermented shrimp paste – or from Luke Farrell who cultivates cuttings he picked on his travels in south-east Asia at Ryewater Nursery in Dorset. “When I ask him for some Vietnamese mint,” explains Ben, “he’ll say ‘Which genus?’”. Restaurant industry buzz phrases like locally-sourced, authentic, ingredient-led and charcoal-grilled are often either overstated or plainly inaccurate. To Ben, as honest and understated as chefs come, these phrases have to mean something. And his food has to look good and taste good, too. That’s the kind of multi-disciplinary artist and great chef he’s become. kilnsoho.com IN SHORT Favourite dish: Cornish crab lon at Som Saa, London E1. Favourite drink: Spanish natural wine producer called Mendall makes quite concentrated whites, which age well. Also Tuscan producer Macea who makes earthy reds that taste like the ground, the vine and the grape all squeezed together Most memorable meal: Undoubtedly getting schooled on laaps by Uncle Pwan outside Ubon in Thailand Chef or food person you most admire: Tom Adams at Coombeshead Farm. Getting good produce is one thing; working with the farmer to make it better is another Guilty pleasure: Dubiously cheap roti parathas on Whitechapel High Street Ben Chapman’s unfiltered guide to Thailand • Jay Fai a street food restaurant serving high quality Thai/Chinese combinations, – 327 Maha Chai Road, Bangkok • Jeh O Chula late-night drinking food – Banthat Thong Road, Bangkok • Khanom Jeen Nam Yong rice noodle and curry restaurant which serves northern Thai nam yaa and Shan-influenced nam ngiaw – Chaisongkhram Road, Pai • Bangkok Bold cool cooking studio. The chef explains ingredients she uses with you – 503 Phra Sumen Road, Bangkok • A friend’s house The best food I’ve had is in people’s homes in the countryside Words by Adam Coghlan Photographs by Jordan Lee
Demuths Cookery School, Bath: Myanmar Teahouse Cooking review
We review Demuth’s short evening course, Myanmar (Burmese) Teahouse Cooking, and learn how to make bitter aubergine curry, shan tofu, pumpkin and peanut curry and Burmese noodle stir-fry
Set in the shadow of Bath’s landmark abbey, in the very centre of the city, Demuths is highly regarded for its rigorously organised vegan and vegetarian cooking courses (so highly regarded that one couple on our course had driven all the way from Yorkshire just for the evening to join the class). Founder Rachel Demuth ran a long-established vegetarian restaurant in the city before selling it to focus on her cookery school and cooking holidays. And, while the school runs a wide range of skills courses - from Fermentation to Vegan Cakes and Puddings, Food Photography, Pasta Workshops and Low Carb High Veg - it has a particularly strong reputation for its world cuisine classes, influenced by Rachel’s extensive travels. These range from Indian Street Food to Exploring the Spice Route, a Middle Eastern Mezze class, Korean and Totally Moorish but the class that caught my attention was Myanmar (Burmese) Teahouse Cooking. A short (three-hour) evening class this vegan course was aimed at beginners and offered a chance to explore a cuisine I knew relatively little about (beyond the country’s famous fish stew, mohinga) without needing a raft of sophisticated kitchen skills. Kicking off on a dark winter’s evening at 6.30pm, the course began with a quick introduction – and a welcome cup of ginger tea - around the school’s classroom before moving downstairs to the teaching kitchen. Here we were given aprons and name stickers, and asked to tie back long hair and wash our hands (so far so much the tightly-run ship we had expected). With 12 students and two tutors – Jan Berridge and school founder Rachel - it also meant a good ratio for hands-on guidance. Putting Burmese food in context, Rachel started with a quick rundown on the country’s food culture. India may be brilliant for veggies, she said, but, surprisingly, the menus in many South East Asian destinations – including Thailand and Laos – are not so easy to navigate as many meat-free meals come spiked with fish sauce. This is also the case in Myanmar; Rachel advised substituting high quality shoyu at home to keep dishes truly veggie-friendly. Peanut oil is another one to watch if you have allergies: it’s a staple in Burmese cooking. Rachel went on to explain how the country’s geography has influenced its menus; interaction with its neighbours mean Indian, Chinese and Thai flavours are common, and samosas, pakoras, stir-fried rice and noodles and green mango salads are all widely found. Myanmar’s cooks tend to use few ingredients, though, sticking to traditional recipes based around ginger, turmeric, garlic, chillies, tamarind, rice vinegar, salt and toasted sesame oil. Most of those, of course, all of us students were familiar with but we learnt that soaking and sieving tamarind pulp, rather than buying jars of paste, can make a noticeably fresher difference to the flavour of the final dish (though watch out: salt is sometimes added to the pulped variety). This simple list of ingredients tied in well with the fuss-free ethos of the course. Burmese Teahouse Cooking may be unfamiliar to most of us (though two of the students had signed up having recently visited the country) but that didn’t mean overly complicated dishes. These were recipes chosen to be repeated easily at home. The fact that it was a short evening course, with only three hours to play with, meant there wasn’t time for more elaborate recipes – or, thankfully, for doing much graft… Jan had chopped, snipped and weighed all the ingredients out for us beforehand and helper Beth took charge of the washing up. The first dish we didn’t make ourselves but watched Rachel demonstrate - Shan tofu. Actually not tofu at all but a polenta-like block named after the Shan ethnic group, it is made with gram flour and turmeric, mixed with water and salt, left to set, then cut into little squares and gently fried. While the tofu was setting, the group split into pairs to made three dishes - first a simple stir-fry, with tenderstem broccoli, red peppers, pak choi and noodles that we ate as soon as it was ready to stave off post-work hunger pangs. There were tips to pick up here, despite it being such a simple dish; we were reminded to take our time cooking the onions until they were soft rather than scorching them to a crisp and advised that toasted sesame oil is better glugged onto a sir-fry at the end, to add flavour, than used as a cooking oil. Rachel also taught us a trick for cooking perfect rice (all to do with gauging water levels and leaving it to stand). In fact there were lots of tips to absorb over the evening. Rachel took the beginners’ level seriously, never assuming knowledge, and there were some good reminders of the basics – making sure you choose jasmine rice, not that basmati you have to hand in the cupboard, for South Asian dishes, for instance. The second dish, a bitter (Thai) aubergine curry with tomatoes, was a good example of Myanmar’s fondness for bitter flavours. The slowly simmered result, laced with shallots, ginger, garlic, chilli and turmeric, was surprisingly gentle – light and fresh with only a slight sharpness from the aubergines. While it bubbled away we got on with the final dish, a light pumpkin and peanut curry cooked just to the point where the pumpkin was nutty but not mushy and where the peanuts still had a soft crunch. Once this was ready we took all the dishes to a communal dining table to test them out over a hard-earned glass of wine (or Bradley’s zingy Cox & Bramley apple juice). The freshness of both curries really stood out for me. Vibrant and wholesome, these would be perfect midweek suppers, not guilty pleasures. The Shan tofu was a revelation, however. Served with a little dip made with peanuts, chilli, shoyu and coriander, I could have eaten a whole plateful of these saffron-coloured cubes – silkily soft on the inside with a gorgeous toasted crunch on the outside, these are surely Myanmar’s answer to a bowl of hot salty chips. The next Myanmar Teahouse Cooking course takes place in April 2017; demuths.co.uk Words by Rhiannon Batten Images by Rob Wicks at Eat Pictures
A ragù bolognese is comfort food at its best and, with that, we've put together our guide to the best ever recipes of this Italian classic. Expect rich pasta sauces as well as healthier variations of this delicious dish
Ragu is a rich, meat-based sauce usually served with pasta, that is most commonly associated with Italian cuisine. In our guide to ragu sauce recipes, we've included different variations of this family favourite to suit everyone. Try the pheasant ragu for an impressive party dish with friends or, for a more traditional option, give our best ever ragu bolognese a go (it really is amazing!). Experiment with different pasta shapes and always remember to have plenty of grated parmesan on standby... For more inspiration, check out our beef mince recipes, lamb mince recipes and pasta sauce recipes. Easy ragu recipes Best-ever spaghetti bolognese When most of us think of ragu, it's good old spag bol that springs to mind first, so here's our best ever version. We've spent years perfecting this beef mince ragu and even have tips on how to make it in a slow cooker, too. You can find more of our favourite spaghetti recipes here. Lamb ragu pappardelle This easy yet impressive recipe comes from Italian restaurant Bancone in Covent Garden. The lamb is melt-in-the-mouth tender, and we love the way the wide ribbons of pappardelle hold it. Duck ragu Simmer duck legs in a garlic and red wine sauce until tender, then shred into a luxuriously rich ragu – perfect for tossing through pappardelle. Healthy spaghetti bolognese This spaghetti bolognese has slightly less meat in than usual but no less flavour, and is bulked out with lentils for healthy fibre. You could also use vegetarian mince, if you like. Turkey ragu Like a healthier spaghetti bolognese, this turkey mince ragu comes packed with celery, courgette and carrots, plus a little Marmite for added flavour. We have more healthy pasta ideas over here. Vegan mushroom bolognese Make your bolognese meat-free with a rich ragu of dried porcini and chestnut mushrooms, and plenty of vegetables. A great, low-fat vegan meal. Click here for more great vegan pasta recipes. Vegan pasta bake Make an umami-rich vegan ragu with mushrooms and carrots, plus pre-cooked lentils to minimise prep time. Delicious baked in the oven with vegan cheese. Bolognese pasta bake Make this decadent, grown-up take on a pasta bake with a rich ragu and a layer of creamy béchamel sauce to make it extra luxurious. Lamb, tomato and oregano ragu Swap same-old spag bol for this velvety lamb sauce, made light and fragrant with fresh oregano. Serve draped with a blanket of parmesan. Slow and low goat ragu with orecchiette Check out this rich and flavoursome melt-in-the-mouth goat ragu served with al dente orecchiette and a topping of nutty parmesan. This may take a little time but you're sure to impress your friends and family at your next dinner party. Mac 'n' cheese with rich beef ragu We've reinvented a classic mac 'n' cheese dish by adding a hidden layer of rich beef ragu to this recipe to make it really special and indulgent. This is just one of our best ever comfort food recipes. Rich beef ragù with rosemary gremolata This rich beef ragu is a taste sensation with its rosemary gremolata. We've served it here with creamy polenta, but it would also be delicious with pappardelle or garlicky mash. Pheasant ragu This recipe is great introduction to pheasant and makes one heck of a special ragu. It goes really well with tagliatelle and tastes even better when sprinkled with plenty of parmesan to finish. Pasta with smoky sausage ragù A ragu recipe that only takes half an hour? Yes please. This is the best sausage and pasta recipe for two – by adding a hint of smoked paprika and fennel seeds, you'll get a more interesting ragu sauce than anything you can buy. Find more great sausage recipes here. Puy lentil ragu with sweet potato linguine This warming vegan bolognese-style ragu is ready in 40 minutes and makes for a great, lighter alternative to the classic. Served with sweet potato linguine, it's gluten-free, too. Rigatoni with mushroom and red wine ragù A deeply savoury mushroom and red wine ragu sauce that takes less than half an hour to make. An ideal veggie weeknight dinner. Choose rigatoni pasta to serve it with – the sauce clings to the ridges in the tubes.
Santiago, Chile: 10 best places to eat and drink
New flights have just made Chile’s capital easier to reach from the UK, an added incentive to try its oven-baked empanadas, artisanal sausages and silky carménères
Market master When Rolando Ortega was named Chile’s chef of the year in 2015 many Santiaguinos were surprised; his restaurant, Salvador Cocina y Café, was a humble lunch spot in Santiago’s city centre. Two years later, expect to queue to try the chef’s market-inspired creations which change daily but typically include dishes such as pork and mussel stew or beef tongue sandwich. facebook.com/SalvadorCocinaYCafe Meticulous eats Don’t be fooled by the casual vibe and recycled furnishings at 99 Restaurante Chef Kurt Schmidt’s dishes are highly sophisticated, from carrot sorbet with coconut foam to ‘fungal textures’ – a playful dish of raw, cooked, puréed and pulverized mushrooms. Choose between a six or nine-course tasting menu at dinner, or three courses at lunch. 99restaurante.com Teatime traditions Missing your elevenses? Never fear: Chileans have la once (‘the eleven’), though theirs takes place in the late afternoon rather than the morning. Head to Café de la Candelaria after 5pm, order the set menu for two and watch as your table fills up with a pot of loose leaf tea, cherimoya juice, passion fruit cheesecake and a basket of warm breads with mashed avocado and local jams. cafedelacandelaria.cl Empanada break Deep-fried turnovers are ubiquitous elsewhere in Latin America but the oven-baked empanadas at La Punta really must be tried. As the line outside attests, this fast-food staple doesn’t get any better than this with a wide selection of imaginative stuffings, including artichokes, palm hearts and prawns. comidaslapunta.cl Foraged finds Chef Rodolfo Guzmán is on a one-man mission to revive the dormant cuisines of Chile’s indigenous Mapuche people at his restaurant, Boragó. Order the 18-course endémica tasting menu and you’ll sample dishes made with an array of local produce, including tola (an edible moss) and merkén (a smoked chilli pepper). borago.cl Market tour Head out with La Bicicleta Verde at 9:30am for a three-hour bicycle tour of Santiago’s best markets. The daily trips culminate with a stop at Mercado Central, a bustling seafood market. Look for stalls selling razor clams, salmon, sea urchins or octopus, and then try fresh ceviche. labicicletaverde.com Coffee buzz Macarena Sion had returned from a stint in London when she opened Faustina, a chic café that was desperately needed in this Nescafé-addicted city. Its rich and nutty artisanal roast has become a welcome find in Santiago for many a coffee-lover, while the croissants and alfajores keep visitors coming back for more. facebook.com/FaustinaCafe Wine time Skip Santiago’s urban wineries and make a beeline for Bocanariz. At this wine bar you’ll find more than 400 Chilean wines from the valleys that encircle the capital; many of the best bottles are available by the glass. It’s a great way to sample Chile’s silky carménères and crisp sauvignon blancs. bocanariz.cl Local larder Gourmet goods and free samples are two good reasons to stop off at La Despensa 1893, a compact food store selling high-end products from across the country, including craft beers from Patagonia, organic wines from the Central Valley and olive oils from the arid north. despensa1893.com Comfort foods Tucked within the rooms of a traditional Santiago home, unassuming Silabario elevates the cuisines of the Chilean countryside to new heights. Order the veranito de San Juan, a stew of smoked ribs, Chilote potatoes and longaniza sausages. Follow it with a homemade digestif infused with the antioxidant-packed murta berry. cocinalocal.cl HOW TO DO IT Direct return flights from London to Santiago start from £749 (ba.com). Double rooms at Hotel Magnolia cost from around £120, b&b (hotelmagnolia.cl). More info: chile.travel/en/ Words by Mark Johanson Photographs: Getty, Alamy
We've found 21 of the best chocolate eggs for Easter 2017. From classic chocolate eggs to floating balloons and contemporary cocoa art creations, egg-spect the unegg-spected!
As Easter approaches, you're probably spoilt for choice on what chocolate Easter eggs to buy your loved ones. To make the big decision a little easier, we sampled over 30 different types of eggs from 2017's offering and narrowed the list down to our favourites. Milk, dark, white chocolate - you name it, we've tried them all (someone had to do it!). In terms of originality, we loved Artisan du Chocolat's Balloon Easter egg for its playful design and think this one will probably 'fly' off the shelves. Another favourite was the latest creation from Selfridges, an art-inspired hand-painted Easter egg that's part of a limited edition of just 200 eggs released for 2017. It looks like a work of art and it tastes great too. Read on to find your favourite... Prestat Milk Chocolate Hot Cross Bun Spiced Easter Egg Prestat, chocolatier to Her Majesty The Queen, has added a hot cross bun inspired egg to their collection. This lightly spiced milk chocolate egg is filled with a clutch of mini gold foiled eggs with distinctive hints of orange zest and clove. Wrapped in a simple ribbon and placed in a beautifully designed lidded box, this chocolate egg certainly has the royal seal of approval. £17.50/170g Lindt LINDOR Stracciatella Easter Egg Created by Lindt's Master Chocolatiers, this smooth and creamy white chocolate egg is accompanied by melting Stracciatella truffles. The truffles are encased in a hard chocolate shell with a soft white chocolate and cocoa nibs centre... a cookies and cream dream! £8.99/285g Artisan Du Chocolat Balloon Egg This balloon inspired creation from Artisan du Chocolat is a really quirky design and will leave you nostalgic for your childhood. The egg is made with fine milk chocolate and passionfruit flavouring, with hints of caramel. The edible liquorice laces are a really nice touch and add to the floating balloon effect. Mini eggs are also hidden in the packaging and flavours include ginger coulis and pecan caramel. £25.00/300g Lidl Deluxe Fudge Feast This one proved to be the cheapest egg of our taste testing, and great value for money it is too. A classic Belgian milk chocolate egg loaded with mini chocolate and vanilla fudge pieces, plus creamy white chocolate drops thrown in for good measure. This funky egg design will satisfy any sweet tooth and is hard to beat on price. £2.99/200g Selfridges Selection Easter Egg An eye-catching egg created exclusively for Selfridges by The Chocolate Society in Somerset - it's part of a limited edition range of only 200 milk chocolate eggs which have been hand-painted by a team of expert chocolatiers. Every design is unique and its spring colours and vibrant brush work give it a Monet inspired look. It's as pretty as a painting and its fine milk chocolate is really light and creamy. £29.99/230g The Classic Raw Chocolate Easter Egg A healthier alternative to most Easter eggs from The Raw Chocolate Pie Company, simply made with raw cacao, raw coconut butter, raw agave nectar and no added sugar. The egg shell has a wholesome and authentic cocoa taste, and inside is filled with unsweetened goji berries and cranberries. Beautifully presented in a gold foil and wrapped in a red ribbon. It's dairy free, gluten free, soya free and suitable for vegetarians and vegans. £9.95/150g Harrods Milk Chocolate Caramelised Hazelnuts Easter Egg This one had a really nice design and is part of the Harrods Easter collection. A smooth thick milk chocolate shell is encrusted with crunchy and sweet caramelised hazelnuts. Crack it open and you'll find a generous handful of Belgian chocolate crispy pralines hidden inside. £25/280g M&S Dark Chocolate Quirky Bunny Not exactly an egg, but a very unique creation from Marks & Spencer. A dark chocolate rabbit with a quirky golden dusted exterior. The chocolate is very fine and suitable for those who like their dark chocolate a little bit richer and not too sweet. £10/220g Divine Milk Chocolate Popcorn egg Divine Chocolate has teamed up with award-winning popcorn brand Joe & Seph's to create this luxurious Milk Chocolate Gourmet Popcorn egg. Divine's smooth milk chocolate is encrusted with Joe and Seph's gourmet salted caramel popcorn for the perfect sweet and salty treat. The first of its kind, this Fairtrade certified egg is made with Fairtrade ingredients and includes two extra snack sized Joe & Seph’s salted caramel popcorn sachets for sharing... or not. £11/232g Bettys Saddleback Pig This little farmyard fellow was so cute, we almost didn't want to eat him (but we had to for the purpose of research!). Made from fine Swiss milk chocolate, Bettys indulgent and creamy milk chocolate saddleback pig is hand-decorated with white chocolate and stands proudly on milk chocolate ‘mud’. His cocoa dusted coat adds that extra special farmyard touch. £9.95/130g Michel Cluizel Origami Rabbit Parisian chocolatier Michel Cluizel has created this striking and wonderfully delicious Origami Rabbit to help you celebrate Easter in style. Handmade using shades of milk and dark chocolate, this little bunny is finished off with a simple creamy white chocolate egg. £11.25/130g Choc on Choc Belgian Chocolate Husked Coconut Known for their unique chocolate creations, the folk over at Choc on Choc have done it again with this coconut themed Easter egg. On the outside it has the same grooves and ridges of a real coconut, but crack open that hard milk chocolate exterior and you'll find a smooth white chocolate layer, plus a handful of golden foil milk chocolate eggs hidden inside. A tropical twist on the traditional Easter egg, and the contrast of milk and white chocolate is always a good combination. £15/390g Lily O’Brien’s Sea Salted Caramel Egg This indulgent hand crafted milk chocolate egg from Lily O'Brien's perfectly balances the sweetness of the chocolate with subtle hints of sea salt. It also comes with a generous selection of milk and dark chocolate sea salted caramels. Our favourite is the smooth milk chocolate caramel topped with crispy toffee balls! £12/330g Bettys Spring Flower egg Bettys traditional spring flowers egg is beautifully decorated with royal icing bluebells and swirls of chocolate piping. The chocolate itself is smooth and not too sweet – as one of our tasters said, ‘it makes me happy!’ £25/350g Lick the Spoon emerald egg A pistachio milk chocolate egg (what a wonderful flavour combination) decorated like stained glass and accompanied by six pistachio caramel chocolates in a little pull out drawer. £25/220g Chococo Dorset Dinosaur Studded Egg We love the chocolate fossils buried inside this Dorset-made egg – can you find all four? The marbled dark and white chocolate egg is super sweet (great for kids) and lovely to look at. £10.95/175g Oeuf Chocolat au Lait from PAUL French artisan bakery and patisserie PAUL is known for its carefully crafted treats, and this Easter they have a collection of delights to suit most chocoholics. For those who love a classic, this rich milk chocolate egg is indulgent and creamy and the shell is not too fine. It's finished off with a delicate and pretty floral design. £9.95/250g Green & Black’s Organic Butterscotch Egg Crunchy, interesting and ‘a little surprising’ according to olive editor Laura Rowe. There’s a good flavour to this one, and the little butterscotch pieces make for a great texture. £6.59/165g Godiva Small Dark Chocolate Egg A shiny dark chocolate Easter egg with a satisfying 'snap' to it. We like the simple decoration and the four mini eggs inside (two milk chocolate; two white chocolate) are super smooth and creamy. £7.50/175g Booja Booja Fine de Champagne Easter egg 12 handmade, dairy-free, fine de champagne truffles packaged in a papier-mâché egg made in Kashmir. Rich, boozy and divine, these two-bite truffles are spectacularly good. £24.99/150g Pierre Hermé Paris - La 'Poule' d'apres François Pompon Inspired by French sculptor François Pompon, the latest Easter creation from Pierre Hermé Paris is this smooth and delicate chocolate hen which is available in milk chocolate or the signature Grand Cru Pure Origin dark Madagascan chocolate. It is smooth and creamy and stands on a hollow chocolate perch, which contains an assortment of rich milk and dark ganache and praliné filled eggs. £36/250g Charlotte reveals her tips for working with chocolate (and editor Laura reveals something, perhaps she shouldn't have, too) olive magazine ep23 - chocolate tips, London Cocktail Week and school dinners View oEmbed on the source website
Dani Soto-Innes, Cosme, New York: chef interview
Introducing Dani Soto-Innes, one of New York City’s most exciting young chefs, who likes to make her kitchen sweat
For many people, 2016 will be a year to forget. But for a young chef in New York City it was a one to savour. Daniela (Dani) Soto-Innes, 25-year-old chef de cuisine of modern Mexican restaurant Cosme, in the Flatiron district, was given the prestigious James Beard Award for Rising Star Chef of the Year just eighteen months after opening with her longtime mentor and collaborator Enrique Olvera. The restaurant, which fuses Mexican dry ingredients – corn, beans and chillies – and great local products, also entered the world’s top 100 for the first time. They are the kind of accolades that not only dramatically raise a chef’s profile but the formal cachet attached to it invites a new level of scrutiny. Suddenly the world is watching. But, for a relentless learner like Dani, the award (and accompanying status) is met with a mixture of shock, pride and polite indifference. “A lot more people know who I am now but that just helps reinforce to me that I can’t stop – I’ve got to keep getting better. Prizes don’t mean anything,” she says. On learning that she had been nominated, she arrived at the ceremony with a small bottle of mezcal, ready to cheer on her friends, never expecting her own name to be called out. When it was, she recalls thinking “I’m not going up there! I so wasn’t expecting it to be me.” In the time it takes to speak about the effect the award has had on her career in the six months since, she demonstrates the focus that marks out those who reach the top of their profession. She says that more than awards, what matters to her is, “how happy my staff are, how full the restaurant is and how good our food is.” If an award has a positive effect on any of those things, then great, but that “if it changes you [regardless], then that’s stupid.” Even if that’s a PR-prepared answer that intentionally conceals the recognition of its importance, it’s an answer that matches the facile line of questioning that inevitably follows a high-profile award, and the sudden interest in an apparently new talent. Dani Soto-Innes is justified in thinking that there’s much more to her than merely the current James Beard Rising Star Chef of the Year. Born in Mexico City in 1991, with a move to Texas at the age of 12, by 15 she had her first professional role in a kitchen at the Woodlands Waterway Marriot Hotel. At 18 Dani enrolled at Le Cordon Bleu in Austin. But food and cooking has always been an important part of her life, both culturally and among her immediate family. “Food culture is so strong in Mexico: the trucks, the restaurants…” she says, “you can’t avoid it!” Though her mum, who had designs on becoming a chef, became a lawyer, there was a strong tradition of working professionally in food in the family. Her great grandmother had a cookery school in Italy, while her grandmother managed a bakery. Dani felt an affinity for the craft and at Montessori school – “where they focus on kids’ creativity rather than grades” – a cookery class was created especially for her – an enthusiastic, budding young cook. She’d been taking extra curricular cookery classes since the age of five. Even though she’s now just 25, and despite her insistence that “she doesn’t know anything”, ‘budding’ is no longer an apt adjective. ‘Enthusiastic’, however, is. She’s indefatigable in the kitchen and in her million-miles-per-hour potted autobiography on the phone. It’s not hard to imagine the same zeal and infectious passion – together with loyalty and integrity – underpinning the familial spirit and high achievement in Cosme’s basement kitchen. “I have a lot of energy,” she says. It has meant that she has found the leadership and managerial business of kitchens a challenge, initially. “I need to keep myself busy and I wanted to have my butt kicked – I needed more.” She was referring to the time, after her first sous-chef role at 20 or 21 at Triniti and later, under her first mentor Chris Shepherd at Underbelly, both in Houston, Texas. There she learnt how to cook, about provenance, and also whole animal butchery. But “starting at 5am and finishing at 2am, I always found myself in the shit and quickly realised I didn’t know how to delegate,” she says, ingenuously. Perhaps realising that, a victim of her own success, she’d risen too rapidly, she wanted to go back to being told what to do, and so decided to write to people she admired. One of them was Mexico’s leading chef, Enrique Olvera, then with his sole, now his flagship restaurant, Pujol, in Mexico City. (At the time, it was the third highest-ranked restaurant on “Latin America’s 50 Best” list.) To Dani’s surprise he wrote back the following day with an invitation to take a stage at the restaurant. She intended to stay for the weekend but was there for six months. “We got on really well,” she says. Well enough for him to give her the opportunity to open his restaurant in New York in 2014, a project in which they’re effectively partners. She’s got to grips with running the kitchen now too, albeit in her own way. Keeping morale high when doing 300 covers a day is a priority. There’s an eclectic playlist to keep spirits up: “We have plenty of good jams – Reggaeton, ’80s, ’70s, hip-hop, a little Madonna, some Journey, and they hate it at the end of the night when I play Pink Floyd,” she says, laughing. But the key? “Stretches and squats, pre-service. If I have weak cooks, they won’t be fast,” she says. “I make them sweat. Are you kidding me? How am I gonna make this the slickest kitchen in NYC?! We’re such a strong family that when you come to Cosme it feels like my home, not a restaurant.” At the end of the next American Presidential term, Dani won’t yet be 30-years-old. The challenges facing a young Mexican woman have been made all too clear, but she’s thrived in an industry once characterised by macho culture through purity of purpose, appetite to learn, and a warm-spirited embrace of togetherness. This inspiring young leader can be an example to all. cosmenyc.com DANI IN SHORT Favourite dish: Tacos, any kind, or quesadillas Favourite drink: mezcal, tecate or gin and tonic Most memorable meal: Osso, Peru Chef you admire most: Pascal Barbot (L’Astrance, Paris) Guilty pleasure: Chocolate ice cream DANI'S GUIDE TO NYC • Lilia, Italian – Williamsburg, Brooklyn, lilianewyork.com • Vanessa’s, Dumplings – various, Brooklyn, vanessas.com • Los Tacos No.1, Tacos – Chelsea, Manhattan, lostacos1.com • Uncle Boons, Thai – Nolita, Manhattan, uncleboons.com • Nomad, By Daniel Humm – Nomad, Manhattan, thenomadhotel.com
Eco chef and activist Tom Hunt gives some practical ways to reduce food waste at home
Food waste is at the top of the global agenda, and for good reason – as individuals we can each make a difference through mindful eating and reducing our waste at home. The simple act of not putting left-over or uneaten food in the bin will save an impressive amount of resources and energy and help reduce climate change. It’s not often that our own small actions can create change and have a positive impact on the environment, but reducing our waste does make a difference. Waste is not just the produce we see wilting in the fridge or in bins at the supermarket, waste includes all the resources, energy and human power that goes into making that food, and the emissions that are created by that food being thrown away. This is why, through our own small choices, we can have a huge impact on the environment. To describe my love for food and ethical living, I’ve coined the phrase ‘root-to-fruit eating’ which means to eat mindfully, reconnecting with the value that we place on our food, the planet and the farmers who grow our ingredients, thus reducing waste. At my restaurant, Poco, we practice root-to-fruit eating, which has led us to use the best-quality products we can find and to become zero waste. Tips on Root-to-Fruit Eating By giving a little extra thought to your food habits you can reduce your waste and increase the quality of your diet 1) Eat for pleasure Take time to shop, cook and eat for pleasure. Buy direct from farmers and producers and from shopkeepers who take pride in the quality of their produce. And, whenever possible, grow your own. Having a connection with your food will help you savour it all the more. 2) Eat seasonally Choosing to eat seasonally improves the quality of our food while simultaneously reducing the cost of the ingredients. Seasonal food goes hand-in-hand with eating locally and eating more vegetables, all factors which reduce your impact on the environment and reduce waste in the food industry. A short, local food chain produces less waste through simpler logistics. Eating more vegetables reduces the resources that would have gone into producing meat. 3) Eat whole foods Eating ingredients in their entirety, whether wholegrain or vegetable – skins, stalks, leaves and seeds – means we’re consuming the most nutritious parts. By eating food that we’d normally throw away we save in production costs and then have money to spend on higher-welfare foods. Practical tips for reducing your food waste Preserve food Make chutneys, jams and pickles with surplus food. Eat less fish And eat abundant, undervalued species. Eat less meat Choose the less common cuts of meat that offer better quality, lower impact and value for money. Go local Locally-produced food often uses fewer resources than imported foods. Eat chemical-free Fertilisers and pesticides waste natural resources and reduce soil quality. Be creative Don’t follow recipes to the letter – use what you have. Use your freezer If a food can’t be eaten before it perishes, freeze it for later. Love your leftovers Leftovers save time and provide free meals. Words by Tom Hunt Photograph by Rob Streeter eco chef and restaurateur Tom Hunt comes into the studio to explain his root-to-fruit philosophy and gives the team tips on reducing food waste olive magazine podcast ep35 - turbo G&Ts, charcoal lattes and root-to-fruit eating with eco chef Tom Hunt View oEmbed on the source website
Woky Ko, Wapping Wharf, Bristol: restaurant review
This pint-sized eatery serves top-notch, street-food-inspired dishes – whipped up by a MasterChef finalist, no less
In a nutshell Woky Ko is one of many new, remarkably small restaurants and bars housed in CARGO, a converted shipping container part of the Wapping Wharf housing development on Bristol’s harbourside. The menu is made up of flavours you'll recognise, but all have been cleverly lifted or shaken up a little. These are dishes that could easily be greasy or heavy, but, instead, taste fresh and lively. Who’s cooking You might recognise Woky Ko’s creator and head chef, Larkin Cen: he made it to the final of MasterChef in 2013. After his success on the show, Larkin quit his job as a solicitor to start his own foodie business. Following his first venture (Hokkei, a takeaway delivery service), Larkin began working at the five-star Celtic Manor Resort in Wales. He took time to refine the ideas that Hokkei was originally based on, and Woky Ko was born. What's cooking Plates arrive as and when they’re ready – swiftly, and in quick succession. Larkin pops out from behind the pass to have a chat, and talk us through the menu. He tells us how, after MasterChef, he felt there was an expectation that fine-dining should be his next move. But that wasn’t what excited him: having grown up in a Chinese takeaway in Wales, and fallen in love with the hustle and bustle of Hong Kong’s eateries, Larkin wanted to create food that was more personal to him. So the dishes at Woky Ko offer everything street food stands for: they’re fast, flavoursome and accessible, and are made with obvious care too. Plus, the whole menu is pleasingly healthy - there’s no MSG, and all ingredients are responsibly sourced. What’s the room like/atmosphere The space seems impossibly small from the outside – more cupboard than restaurant. But it still manages to feel cosy and companionable. Due to the unusual size of the place, all the wooden, minimalist furniture is bespoke. The open kitchen takes up a third of Woky Ko’s space, which leaves room for around 20 covers. It’s easy to forget that the open kitchen is right beside us, impressively quiet as it is. Instead, we relax to ephemeral, electronic indie tunes as we admire the custom woodwork and the pretty parasols that cover the ceiling. The just-right lighting, friendly buzz and intimate surrounds make this spot perfect for a date night. Menu must-orders and misfires Larkin’s been bold, and opted to feature just one pudding on his menu. Lucky, then, that it’s a corker. The salted caramel ice cream bao is tiny but mighty: the warm, deep-fried bun is sugar-topped, donut-like, and stuffed with coconut ice cream and rich salted caramel. The melting ice cream and sticky sauce make for a fun, and very messy, mouthful. Other stand-out dishes include the crispy duck rice noodle salad, where vibrant orange zings through the rich, decadently fatty meat. Seabass tartare is a dish of delicious contrasts, too. Cut fresh from the bone, the sushi-grade fish is gently infused with citrus flavour, thanks to a lime marinade. The soft slips taste even more tender alongside chilli and crunchy daikon slivers. The verdict The kooky space, the soul-warming menu, the charming proprietor and staff: it may be small, but Woky Ko sure is perfectly formed. We reckon the central, harbourside location and reasonable prices will make it easy to become a regular here (sharing plates average around a fiver and baos are around £4, while noodle and rice bowls are between £7.95 - £9.95). Woky Ko, Unit 7, CARGO, Wapping Wharf, Gaol Ferry Steps, Bristol BS16WP www.woky.co Words by Rosie Sharratt November 2016