Lunch at Nathan Outlaw’s

While Monica Shaw was covering blog posts on Great British Menu for us, she became a big fan of Nathan Outlaw.  She recently went on a foodie holiday to Cornwall and luckily had the opportunity to have lunch at Nathan’s Seafood Bar & Grill at the St Endoc Hotel at Rock.  Find out what she ate and how she coped meeting one of her food heroes.

Photography & blog post by Monica Shaw

When I found out I was going on a seafood-focused holiday with The Food Travel Company, I wrote the company and asked (insert kiddish-sounding voice here): “Can we go to Nathan Outlaw’s?” I didn’t think they’d say yes, but they did, and I had no idea what a treat I was in for.

I’d become a fan of Nathan (who is also amongst our Great British Chefs) while covering Great British Menu over the last few months.  Nathan showed up in the Southwest Heats and I was super impressed with his simple, classic approach to preparing seafood.

Furthermore, he stuck to his guns - while other chefs were doing crazy things with foams and smears, Nathan kicked out simple but elegant dishes like seared mackerel and barbecue monkfish. This was totally my style.

But it left me wondering: how does a guy who makes such simple food raise it to heights worthy of two Michelin stars?

My trip to Cornwall was my opportunity to find out.

Nathan Outlaw’s restaurant is part of The St. Enodoc Hotel in Rock, Cornwall, and is accompanied by the more casual Seafood & Grill on the same premises. For lack of tables in his main restaurant (I should have known that to get a table at Nathan Outlaw’s, one must book well in advance), we had lunch at the grill.

As his Great British Menu performance foreshadowed, the menu was simple: you’re given a list of fish, a list of sauces, and a list of sides. No bells and whistles here: think fish like grilled whole plaice and pan-fried cod, and sauces like tartare and parsley with lemon and garlic.

I went for the oven roasted turbot on the bone with tartare sauce (as recommended by the server), along with sides of heritage carrots with caraway seeds and hand cut chips.

It was here I began to discover what makes the food so special: yes, this is simple food, but the ingredients are beautiful and the preparation is second to none. Still, there’s more to the story, and I discovered this when Nathan graciously came around to my table for a chat.

“It’s about the hard arduous search for the best ingredients,” said Nathan. And those ingredients represent the best of Britain, and particularly Cornwall. In fact, as Nathan chatted with us, he kept glancing out the window at the Camel estuary, a source of much inspiration, and indeed the mussels that Nathan uses at his restaurant.

“Rick Stein’s food is very much tied to his travels, but mine is very much a British thing,” said Nathan, who worked for Rick Stein at the Seafood Restaurant in Padstow before very much going his own way with his restaurant. But Rick’s restaurant is where Nathan’s passion for seafood began. Other chefs Nathan admires are Mark Hix for the way he writes his menus, and Mitch Tonks, Nathan’s favourite restaurant of all time: “it’s got body and soul”. 

Massive thank you to Nathan for the chat and the fabulous lunch (and for entertaining my photographic spontaneity). I’m still thinking about that wonderfully gherkiny / capery tartare and perfect turbot. It’s what Nathan Outlaw’s style is all about: simple, British food, done to the highest standard one can achieve. 

My trip to Nathan Outlaw’s was arranged and provided by The Food Travel Company as part of their South West England holiday, for more information  follow them on Twitter at @foodtravelco. Visit Nathan Outlaw’s restaurant at www.nathan-outlaw.com.

You can find some of Nathan Outlaw’s fantastic dishes to make at home on Great British Chefs website.

Rock Oyster Festival Recap

Last weekend was the Rock Oyster Festival (22nd - 24th June 2012), a food, music and arts festival held on the banks of Cornwall’s Camel estuary, well-known for its oysters that are of such a quality, even our own Great British Chefs’ Nathan Outlaw uses them in his two Michelin star restaurant nearby.  Monica Shaw reports on the festival, with unsuprisingly a bigger focus on food.

Photography & blog post by Monica Shaw

I had a chance to experience the Rock Oyster Festival last Saturday as part of a seafood-focused group holiday organised and hosted by The Food Travel Company. The festival is as much about music and family as it is about food, but I’ve got a one-track mind, and the day was short, so I focused my attention on sampling the edible wares on offer.

Rock Oyster Festival’s line-up of chefs and food producers was pretty impressive. Paul Ainsworth (another chefs from Great British Chefs site) was there giving a demo, along with MasterChef winner James Nathan and numerous other esteemed chefs from Cornwall.

Rick Stein also made an appearance as one of the judges of the oyster shucking competition. In fact, one of the highlights of the day was meeting Rick and thanking him in person for his incredibly useful books, a huge asset to me as I’ve learned to cook with seafood.

I should also add that Rick’s restaurant was dishing up some amazing fish tacos, more than fulfilling my nostalgia for the fish tacos I used to devour when I lived in Austin, Texas.

Of course, this being the Rock Oyster Festival, oysters were a high priority. And how lucky were we to be introduced to Tim Marshall and his son, Luke, of Rock Shellfish. The Marshall family has owned Porthilly Farm for five generations, farming oysters and mussels on the banks of the Camel estuary, and supplying numerous restaurants including nearby Nathan Outlaw’s and Rick Stein’s.

Tim and Luke are the friendliest of foodies and let us get up close and personal with the art of oyster shucking (not as easy as it looks). They also treated us to a platter of the finest oysters I’ve ever tasted, served simply with a bit of vinegar and samphire. Delicious, and particularly good with Camel Valley’s Brut, an award-winning Cornish bubbly, generously poured by the folks at Wadebridge Wines.

It’s worth pointing out that, as far as festivals go, the Rock Oyster Festival is on the small side, and if you’re not into music or sitting around eating and drinking, you might find yourself a bit bored. But I confess, I warmed up to the festival as the day wore on. The food merchants and personalities who were there were of top quality, and the people (even the famous ones) were all incredibly friendly and happy to have a chat. Plus, the place is vast, with plenty of tables and chairs and green spaces for just “being”.  And I can now say with certainty: there are few finer things in life than whiling away the afternoon drinking bubbly, eating oysters and having lots of laughs with friends old and new.

My trip to the Rock Oyster Festival was arranged and provided by The Food Travel Company as part of their Seafood Safari Cornwall holiday. For more information visit thefoodtravelcompany.com or follow them on Twitter at @foodtravelco.

Great British Menu 2012 - Preview of Finals

For the last eight weeks in the seventh series of The Great British Menu we’ve watched twenty four of Great Britain’s finest chefs battle it out. Now eight chefs including four chefs from Great British Chefs site are hoping they’ll be repesenting their region to serve at an Olympic banquet at the end of the week. This week (starting 4th June 2012) we will finally get to see who will go through to cook at the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich.

Daniel Clifford’s Raspberry and tarragon, cookie dough and tarragon oil from BBC’s Great British Menu

Here’s a round up of the chefs in the final.  Nathan Outlaw who won the South West round. Joing Alan Murchison who won the Scottish round,  Daniel Clifford who won the Central round, Colin McCurran who won the North East round, Chris Fearon who won the Northern Ireland round, Simon Rogan who won the North West round, Phil Howard who won the London & South East round and Stephen Terry who won the Wales round.

Hog’s pudding with seaweed, potato terrine & mushroom ketchup by Nathan Outlaw from BBC2’s Great British Menu

In Monday’s show the finalists prepare their starters, to be tasted and scored by the Great British Menu judges and veteran judge Richard Corrigan.

On Tuesday, the remaining finalists cook their fish dishes, which will be tasted and scored by the Great British Menu judges and veteran judge Marcus Wareing. 

Lobster with pickled beetroot and sweet apple by Simon Rogan - from BBC’s Great British Menu

On Wednesday, the chosen finalists will prepare their main courses, with veteran judge Tom Kerridge tasting and scoring alongside the other Great British Menu judges 

Daniel Clifford’s slow poached chicken, sweetcorn egg and chicken spray from BBC’s Great British Menu

On Thursday it’s the final chance to impress the judges with desserts. The Great British Menu judges will be joined by veteran judge Angela Hartnett.

Alan Murchison’s Going for Gold Dessert

On Friday, the four winners will have been announced and the final show follows the successful chefs in the run-up to the banquet.  You’ll see their painstaking preparations for what is likely to be one of the most important meals they will ever cook.

You can see the full line up of chefs and judges for the Great British Menu 2012 here.  Plus don’t forget our special Great British Menu Recipe Collection. The definitive collection of recipes for Great British Menu fans, featuring old favourites like Nigel Haworth’s Lancashire hotpot, Lisa Allen’s rabbit turnover and Paul Ainsworth’s Taste of the Fairground, as well as newer classics from Great British Menu 2012 like Daniel Clifford’s stuffed red mullet dish and Alan Murchison’s veal sweetbreads 

All this week Great British Menu will be on BBC2 at 7pm. We wish all competing chefs the best of luck in the run up to the banquet.

Great British Menu 2012 - South West Heat Finals

Friday 1st June 2012 saw the end of possibly one of the best weeks of Great British Menu. In the South West round all three competitors Simon Hulstone, Paul Ainsworth and Nathan Outlaw showed British cooking at its best.  However, only one chef could go through.  Great British Chefs blogger Monica Shaw was on hand to see who that would be. 

Blog post by Monica Shaw

Is it just me or was the South West week one of the best weeks of Great British Menu? The three competitors - Simon Hulstone, Paul Ainsworth and Nathan Outlaw - represented a phenomenal trio of chefs, all with strong personalities and incredible skill. But each chef is decidedly different and it was impossible to predict whose style would make its way to the judge’s chamber. And with all three chefs being part of the Great British Chefs website, we couldn’t help but cheer them all on.

Simon Hulstone’s dessert from BBC2’s Great British Menu

But come Thursday night, judge Tom Kerridge had spoken, and competitive newcomer Simon Hulstone (despite an amazing dessert) took a bow, leaving Paul and Nathan to battle it out under the careful judging of Prue Leith, Matthew Fort and Oliver Peyton.

There was no confusing whose dish was whose, with Nathan standing out for his classic dishes made with local ingredients, whereas Paul used specially commissioned serving platters to create theatre and playful presentations.

Hog’s pudding with seaweed, potato terrine & mushroom ketchup by Nathan Outlaw from BBC2’s Great British Menu

Nathan was first up with his starter of hog’s pudding with seaweed, potato terrine and mushroom ketchup: his take on a hearty Olympic breakfast. All of the judges were quick to criticise its appearance: “it’s a bit beige,” said Matthew. But the flavour combination was a “beautiful piece of thinking” according to Oliver. Prue agreed: “Composition is perfect…it just looks awful.”

Breakfast of Champions by Paul Ainsworth from BBC2’s Great British Menu

Paul’s ‘Breakfast of Champions’ brought more breakfast fare, this time pork belly with hash browns and an innovative black pudding pan au chocolat. “The high point is the bacon…cured to perfection,” said Oliver. Prue praised the poached egg with potato crust: “this is just wonderful.” But Matthew was unconvinced by the serving of breakfast as an Olympic starter: “I want them not to have breakfast; I want them to have something they’ve never eaten before.”

Mackerel and mackerel belly roll with oyster, horseradish & cucumber sauce by Nathan Outlaw from BBC2’s Great British Menu

Moving on to the fish course, Nathan - a two Michelin starred seafood chef - was feeling pretty confident with his mackerel and mackerel belly roll served with an oyster, horseradish and cucumber sauce, which scored a 9 during the heats. The judges weren’t convinced. Oliver called it “poncified fish” with “no personality”: “I’m looking for rock n’ roll”. Matthew Fort agreed that the “mackerel needs a more powerful hit to stand up to the sauce.”

Monkfish, Two Showings by Paul Ainsworth from BBC2’s Great British Menu 

Paul’s Monkfish ‘Two Showings’ seemed to fair better, with all of the judges enjoying his nose-to-tail monkfish served on an inventive two-tiered Colosseum-shaped platter. All of the judges enjoyed the top tier: “the curry deep fried monkfish is quite amazing,” said Oliver. But the second tier - monkfish liver on toast - ended things on a bitter note, with Prue visibly cringing at the taste: “too powerful for me.”

Wishful Chicken by Paul Ainsworth from BBC2’s Great British Menu

For the main course, it was Paul’s turn to feel confident - his ‘Wishful Chicken’ chicken kiev scored a perfect 10 during the heats. And here the judges mostly agreed, with Oliver calling it a “triumph”. But there was some debate over whether the elements worked together, with Matthew once again criticising its “beigeness”.

Duck, barbecue monkfish, rosemary, samphire and asparagus by Nathan Outlaw from BBC2’s Great British Menu

It was left to Nathan’s modern day surf n’ turf of duck, barbecue monkfish, rosemary, samphire and asparagus to steal the show. And steal it did. All of the chefs loved the barbecue sauce, but it was the whole combination that made this outstanding. “We’ve never had meat and fish together and I love the way the various elements are knitted,” said Matthew, “when they come together they make something even better and that’s where the true genius lies.” Prue agreed: this was “gold medal winning stuff.”

Elderflower and lemon tart, strawberry sorbet and meringues by Nathan Outlaw from BBC2’s Great British Menu

If Nathan’s main was a win, his pudding was surely a letdown, with all of the judges lambasting his elderflower and lemon tart, strawberry sorbet and meringues. “It’s not a good sorbet,” said Oliver. “The base is very undercooked,” said Prue of the tart: “this is clearly a chef who’s a great chef, but doesn’t think pudding is important - it’s not up to scratch.”

“Then & Now” by Paul Ainsworth from BBC2’s Great British Menu

Following that, the judges must have been thoroughly pleased to end on Paul’s ‘Then & Now’, a pudding of pistachio and olive oil sponge with chocolate disk and gold caramel sauce. “This chocolate disc is completely orgasmic,” said Matthew. “If I just won a gold medal and had a choice between the medal and this chocolate pudding, I’d choose the pudding - it’s Nirvana,” said Oliver.

And so, it was judgment time. Earlier in the episode, Oliver Peyton said, “I want the chefs to demonstrate to the world the greatness of Britain.” And so despite Paul’s “dazzling” menu, it was Nathan who won on “pure gastronomy”, an apt reminder that Great British Menu is about showcasing British food, which Nathan certainly does with his use of local Southwest ingredients cooked simply but to perfection.

Well done Nathan Outlaw for winning the South West heat! And well done Paul Ainsworth and Simon Hulstone who put up some pretty heavy competition. It was a fantastic week.

If you’re in the UK you can watch this episode on BBC’s iPlayer for the next few days.

The heats are over, and next week, it’s the finals!  Nathan Outlaw will join Alan Murchison who won the Scottish round,  Daniel Clifford who won the Central round, Colin McCurran who won the North East round, Chris Fearon who won the Northern Ireland round, Simon Rogan who won the North West round, Phil Howard who won the London & South East round and Stephen Terry who won the Wales round. You can see the full line up of chefs and judges for the Great British Menu 2012 here.

Blog post & photography by Monica Shaw

What did you think of the results of the Southwest finals?  

Great British Menu 2012 - South West Heat Preview

Week Eight of the seventh series of The Great British Menu and the last of the regional heats ends with the South West. Over these eight weeks, twenty four of Great Britain’s finest chefs including many chefs from Great British Chefs site are competing in regional heats for the opportunity to create a four course menu at an Olympic banquet, hosted by sporting legend Sir Steve Redgrave with a guest list of British sporting greats.  This week (starting 28th May 2012) chefs from the South West will be competing to create the final banquet.

At Great British Chefs we’ll be cheering on all three competitors Simon Hulstone, Paul Ainsworth and Nathan Outlaw - who can all be found on our site.  Tom Kerridge  pictured above will be judging their efforts this week. 

Paul Ainsworth is a frequent competitor on Great British Menu, wowing the judges with his Taste of the Fairground dessert in the final banquet in 2011.  His Toffee Apple and Marshmallow Kebabs were part of his fairground themed menu

Toffee Apple and Marshmallow Kebabs by Paul Ainsworth

Southampton-born Paul got his break courtesy of Gary Rhodes. After spending three years at Rhodes in the Square, Ainsworth moved to Gordon Ramsay’s organisation, working first at his flagship Royal Hospital Road restaurant and then with Marcus Wareing at Petrus.

In 2006, the opportunity to open a restaurant with two friends brought Ainsworth to the West Country. Here they opened Number 6, set in a Georgian town house in the Cornish fishing village of Padstow.

After three years emulating his culinary mentors, Ainsworth put his name above the door and re-thought his approach. Now Paul Ainsworth at Number 6 restaurant serves simpler, more affordable food – appealing to both tourists and locals, and achieving two AA rosettes.

Boiled Egg and Soldiers by Nathan Outlaw

Nathan Outlaw began his career at his father’s restaurant in Kent, perfecting his culinary technique at Thanet College. Following a decade of work with the likes of Peter Kromburg, Rick Stein, Paul Ripley and John Campbell, Outlaw opened Restaurant Nathan Outlaw at the St Enodoc in 2007 and the Nathan Outlaw Seafood and Grill in 2009.

Since then, he’s garnered two stars from the critics at Michelin, and his eponymous eatery has been named Best Fish Restaurant and one of the UK’s top 10 restaurants by the Good Food Guide. Nathan has appeared on the Good Food Channel’s Market Kitchen, as well as the BBC’s Saturday Kitchen and Great British Menu. 

Tea and Cake by Nathan Outlaw

His food can be very playful as witnessed by his tea and cake recipe and his Boiled Egg and Soldier recipe which both featured in Great British Menu in 2009. 

Finally and with is first time to the show will be be Simon Hulstone. The son of a chef, Simon was a Roux Scholar, Knorr National Chef of the Year and World Junior Chef by the time he was 30. After working in kitchens like Cotswold House, Cheltenham’s Bacchanalian and the Bailiffscourt Hotel, he moved to Devon to head up the Elephant, having already attracted the Michelin panel’s attention.

Mackerel pate and cucumber pickle by Simon Hulstone

Simon was selected to redesign the menu for BA First Class in 2012 and was the star of its pop up venue in East London.  Like Nathan he has also contributed recipes to both of the Great British Chefs apps.

On Monday’s episode,  Paul, Simon & Nathan will be presenting their starters.  On Tuesday, they move onto a fish course, on Wednesday main course and on Thursday it’s the turn of desserts.  For each of those days they will have to impress veteran judge Tom Kerridge before going through to Friday’s final.

On Friday the two chefs who receive the most points from Tom for the week will cook their dishes again for restaurateur and cookery writer, Prue Leith, fellow restaurateur and businessman, Oliver Peyton, and food journalist and author, Matthew Fort.  Matthew is Great British Chefs strategic advisor who also blogs for us and writes the introductions for a number of our ingredient collections.  The winner will go into the finals (joining Alan Murchison who won the Scottish round,  Daniel Clifford who won the Central round, Colin McCurran who won the North East round, Chris Fearon who won the Northern Ireland round, Simon Rogan who won the North West round, Phil Howard who won the London & South East round and Stephen Terry who won the Wales round).

You can see the full line up of chefs and judges for the Great British Menu 2012 here. Also catch up on last week’s Wales Heat Final Great British Menu judging on our blog.  This week Great British Menu will be on BBC2 at its regular time of 7.30pm.

Poseidon’s cookbook - Nathan Outlaw’s British Seafood

Nathan Outlaw is well known as the only fish-focused chef in the country with 2 Michelin stars and his first cookbook “Nathan Outlaw’s British Seafood” has been long-awaited. It came out this week. Ollie (our CEO at Great British Chefs) was keen to get hold of a copy to review & try one of the dishes as soon as possible

Blog post & review by Ollie Lloyd

Nathan’s best known as the only fish-focused chef in the country with 2 Michelin stars and his cookbook has been long-awaited. It came out this week and mine arrived yesterday morning.  Clearly there was only one logical plan – choose a recipe, hit the nearest shop and cook dinner with my wife (and then catch up on the final installment of Homeland).

It is worth saying that my wife and I are obsessed with fish which being Island People should come as no surprise (she from Sri Lanka and me from Britain)! We regularly hit Billingsgate Market at 6.30am on a Saturday to cater for over-ambitious dinner parties and are fairly well known by our two local fishmongers. 

Cornish salt pollack, squid and mussel stew by Nathan Outlaw

We have happily collected mussels from the shorelines of Cornwall after a particularly high tide and presented them to our horrified weekend hosts (to be fair they were a little on the sandy side). We have many a fish cookbook – (Tom Aiken’s ‘Fish’, Atul Kochar ‘Fish Indian style’, ‘The River Cottage Fish book’, Rick Stein’s ‘Seafood Odyssey’, Douglas Rodriguez’s ‘The Great Ceviche Book’), but there is always room for one more.

The first thing to say about Nathan’s book, is that, as the title suggests, it is dedicated to British fish. This book is packed with recipes for neglected fish; brill, megrim, witch, gurnard, rays and sardines. He transforms what he calls the ‘scary croaking gurnard’ into a ‘red gurnard soup with samphire and orange’. The humble herring (which is highly sustainable and should be eaten regularly straight from the barbeque), is offered up in a glamorous tomato soup with basil oil. He has transformed the viscous ling into burgers served with shallots and cider mustard relish.

With a forward from Rick Stein and over 250 pages, each recipe is clear, concise and has an accompanying image (which visual cooks like myself will greatly appreciate). The book introduces each fish with a tone of voice that is distinctly Nathan. He reveals that John Dory is not ugly but ‘unusual’, a by-catch for fishermen and due to an incident in Galilee also blessed by St Peter (hence the nickname Saint Peter’s fish).

Ling and razor clams with seaweed, bacon and samphire by Nathan Outlaw

He tells tales of coins found inside the body of Ling (they eat anything they can find) and gives helpful advice about which rays we should be eating (spotted, starry and cuckoo) and what we should be avoiding (skate).

Towards the end there is a section on stocks, sauces, garnishes and even breads to accompany his dishes. The only thing I wasn’t convinced by were the use of black and white images to illustrate the ‘preparation techniques’ section – a very minor complaint.

Red mullet and squid with oven-dried tomatoes, wild fennel and pickled mushrooms by Nathan Outlaw

For those who have cooked Nathan’s recipes before (see our page), you will know that his recipes are both complex and layered.  This is what makes them exciting.  Always on the look out for a new recipe for mussels, we were extremely excited by the idea of ‘mussel, spinach and cauliflower curry with crispy mussels’.  Not only did the idea of a curry based sauce, inspired by a Goan chef Nathan knows, sound fantastic, but the combination of both steamed and deep-fried mussels sounded perfect for a Thursday night cooking challenge.

Mussel, spinach and cauliflower curry with crispy mussels from Nathan Outlaw’s British Seafood book

It consisted of simple instructions that basically involved making a curry paste, adding tomatoes, onions and coconut milk to it and then cooking the mussels in this mixture with cauliflower and spinach.  Parallel to this process was the simple task of steaming a few mussels, shelling them and the deep frying them. It was a thing of beauty – pungent, aromatic and hearty - and it is firmly on my list of recipes to repeat soon.

All I can say is that this book is going to be well used in our household and I can’t wait for the next edition of Homeland – I just hope it doesn’t end up on Sky like Mad Men has!

You can get hold of a copy of Nathan Outlaw’s British Seafood (published by Quadrille) here.

What are some of the more uncommon fish that you’ve cooked or eaten?  Gurnard, ling, John Dury, rays, pollock?  Let us know over on Great British Chefs Facebook page.

Food Festivals this weekend 24th - 25th September 2011

It’s late September and there are still plenty of food festivals to celebrate the arrival of Autumn. We’ve found plenty of food festivals running across the UK on Friday 23rd September and this weekend to help you celebrate the new season.

Abbfest Festival will be running from September 23rd- 25th. The festival includes demonstrations from top chefs. The acclaimed Michelin starred chef Michael Caines, (who will be coming to Great British Chefs soon - watch this space!), will be doing a cooking demonstration there on Saturday 24th of September.  Not to be missed.

Nathan Outlaw - Great British Chefs 

Cornwall Food & Drink Festival is on from 23rd to 25th September in Lemon Quay, Truro.  Michelin starred Nathan Outlaw from our app headlines on Sunday and addition to him you can also meet the faces behind the reputations of some of Cornwall’s finest chef, learn some new tricks and pick up some new products.  There are over 50 exhibitors, a packed timetable of chef demos, foodie talks, fun for kids in the Funky Food Zone, new evening events and something to tempt everyone’s tastebuds.

On Friday 23 September 2011, a free ‘Malaysia Night’ is set to take place on Trafalgar Square. For one night only, Malaysia will take over the capital in the form of an authentic Malaysian Pasar Malam created by Malaysia Kitchen and designed to showcase the authentic and vibrant cuisine and culture of Malaysia.

London Southbank will be hosting The Real Food Harvest Festival from September 23rd- 25th. Since pagan times, Harvest festivals have taken place at the end of September, it is even part of many school curriculums where children are encouraged to bring in tinned foods and vegetables. Keeping with tradition, the festival will have livestock, lots of interactive activities to keep the children entertained, a butchery class and many more exciting food activities to enjoy.

Northumberland, is not just famous for its sausages. As the Alnwick Food Festival will be in Northumberland from September 23rd-25th. Michelin starred chef Jean-Christophe Novelli will be headlining and hosting his own food experience on Friday 23rd. There will be more than 50 stalls, a Community Market, chef demonstrations, food tasting and much much more!

Nantwich Food & Drink Festival is one of the top food and drink events in the country and runs from September 23rd- 25th. It is primarily a showcase for all that is best in Cheshire produce, but the county’s central position means food and drink from Wales, the Marches and North West England are all well represented, with a huge variety of food and drink on offer.

Any cheese lovers out there? Visit Cardiff Castle from September 24th-25th for The Great British Cheese Festival where you can taste over 400 Sheep, Cow, Goat and even Buffalo cheeses along with artisan wine, cider, perry and beer. 

The Taste Cumbria Food Festival runs from 24th - 25th September. It is one of the biggest food festivals and has something for everyone to enjoy. Stefan Gates from Gastronuts will be using innovative methods to cook food- such as custard flame throwing and frying egg on paper. There will be cooking demonstrations from The Hairy Bikers, which will surely be fun to watch. Children can go along to pasta making workshops or use their imagination to grow their food in the ‘Story Tree Restaurant’. With so much going on, why wouldn’t you go?

The Tetbury Food & Drink Festival in The Cotswolds runs from the 22nd  - 25th September.  Now in its fifth year it’s attracting a growing number of local food and drink related businesses. From bakeries to cheese and honey makers, vineyards and farms, smokehouses and mills - they’re all coming together to celebrate the very best food and drink that Tetbury has to offer.  A number of great chefs including Michelin Starred Michael Bedford & Rob Rees MBE will also be running cookery demos over the weekend.

The sixth Mold Food and Drink Festival runs on 24th & 25th September and showcases outstanding local produce from Wales, celebrity chef expertise (Jean Christophe Novelli is headlining on Sunday) and live music to create a fabulous foodie weekend for the whole family. There’s plenty to do, see, sip and devour.

Not exactly a food festival but on Sunday 25th September at Westminster Kingsway College, London, there’s The Great Kitchen Clearout. In aid of Action Against Hunger UK and the Kate Ray Memorial Bursary for Patisserie this looks like a lovely event. “Donate your gently loved bakeware, cookware, cookbooks, gadgets and gimmicks then rummage through - an Aladdin’s Cave of kitchen goods priced from £2!” Entry’s only a pound and I imagine some people will pick up a few kitchen bargains.

Please let us know if you visit any of these festivals & events, we would love to see some pictures (which are best uploaded onto our Great British Chefs Flickr Group). Also we’re sure to have missed some special food festivals taking place in Great Britain this weekend (not weekly food markets, there are hundreds of those every week), so please let us know in the comments (thanks to Dartweld, Sue Carter, Charlotte & Nicki Welding we’ve updated this post). Enjoy!

Blog post by Monique from Great British Chefs

Michelin style Fish n Chips by Nathan Outlaw

The lovely people at Love UK introduced us to their Facebook fans last week and said of the brilliant chefs in our app: “These chefs are reinventing everything from fish and chips to Scotch eggs, Eton Mess and curry but what is YOUR favourite UK food? Let us know and we’ll get one of the chefs to give us their recipe!”

Hundreds of Love UK’s fans answered and Fish and chips was the most popular UK food, closely followed by a Sunday Roast with Yorkshire Pudding.  So we had a little search around our app and found that Nathan Outlaw had wonderful version of Fish and Chips - Turbot with tartare sauce ‘my way’. This is normally exclusive to our app, but we’re pleased to share it today.  Plus as we are in a sharing mood, to celebrate our 2 month anniversary, for one day only, you can get our iPhone or iPad app for half price!  

In the meantime enjoy Nathan’s take on Fish & Chips

The unusual tartare sauce for this signature dish includes sliced
lettuce, potato cubes, seasonal garnishes and herbs and is a perfect accompaniment for highly prized turbot

Ingredients:

4 x 100g portions of turbot
50g plain flour
1 egg
salt
150g panko breadcrumbs
vegetable oil to deep fry
1 egg
1 tsp English mustard
1 tsp white wine vinegar
250ml olive oil
salt
50ml double cream
100ml fish stock
100g Maris Piper potatoes
1 baby gem lettuce
1 tsp chopped fresh tarragon
1 tsp chopped fresh chives
1 tsp chopped fresh chervil
1 tsp chopped fresh parsley
2 gherkins
pepper
100g purple sprouting broccoli
50ml lemon oil
50g capers

Method:

1. To make the tartare sauce, separate the egg and place the egg yolk,
vinegar and mustard into a bowl

2. Whisk for 1 minute, then slowly add the olive oil in a steady
stream, taking care not to split the mixture. Season with salt

3. Add the double cream and mix thoroughly, then whisk the hot fish
stock in gradually until the mixture coats the back of a spoon

4. Dice the potatoes into 1cm cubes and cook in a pan of salted
boiling water. Once tender, add to the tartare sauce along with the
sliced lettuce

5. Stir for 2 minutes and then roughly chop the herbs and add along
with the finely diced gherkin to the sauce. Season to taste and put
aside

6. To prepare the fish, dredge in flour. Separate the egg and dip the
fish in the whisked egg yolk, then roll through the seasoned
breadcrumbs

7. Heat some oil in a non-stick pan and when it is hot, add the fish.
Cook gently until the fish has a light golden edge, which should take
approximately 15 minutes

8. Carefully flip the fish and remove from the heat. This will allow
the gentle residual heat to finish the cooking process. Cook the
purple sprouting broccoli. Heat the lemon oil in a small pan, add the
drained capers and fry until browned and frizzled. Lift out with
slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper

9. Place the tartare sauce in the centre of the bowls. Place the fish
on top and garnish with the capers and lemon oil. Serve with purple
sprouting broccoli

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