It's Cold Outside The Hairy Bikers' Comfort Food

We've travelled the world and eaten everywhere,

from roadside bars to restaurants with Michelin stars.

But there really is nothing like a bit of home cooking.

Coming into a warm kitchen filled with the aroma of a tasty meal,

bubbling away.

It's one of life's great pleasures.

There's nothing like comfort food to put a smile on your face.

Today, the perfect dishes for when it's cold outside.

Is this what you'd describe, Kingy, as the ultimate rib sticker?

Putting dumplings with oxtail soup, but, like,

a really hearty oxtail soup.

It would resurrect you after a hearty rumble in the snow.

It certainly would.

Oxtail has a lot of fat on it, and you don't need it all.

There's quite a lot to take off, so that's what I'm doing,

while Dave's chopping his onions.

The meat you get, though, when you cook the oxtails

-long, slow and low...

-Oh!

..is superb.

The most important thing with oxtail when you're cooking it

is to get as much deep colour on it as you can.

The reason for that is the caramelisation

of the meat is important,

because it adds even more flavour.

So what we're going to do is just

drop them in some seasoned flour.

All it is is flour, salt, pepper.

Now, I've got us a couple of sticks of celery, and this is my mirepoix.

This is my engine room of flavour.

Now, onto the carrots.

Top them...

..tail them.

Right, that's the oxtail in.

It's going to take about ten minutes, that, so be patient.

But the deeper the caramelisation,

the better the flavour's going to be.

Dishes like this, you can't rush them.

We're going to cook this for three hours.

It's a long time, and it's that time you invest in this,

it seems to come out in the finished dish.

It does.

I think, give or take a couple of minutes,

we're pretty much there, Dave.

There we are.

We've got all that flavour,

and we're not going to waste anything.

So, let's bung in the veggies.

And these want to be sweated down for about five minutes.

It's all coated in that lovely, lovely, unctuous oil.

A couple of cloves of garlic.

You know what's happened, Dave? All the moisture from the carrots,

onions and celery has just deglazed the pan.

So we're just recycling all those flavours again.

So nice.

-I think we're there, dude.

-Right.

Now, let's start building up the flavours.

I've got a teaspoon of dried thyme.

And it has to be dried thyme,

because we want the thyme flavour to cook into the soup.

Yeah, and don't forget, dry herbs you cook into the dish,

fresh herbs you use to finish it off.

Two bay leaves.

-Beautiful.

-A couple of tablespoons of tomato paste.

This'll enrich the soup.

Half a bottle of good red wine.

Two tablespoons of cream sherry.

Two...

A good litre of beef stock.

And lots of black pepper.

Lots of it.

So, in pops our oxtail.

Now, you see the oxtail has left some resting juices?

That's all flavour, and we want to make sure that

that goes into our soup.

I'll put about a teaspoon of sea salt in this.

Bring it to a gentle simmer on the hob.

Because, if we were to put it straight in the oven,

it would take it about an hour to get to this stage of cooking.

So we pop the lid on,

and pop this into the oven.

Right, mate, that's it for three hours!

Smashing, let's go. Aye, let's go and have a walk and get proper cold.

Several hours later...

..this has cooled and we've skimmed all the fat off the top.

We're going to fish this beautiful oxtail out,

and then I'm going to strip all the meat away from the bone.

Look at that wonderful, wonderful, soupy stock.

And that is what is going to give the dumplings

the most amazing flavour.

Now, you need self-raising flour for the dumplings,

or your dumplings will be leaden.

Teaspoon of salt.

And the suet.

There's something very satisfying about this.

There's something very satisfying about making dumplings,

even the word "dumplings".

It sounds nice, doesn't it?

-It does. Comforting.

-"Look at the lovely dumplings!"

Now, you want fresh parsley for this.

Sprinkle your finely chopped parsley into your flour,

suet and salt.

It's very hard to give you quantities for the amount of water

to use when you're making dumplings. Basically,

the rule of thumb is add enough cold water until it forms a ball,

until you can form them into dumpling shapes.

This amount will make about 18 small dumplings.

I just want to show you the amount of...

-Wow!

-...meat that you get off an oxtail.

-Remarkable, isn't it?

-And that's just good meat.

-No gristle...

-No manky bits, just really good.

So I'm going to put that back in our soup.

Let's pluck off a knob.

And let's start making dumplings.

I like my dumplings round, I don't like mis-formed dumplings.

I'm going to transfer the now cooled soup...

..into a larger pan...

..removing said bay leaves.

And just plop your dumplings in.

Feel free to help dump.

And we shall leave these to bob away for about 15-20 minutes.

-With the lid on.

-With the lid on, so they steam.

Oh, Simon, I can look down through the glass.

They are ready, man!

-Oooh!

-Look at that!

Brown bread and butter.

See, I know we've got carbohydrate in the dumplings...

-But it's cold!

-But brown bread and butter, it just says "home".

It's a meal you want to eat slowly, don't you?

You want every bit of that goodness going to your body.

The secret to creating delicious comfort food

is using the right ingredients.

Real work is done by the producers

who put all their passion and expertise

into getting their ingredients just right.

The family have been farming here for 140 years.

We're located just outside Leeds, in Pontefract.

Nice, sandy soil we have here, so that's rather good.

So we're quite free-draining,

which is great for most of the crops that we grow.

We started with the pumpkins about five years ago,

and last year we sold 70,000 pumpkins direct from the field.

We start by growing them in the polytunnel, all from seed,

in about May time. We'll wait for them to grow in the polytunnels,

nice and protected, because we want the leaves at that point,

to make sure that they don't get damaged.

And then we'll plant them out in the fields.

We have to watch out for pests, really,

that's our biggest problem at that point.

But we're quite lucky, because our soil is so sandy,

we don't struggle at this time of year,

when we could have slugs and them just sitting and rotting, really,

because as soon as the flesh would get soft,

that's when we could end up with insects, etc, getting in.

Some farms, especially in the States,

they'll pop them in on straw to keep their bottoms dry,

in effect, because nobody likes a soggy bottom!

The whole pumpkin trend coming over from the States has been massive,

but I think what works here is we celebrate the pumpkin

and everything to do with the pumpkin,

rather than focusing on Halloween.

Rather than just growing just your normal pumpkins or carvers,

which are for, like, if you're carving jack-o'-lanterns,

we also do lots of eating pumpkins

and then we do every different shape, size and colour of pumpkin

you can imagine.

There's been a massive growth in the interest of pumpkins

from local people and families,

and the people that come here actually come and they pick

their pumpkins from the field, so they're actually

getting to connect back to where their food actually comes from,

because that's key to everything that we do here.

They're fab as a healthy food. Not only is it one of your five a day,

but it's also particularly rich in calcium, phosphorus,

potassium and copper, and the seeds, if you wanted to eat the seeds,

they're a very rich source of dietary fibre.

We're rather mad about pumpkins.

They taste great. I do really quite like it with some of the red meats,

as a vegetable in a casserole or a stew, something very hearty.

And then, obviously, you can use it in vegetarian curries.

It's very, very versatile.

You joint the chicken, I'll do the marinade.

Now, for the chicken, what I'm going to do, I'm going to skin it.

For the marinade, it's a Caribbean marinade,

and so it's got all manner of wonderful things.

I start off with four spring onions, roughly chopped.

It's kind of like a variation on a jerk paste.

But the thing is, we're using Caribbean curry powder.

It is different and it works, so it's worthwhile investing in a tub.

Four cloves of garlic.

Skin the chicken before you joint it,

because it's a lot easier to do.

Now, I've peeled my ginger, roughly chopped and popped that in.

OK, while Dave's doing that,

I'm just going to start to just joint the chicken.

It's only scotch bonnets I bother with. The rest are all right,

but these things, they are difficult.

They're like trying to put an octopus on, aren't they?

No, I'm talking about the Scotch bon...

Don't draw attention to my gloves!

-Don't draw attention...

-Have you done something to these?

-I have not!

SIMON LAUGHS

I always get the blame for stuff and I never do it.

Right, just precaution, take the top off.

Are we going to leave the seeds in or out, Kingy?

-Let's leave them in.

-Ho ho!

Now, this IS going to warm you up.

Just put them in the dish,

and because of my rubber gloves, I fear no pain.

The zest and juice of a lime.

Caribbean curry powder, it's very specific.

Let's have two. Big hoofers.

For another bit of Caribbean goodness,

half a teaspoon of allspice powder.

This Caribbean curry paste,

you could make double the quantity and keep some for another day,

put it in the fridge with some oil on the top.

It's worth having some on standby,

because it will bring the dullest of ingredients to life.

I'm going to take this lovely paste that Dave's just made,

and we're going to make sure that every single piece of chicken

is covered in it.

If you can, try and leave this for as long as you possibly could.

I think this is definitely an overnight job.

-I do, Dave.

-You know,

if you're planning your meal for tomorrow night's supper,

do this the night before you go to bed.

-Yeah.

-But do wear your rubber gloves, because, you know,

the Scotch bonnets...

And I'm now wishing I had.

And I grated my thumb the other day!

-Ooh, yes.

-As you can imagine.

Yes.

So I'd better just cover that with clingfilm and pop it in the fridge.

And I'm going to wash my hands.

-Good luck!

-Thank you. SIMON WINCES IN PAIN

SIMON CLEARS HIS THROAT

-Better now?

-Yes, thank you.

It's just a waiting game now, Si.

-Great, we'll go to the pub.

-Come on, then.

Morning has broken, chicken's marinated.

I'm browning off an onion in some coconut oil.

Beautiful. Right, in goes the chicken.

I'm going to skin a couple of tomatoes, mate.

-OK, mate.

-Plunge into boiling water.

Oooh, that is good, man!

Yes, it is.

Don't leave these for too long, because we want just to skin,

we don't want them stewing. To stop that process,

plunge them into ice-cold water.

The skin pops off as easy as a builder's shirt when the sun shines.

I'm just going to add a little bit of this stock.

A bay leaf and thyme in as well.

Now, that lovely tomato, just all the meat, pop that in.

How long do you reckon, Si?

It should be all right after 40 minutes, even with a bone in.

If you're a bit worried about it,

then leave it for 45 and it will be absolutely done, I promise.

And then it's pumpkin time.

Yes!

Time for the hero, pumpkin.

-Let's have it.

-What shall we have?

Pumpkin, it comes in so many shapes, sizes and forms.

-Well, look at this, man.

-I know.

-Beautiful.

-Look at that one!

And they all have a different flavour and a different texture.

But I've never seen a blue one before.

-Let's get into it.

-Right.

The Hairy Bikers' Caribbean and blue pumpkin curry.

Go on.

About a quarter of that?

Yeah.

Crumbs!

The great thing about pumpkins...

..is...

..they're not...

..that...easy.

How beautiful!

-Isn't it?

-Do be careful, because they are a bit of an unwieldy beast,

so just watch your fingers.

Let's take the seeds and the core out the middle.

This is nice, a nice texture, as well.

We want to skin this and chop it into chunks.

When you add a pumpkin to a curry, there's a top note of sweetness that

goes on. It's not overly powerful, it's just there.

It adds substance to the curry. This is your veggie,

and with all that flavour, it's going to be sweet,

unctuous and gorgeous.

We put the lid on and simmer it for ten minutes,

then we take the lid off and simmer it for another ten minutes,

so that the sauce and the water reduce.

See you later.

Ten minutes.

Look at that. The pumpkin's cooked, it's dropped,

the sauce has thickened. We're there.

I think it's time for two top notes, Mr King.

Number one top note, it being Caribbean,

you cannot go to the Caribbean without drinking rum.

So, we just take a teaspoon and we just drip it over the top,

-just like that.

-And I always like a bit of lime with my rum,

just the juice of half a lime and it really does finish it off

and sharpen it up a treat.

Some spring onions, and some coriander.

THEY CHUCKLE

-Joyous, eh?

-Look at that, great colours.

We know there's some great flavours in there.

Right, I'm going to have a taste.

I'm going for the pumpkin, that's what I'm excited about.

-Yeah.

-The pumpkin in that sauce.

Such a great ingredient.

I'm feeling hot now.

Probably serve this with some rice at home.

Because of the pumpkin, it kind of doesn't need it.

Every dish tells a story.

It may be about the ingredients that define it,

the memories it evokes or the people who created it.

There's nothing more comforting than the warming heat of spices.

But one of Britain's favourite dishes is a Thai green curry.

Mae moved to Manchester from Thailand when she was a child

and now runs a supermarket.

There's a lot of Thai people living in Manchester,

and I feel like I'm home.

And people in Manchester are lovely, they're really friendly.

After buying the shop, Mae added a cafe and persuaded her mum

to share the recipe for green curry

that's been in her family for generations.

Before, I never cook,

I have some people to cook for me or I'd buy a takeaway,

but today, I cook for everybody, and happy.

Mae makes all her spice pastes from scratch.

Her family came from the north of Thailand,

where they love spicy food,

and the dishes Mae cooks are true to the flavours she was familiar with

as a child.

Green chilli, depending on how spicy you want.

I like spicy, so I put more.

The spice paste is the base for the Thai green curry.

The curry could be made from fish or tofu,

but today Mae's cooking with chicken.

Just heat the oil.

Next step would be green curry paste, one spoon.

A little bit of coconut milk.

Curry paste that you make yourself is more clean.

They're different than the ones

used in supermarkets, because they're all fresh ingredients.

We're going to add chicken in.

So we leave until the chicken cooks.

Coconut in.

Chilli, depending on how spicy you want.

Eggplant.

Green beans.

And bamboo shoots.

Some sweet basil.

So, I will use this all because I like this smell.

The more the better for sweet basil.

I'm going to add a little bit of fish sauce.

Yes, that's fine now.

This green curry, this is how, it's just exactly how my mum teach me.

You find that a lot of the Thai food you get

is adapted for UK taste,

so you don't get the proper authentic food, but here you do.

It's like it is in Thailand.

The food is just, like, it's authentic, seasonal

and it's from the north of Thailand, so it's actually high in spice.

I just treat them like family, I just treat them like friends.

I just cook from the heart.

This is brilliant, Kingy's bit, it's like tiling with bananas.

Me, I make the sponge.

I'm going to cream the light brown sugar with the butter.

Right, while Dave's doing that, I want to show you what's a-going on

in this pudding basin.

I've smeared butter, quite a lot of it, all around the pudding basin,

and then in the bottom here, there is a little cartouche,

or commonly known as a bit of paper.

We're going to put a puddle of golden syrup on top of that paper

and then we're going to build our bananas all up around the side

in little discs of loveliness.

Well, the bananas want to be the thickness of a pound coin.

Cream the butter and the sugar.

And there we are, as you can see, that's gone light and fluffy.

Break into it an egg.

Pop it in, give it a swizz.

And a spoonful of flour.

That stops it splitting.

And crack in another egg.

And another spoon of flour.

Another egg.

And another spoon of flour.

Now the good bit.

We whip in a banana.

Always use those black bananas,

the ones that have been in the bowl that nobody touches

because for making banana bread, banana cake,

those bananas, believe it or not,

however hideous they look on the outside, are the best.

I've just cut two bananas.

One banana in the middle

and what you do is you just start at the bottom

and just put bananas all the way up till it goes all the way

-around the side.

-Like a spiral.

Like a spiral.

Put the flour in. It can all go in now.

The last thing I need to do to this sponge mixture

is the juice of half a lime.

That's the effect that we're trying to get.

Now, what I want to do now is carefully place in the sponge.

Now, if I was just to slap it in,

it's going to force all the 'nanas out of shape and we don't want to do

that, not with all that lovely work that he's done.

So, we'll just spoon it in quite gently.

It is a steamed pudding, and we'll show you how to assemble

the steaming device, which is basically a pan and a saucer.

So, the order is cloth...

..saucer...

..and then your pudding sits on top of that.

But the saucer, which is raised from the bottom of the pan,

ensures that your puddings aren't going to burn.

And as you'll find, that is just enough.

Now, it's the bit that we all hate.

It's the wrapping up of your pud.

Now, the pud will rise up and expand,

so you need to do some pleating.

We always use a sheet of grease-proof and a sheet of foil.

Now, we pleat it like so.

So this, it's a bit like

an expansion joint in a bridge, isn't it?

Yeah.

So as it expands,

this can open up a bit like that and allow the pudding to swell.

Right.

So, put the string there. Thank you.

What I'm going to do, just to make sure the handle doesn't slip,

is put another piece around there just to secure that string.

So we tie that round there, and I think Mr Pudding...

..can go and meet Mr Pan...

..and sit there, bathe in all its wonder,

for two hours.

Wow, look at that!

Get in, purple, purple 'nanas.

Purple bananas! But that's quite normal, that purpley tinge.

Don't be alarmed, banana's full of potassium,

so when the potassium's heated up, it goes purple.

Right, I'm going to deseed this vanilla pod.

I'm going to whisk up six egg yolks with some caster sugar.

And I'm going to put a teaspoonful of cornflour.

Put cornflour in, it doesn't split.

Put the milk and cream into a saucepan

with the vanilla pod or extract.

-We're there, aren't we?

-Yeah, I'm going to take that off the heat.

-Right, mate.

-Right.

-You ready?

-Two, three, four.

Nice.

And back to the pan.

Mr Myers, this is starting to trail.

-Yeah.

-Take it on and off the heat as you see fit,

and just feel the custard as it's thickening,

you want it to thicken gently.

Now...

Creme de bananas. It comes in many forms.

This one is a posh one from France.

This is proper grown-up banana custard, isn't it?

That is as thick, mate, as I think we're going to get it.

-It's beautiful.

-Right.

-Right, let's tackle the pudding.

There always is jeopardy with a sponge pudding,

be it steak and kidney or banana.

And as far as I know, we're the first one to make a banana one.

-Oh, yes.

-OK, so far, so good.

Wow!

-Mm!

-You wouldn't get that at school, would you?

No! Whoa!

I think that's a success.

That's a super success. That is brilliant, actually.