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-The best British produce is under threat. -At the mercy of foreign invaders, market forces... | 0:00:02 | 0:00:06 | |
-..and food fashion. -Produce that has been around for centuries... | 0:00:06 | 0:00:09 | |
..could die out within a generation. | 0:00:09 | 0:00:12 | |
So together, we're on a mission... | 0:00:12 | 0:00:14 | |
-..to save it. -We'll give the best tips how to find it, grow it and cook it. | 0:00:14 | 0:00:19 | |
And, crucially, how to put sensational British produce... | 0:00:19 | 0:00:22 | |
..back on the food map. | 0:00:22 | 0:00:24 | |
When you look at the supermarket shelves nowadays, you simply don't see | 0:00:59 | 0:01:03 | |
the hundreds of potato varieties that used to be available to us. | 0:01:03 | 0:01:07 | |
Well, I am on a mission to bring those varieties back to our dinner plates. | 0:01:07 | 0:01:12 | |
Growing potatoes is a vital part of our heritage. | 0:01:12 | 0:01:17 | |
We've done it for over 500 years, and for centuries, | 0:01:17 | 0:01:20 | |
potatoes have played an important part in the British diet. | 0:01:20 | 0:01:23 | |
But shockingly, over the past 40 years, 97% of potato farmers have left the industry, | 0:01:23 | 0:01:29 | |
and heritage varieties have all but disappeared from our supermarket shelves. | 0:01:29 | 0:01:33 | |
In my campaign to revive the ailing British potato, I'll be meeting | 0:01:33 | 0:01:37 | |
the unsung heroes who are striving to secure our heritage varieties. | 0:01:37 | 0:01:40 | |
That is the maddest thing I have ever seen! | 0:01:40 | 0:01:44 | |
I'll be showing you what you can do to save our great British spud. | 0:01:44 | 0:01:48 | |
The fun of digging them up is you never know what you're going to get underneath. | 0:01:48 | 0:01:52 | |
And I'll be wowing you with three mouth-watering recipes, including potato dauphinoise. | 0:01:52 | 0:01:59 | |
That's the closest you'll get to a snog on a plate. | 0:01:59 | 0:02:02 | |
Because I'm a greengrocer, I often get asked what my favourite vegetable is, | 0:02:07 | 0:02:12 | |
and I think people are really disappointed when I tell them it's the humble potato. | 0:02:12 | 0:02:16 | |
But it's the most versatile thing I know. | 0:02:16 | 0:02:19 | |
I've got lovely memories of my grandmother's roast potatoes. | 0:02:19 | 0:02:22 | |
I can remember the first time I tasted a Jersey Royal. | 0:02:22 | 0:02:25 | |
I can also remember my first batch of Pink Fir Apples I sold to the restaurants. | 0:02:25 | 0:02:29 | |
Where would we be without mash? | 0:02:29 | 0:02:31 | |
Where would we be without chips? | 0:02:31 | 0:02:33 | |
It breaks my heart to think we are not making the most of this beautiful crop. | 0:02:33 | 0:02:37 | |
Here in Britain, we know how to grow great spuds. | 0:02:37 | 0:02:42 | |
We produce over 60 million tons of them every year, and most of the spuds we do eat are home-grown. | 0:02:42 | 0:02:48 | |
But our tasty tubers have taken a bit of an image battering in recent years. | 0:02:48 | 0:02:52 | |
Nine out of ten adults think they don't contain | 0:02:52 | 0:02:54 | |
any nutritional benefits, | 0:02:54 | 0:02:56 | |
and the younger generation are turning to foreign rivals. | 0:02:56 | 0:02:59 | |
I prefer rice or pasta, because they're a lot easier to cook. | 0:02:59 | 0:03:03 | |
They take less time to cook. Potatoes take a lot longer. | 0:03:03 | 0:03:06 | |
And I also think you can kind of jazz up pasta and rice a bit more interestingly than potatoes. | 0:03:06 | 0:03:12 | |
They tend to be quite boring, I suppose. | 0:03:12 | 0:03:14 | |
Healthy? Absolutely not! Not the way I cook them! | 0:03:14 | 0:03:18 | |
I put so much olive oil in them that I don't think you'd call that healthy. | 0:03:18 | 0:03:23 | |
I think potatoes do have an image problem. | 0:03:23 | 0:03:27 | |
My children definitely seem to think so. | 0:03:27 | 0:03:29 | |
If I give them a choice and I say, "Do you want mashed potato or baked potatoes?" They go, "No! Pasta!" | 0:03:29 | 0:03:35 | |
I want to find out how the industry is combating this huge threat. | 0:03:37 | 0:03:42 | |
So I've come to this commercial potato farm at Aberlady in East Lothian, | 0:03:42 | 0:03:46 | |
where the owner also happens to be the chairman of the Potato Council. | 0:03:46 | 0:03:50 | |
What is happening to potato growing in this country? | 0:03:50 | 0:03:54 | |
One of the challenges is that | 0:03:54 | 0:03:55 | |
we have structural decline in demand for potatoes. | 0:03:55 | 0:03:58 | |
Some people think potatoes can be unhealthy, but also some people feel that | 0:03:58 | 0:04:03 | |
there are more convenient and immediate ways in which you can cook a meal, using rice and pasta. | 0:04:03 | 0:04:09 | |
How can that be right, that people are turning their back on the British spud? | 0:04:09 | 0:04:13 | |
Well, people don't necessarily want to have to peel a potato. | 0:04:13 | 0:04:16 | |
But we are able to offer now a whole range of potato products, from fresh to processed, that provide | 0:04:16 | 0:04:23 | |
immediate convenience, just as easy and quick to cook as rice or pasta, but much more nutritious. | 0:04:23 | 0:04:30 | |
There's as much vitamin C in a potato as in a glass of tomato juice. People don't realise. | 0:04:30 | 0:04:36 | |
Are people just going for all-rounders, and is it making potatoes a bit dull? | 0:04:36 | 0:04:40 | |
It's a challenge, yes. | 0:04:40 | 0:04:42 | |
There are many people who don't know one potato variety from another, and it's up to the industry to | 0:04:42 | 0:04:48 | |
make sure we show consumers how to make the best use of potatoes. | 0:04:48 | 0:04:53 | |
Now, the best way to fall back in love with the potato is to get cooking with it. | 0:04:56 | 0:05:02 | |
I've got here one of my favourite potatoes in the world, and that is the King Edward, OK? | 0:05:02 | 0:05:07 | |
It's a really good mixture of waxy and floury, and I'm going to prove | 0:05:07 | 0:05:11 | |
that the only starch that you need in your cupboard is the spud. | 0:05:11 | 0:05:17 | |
I'm going to make the Italian classic potato gnocchi. | 0:05:17 | 0:05:20 | |
I've boiled the potatoes in salted water for about ten minutes. | 0:05:21 | 0:05:27 | |
Now, I'm going to leave those to cool, and I'm going to start my sauce. | 0:05:27 | 0:05:33 | |
Gnocchi is no different to any other potato dish in that, | 0:05:36 | 0:05:42 | |
once you've learnt how to make it, like mash, | 0:05:42 | 0:05:44 | |
or chips or boiled potatoes, once you've learned how to | 0:05:44 | 0:05:48 | |
do them probably, they will go with any flavours you like, OK? | 0:05:48 | 0:05:52 | |
Tomato I'm doing now, because I think everyone should know how to make a good tomato sauce. | 0:05:52 | 0:05:57 | |
Pasta and rice is not part of our heritage. | 0:05:57 | 0:06:00 | |
They're nice things, but that's not what we grew up with. | 0:06:00 | 0:06:03 | |
That's not what our culinary tradition is built on. | 0:06:03 | 0:06:06 | |
We are northern Europeans. We don't grow rice. | 0:06:06 | 0:06:09 | |
We grow spuds, is what we do! Right. | 0:06:09 | 0:06:13 | |
Onions in. | 0:06:13 | 0:06:15 | |
I'm going to lightly flour this surface. | 0:06:18 | 0:06:22 | |
I've got here one of my favourite contraptions... | 0:06:25 | 0:06:28 | |
..a potato ricer. Look. | 0:06:29 | 0:06:32 | |
Stick that in there... | 0:06:32 | 0:06:35 | |
..and then you just squeeze, gently squeeze, | 0:06:35 | 0:06:39 | |
onto the floured surface. | 0:06:39 | 0:06:43 | |
More flour, | 0:06:44 | 0:06:46 | |
lightly... | 0:06:46 | 0:06:48 | |
..over the top. | 0:06:49 | 0:06:51 | |
And now, all you're doing is bringing this together | 0:06:51 | 0:06:54 | |
like a dough, and work it. | 0:06:54 | 0:06:57 | |
Work it and work it, | 0:06:57 | 0:07:00 | |
like a lump of Play-Doh. | 0:07:00 | 0:07:02 | |
Look. | 0:07:02 | 0:07:04 | |
And all we've got is the moisture in that potato and flour. It's light. | 0:07:04 | 0:07:09 | |
Look at it. Beautiful thing. | 0:07:09 | 0:07:12 | |
To my base of tomato sauce with onions and garlic, I'm adding some puree to give the flavour more depth. | 0:07:14 | 0:07:21 | |
You take your gnocchi dough. That's still warm. | 0:07:21 | 0:07:24 | |
Break a bit off and roll it. | 0:07:24 | 0:07:27 | |
Now look, that's perfect. | 0:07:27 | 0:07:30 | |
It's up to you, the size of your gnocchi. | 0:07:30 | 0:07:33 | |
I just want to break the end bits off. | 0:07:33 | 0:07:36 | |
I reckon about there, OK? | 0:07:37 | 0:07:40 | |
That's about the size of it. | 0:07:40 | 0:07:42 | |
And then you just press your fork into it like that. | 0:07:42 | 0:07:46 | |
If it starts to come apart on you, put a little bit of flour to hold it. | 0:07:47 | 0:07:53 | |
Feel it. Get to know it. | 0:07:53 | 0:07:56 | |
So it's all coming together. | 0:08:01 | 0:08:03 | |
Before I cook the gnocchi, I need to add herbs to the sauce. | 0:08:03 | 0:08:06 | |
If it's a soft, leafy herb, it goes in at the end. | 0:08:06 | 0:08:09 | |
And I've heard chefs say that you shouldn't cut basil, | 0:08:09 | 0:08:15 | |
you should rip it, cos you lose flavour. | 0:08:15 | 0:08:17 | |
Well, I'll give any blindfolded chef 50 quid if he can tell me | 0:08:17 | 0:08:21 | |
the difference between a cut and a ripped basil. | 0:08:21 | 0:08:25 | |
Stir that in there. | 0:08:25 | 0:08:26 | |
Then, cook the gnocchi. | 0:08:26 | 0:08:29 | |
Remember, we've already cooked the potatoes, OK? | 0:08:31 | 0:08:35 | |
So when they start floating up to the surface, they are done. | 0:08:35 | 0:08:39 | |
Come on, baby. | 0:08:40 | 0:08:42 | |
Drain off the excess water, then add the gnocchi to the tomato sauce. | 0:08:43 | 0:08:47 | |
Mmm. | 0:08:51 | 0:08:52 | |
OK, one last bit of basil. | 0:08:53 | 0:08:56 | |
There it is - my great British potato gnocchi. | 0:08:56 | 0:08:59 | |
It's firm, the potato, yet it's soft. | 0:09:03 | 0:09:05 | |
You may have never had potato like this before. | 0:09:05 | 0:09:08 | |
I told you, you don't need pasta. | 0:09:08 | 0:09:11 | |
Go on, please, just have a go. | 0:09:11 | 0:09:14 | |
On my campaign to revive the ailing British potato, I've found that | 0:09:18 | 0:09:23 | |
it's not just farmers who are working hard to produce great-tasting spuds. | 0:09:23 | 0:09:28 | |
This is the unseen world of potato growing. | 0:09:28 | 0:09:30 | |
Most people think to grow potatoes you throw seeds in the ground, | 0:09:30 | 0:09:34 | |
but it's a lot more complicated than that. | 0:09:34 | 0:09:36 | |
Here in Edinburgh, at Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture, | 0:09:36 | 0:09:40 | |
there's a whole department devoted to potatoes. | 0:09:40 | 0:09:44 | |
Some are researching new ways of combating crop-threatening diseases, such as potato blight, | 0:09:45 | 0:09:50 | |
whilst others test the properties of new varieties | 0:09:50 | 0:09:53 | |
to make sure we have the very best chippers and boilers. | 0:09:53 | 0:09:57 | |
But what gets me really excited is there's a massive data bank of heritage potatoes. | 0:09:57 | 0:10:03 | |
OK, so in here we have our living genetic resource collection of over 1,000 potato varieties. | 0:10:03 | 0:10:09 | |
About 1,000 varieties of potatoes growing here? | 0:10:09 | 0:10:12 | |
Every year we grow 1,000 varieties of potato | 0:10:12 | 0:10:14 | |
so that we can keep maintaining the right trueness of type. | 0:10:14 | 0:10:18 | |
So, are they all stored here? | 0:10:18 | 0:10:20 | |
Yep. We can see something you might ask for. | 0:10:20 | 0:10:22 | |
-So is there any particular variety you haven't had? -Really? -Yep. | 0:10:22 | 0:10:26 | |
Do you have any Pentlands? | 0:10:26 | 0:10:28 | |
-Yeah, sure. Heather will bring one up for us. -This is mad! | 0:10:28 | 0:10:30 | |
This machine is like the Noah's Ark of potatoes, and it houses | 0:10:32 | 0:10:37 | |
some varieties which are no longer grown anywhere else in the world. | 0:10:37 | 0:10:41 | |
Here at the front we've got Pentland Falcon... | 0:10:41 | 0:10:43 | |
-Loads. -Pentland Hawk, Pentland Ivory, Pentland Raven. | 0:10:43 | 0:10:47 | |
So, all Scottish-bred varieties, which aren't very much grown any more. | 0:10:47 | 0:10:52 | |
Beautiful potatoes, but these probably haven't been on the shelves for 20 years. | 0:10:52 | 0:10:56 | |
That's right. That's right. | 0:10:56 | 0:10:58 | |
-Can I have another go? -Of course. -A game! | 0:10:58 | 0:11:01 | |
Salad potatoes - a Roseval? | 0:11:01 | 0:11:02 | |
Yeah, we should have a Roseval for you. | 0:11:02 | 0:11:05 | |
Ha ha! | 0:11:05 | 0:11:06 | |
That is the maddest thing I have ever seen! | 0:11:08 | 0:11:11 | |
-Roseval. -There it is. There you go. | 0:11:15 | 0:11:18 | |
It's a little bit sad that you can't access these anymore. You can't get 'em. | 0:11:18 | 0:11:23 | |
Not in supermarkets, but if people want to grow them, | 0:11:23 | 0:11:26 | |
they're here, ready for us to supply to people. | 0:11:26 | 0:11:29 | |
One of the reasons we've lost so many of the old-fashioned heritage potatoes is that they were prone to | 0:11:29 | 0:11:34 | |
the dreaded disease, potato blight, which is exactly what happened with this particular potato, | 0:11:34 | 0:11:39 | |
which contributed to the deaths of over a million people from starvation in Ireland in the 19th century. | 0:11:39 | 0:11:46 | |
-This is Lumpers, and this is the potato which is famous for the Irish potato famine. -You're kidding! | 0:11:46 | 0:11:51 | |
And it's now fallen into complete disuse. | 0:11:51 | 0:11:54 | |
Was the blight that great because they were all growing the same variety? | 0:11:54 | 0:11:58 | |
-Yeah, that was one of the main reasons. -I didn't know that. Crikey! | 0:11:58 | 0:12:02 | |
I kind of want to keep one! | 0:12:02 | 0:12:04 | |
No, you can have it. | 0:12:04 | 0:12:05 | |
Incredible. And what is that thing that looks like a turnip? | 0:12:05 | 0:12:08 | |
This is a new variety bred by a Scottish breeder, | 0:12:08 | 0:12:13 | |
which is a general-purpose variety called Apache. | 0:12:13 | 0:12:17 | |
Obviously, it's got a particular look to it, | 0:12:17 | 0:12:21 | |
and it's a very flavourful potato. | 0:12:21 | 0:12:24 | |
Mate, that is just weird. | 0:12:24 | 0:12:26 | |
That's true, but it's eye-catching, though. | 0:12:26 | 0:12:29 | |
But at the end of the day, it all comes down to taste, | 0:12:29 | 0:12:32 | |
and I can't be in a room full of spuds without wanting to eat them. | 0:12:32 | 0:12:36 | |
This is the Apache, which is the new one. You can see already the colour of the flesh. | 0:12:36 | 0:12:42 | |
And here's the Lumpers, which is a much paler flesh colour. | 0:12:42 | 0:12:46 | |
-Dig in? -Yeah, go for it. Apache. | 0:12:46 | 0:12:49 | |
I have to say, | 0:12:52 | 0:12:54 | |
that is really nice. | 0:12:54 | 0:12:56 | |
Firm but slightly creamy, really earthy flavour. I really like that. | 0:12:56 | 0:13:01 | |
And what the potato breeders try and do, is blend | 0:13:01 | 0:13:04 | |
the best of the old flavour with new disease-resistant characteristics. | 0:13:04 | 0:13:09 | |
Go for the Lumpers. | 0:13:09 | 0:13:10 | |
See if it was worth all the angst of the famine. | 0:13:10 | 0:13:13 | |
The Lumpers has got nowhere near the flavour... | 0:13:14 | 0:13:18 | |
of the Apache. | 0:13:18 | 0:13:20 | |
It's almost slightly watery. | 0:13:20 | 0:13:23 | |
Whoa! The science of it! | 0:13:27 | 0:13:30 | |
You know, I had absolutely no idea. | 0:13:30 | 0:13:32 | |
I find that comforting, that people are working really hard to make sure | 0:13:32 | 0:13:36 | |
we've got the best chippers, the best boilers, the best roasters. | 0:13:36 | 0:13:40 | |
I tell you, this has got to help potato sales. It's got to. | 0:13:40 | 0:13:43 | |
The new varieties, they're just cousins of the old ones. | 0:13:43 | 0:13:46 | |
The old ones are still living. | 0:13:46 | 0:13:48 | |
They're living inside the new varieties. They are great. | 0:13:48 | 0:13:51 | |
If you want to get the most from your spuds, you have to remember that different potatoes do different jobs. | 0:13:51 | 0:13:57 | |
If you want to make perfect mashed potato, you want a floury potato. | 0:13:59 | 0:14:03 | |
And the one I've picked here, that you'll be able to get, is the Arran Victory. | 0:14:03 | 0:14:07 | |
For chips, you want something really, really starchy. | 0:14:07 | 0:14:11 | |
I've picked the King Edward. It's one of my favourite chippers, OK? | 0:14:11 | 0:14:14 | |
And for boiling, you want something really waxy. | 0:14:14 | 0:14:18 | |
This is a beautiful, nutty potato. It's a Charlotte. | 0:14:18 | 0:14:20 | |
That's a really good salad potato. | 0:14:20 | 0:14:22 | |
Boils really well. It also roasts really well. | 0:14:22 | 0:14:25 | |
For my second recipe, I'm going to cook a good, old favourite of mine. | 0:14:25 | 0:14:29 | |
I've got here a beautiful red Duke of York. And the reason I've picked it is it's slightly waxy. | 0:14:32 | 0:14:38 | |
I need it waxy, because I don't want it soaking up loads of liquid. | 0:14:38 | 0:14:42 | |
Start by peeling the potatoes. | 0:14:42 | 0:14:45 | |
The dauphinoise is a buttery, garlicky, absolute delight. | 0:14:47 | 0:14:51 | |
I don't know anybody who doesn't like it. | 0:14:51 | 0:14:53 | |
You bring one of those steaming out of the oven... | 0:14:53 | 0:14:56 | |
Basically, it's layers of potatoes with pepper, salt, butter and garlic. I mean, who wouldn't love that? | 0:14:56 | 0:15:03 | |
Would you like me to tell you a story? | 0:15:05 | 0:15:08 | |
When potatoes were brought to Europe, people wouldn't eat them. | 0:15:08 | 0:15:11 | |
They were scared of them. The reason is, | 0:15:11 | 0:15:13 | |
they grew underground and the leaves are related to deadly nightshade, which is poisonous. | 0:15:13 | 0:15:19 | |
Parmentier said to Louis XVI - the last French king who had his head cut off - | 0:15:19 | 0:15:25 | |
"I can get the poor to eat potatoes. | 0:15:25 | 0:15:27 | |
"I'm going to grow some outside the walls of Paris, and would you lend me the Royal Guard?" | 0:15:27 | 0:15:32 | |
People thought they were valuable because they were being guarded, | 0:15:32 | 0:15:36 | |
and like all good, blue-collar city dwellers like me, | 0:15:36 | 0:15:39 | |
they came out at night and nicked 'em. | 0:15:39 | 0:15:42 | |
And they caught on really quickly, as clever Parmentier knew they would. | 0:15:42 | 0:15:46 | |
And his name is still celebrated in France with a cut-up potato. | 0:15:46 | 0:15:50 | |
Peeled 'em, they're clean, we now need to slice 'em. | 0:15:50 | 0:15:54 | |
Get yourself a mandoline. | 0:15:54 | 0:15:56 | |
Which is one of these, not a musical instrument. | 0:15:56 | 0:15:59 | |
You want them about that thick. | 0:16:01 | 0:16:03 | |
Any thicker, they take too long to cook. | 0:16:03 | 0:16:05 | |
Any thinner, and they might actually dissolve into mush. | 0:16:05 | 0:16:10 | |
Keep these in water. | 0:16:12 | 0:16:15 | |
Can you see how the water's changed colour? That's the starch coming off the potatoes. | 0:16:15 | 0:16:19 | |
Starch is what makes them sticky. | 0:16:19 | 0:16:22 | |
Now for the other main ingredient - garlic. | 0:16:23 | 0:16:26 | |
Sprinkle with some sea salt and crush together. | 0:16:26 | 0:16:29 | |
I don't know how much you use garlic. | 0:16:31 | 0:16:33 | |
I'm going to do a dish that big, | 0:16:33 | 0:16:36 | |
and I'm going to do probably three cloves, OK? | 0:16:36 | 0:16:39 | |
But I really like garlic. | 0:16:39 | 0:16:41 | |
There's an old cooking adage which is, you can put in, but you can't take away. | 0:16:41 | 0:16:46 | |
So if you're not sure, do a little bit. | 0:16:46 | 0:16:48 | |
And then next time, do a little bit more. | 0:16:48 | 0:16:51 | |
Drain the potatoes, dry them off, and then you can begin to build your potato layers. | 0:16:51 | 0:16:57 | |
Once you've covered all the holes in the first layer, OK, finer salt now, | 0:17:00 | 0:17:06 | |
twist of pepper... | 0:17:06 | 0:17:08 | |
..little knobs of butter scattered in there. | 0:17:10 | 0:17:13 | |
It will melt and cook and all ooze in, don't worry. | 0:17:13 | 0:17:16 | |
And then little bits of garlic that you crushed up, smeared over it. | 0:17:16 | 0:17:21 | |
It's a messy job. You're going to have it all over your hands. | 0:17:21 | 0:17:25 | |
That's the beauty of it. | 0:17:25 | 0:17:27 | |
On MasterChef, | 0:17:27 | 0:17:29 | |
everybody has to get everything done at breakneck speed. | 0:17:29 | 0:17:33 | |
It's not like that, cooking at home. If you're late, pour your guests another glass of wine. | 0:17:33 | 0:17:37 | |
You don't have a bald bloke behind you shouting, "You've got ten minutes!" | 0:17:37 | 0:17:41 | |
For the sauce, I'm mixing milk and double cream. | 0:17:43 | 0:17:46 | |
Yum, yum, yum. | 0:17:49 | 0:17:50 | |
Then pour the liquid over the potatoes until it just covers the surface. | 0:17:50 | 0:17:56 | |
Stick it in the oven at 180 degrees for about an hour. | 0:18:00 | 0:18:04 | |
'Ave a butcher's! | 0:18:10 | 0:18:12 | |
Look at that. | 0:18:12 | 0:18:14 | |
Oh, baby, baby! | 0:18:16 | 0:18:18 | |
Mmm! | 0:18:18 | 0:18:20 | |
A few more little crispy ones on top. | 0:18:20 | 0:18:23 | |
One of my favourite ways of serving this dish is with | 0:18:25 | 0:18:28 | |
a good, old-fashioned British pork chop and succulent red cabbage. | 0:18:28 | 0:18:32 | |
Mmm! Mmm, mmm, mmm! | 0:18:38 | 0:18:42 | |
It's getting through that crunch to that beautiful softness underneath. | 0:18:42 | 0:18:46 | |
There's a little hint of garlic there, but the main flavour there is of | 0:18:46 | 0:18:50 | |
good, British, earthy potatoes, straight out of the ground. | 0:18:50 | 0:18:55 | |
It's our heritage. It's beautiful. | 0:18:55 | 0:18:57 | |
That's the closest you'll get to a snog on a plate. | 0:18:58 | 0:19:02 | |
The past 40 years have been tough for potato farmers, and for many, the only way to stay in business was | 0:19:07 | 0:19:13 | |
to concentrate on growing just one or two varieties, such as the Maris Piper or King Edward. | 0:19:13 | 0:19:19 | |
But there are some brilliant growers out there who are actually bucking the trend, | 0:19:19 | 0:19:23 | |
and they are keeping some amazing heritage varieties alive. | 0:19:23 | 0:19:26 | |
Carroll's Heritage Potatoes in Northumberland is | 0:19:26 | 0:19:28 | |
relatively small 50-acre farm, | 0:19:28 | 0:19:31 | |
but amazingly, they grow 20 different types of heritage potato, | 0:19:31 | 0:19:36 | |
including this very rare Red King Edward, which dates back to around 1900. | 0:19:36 | 0:19:40 | |
What's special about them? What would people get from heritage varieties they can't get from the big shops? | 0:19:40 | 0:19:46 | |
Some of the conventional varieties, Maris Piper, | 0:19:46 | 0:19:48 | |
they're fine, nothing wrong with them, | 0:19:48 | 0:19:50 | |
but they tend to be jack of all trades, master of none. | 0:19:50 | 0:19:54 | |
If you want a fantastic roast potato, use something like Arran Victory. | 0:19:54 | 0:19:57 | |
You can have yellow mashed potato out of Yukon Gold. | 0:19:57 | 0:20:00 | |
You can have some absolutely snow white out of Witch Hill. | 0:20:00 | 0:20:04 | |
So there's a whole series of things you can do with these | 0:20:04 | 0:20:08 | |
heritage potatoes that you can't do with the more modern varieties. | 0:20:08 | 0:20:12 | |
Anthony's lifting his last crop of the season, and now, | 0:20:13 | 0:20:17 | |
they'll be cold stored, ready to be shipped to customers when they're required. | 0:20:17 | 0:20:20 | |
Ooh! | 0:20:20 | 0:20:22 | |
We have some Red King Edward that we were harvesting today. | 0:20:23 | 0:20:26 | |
Fantastic potato. It's a red potato with the white eyes. | 0:20:26 | 0:20:30 | |
The opposite to the King Edward that you are probably familiar with, | 0:20:30 | 0:20:34 | |
which is basically pink eyes with a white skin. | 0:20:34 | 0:20:37 | |
We think a slightly better taste, but then we would say that! | 0:20:37 | 0:20:41 | |
-Still a good all-rounder? -Fantastic. | 0:20:41 | 0:20:42 | |
Ooh! | 0:20:42 | 0:20:44 | |
What you have with you is some Shetland Black and some Highland Burgundy. | 0:20:45 | 0:20:49 | |
I'll just cut through this one here, | 0:20:49 | 0:20:52 | |
and you see that it has some blue flesh through, which is fantastic | 0:20:52 | 0:20:56 | |
if you want to saute potatoes, which keeps the colour. | 0:20:56 | 0:21:00 | |
And are these ones the equivalent in red, then? | 0:21:00 | 0:21:02 | |
Yeah, these are Highland Burgundy Red you have in your left hand there. | 0:21:02 | 0:21:06 | |
And that's it there. So, again, you could call it | 0:21:06 | 0:21:09 | |
a novelty potato, but it does produce a wow factor on the plate. | 0:21:09 | 0:21:14 | |
The reason I love heritage spuds is that they have better flavour, | 0:21:14 | 0:21:18 | |
better texture, colour, and a real taste of history. | 0:21:18 | 0:21:21 | |
So before I leave, I want to sample Anthony's wife's Union Jack potato recipe. | 0:21:21 | 0:21:26 | |
Wonderful! Wonderful! | 0:21:26 | 0:21:28 | |
-For you, Gregg. -Thank you. | 0:21:28 | 0:21:30 | |
You've got Salad Blue, Yukon Gold, Red Duke of York and Highland Burgundy. | 0:21:30 | 0:21:36 | |
Mmm. | 0:21:39 | 0:21:40 | |
Smashing my way through these. These are delightful. | 0:21:42 | 0:21:45 | |
This is delicious, which is quite surprising, as I've never been a fan of the Salad Blue potato. | 0:21:45 | 0:21:50 | |
I thought they were hopeless, the only thing to recommend them being their colour. That's not right. | 0:21:50 | 0:21:55 | |
Well, they don't yield very well, but they are pretty brilliant potatoes. | 0:21:55 | 0:21:59 | |
Mmm. | 0:21:59 | 0:22:01 | |
The fact is, it produces something which gets people thinking, looking, | 0:22:01 | 0:22:05 | |
discussing food, which is really what we're about. | 0:22:05 | 0:22:09 | |
I've got to say thank you. | 0:22:14 | 0:22:16 | |
If it wasn't for people like Lucy and Anthony, we'd lose loads more varieties. | 0:22:16 | 0:22:20 | |
They've got this wonderful potato, the Arran Victory. | 0:22:20 | 0:22:23 | |
Beautiful heritage variety. | 0:22:23 | 0:22:24 | |
The reason I've chosen it, it's light and fluffy. | 0:22:24 | 0:22:27 | |
It makes wonderful mash, which means it's perfect for | 0:22:27 | 0:22:30 | |
my last recipe which is the good, old, British, traditional shepherd's pie. | 0:22:30 | 0:22:34 | |
First thing, get the potatoes on, and I'm starting with cold water, | 0:22:35 | 0:22:39 | |
no salt, and I'm leaving the skins on. | 0:22:39 | 0:22:43 | |
And the reason I'm going to do this is the nutrients, the flavour of these beautiful potatoes... | 0:22:43 | 0:22:47 | |
They're not everyday potatoes. I want to treat them with love and care. | 0:22:47 | 0:22:51 | |
All the flavour is just under the skin. I don't want them waterlogged. | 0:22:51 | 0:22:55 | |
I don't want them absorbing loads of water, so we're going to boil them up | 0:22:55 | 0:22:59 | |
with their skins, and peel them afterwards. | 0:22:59 | 0:23:01 | |
Whilst they're cooking, slice up the veg. | 0:23:02 | 0:23:05 | |
Just rough, OK? Because we're going to put them all in a blitzer. | 0:23:05 | 0:23:12 | |
Blitz the living daylights out of it. | 0:23:13 | 0:23:15 | |
I still think the best thing about the shepherd's pie... | 0:23:15 | 0:23:18 | |
And, you know, I'm a very enthusiastic carnivore. The best thing about it is the mash. | 0:23:18 | 0:23:23 | |
Mash - soft, buttery, white mash - I think is probably the ultimate comfort food. | 0:23:23 | 0:23:30 | |
It just goes with absolutely everything. | 0:23:30 | 0:23:33 | |
Onions and potatoes. An absolute marriage made in heaven. | 0:23:33 | 0:23:37 | |
They're very similar because they're both sort of humble. | 0:23:37 | 0:23:40 | |
Always the backing singer, never the star. We'll make it into a star. | 0:23:40 | 0:23:45 | |
Right. Pulse the vegetables in a blender. | 0:23:45 | 0:23:48 | |
Then fry the veg on a medium heat until they go soft, but don't let 'em go brown. | 0:23:51 | 0:23:57 | |
For shepherd's pie, of course, I'm using lamb, and I think there's nothing better than leftovers. | 0:23:57 | 0:24:03 | |
As I slice this, the temptation to just | 0:24:03 | 0:24:05 | |
stick it between two slices of bread is almost overpowering. Cor! | 0:24:05 | 0:24:09 | |
Mmm! | 0:24:10 | 0:24:11 | |
Medium-sized chunks are OK, as they're also going to be blitzed in the blender. | 0:24:11 | 0:24:16 | |
Voila... | 0:24:18 | 0:24:20 | |
as they say in Lambeth. Now... | 0:24:20 | 0:24:23 | |
Can I just make a plea? | 0:24:25 | 0:24:26 | |
If you don't cook, just learn how to do this, cos it's wonderful, and everyone will love it. | 0:24:26 | 0:24:32 | |
Can you see now, look, the colour it's taking on, the little speckles? | 0:24:32 | 0:24:36 | |
Now, I've got some pretty sexy flavourings I want to stick in there. | 0:24:36 | 0:24:42 | |
Anchovy sauce, OK? | 0:24:42 | 0:24:45 | |
Now, all of these things are big, distinct flavours. Taste as you go. | 0:24:45 | 0:24:49 | |
Redcurrant jelly next. | 0:24:49 | 0:24:51 | |
Anyone who watches me knows I've got a really sweet tooth! | 0:24:51 | 0:24:55 | |
Mmm! | 0:24:55 | 0:24:58 | |
Mushroom ketchup, right? You may not have used it. | 0:24:58 | 0:25:01 | |
Readily available. Quite sour. | 0:25:01 | 0:25:03 | |
Add Worcester sauce, tinned tomato and a few sprigs of thyme. | 0:25:05 | 0:25:12 | |
And remember, these herbs are powerful. | 0:25:12 | 0:25:15 | |
Don't go putting a whole bush in. | 0:25:15 | 0:25:18 | |
So, the potatoes have been boiling away for about 20 minutes. | 0:25:21 | 0:25:24 | |
Wow! Just look at those beauties! | 0:25:24 | 0:25:26 | |
Now they're ready to be peeled. | 0:25:26 | 0:25:29 | |
Now look, the skin just comes away really easily, and we've protected all that lovely flesh underneath. | 0:25:29 | 0:25:36 | |
The water hasn't gone near it. | 0:25:36 | 0:25:38 | |
And using the ricer again, press the flesh through to get that light and fluffy consistency. | 0:25:38 | 0:25:45 | |
You want them to be like that - I'll get milk | 0:25:45 | 0:25:48 | |
and butter in there in a moment, and you want 'em to incorporate that liquid. | 0:25:48 | 0:25:53 | |
And that's what fluffy potatoes do. | 0:25:53 | 0:25:55 | |
Waxy keeps the liquid out. | 0:25:55 | 0:25:57 | |
Look at that. | 0:25:57 | 0:25:59 | |
Not a lump anywhere. | 0:25:59 | 0:26:02 | |
Apart from in my throat at the beauty of the mashed potato. | 0:26:02 | 0:26:06 | |
So, back on the heat. Butter. I'm going to put a big knob of it. | 0:26:08 | 0:26:13 | |
Ta-da! | 0:26:13 | 0:26:14 | |
A little bit of milk. | 0:26:14 | 0:26:17 | |
Who was the first man to decide to mash a potato? | 0:26:17 | 0:26:20 | |
I want to give him a kiss. | 0:26:20 | 0:26:22 | |
Done. | 0:26:26 | 0:26:28 | |
Done. Perfect, absolutely perfect. | 0:26:28 | 0:26:31 | |
And let's put the whole thing together. | 0:26:31 | 0:26:33 | |
Place the lamb in an oven-proof dish, followed by a liberal helping of mash. | 0:26:33 | 0:26:40 | |
In the oven. | 0:26:43 | 0:26:44 | |
Right. Depending on the size of your shepherd's pie, between 20 minutes | 0:26:44 | 0:26:49 | |
and 30 minutes at 180. Pour yourself a beer. | 0:26:49 | 0:26:53 | |
You know what? | 0:26:56 | 0:26:58 | |
I've got an oven full of childhood memories! | 0:26:58 | 0:27:02 | |
Oh, my word! Oh! | 0:27:03 | 0:27:08 | |
Bubbling, singing to you! | 0:27:08 | 0:27:11 | |
Mmm! | 0:27:11 | 0:27:13 | |
Don't be stingy. | 0:27:14 | 0:27:17 | |
Nice, big helping. | 0:27:17 | 0:27:19 | |
Served with some green cabbage, lightly cooked, still got its crunch. | 0:27:19 | 0:27:24 | |
And there you have my traditional shepherd's pie, | 0:27:24 | 0:27:27 | |
topped off with those truly wondrous Arran Victory heritage potatoes. | 0:27:27 | 0:27:32 | |
If the British potato is to stand any chance of being revived, | 0:27:32 | 0:27:36 | |
we've all got to play our part, and that includes growing our own. | 0:27:36 | 0:27:40 | |
The great thing about potatoes is they only need a small container, | 0:27:40 | 0:27:44 | |
so you can grown them in soil on a balcony, or an allotment. | 0:27:44 | 0:27:48 | |
Best to plant your seeds around April. | 0:27:48 | 0:27:50 | |
It'll take roughly five months, and then you'll be cooking your own spuds. | 0:27:50 | 0:27:54 | |
The fun of digging them up, you never know what you'll get. | 0:27:54 | 0:27:57 | |
So far, I've been getting some really good results. You know, a good couple of kilos per plant. | 0:27:57 | 0:28:02 | |
It really is that simple, and I promise you, you will love the results. | 0:28:02 | 0:28:07 | |
Mmm! | 0:28:09 | 0:28:11 | |
That tastes delicious. | 0:28:12 | 0:28:13 | |
That is truly wonderful. | 0:28:13 | 0:28:16 | |
I've been on a bit of a journey here and, yeah, I'll admit that | 0:28:16 | 0:28:21 | |
bog-standard potatoes, they do do a decent job, | 0:28:21 | 0:28:24 | |
but if you want something truly lovely - I mean, outstanding - | 0:28:24 | 0:28:28 | |
then you have to track down some of these old heritage varieties. | 0:28:28 | 0:28:31 | |
Look, right now, why don't we just start a great British spud revival? | 0:28:31 | 0:28:36 | |
Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd | 0:28:59 | 0:29:02 |