London and South East Fish Great British Menu

This year on Great British Menu...

Wa-hey!

..24 of the country's top chefs...

This is it, I'm just going to go for it.

..are competing to cook at a glorious Taste Of Summer Banquet

celebrating 140 years of the iconic Wimbledon Championships,

the oldest and most prestigious tennis tournament in the world.

This week, battling to represent London and the South East

in the national finals are three chefs new to the competition.

Mike Reid, out in front after impressing yesterday

with his technical starter.

It hit the summer brief, great idea.

Michelin-starred Tom Kemble

a point behind after forgetting to plate a crucial element.

-And where are the croutons in this, they're in it?

-No, they're not.

-Oh.

And Selin Kiazim,

level with Tom after combining too many flavours in her starter.

I wasn't sure if it came together as a dish.

Today, it's the fish course

and, after a nervous start, each chef is pushing hard

for a high score.

I'm definitely really going for it with this dish.

But, with just one point between them,

who will come out on top?

Dessert on a fish course? That's brave.

-Brave or stupid?

-LAUGHTER

To make it through to Friday's regional final,

each chef must produce incredible dishes

that celebrate a taste of summer

and pay tribute to 140 years of the Wimbledon Championships.

With one course down, Mike's out in front with eight points

and is determined to stay there.

I've worked in a lot of pressurised kitchens before

and it's tough and it's hard but I know I've got what it takes.

Yeah, it's going to be fun, I'm looking forward to it.

While both Selin and Tom are just a point behind on seven.

So, how are you guys feeling today?

Yeah, feeling good.

Looking forward to this course and, yeah, want to get started.

Yeah, I hope I get a good score this time.

-So, Tom, you're not going to forget anything today?

-Um...

LAUGHTER

Hopefully not, touch wood.

Deciding whether their dishes are worthy of being served

at this year's Wimbledon banquet

is Michelin-starred chef and six-time veteran, Angela Hartnett.

-Hey, guys.

-Hi, Angela.

-Hello.

Are you all right? How are you feeling today?

Good, good.

Are you saying that because you've got one more point than the others?

Only one, it's only one, it's tight, Angela.

HE LAUGHS

OK, guys, you can all cook, without doubt,

and you've all got good palates.

So, now, we just need to raise the game.

Good luck, get cooking.

The chefs have to hit the brief.

I really want to see summery food.

Light, gorgeous-looking plates of food

that you just want to tuck into and eat.

Innovative chef Mike Reid is hoping to increase his lead

with a fish dish in tribute to the Wimbledon Championships

combining unusual flavours

including strawberry and white chocolate.

-Hi, Mike.

-Hi, Angela.

-OK?

-Yeah, good.

-Good. What's your dish called today?

-Strawberries And Cream.

-OK.

You know it's the fish course, not your dessert course?

Yep, I know, I know.

So, how does that translate to the fish course?

So, what I'm doing, I'm starting off with a beautiful amberjack.

This fish is very meaty, very rich

and will stand up to a lot of the sweet elements of the dish.

-OK.

-The fish, I'm literally just going to cure it

-with lots of citrus, some lavender.

-Yeah.

And then I'm doing strawberries in different ways.

-So, we've got some beautiful English strawberries here.

-Yeah.

We've got some under-ripe strawberries, as well.

I've got some fermented strawberries here.

Where does the cream element come into it?

I'm doing aerated chocolate, basically,

which will give it a real richness to the dish.

What about the sweetness?

-White chocolate is sweeter than most chocolate, isn't it?

-It is.

But I'm going to top the aero with some caviar.

We're going wild and wacky today, aren't we!

HE LAUGHS

It's either going to be a ten or zero!

THEY LAUGH

So Mike's doing quite an unusual dish, Strawberries And Cream.

But it's the white chocolate that I'm slightly nervous about,

whether that will really work with it

or whether it'll just throw the dish out completely.

Selin was criticised yesterday

for the confusing flavours in her starter,

ending up in joint second place.

Today, she's hoping to take the top spot with her fish course

honouring two of Wimbledon's iconic champions.

OK, Selin, tell me the name of your dish?

Nadal Versus Federer.

Ooh! Fancy!

So, what's the inspiration, dare I guess.

Their final at Wimbledon in 2008

and it is widely regarded

as the greatest men's final at Wimbledon of all time.

So, how does that reflect in the dish?

I've researched into their favourite ingredients.

So, the octopus is representing?

Nadal, with his Spanish background.

How are you going to cook that?

So, I'm going to boil that, and then I'm going to barbecue it afterwards.

OK. All right.

For Federer, I'm going to be doing potato rostis.

Oh, because he's Swiss.

I'll also be making a pea and green chilli relish.

So, these are sviri biber.

-And they're from Turkey?

-They're from Turkey, yeah.

-OK.

And what are you doing with the grapes and asparagus?

Asparagus, I am just going to be blanching

With the red grapes, I'm going to make a puree

and, along with the green grapes,

I'm just going to serve them raw, sliced, yeah.

OK, and how confident are you feeling?

I'm feeling good about this, I think it's a really nice dish,

it's a little bit unusual, so, yeah, hopefully you like it.

-OK, good luck, you've lots to get on with, so, carry on.

-Thank you.

Selin's dish is the octopus versus the potato rosti,

I hope she pulls it off. You know, it could be a confusing dish

and she was struggling with that in the first course,

so she's got to nail it in the second course.

Yesterday, Michelin-starred, Tom forgot to plate a key element

costing him valuable points.

Today, he's hoping to gain ground

with a dish inspired by childhood summer memories.

-Hi, Tom.

-Hi, Angela.

-How are you?

-Yeah, good, thanks.

OK, tell me about your dish, what's the name of it?

The name of it is, It's No Picnic.

It's No Picnic? OK.

It's no picnic to make this dish, Angela.

SHE LAUGHS

It requires precision and good cooking techniques

but also it's inspired by the great British tradition of a picnic.

-Which reminds you of the summer.

-Which reminds me of the summer.

Many summer holidays spent down in Cornwall

eating terrible childhood picnics.

Oh, bless!

So, how is this going to be a better picnic then your poor mother's?

Well, I'm going to be cooking poached trout,

it's going to be poached in vinegar butter

with a cucumber beurre blanc,

crushed cucumber, sorrel and English caviar.

Very nice.

OK. So, what this in here?

This is pickled dulse

which has been pickled in a bit of white soy,

-and sugar, water and vinegar.

-Dulse is like a seaweed?

Dulse is a seaweed.

And are you feeling confident about it?

The cooking of the trout is really crucial

so I'm poaching it really gently in this vinegar butter,

no sous-vide, no oven, just on the stove top.

-Hallelujah! Old school.

-Old school.

I didn't think young chefs knew

how to cook a piece of fish on a stove any more!

So, Tom's cooking his fish, it sounds ridiculous to say,

in the old-fashioned way, just cooking it in a pan.

Lightly poaching it. The risk is he could overcook it.

With the chefs gunning for high scores today,

they're each hoping to learn from Angela's feedback so far.

Do you reckon Angela was fair yesterday?

Yeah, definitely.

-You would say that!

-THEY LAUGH

I think if she judges like that all week I'll be very happy.

Mike impressed Angela with the innovative flavours in his starter.

Today, he's hoping to do the same, combining fish

with strawberries and white chocolate

in homage to Wimbledon's strawberries and cream.

Mike, dessert on a fish course?

-That's brave.

-Brave or stupid?

He begins by preparing his amberjack,

a meaty Mediterranean fish which he's curing in an unusual mix

of chilli, lavender, and orange and grapefruit zest

to capture the taste of summer.

Next, he moves on to his aerated white chocolate.

To create large bubbles,

he siphons melted white chocolate through an espuma gun

before placing in a vacpac machine to aerate further.

But he needs to watch closely so the mixture doesn't explode.

-Oh,

-BLEEP!

The bubbles in the mixture have started to collapse

and Mike's worried the texture isn't right.

-What's going on?

-I'm just doing a second batch.

All right, let's see how you aerate it.

MACHINE WHIRS

-And then you freeze that?

-Yeah, chill it down.

It's dropped.

-It's pressurising it too much at the moment.

-Yeah.

-OK.

I've got a little bit more mix

and I've got enough time to give it another go, as well.

All right, OK. Good luck.

Selin is working on her complex dish, Nadal Versus Federer,

in tribute to the epic 2008 Wimbledon final.

She's serving octopus to represent Spanish player Rafael Nadal

which she boiling in a broth to keep the flesh tender

before barbecuing later.

Next, she moves on to her rosti,

a homage to Swiss player Roger Federer.

It's a lot to get done in the time.

It's a little bit of a process going on there.

But, hopefully, if I pull it off, the results will be good.

After grating potatoes and dehydrating in salt,

she squeezes out the excess moisture

before crisping up the rosti in the oven.

Next, she moves on to one of her four accompaniments,

a red grape puree which should add a sweet contrast

to her barbecued octopus.

OK, Selin, how's your octopus?

Yeah, come out really nicely.

-And can we try bit?

-Yeah, please.

So, when it goes on the barbecue, does it soften it?

From this point, it will sort of just slightly soften it.

I think we'll get a nice char on the outside of it,

so a little bit crispy.

-Will Nadal and Federer be happy?

-Yeah. I don't see why not.

Selin's dish, I hope it doesn't become too confusing.

She's got a lot of things going on.

I hope it all does work as one whole dish.

Whoo!

Tom is working on his dish, It's No Picnic,

featuring poached trout served with a cucumber salad.

Now we're talking.

To impress Angela, he's hoping to elevate the picnic dish

to banquet standards

and, today, he can't make any mistakes.

I've got control, a bit more control than yesterday.

Hopefully not going to forget anything.

He starts by working on his salad made with compressed cucumber,

pickled dulse and mustard seeds for acidity.

So, Tom, have you just nicked a load of my cucumber ideas, then,

-from my starter?

-I was inspired by your first course, Selin.

-Oh, is that what it was?

-THEY LAUGH

Or maybe great minds think alike.

Next, he moves on to his trout

which he's poaching slowly using a traditional method

for a classic flavour.

So, is that in butter or...?

-Butter, split out, vinegar, salt.

-OK.

It's a technique I learned up in Sweden, actually.

Have a taste. There's quite a bit of acidity in there.

It's a low temperature, it's about 60 degrees, so...

Then you'll test it with your fingers?

I'm going to test it with a little skewer

-and it should literally just be warm to touch.

-Warm to your lips.

-OK.

-That's the plan.

-Carry on. I'll let you carry on.

As part of Tom's research to help him reinvent the humble picnic,

he's come to London's Battersea Park to meet Dr Andrea Tanner.

-Hi.

-Hello. It's very nice to meet you.

An archivist for Fortnum And Mason's

who's prepared him an historic spread.

This looks amazing.

I was hoping you could explain to me about the origins of the picnic.

It's a French word and it's a French concept.

But, then, it was adopted by the British

at the end of the 18th century.

What would be the kind of food that would have been served?

Rather grand food. Large raised pies,

they would have had things like jellied boars' heads,

roast quail and, also, of course, if you were very rich,

you could have had some caviar.

-I'm actually going to have a taste, as well.

-I think you should.

The Edwardians made the picnic into, quite honestly,

a feast and a banquet out of doors.

When Wimbledon first started in 1887,

the Victorians popularised the picnic...

Oh, wow.

..ordering lavish hampers complete with menus.

And these are specifically a racing hamper.

Fillets of sole, parfait Perigourdine,

veal and ham pie, noisettes of lamb.

I mean, this is seriously rich, decadent food, really.

It's amazing seeing kind of all this history.

So, these are special hampers that were done

for the coronation of George VI, the current Queen's father.

He played at Wimbledon.

I've taken a lot from today.

I mean, I guess my kind of perception of the picnic

was slightly based on what I'd personally experienced

which was soggy sandwiches

and for what I thought was probably quite a humble picnic.

In fact, it has its origins

in something I think worthy of a banquet.

Back in the kitchen,

Mike is still working on the unusual sweet elements for his fish dish,

Strawberries And Cream, including a strawberry gel.

Mike's dish is the controversial one today.

He's definitely going out there with his flavours.

I think if he pulls it off, I'm sure it will be amazing.

But, yeah, it sounds pretty wild!

Mike's also taking a risk by not cooking his amberjack fish

which he removes from his lavender, chilli and citrus rub

and slices ready to plate.

We know that Angela's looking for perfection.

Everything's got to be cooked spot-on.

Feeling good about that? Even though you're just curing fish?

It's all about the quality of the produce,

accentuating those ingredients.

So, hopefully I can deliver on that today.

Selin still has several elements to complete

for her octopus and rosti dish, Nadal Versus Federer.

I'm definitely really going for it with this dish.

I think it's a really strong dish.

She's serving her fish course with four different sauces

including a pea and green chilli relish

and a tarama, a cod's roe emulsion.

I think she's got a lot of components again.

She's got to make sure she brings that all together

and they all balance one another out.

Across the kitchen, Tom has opted for a more straightforward approach,

serving his fish with just one sauce

which he hopes will allow his trout to shine.

I'm just starting to make a beurre blanc.

I've been reducing some Chardonnay vinegar

with a bit of cucumber and then I'm going to blitz it

with the cucumber skins in

so it's going to give it a really vibrant green colour.

But with so few elements on his plate,

every ingredient needs to be cooked to perfection.

Well, the fish course, I mean, really, there's nowhere to hide.

First to plate up is Mike

who's hoping to maintain his lead

with his white chocolate and strawberry dish,

Strawberries And Cream.

Definitely, you're looking like strawberries and cream.

THEY LAUGH

If I call it it, I've got to deliver.

He starts by creating a strawberry Bellini.

So what's that you've got in the little bottle there, Mike?

It's a touch of lavender essence

just to carry through the flavours from the dish, as well.

Next, he plates his cured amberjack fish

adding fermented and sliced strawberries

and tops with the strawberry gel and chilli oil.

-How long are you going to be, Mike?

-Coming to the pass in 30 seconds.

He adds his aerated white chocolate.

How's the aerated white chocolate working out for you, Mike?

-As I wanted.

-Excellent.

Sorry, chef!

THEY LAUGH

And finishes with caviar and herbs

before loading the dishes into a Wimbledon usherette box.

OK, what do you think, guys?

I think it looks very pretty. Definitely looks like dessert.

THEY LAUGH

I'm smelling the lavender like from here.

You carry the box, I'll take the little glass, OK?

-Thank you.

-Thanks.

How are you feeling?

Definitely, probably, the most controversial dish of the day.

Do you think guests at the banquet would be just weirded out by it?

I do think that they'd find it very strange.

The aerated white chocolate, it hasn't quite worked.

-It...

-No, no, be honest. What do you think?

It's melted very quickly.

Kind of completely disintegrated.

So that's the strawberry Bellini.

It's quite strong in lavender. That's not all just the leaf, is it?

No, I've got a little bit of lavender essence in there, as well.

-The lavender is really intense in that.

-Yeah.

The amberjack, interesting. Work for you flavour-wise?

You had coriander, lavender and then the grapefruit, wasn't it?

Yeah, for me, it's worked. It's penetrated the fish in a short time.

I'm very happy with the fish element.

I think the cure is really good.

-Yeah. The fish has got a nice firmness to it.

-Yeah.

Where's the spice coming through there?

-There's a couple of drops of chilli oil on this, as well.

-Ah.

I'd say the chilli is probably slightly too strong.

It's really kind of kicking the back of my throat.

If you were marking it, what would you give it?

Because of the aerated white chocolate,

I'd give this one a seven.

-How did you get on?

-It was a tough one.

-So what did you think of the dish?

-I thought the lavender

really overpowered the dish.

It sort of smelt too much

and kind of reminded me too much of a dessert.

Hopefully, Angela doesn't agree with either of you!

THEY LAUGH

Next to plate up is Selin who's taking a risk with

her complicated dish, Nadal Versus Federer,

a tribute to the epic 2008 Wimbledon men's final.

At the last moment, she barbecues her octopus

which she dresses with lemon juice and wild oregano.

OK, you're on time, Selin?

Um, just starting to plate now.

Next, she portions her potato rosti and deep fries.

You happy with the rostis?

No, I've rushed them a little bit. With a little bit more time

they could have come up a little bit nicer.

She plates her red grape puree,

followed by her barbecued octopus and tarama.

She adds asparagus, blanched samphire

and pea and green chilli relish.

What are you drizzling on now?

This is a sherry vinegar caramel.

OK, you're nearly five minutes over, Selin.

Yeah, sorry, I'll be there in 30 seconds, please.

Next, pata negra ham and pickled seaweed.

She serves her rosti in a separate bowl

and places both dishes in a display box

featuring a cartoon of the classic Wimbledon final.

You guys have both out-propped me!

THEY LAUGH

What you need to worry about is if they out-cook you.

I've left one thing off, Angela,

-would you mind if I put it on?

-OK.

So you're late and you're adding stuff.

She adds fresh green grapes and is finally ready for the pass.

Just take these.

Phew. Calm.

OK. Well done.

-Right, what do you think?

-It looks really interesting.

I really like what you've done with the octopus.

Yeah, I'm looking forward to tasting it.

All right, well, we'll leave that one for you

and we'll take this one, OK?

The prop is a really cool tie-in.

I love the comic strip, like, I think it's really cool.

I think it's slightly impractical for a banquet.

But, yeah, that's just me.

So this is what your wanted, like, little chip rostis?

Yeah. I didn't want them to sort of

be too heavy or anything with the fish course.

Quite sweet.

For me, it's a little bit salty. But it's nice and crispy.

Is the octopus cooked enough for you?

Yeah, I think the only thing is I would have liked the grill to be a

little bit hotter so you get a bit more of a char on the octopus.

This is really tender.

-That's really good.

-Cuts through really easily.

There's something there with a little bit of a spice as well,

there's a little bit of a chilli kick coming through.

-And where's the spice coming from?

-In the peas, there's the grilled Turkish peppers.

-OK, good.

-Do you pick up any of the tarama?

No. With the sharpness of the capers and then you've got the chilli,

as well, salsa.

-Yeah.

-Is there any element you would say, "Actually, I could lose that?"

I mean, looking at it again, perhaps either the samphire or the

-asparagus, maybe, is not necessary on there.

-Right.

So what would you score it?

It's a tough one, because I think

that she's done the octopus really well,

but I think she's over complicated it.

So I'm going to give it a six.

How's it going, guys?

-Good.

-How was it?

Yeah, good, good. What did you guys think?

I loved your presentation.

Maybe one element too much for me, but it was a good plate of food.

-And you, Tom?

-Yeah, no, I thought the octopus was really well cooked.

-Thank you.

-Yeah.

Tom is last up to the pass with his fish dish, It's No Picnic.

He starts by placing his compressed cucumber and pickled seaweed salad

onto plain white plates.

Is that your cucumber?

-Yeah.

-It's looking good.

The colour looks amazing.

Next, he skins his poached trout before glazing with more butter and

placing on the salad.

Because there's not enough butter in this dish!

Putting on more butter?

Definitely not worrying about our cholesterol, are you, chef?

It's a banquet!

He tops with sorrel and caviar.

It's quite a big piece of caviar, chef.

-It is, indeed.

-I just think it works really, really well with the trout.

Finally, he pours his cucumber buerre blanc into jugs

and serves.

Everything here, do we need to put anything else on it, no?

-All good, Angela.

-What do you think, Mike?

It's quite simple components on there,

but, from the looks of things, he's executed it very well.

-All right, so do you want to bring those two in?

-Yeah.

How do you think that stands up against the other two,

because obviously they've gone into the props, whereas you haven't.

You're just concentrating on great cooking.

Well, I'm trying to stay true to

kind of how I cook in the restaurant.

It looks very pretty, very simple, but does it scream summer,

does it scream Wimbledon?

-I'm not so sure.

-It may be too simple.

So the sauce to be poured all the way round?

-Yeah.

-So that's a cucumber buerre blanc?

Yes. Start off with that much.

-Beautiful colour.

-Yeah, it's an amazing colour.

So we've obviously got the trout and that's cooked as you'd like it?

That is, that's the kind of pinkness I want.

It's flaking away really nicely.

It's quite rich. That's what happens when you cook in a gallon of butter.

So enough flavour of cucumber coming out of that buerre blanc?

Yeah, I think so. I mean I used the skins as well,

which not only give it colour,

but give it an extra boost of cucumber flavour.

The cucumber salad underneath is quite a dominant flavour,

which is very nice.

-And what would you mark it?

-I'd give it a nine.

-How was it, chef?

-Yeah, good.

Well, I think it went well.

-What did you think of it?

-I think, for me,

it missed the brief a little.

I just felt it was fit for a

restaurant and not for the Great British Menu banquet.

So I'm feeling pretty anxious to find out the scores.

You know, obviously, with the scores as they are now, it's so tight.

Every point is so valuable, so...

Someone's going to go home on Thursday

and I want to make sure that it's not me.

OK, guys. That's the fish course done.

-How did you find it?

-Tough.

Tough?

Mike, I'm going to start with your dish, Strawberries And Cream.

I thought the amberjack fish was lovely.

I thought it was cured beautifully.

The idea of strawberries and fish does work.

And the dish definitely did sort of hit that taste of summer brief.

However...

..I thought, for me, the Bellini was very strong in lavender.

I like the idea of the added bit of kick with that chilli,

but it overpowered everything else.

The aerated chocolate had melted, Mike.

I couldn't really taste it.

Selin, your dish,

Nadal Versus Federer.

I liked the octopus.

I thought it did have that char flavour.

The rostis were delicious, really light.

And I really thought the pea and green chilli relish,

that was a great kick to that dish.

But...

I think you can strip it back.

Maybe you could lose one or two elements.

Personally, I didn't think you needed the asparagus.

I think you could have lost the pata negra ham.

Tom.

Your dish, It's No Picnic.

That dish did say summer on a plate.

The trout was cooked really well, it was delicious.

And your cucumber buerre blanc was lovely.

I liked the dulse and I liked the crushed cucumber.

And it does take a brave chef to put less on a plate.

However...

..I'm not sure that if you looked at that plate you would

understand the brief say it's not a picnic.

I think you can maybe even add one more ingredient -

something there that's just a bit more than cucumber and trout.

So to the scores.

Tom, I'm going to start with you.

I'm going to give you a score of...

..seven.

Mike...

..I'm giving you a score of...

..six.

Selin...

..I'm going to give you a score of...

..eight.

Have a good rest. I'll see you all tomorrow.

Thanks, Angela.

With two courses down, Selin is now leading with 15 points,

just ahead of Tom and Mike, who are neck and neck on 14.

-How do you feel?

-Yeah, I feel good.

It feels amazing to sort of get the highest mark.

Looking forward to a good night's sleep and then cracking on.

I was hoping for a slightly higher mark, but, you know,

we have main and dessert to go.

No, I don't want to go home on Thursday.

I want to stick this out and I want to get the opportunity to cook for

the judges, so I need to crack on.

I'm a little gutted. I knew it was going to be a lower score.

At the end of the day,

it's a competition and I didn't cook as well as I could have cooked,

so I've just got to pick up my game and come back strong tomorrow.