North West Judging Great British Menu

It's judgment day on Great British Menu and a place in our national finals is up for grabs.

Three of the north west's groundbreaking chefs have been fighting tooth and nail

to get their dishes onto the menu for the People's Banquet.

-It's been a week of thrills and disasters.

-Aaargh!

You won't be able to do anything.

Former champion Marcus Wareing would only accept the best

and Bruno Birkbeck was pipped to the post by Johnnie Mountain.

-Can I start again?

-Long-shot Johnnie's dramatic comeback in the dessert clinched it

-in an emotional triumph.

-'This has been really tough for me.'

I've got to step my game up again.

Today, Johnnie and returning champion Lisa Allen will cook their entire menus again for the judges

and they know it's do or die.

I'm up for it today. Gloves are off. I'll give him a run for his money.

I ain't going down without a fight.

No way will I let Lisa Allen win. I almost feel like this is a Rocky Balboa film.

Both chefs are desperate to prevail today.

Their sights are firmly set on a place in the final

where the champions cross swords to cook at the People's Banquet.

Focused perfectionist Lisa cooked the starter at last year's feast and sailed through,

with a record 34 out of 40 possible points, but she's not complacent.

I'm scared. The slate's clean. If he pulls out some good dishes, he could very well beat me.

Eccentric Johnnie didn't make it to this stage last year,

but having vanquished one rival, he's convinced his dishes are just what the judges are after.

You can't believe my excitement. I'm going to try to keep it down,

try not to take the Mickey out of that northern bird too much and make it as perfect as I can.

Our demanding judges, Prue Leith, Matthew Fort and Oliver Peyton,

have a mission - to find the most magnificent platters of food to share at the People's Banquet,

dazzling dishes for the ultimate street party. Anything less will be cast aside.

I have a vision of these wonderful big platters of quite extraordinary, marvellous, different food.

You just can't scale up. You've got to change the way you think.

It's quite a different skill involved. Techniques are different,

getting it to the tables in time. A lot of challenges.

I want the food really to generate not only high excitement, but a real buzz of conversation.

Both chefs will be cooking all four courses from their menus,

but the judges won't find out who's cooked what or which menu each dish belongs to

until they've tasted everything. They must cook to their utmost and Lisa fears Johnnie's upped his game.

-What are you changing?

-What am I changing? Everything!

Lisa's launching her menu with her version of a popular takeaway.

Crispy suckling pig with pancakes and dips.

But the first dish under the judges' scrutiny today will be

Johnnie's Indian feast with its highly ornate presentation.

-I'm a bit scared about this.

-First dish?

-Yeah. How did you feel last year?

-Petrified! Still am.

Johnnie is inspired by the food-sharing traditions of his wife's Indian heritage.

Stage one of his masterplan - to wow the judges with a menu of international favourites.

Onion bhajis.

I want them angry, angry-looking,

a bit like your hairdo.

Great British Menu veteran Marcus Wareing had plenty of criticism for Johnnie this week.

-And he's taken it all on board.

-Your starter's the only dish you're not changing?

-Yeah.

I got a positive comment from Marcus, so it's the one I'm sticking with.

Confident enough to proceed with no changes,

Johnnie dots his silver ceremonial platter with onion bhajis, puris and chutneys.

And finishes his chickpea khandvi rolls with spiced ground nut oil.

If I'm the judges, that's the way I want it facing. Understand?

-It's nerve-wracking. It's a different judgment now.

-Yeah.

-That's what goes through my head.

Will Johnnie's ambitious dish meet the judges' criteria for a breathtaking start?

-It's like a prayer offering!

-That is a feast for the eyes.

It is. We've got some puris there, some bhajis. I have no idea what those little things are.

- Very good to see Indian food. - It is. Shall we tuck in?

What is this? It's very delicious. A sort of batter rolled up like a little pancake.

-There's a puffy, incredibly delicate pastry on the outside.

-Do you think I'm meant to put this in it?

What's interesting about this is it's one of these things that,

as soon as you start tasting it you realise it'll be very hard to get it hot to tables.

The production technique has to be looked at. But I love the quality.

It's vegetarian, too, so it can be followed with anything.

-It is spectacular, carried in, these temples of gastronomy.

-Altars!

-Altars. Looks fantastic.

So they love the look of Johnnie's starter, but with reservations.

Will that open the door for Lisa? Despite his constant wind-ups,

she's enjoyed a friendly rivalry with Johnnie and took his advice on getting the pig skin crispier.

How's your pork looking, petal?

-I actually did listen to what you said to me.

-Really?

-And I put it in a little bit earlier.

-And...

-That's it!

-I can hear it cracking, mate.

-You're on fire.

-Lisa's cooked with quiet determination all week.

Her starter may not have the same flamboyant presentation, but she made it to the banquet last year

where she impressed the Prince of Wales. And she's not going to be distracted now.

Not talking?

Johnnie won't put me off. I know what my end goal is and I want to go for it.

The crispy suckling pig is carefully transferred to a platter,

the last few touches applied to her cucumber and onion mix and it's ready to go.

Perfect.

Let's hope it's not too dry now!

-Looks very neat.

-Smells wonderful!

-OK, what is this?

-Let's turn it round.

-A lazy Susan.

-I shred this, I presume.

- The skin looks lovely. - Shall I help myself to a little?

-Mmm, lovely.

-It's a very good piece of crackling.

-Like Peking duck only it's pork.

-A feast for the eyes?

-I think so.

- Absolutely. - It's not a firework display.

It's a talking point, but not spectacular.

But it's very well put together. The tastes are good. You've got to be careful not to over-gild the lily.

I don't want homely! I want drama, excitement!

I love the way it looks. Great for this occasion. You're going to get your hands dirty.

-The crackling is just perfection.

-Please leave some room for later!

That's not going to fill you up. It's just...

-He has a bottomless tummy!

-I know.

-It has got to be left to medical science.

-Absolutely!

So Lisa's suckling pig pancakes scored big on taste, not on looks.

Can she bounce back with her fish?

Marcus loved it on Tuesday, but there's no guarantee today.

-Do you think they'll like that?

-I hope so.

It looks fantastic, Lisa. I really hope you get about a six!

You'll only get two, anyway!

Lisa's dish is designed with guest interaction in mind.

They have to break through the salt crust, revealing the rainbow trout,

and then spoon the fish and buttered cockles inside onto a simple summer potato salad.

Isn't that a bit too technical for Joe Public to do? To expect them to start filleting trout?

I don't think so.

-I'd just hit it with a sledgehammer!

-Thanks for that, Johnnie.

A mistake at this point would be disastrous. Salt crust is hard, but brittle and could easily break.

OK, Mr Mountain, giving me a hand?

-You want me to lift it onto the board?

-No, I've got that. I wouldn't trust you!

Mind it doesn't fall off.

-OK, lovely.

-But Johnnie's still up to mischief.

One facing that way, one that way.

No, facing all the right way, mate.

Forget that. Let's do it how we talked about.

Who let the clown in I do not know.

So does Lisa's whole rainbow trout provide the spectacle the judges want for the People's Banquet?

This is where we say, "I do like to be beside the seaside!"

-Except there are no cockles.

-Maybe they're inside the crust.

Oh, well done.

It's...a trout.

Hang on, hang on. Look, look, look.

-There are your cockles.

-I have an ideological problem. The trout is a fresh water fish

and the cockles are salt water. You should have salt water fish and salt water cockles.

-You're a pompous fellow, really.

-Pompous?! Prue, me?!

That is a scandalous accusation!

Very buttery juices. Delicious. And nothing goes better with fish than potatoes.

So I think the whole salad idea is really good.

It's beautifully cooked. I just think the conception is lacking.

The fish itself isn't presented very well. It's just a salt crust fish on a board.

It's one of those not quite dishes. Not quite spectacular enough, not quite good enough.

-You didn't get out of bed on the right side.

-Why should I drop my standards out of sympathy for you?

It's a good thing Lisa can't hear this. It's a chance for Johnnie.

But his fish soup with rouille croutons was heavily criticised as far too thin,

so he's completely changed the base of his soup.

I think this is what Marcus meant. This is what he was looking for.

Now that's a bouillabaisse.

The version Johnnie's making today is much more like the classic French bisque

-and Lisa knows it's a lot better.

-That's a big change, that.

You were adamant that you wanted a thin fish soup.

-I'm 100% happy with what I'm doing.

-'He's trying new things.'

So...if he pulls it off, he pulls it off. If not, it's good for me.

She thought she had it in the bag, but I can see that panic-stricken look.

She knows she's up for a battle now. I'm a battler. I pulled it off yesterday and I will again today.

His other big improvement is to serve lobster tails, monkfish and langoustines on the side

rather than in the soup.

The great little thing is we can just let them have as much fish as they want. As much or as little.

-After he whisks up his rouille, a spicy garlic mayonnaise, his fish course is ready to go.

-Go.

-Halfway through.

-Yeah.

-How do you feel?

-To be honest, I feel really nervous.

-You've changed quite a bit.

-I've evolved.

-I'm an evolver.

-You tell me that now.

Has Johnnie improved his fish soup enough to beat Lisa?

-That looks lovely.

-- It does. - That English dish, bouillabaisse(!)

We each get a little bit of monkfish and lobster and a langoustine.

As usual, you can be mum. Is it particularly idiomatic of the north west?

-They've got a big sea coast! They have fish.

-It's really rich.

It's got lots of texture to it. All the flavours are amazing.

This is a great French restaurant dish.

We all know it's a great French restaurant dish, but are you saying that nothing to cross the Channel

can be accepted in British cooking?

- Absolutely right, Prue! - Let's forget that. It's the wrong dish!

It's too formal. It's not right for a fun-packed festive feast.

This could be pretty dramatic. Imagine a row of waiters marching in, plonking it down.

It could be tremendously exciting.

It's not top marks for Johnnie's fish course either. The contest is still wide open.

Even though both chefs are unaware of the judges' critiques,

Johnnie's confidence is growing.

With the interaction I've had with Marcus, the interaction I've had with Lisa and Bruno,

I've taken on board their negatives and changed that to positives.

The guy is hot on my heels, so there's a lot to play for.

Time for the main course now and Johnnie's hitting closer to home

with a refined take on a Sunday roast. Stuffed saddle of lamb,

served with a garlic espuma or foam.

-Are you nervous?

-Yeah.

Again, Johnnie's making radical changes at the last minute.

He's roasting Charlotte potatoes in goose fat rather than boiling them with vanilla seeds.

The vegetables come with a real luxury touch - black truffles to grate over them at the table

-and a cheeky reminder not to be greedy.

-"Use me, please don't abuse me!"

Is that for Prue?

If I'm the judge, down this way. I want the veg facing them.

Will the judges enjoy his refined celebration of the beloved roast lunch, with tongue-in-cheek note?

There's some truffles here. It says on the thing...

"Use me, please don't abuse me!"

Pretty classy, that(!) A Post It note. Do you think that'll go down well?

-Oh, I do like my meat nice and rare.

-Well, darling, that is practically raw.

I can still hear the animal bleating!

I slightly resent having to remove string from my meat.

What's the green stuff? Minty stuff. It's good.

This is absolutely delicious lamb, delicious sauce, very good veg,

but I honestly feel what's the point? This is Sunday lunch. It's nothing very special.

The most interesting thing is the garlic sauce, which is absolutely delicious.

It's wonderful dipping your potatoes in the garlic sauce.

The spirit of the occasion has been lost on this chef here. It's not even presented for a street party.

It's just in a restaurant manner.

Has Johnnie slipped up and let Lisa in?

With a place in the national finals at stake, Lisa's betting a barbecue

will give her the edge. And she's kept the street party theme in mind for her presentation,

serving her chicken and beer sauce in a clean beer bottle.

But does Lisa's beer can chicken have the finesse the judges expect?

-Johnnie's keen to sow some doubt.

-I feel that Lisa is cooking below her standards,

below her technical ability.

-I told you, I'm not changing anything! I'm not a lunatic like you.

-What else have I changed?

-Er...

-Everything.

-Yeah!

I've had some good, solid marks. It would be very stupid of me to change anything.

Be careful, boys. Let's go. Mush!

Is a dish as apparently simple as this really good enough for the magnificent street party?

- Good God! - That's a bit more like it.

This will go down a storm!

I love the idea of pouring it from the bottle.

The chicken tastes terrific. The flavour on the glaze is fantastic.

I think the veggies are a bit crude. Dried beans and summer veg. It's a slightly odd combination.

-This is not a fantastically sophisticated piece of cooking.

-No.

-Not high-end eating.

But all along, we've not asked for that.

Just because it's simple doesn't mean it's not gastronomic.

This is supposed to be the greatest meal our guests have ever eaten.

There needs to be an honesty about it. This is a street party. It's meant to be convivial.

That looks amazing, fabulous. I quite like the earthiness of it.

Why do we need poncey copper pans?

- Whoever said it had to have that? - You!

No, I did not. I merely suggested... Oh, don't look so crestfallen at me. It doesn't suit you.

I think if the chicken was on the bread like that, it'd be terrific.

That would be even more rustic!

You complain it's too rustic, then suggest putting it on a lump of bread.

What is really clever about it is it's a very simple dish made into a party.

I think you're too easily pleased and made happy.

A sharply-divided judging panel means the deciding factor could be the desserts. Lisa will be first.

A raspberry and chocolate pavlova.

Rather than cook one big, traditional meringue,

Lisa's adapted it for sharing with individual portions in a line.

The pressure's on to deliver.

It's the last chance you have to impress those judges before they decide,

so I have to make sure that I'm on the button.

She knows the judges want spectacular dishes, so she's embellishing with raspberries,

spun sugar decorations and retro raspberry jellies.

And adding individual pots of sheep's milk ice cream with roasted hazelnuts.

We'll get those ones out.

Please be careful. Go quick. It's ice cream, I don't want it to melt.

Excellent. Thank you, please.

-OK, Johnnie, my last course is gone.

-Is it as good as you wanted?

Yeah. You've got jelly, pavlova and ice cream.

- I'm hoping for the spectacular! - It's coming.

Meringue! Jelly Raspberries!

It's a kiddies party(!)

-Now that's...

-A squashy meringue. I like that.

-And also there's a bit of squashy spun sugar.

-I think it's a fun pudding, this.

-Mmm.

Very good, that. This is delicious.

My heart always sinks when it says sheep's milk because you think it's not going to be creamy enough,

-and it'll be rather empty, but it's delicious.

-I love the idea of the spoons.

This in itself says a day out to me. This says fun.

It's not very original.

No, true. It's a comfort pudding.

You can't really fault much of the cooking here. It's soft meringue, it's high quality.

I think it's lacking a wow factor.

- You know what would transform it? - More of it.

Scale. Absolutely right. If you can imagine something five times that size,

it would be an invitation to pudding mayhem, wouldn't it?

-Everybody would want to get their bit in there.

-It would look a mess,

but you can't resist it.

We've had some good puddings.

-The pudding line this year is tougher than it's ever been.

-I know.

I used to think chefs couldn't make pudding.

This could be bad news for Johnnie, but yesterday he whipped up a showstopping Viennamisu.

He struggled to get his dish to the finish line, burning his fingers...

Aaargh!

-..and it's happening again today.

-Sounds like you're getting your back waxed.

-He needs to mould three coloured molten sugars into decorative ribbons.

-Ouch!

And he insists on pulling his sugar without gloves.

It sets so quickly, doesn't it?

Sugar pulling staying the same.

Johnnie's sugar-pulling heroics proved enough of a wow factor yesterday

to tip the scales in his favour and Lisa's worried about a repeat performance.

I'm nervous. You've just served up four courses and now you've got to wait.

With Lisa's final course served, she's free to turn up the heat.

-Going to be on time? 10 minutes.

-I'm going to struggle. Do you think they'll allow me a bit longer?

-No.

But Johnnie knows this could be a winner and coolly pipes on the cream before the finishing touches.

Just as with his fish and main courses, he's changing his dessert on the fly.

-Where do you want these, boys?

-He's changed it, even though I don't think he should have changed it.

Marcus gave him an 8. I wouldn't change a thing.

-What have you done different?

-This is mascarpone, this is cream, instead of combining the two.

Will Johnnie's knee-jerk changes work in his favour and be his making as champion of the north west?

This one dish could decide the contest.

That's an incredibly good bit of sugar-pulling, isn't it? Beautiful.

-You need to be a confectioner.

-It's almost a pity to destroy that in order to eat it.

- That's one of the most beautiful puddings we've ever had. - What do we think it actually is?

-Is it a cake?

-It's got cherries in it.

It's coffee syrup.

I like the bits of cherry. It's a cross between a Black Forest gateau and a tiramisu, isn't it?

This could be one of the best puddings I've had.

The sauce helps, but the problem is the sponge.

If this was all the way down the table in one long one,

with lots of ribbons, I think it would have a wonderful effect on the mood of the company.

They all look like presents. You feel that inside there is going to be something wonderful.

-We just have to make sure something wonderful IS inside.

-This is not irredeemable. It just needs help.

Having cooked their hearts out, the fierce rivals must wait to find out who's made it through.

I love it so much, to be flying that flag for the north west again. Hopefully, I've done enough.

With all the changes that I made, you'd have to be suicidal to do that.

Really. And I did it to get through. I did it to win.

Back in the chamber, it's time for the judges to learn which dishes make up the two menus.

I am a bit surprised. The Indian feast and the fish soup together seems like a very strange journey.

One menu is much easier to eat in the sense that it's lighter.

The other one is more delicious.

We have to bear in mind what the occasion is and the people who will come to this banquet.

The two chefs set about the brief in different ways.

Johnnie's conjured up a high-risk, high-drama menu, taking his guests on a tour of classic world dishes,

while Lisa's approach has been to re-imagine time-honoured party favourites that are fun to share.

-Prue, have you made up your mind which menu you prefer?

-I have.

- Oliver? - I have.

Well, I have too, so we'd better get the chefs in and put them out of their misery.

The moment of truth. Will Lisa Allen retain her crown or will Johnnie Mountain turn the tables?

Lisa, welcome back to the judges' chamber. And Johnnie, welcome.

This is a competition and only one of you can go through to the final of the Great British Menu.

-Prue, have you made up your mind which menu you prefer?

-Yes, I have and it is Menu B.

Oliver, which menu do you prefer?

Menu B.

Well, it's Menu B for me as well, so it's a clean sweep,

but you don't know who cooked it and neither do we. So, Prue, if you'll pass me the envelope.

So the chef who will be going through to represent the north west

in the final of the Great British Menu will be...

Lisa Allen. Well done, Lisa.

Congratulations.

Ohh...

-I gather you overcame not simply some very fine cooking by Johnnie...

-It was a tough competition.

We came to the judgment on the basis of the menu.

It seemed that on your menu there were no weak dishes and a couple of outstanding ones.

Lisa, it was a great menu. That suckling pig starter, we couldn't stop eating it.

A part of my lingering pain is from that pavlova. It was great.

I would look at the trout, though. I loved the idea, but don't think it was dramatic enough.

-OK.

-Johnnie, I think your menu all tasted great,

but it was restaurant dishes rather than occasion dishes.

Thank you both very much. There's a well-deserved glass of champagne waiting for you outside.

-Thank you very much.

-Thank you.

CHEERING

I feel proud of what I've achieved and glad to come second to one of the best cooks in the country.

Lisa Allen, congratulations!

A clean sweep is just... just outstanding. I'm absolutely overjoyed.

Well done, for making such an easy week of it!

Next week on Great British Menu the battle continues

with chefs from the central region.

I desperately want to win this!

To last the week, there's no room for mistakes.

If 100 people are waiting, it's no good. It's no good that I'm waiting.

Subtitles by Subtext for Red Bee Media Ltd - 2011

Email [email protected]