Northern Ireland Main Great British Menu

This week on Great British Menu, two of Northern Ireland's previous champions, Chris Fearon...

-Wa-wah-wah.

-Funny guy, Fearon.

-..and Niall McKenna...

You can't get more dedication than an Olympian.

..are going head-to-head with Chris Bell...

-You give away part of your life to achieve your goals.

-That's it.

..for the chance to cook at a magnificent Olympic feast.

Yesterday's fish course saw Chris Bell hold onto the gold...

You really thought again about pushing boundaries.

..and last year's winner buckle under the pressure.

-Are you OK?

-Yes, I just want to go home.

-Calm down.

Today's the main course. Chris Fearon needs to do well...

I wasn't right yesterday at all. A nervous wreck.

..and takes a massive risk...

-Hopefully, this will start creating that mousse.

-God help us.

..with disastrous consequences.

-It's too hot.

-Are you walking on ice here or are you pushing boundaries?

I think a bit of both, to be honest with you.

This year's challenge is to create awe-inspiring dishes

that live up to the spectacle of the London 2012 Games.

-This looks cool.

-The prize - the chance to cook for our sporting heroes.

Sometimes, in a fight, you have to take a risk.

Judging them all week is a fearsome veteran, Richard Corrigan.

All want to push the boundaries. Hopefully, they'll give us something absolutely astounding.

Fail to deliver today and, tomorrow, they'll be sent packing.

-How are you feeling?

-Nervous.

-You should be confident. It's us two.

You're not doing too bad, Mr Bell. A few points ahead.

That is the first two courses. A new day, it could easily turn.

-Me and Mr McKenna here, one point in it.

-It is tight.

-Two big courses to go. It could go any way.

-All to play for.

-Big time.

Currently in front with 16 points is last year's runner-up, Chris Bell.

He lost out to Chris Fearon in the judges' chamber last year, so is now hungry for gold.

He's held on to the top spot all week, with accomplished cookery and daring new twists.

I'm desperate to get there this year.

I fell short last year and I'm not willing to let that happen again.

It would give me massive confidence going into the final day if I can nail a good score today.

-All right?

-Very well, thank you.

-Well done yesterday.

-Thanks very much.

-And the day before.

-So far so good.

-What are you cooking?

-I'm cooking roasted Lissara duck

with a Bakewell tart.

I thought, why could you not pair up a roast duck and a Bakewell tart in some savoury, fun, quirky way?

But I never had the nerve or the guts to go ahead with it.

When I got the brief, I thought this is the right time to have a go at this.

-Groundbreaking?

-I think so.

In the tart, I'm going to do a cherry jam in the bottom,

pick the legs off the duck,

press that in with a pine nut, almond and basil frangipani.

-What's the risk?

-Erm, like my other dishes, it's flavour combinations

that people may stand back and ask, "what am I thinking?"

But we're asked to do groundbreaking dishes and push the boundaries

and you've got to take risks. I'm certainly taking them here.

Chris Bell is going all-out with roast duck

and a duck and cherry Bakewell tart -

a savoury twist on a sweet classic that could backfire on him.

He needs to get this really right. The contrast of flavours - the sweet and the sours and the savouries.

If not, it's just going to completely fall apart.

There's something sickly, sweet, with duck.

Chasing Chris Bell's lead, with 13 points, is former champion, Nigel McKenna

who made it to the final banquet two years ago.

His simple dishes, expertly cooked, have scraped by so far, keeping last year's winner at bay.

He needs to wow today to keep a foot in the final.

The past two days have been really difficult.

I have to focus on the main course, nothing else.

Morning, Niall.

-How are you?

-Better today. Hard day yesterday.

-What are you cooking today?

-Today, I'm cooking Dexter fillet, from outside Downpatrick,

stuffed with some apricots, some almonds,

a few shallots chopped down, with garlic and thyme.

I'm going to be cooking on a charcoal grill

and painting it with a tiny bit of miso, to get the flavour. It's a wee Asian combination.

And then just a little bit of salsifying, a bit of chopped potato and cavolo nero, which I adore.

What's groundbreaking about this dish?

For me, it's the combination of the fruit, the nuts, the beef. It's a wee bit out there.

Yesterday, there wasn't enough going on.

Now, I have to really step up and get the flavours going.

Do you think barbecue is appropriate for the Olympics?

The biggest risk is charring it too much. It's really hot, cooking at 350 degrees.

The worst thing you can do is burn the outside, which is pretty easy.

Niall's fillet of beef with miso, apricots and almonds

is an unusual combination he hopes will stand out.

But has he gone too simple again?

Niall's box of ingredients doesn't consist of much.

His beef, his vegetable garnish and, of course, his new-found miso,

which he's pretty convinced is going to be groundbreaking for him.

I hope it is, because Niall really needs to shine with this dish.

Currently training with 12 points is last year's winner, Chris Fearon,

a brasserie-style chef whose imaginative cooking

ticked all the boxes for last year's sharing brief.

But this year has got off to a bad start.

The nerves can get the best of you. You can just crumble.

That happened in the fish course, but hopefully I can succeed today.

-How are you feeling?

-Good. A lot better than yesterday.

-You're a bit behind.

-Yeah.

-A winner last year.

-A different brief.

It suited me last year. The nerves have got to me, big time.

-What are you cooking?

-It's some shank. I'm flaking that and making a little fritter out of that.

A loin of lamb, some sweetbreads, sweet potato and beetroot.

What's groundbreaking about this?

I'm going to do something I'm not really used to doing. The whole molecular thing.

I'm doing a basil, foamy, frothy, moussey thing with these chemicals.

I wanted to be seen to be trying something a little bit different.

-Why is this suited for an Olympic banquet?

-The name of the dish is Spring Jump Lamb.

I'm serving my food on an Olympic gymnasium horse. Lamb, spring, they jump about the field.

I want to tie it all together. I need to do well today. I can't have a shocker like yesterday.

Chris Fearon's cooking outside his comfort zone in a bid to impress,

serving Spring Jump Lamb, another complicated dish

with a gimmicky prop and risky molecular foam.

He's trying things he's never done,

techniques that he doesn't feel at home with.

There's a great danger for Chris to completely mess this dish up.

The cooking has commenced in the kitchen and everyone is on edge.

With former competitor Chris Bell in the lead,

it's put the pressure on the other two chefs, who both have champion titles to protect.

What do you think of the banquet? The Olympians?

It's brilliant. The Olympics is the pinnacle of sporting events.

You can't get any more dedication than an Olympian.

Very focused and very driven people.

Trying to be the best of the best. Chefs are similar.

There's a lot of competition involved.

-You give away a part of your life to achieve your goals.

-That's it.

Everybody's tense in the kitchen. The pressure is on us all.

Today, it's very important for me to get ahead.

I feel ashamed of myself these last couple of days.

I haven't cooked to the best of my ability.

If I don't score well today, unless I get a ten tomorrow, you can count yourself out.

But I'm not thinking that. I have to focus on what I'm doing.

And he's got plenty to do.

He's roasting his savoury granola, while making his mix for his lamb shank fritters.

-How are you doing?

-Not too bad.

-What have you in here?

-Just some shank, cooked down in a nice cuissant, tomato-based.

Some saffron, aromats, cumin in there.

-So, feeling confident?

-I'm feeling a lot better today than I did yesterday.

I wasn't right yesterday, at all. I wasn't myself.

A nervous wreck. I don't know what happened to me, I really don't.

I think I stopped believing in my dish, stopped believing in myself, really.

I just went to pieces.

-A bit more focused?

-Yeah, a bit more focused, a bit more relaxed.

Just take my time.

-You want this dish to be a real standout.

-Yeah, I don't want to mess this up.

Chris Fearon really needs to keep calm.

Yesterday, he took a really bad bout of nerves.

That's not good for producing good food.

Really, he needs to keep calm, to get some great food out of him.

Across the kitchen, Chris Bell is getting the elements ready for his savoury Bakewell tart.

The Bakewell tart, inspirational. Definitely something different.

I've seen the two things on a menu and thought, "I reckon they'd go together."

-It's very much 50-50, savoury and sweet.

-Ducklings are sweet.

It almost needs it.

I've just tried to cross the tart over into a savoury dish,

without putting a big almondy, jammy sponge on a plate.

It's definitely something different. It sounds good, but definitely something different.

-Chris, how is everything going?

-Not too bad.

-Early days.

-Bakewell?

-Yeah. I've got a little sour cherry compound.

I'm going to put a small layer on the base to act as the jam.

I don't want much more sweetness, so I've got the picked duck legs,

with a little bit of a really light duck sauce.

I'm going to pipe the frangipane, which is quite heavily flavoured with basil,

but this is how I want to get the basil element onto this.

There's pine, almond, a tiny bit of Parmesan in there

and then I'm going to glaze it with some traditional cherry jam.

Chris Bell feels very confident.

This whole Bakewell idea is starting to really take place.

I'm still not convinced that it's a fantastic idea,

but I'm there to be proved wrong.

It's a trailblazing combination, but Chris's rivals want to find out if he's taking too much of a risk.

-Lovely.

-It's good, eh?

What are you doing tomorrow for dessert - sausages and mash?

Wa-wah-wah!

Funny guy, Fearon.

They taste beautifully, individually, but all together? I'm really interested to see.

This dish comes together better than it sounds. It is risky.

All my courses are a bit risky in this year's competition

and that's what I'm pinning my hopes on.

Niall's been struggling to meet the groundbreaking part of the brief.

Today, he's aiming for a top score by using a charcoal grill

that cooks meat at very high temperatures.

And he's decided to serve his Dexter beef fillet with miso and a fruit stuffing.

Niall, what have we here?

I'm rolling the Dexter. I'm going to put it in the blast chiller. Tighten it up a little bit.

And I've got my almond and apricot stuffing here, if you want to taste it.

-Almonds and apricots?

-A little sage, thyme, garlic,

and I'm going to chill this down and put it through the centre of the fillet.

The fillet round the outside, nicely charred,

and then the almond through the centre with the apricots.

-It's a very small piece of beef. It's going to char quickly.

-It is. I have to be very careful.

It's such a severe heat and such a small amount of meat, I have to be very careful.

Niall's beef has shrunk down to such an extent

that I'm really concerned that when he goes to chargrill it, he's going to completely overcook it.

His stuffing, I tasted, I liked.

But is it groundbreaking? Has he done enough work?

He's under a bit of pressure to pull something out of the bag here.

If it's groundbreaking he's after, Richard may just have noticed it

on Chris Fearon's side of the kitchen -

a fish tank pump.

-Where's the goldfish, Chris?

-I don't have any goldfish.

What are you doing with this?

I'm doing a bath of frothy foam, moussey thing, blitz it up,

blanch in the fresh basil, to make a green herbs sauce, almost,

and then I'm going to infuse it with two chemicals that will activate it.

It's something I've played about with, a fish tank pump.

There's loads of wee airs in it. Froths it all up.

It looks like green bubblebath, but wild, like vibrant green.

-So you came prepared?

-I came with a fish tank pump, I don't know if I came prepared(!)

-Chris, you need to push on. Take care.

-Thank you.

Chris Fearon is really pushing the boat out for this one.

He's going to areas he doesn't feel comfortable with.

He wants to come up with that groundbreaking dish

that really makes this worthy of an Olympian feast.

Has he the skill to pull it off? Only time will tell.

I think the fish tank concept is quite clever, you know?

I did my homework and it's just making bubbles

and as it creates the air in the water, it makes it all frothy.

It will be pretty cool-looking on the plate and it tastes nice too.

Chris Fearon may have won a place at the banquet last year,

but he's never worked in a Michelin-starred kitchen, unlike his competitors.

He works at Deanes at Queens, a brasserie in Belfast

where molecular gastronomy is never on the menu,

but he's attempting it for this year's brief.

Using the molecular techniques is completely out of my comfort zone.

Xanthan gum, is it? I can't pronounce it.

It's something I never do.

That will make it heat resistant and the other one will make it gel together...

hopefully.

I don't fully understand it all,

but I think it's important to bring some of it forward onto my dishes,

to show that I'm trying to move with the times,

that I'm not just pie and mash and burgers and chips.

He's looking to create a radical basil foam with a frothy texture

that will hold, and not collapse on the plate.

Drum roll, please.

It is bubbly but it's not what I'm looking for. It's not right.

It's like frog spawn or something.

If someone gave me that, I'd tell them where to stick it.

It was clear Chris needed professional help.

He headed over the border, to Dublin's Institute of Technology and Culinary Arts,

to meet lecturer, Roisin Burke, and student, Mark Traynor.

I see you've brought one of these little weighing scales. It's to one decimal point.

That's what you need, because if you go over it or under it,

it has huge consequences for your foam.

I think I was just whacking it in.

-Well, that's the difference between scientists and chefs.

-Ah, well.

After carefully measuring and mixing up various concoctions,

they finally came up with the recipe for Chris' innovative basil foam.

I think the xanthan gum and the hy-foamer, this one here, is the one I'm going to use,

because it just looks cool.

Perfect. That's me. I am happy.

The point that I want to prove is that us brasserie cooks

are sometimes just as good as the other boys. I've a point to prove.

I did it last year and I want to do it again.

Yes, that's the business!

I'm not going to lie, I am quite nervous.

The idea of breaking boundaries and using new techniques,

I just hope it pays off.

I hope it doesn't sink me, basically.

It's the moment of truth for Chris Fearon's foam.

If he's mismeasured it by even a tenth of a gram, he could be facing disaster.

And then put that in there.

Hopefully, this will start creating a mousse

or a froth.

So what stops it collapsing?

There's a stabiliser in the xanthan gum, which keeps it heat resistant to a certain temperature.

After about 60 degrees, it will start collapsing,

-but I don't think my plates are going to be 60...

-God help us.

I couldn't do this back home. 200 covers on a Saturday night, it doesn't make any sense.

That would be my brain, bubbling away, if that was the case.

It's approaching plating up time and the pressure is on for the chefs to finish their dishes.

Niall is stuffing his Dexter fillet with his almond and apricot mix,

Chris Fearon's finishing his sweet potato puree

and Chris Bell's getting his Bakewell tart out of the oven.

-Bakewell tart, eh?

-It looks good, Chris.

-Thanks.

It doesn't matter what it looks like.

Chris Bell is first to plate up.

He quickly pan fries his duck breast and duck heart,

then turns his attention to his plate.

He starts with a stroke of cherry jam, some pickled cherries and his controversial Bakewell tart.

He then adds his duck heart, dots of basil puree, his duck breast

and finishes with some flambeed foie gras.

Well done, Chris. Well done.

That was hard.

-Groundbreaking?

-It's different.

-Let's go taste it.

Will Chris's savoury Bakewell tart see him at the top of the podium

for the third day running?

-Happy with the tart?

-Quite happy with the tart.

-Should it be like that?

-Yeah, it should be runny in the middle.

-It's a little bit under in the middle.

-It is runny in the centre.

-It's really runny in the centre.

-Do you think you've got the sweet, savoury element right?

-Yeah, I think I have.

It's more on the savoury side of sweet.

-It's very strong almondy, isn't it?

-I think there's too much on the plate.

Too many big flavours on the plate. Do they really come together?

I think this is going to be his downfall.

-Happy with the rendering of this?

-A few minutes longer, maybe?

-That is lovely.

-It's nice and tender.

Was the duck heart a good addition for you?

The ducks are so good. I believe in these ducks, I think they are fantastic.

The interesting thing is that he put the duck heart in, which I love.

That was really well cooked.

-Groundbreaking?

-I think it's different.

It's pushing the boundaries, as far as flavour combinations go.

-How you feeling?

-Mixed. Some of it, I'm really happy with. Other bits, I could have cooked better.

I don't think Chris will be happy with this dish.

If he got that tart a wee bit better.

This could be good for us.

This could make it a more level playing field.

I wasn't happy with every element of that dish.

But we'll hope for the best.

Next to plate up is Niall.

He carefully places his stuffed fillet of beef

onto his super-hot charcoal grill.

What's the crack with these? What temperature do these hit?

You cook between 300 and 350. That's where you cook.

-Risky pieces of kit, aren't they?

-You have to stay on top of them.

When you grill meat on a traditional grill,

you run the risk of it overheating and being bitter,

so I'm wondering how he's going to control that happening with this piece of beef.

350 degrees, it's going to be extremely difficult.

Once cooked, Niall brushes it with miso and lets it rest,

while he plates up the rest of his dish -

purple potatoes, apricots, salsify and cavolo nero cabbage.

To finish his plate, he adds his stuffed beef fillet

and tops it off with some red wine jus.

-Finished polishing?

-Yep.

-Good man.

Extraordinary?

Tastes beautiful.

-Have you done enough?

-Soon see.

-Come on. Taste your own.

-Thank you.

Will Richard think Niall's fillet of beef

lives up to the spectacle of the London 2012 Games?

-Are you happy with the cooking of the beef?

-I think it's perfect, it's absolutely beautiful.

I think, looking at it,

that a grill of that temperature cooks meat at an uneven temperature.

From the outside it's well done, it's medium rare and then it's raw.

-So you don't like the whole gimmicky side of the cooking?

-Not really.

-Are you happy with all the veg?

-I think the salsify was a bit under.

-The vegetables are a wee bit on the firm side.

-They're crunchy.

-Has that miso flavour worked for you?

-I think it really has. I think it's absolutely beautiful.

I can taste the miso, I like it. It's lovely.

-Has the apricots and almonds worked?

-Definitely.

For me, it's the star of the show.

I like the apricots and the nuts, I think it works.

A groundbreaking..?

It's not a fancy, artistic plate.

-Don't you think something like that would be seen as Sunday lunch?

-That's the type of food I'm doing.

-Groundbreaking? I don't know.

-It's quite a simple dish.

It's vegetables and beef with gravy.

Is that ordinary or is it extraordinary?

I think the flavours were beautiful.

Everything went well there.

Overall, I mean, just what I wanted to do.

The only thing was the salsify was a bit undercooked,

but all the flavours were there and the cooking was spot on.

Last to plate up is Chris Fearon, who's one point behind Niall

and desperate to catch up.

He's cooking outside his comfort zone, in a bid to impress

and has his plate heating in the oven, ready to go.

But just as he gets his lamb sweetbreads on to fry, he's interrupted.

Chris, OK if I try the sweet potato puree? Saffron.

You knock yourself out.

Chris, sorry.

-You BLEEP messed me up.

-Tastes lovely.

-Thanks.

Ignoring Niall's diversion, he starts building his plate

with crunchy granola, beetroot, shallots and his lamb sweetbreads

before dotting the plate with what's left of his sweet potato puree.

Finally, he adds his lamb shank fritters, his wrapped lamb loin

and risky basil foam, which can't stand too much heat.

But as he gets his plates onto his quirky gymnasium horse stands,

he realises his mistake.

Plate's too hot.

Too hot plates. Too hot, chef.

The mousse collapsed. The bubble's are still there but it's too hot.

I left the plates in the oven too long.

A winning dish?

If it eats well, hopefully.

There's one point in it. Let's go and taste.

Will Chris's playful Spring Jump Lamb catapult him

into the lead or see him drop out of the race?

The mousse did work, but when it went on the plate, it collapsed,

because I heated the plates up far too long in the oven. I just didn't want cold plates.

The big talking point in this dish for Chris was the foam

and it completely annihilated it, instantly.

Do you think that lamb could have been a little bit more tender?

Yes, definitely.

It could be a little bit over, I could have had the fat a bit crispier.

I'm not going to lie to you.

The lamb's actually a bit tough.

-The plate was so hot it's continued to cook that piece.

-The lamb's just overcooked.

That's a bit of crispy leg, is it?

No, a little bit of thigh, left over from the shanks,

just cooked down to a sticky sauce. I like that, you know.

It's nothing pretty, but it's tasty.

The balance of flavours in the dish is good.

It's just the heat of the plate, I think.

The heat of the plate has destroyed, maybe, three things -

sauce, mousse and the lamb.

We all know when we've achieved something great.

-Do you think you've achieved something great here?

-Not something great, no.

I done this with Chris last year and he's got bags of confidence.

His strength is his confidence.

Every day this week, he's been shaking.

I think nerves have played a part in Chris's errors this week.

Are you walking on ice here or are you pushing boundaries?

I think I'm walking... A bit of both, to be honest.

-Hi.

-Hi, boys.

-Well?

-Yeah, I mean, the mousse collapsed on me.

It was the big focus thing, the molecular thing.

I just wanted it to start bubbling, but the plate was too hot.

Given the circumstances in the competition, the heat's on.

I think we all made mistakes today. Speaking personally, I feel I've let myself down today.

I might be a bit Steady Eddie today, I might be another six.

I'll be surprised if it's any more than six.

I don't think there'll be a lot between us.

Maybe a point or so. It'll come down to the dessert.

With their main courses delivered,

all the chefs can do now is anxiously await Richard's verdict.

Yesterday, he awarded Chris Bell a seven,

and Niall and Chris Fearon six points each.

Who'll be in pole position today?

Chris Bell. Your duck with Bakewell garnish.

The duck breast was cooked very well.

The duck heart was a really good combination.

That dish has lots of potential.

But you need to refine it.

The tart was very sloppy inside.

The almonds and the basil flavour took over the whole dish.

I find this hard to say, Chris,

but if it had sugar, it would have passed as a dessert, that tart.

Niall...

Your Dexter beef, with miso, apricots and almonds.

The beef worked well with the apricots and the almond stuffing.

The beef was beautifully cooked.

The whole dish had a very good flavour.

But...

again, there was a lack of content.

The beef part of the dish was original,

but you just didn't push the whole dish far enough.

Shame.

-Chris Fearon.

-Chef.

-Your Spring Jump Lamb.

Obviously, you did think about the brief.

The shank with the glaze sauce, the two pieces, I thought were great.

But...

the lamb was tough.

The fat around the lamb was quite ugly.

You knew the plate was too hot,

so the molecular foam just all fell apart when you put it on the plate.

Chris Bell. For your duck with Bakewell garnish,

I'm giving you...

..seven out of ten.

Thank you very much.

Niall...

for your Dexter beef, with miso, apricots and almonds,

I'm giving you...

..six out of ten.

Chris Fearon. For your Spring Jump Lamb, I'm giving you...

-..a six out of ten.

-Thank you very much, Richard.

We have one final dessert to do tomorrow. I wish you well.

ALL: Thanks, chef.

So, Chris Bell is still in the lead, with 23 points.

Niall's in second, with 19,

and Chris Fearon's still in third, with just 18.

It could have been over, but it's not. Got tomorrow to pull it back.

Could I push myself further? Possibly.

Absolutely delighted to win the main course.

It gives me massive confidence going into tomorrow.

Tomorrow, it's the final push, with dessert,

and the pressure of retaining last year's winning title

is proving too much for Chris Fearon.

If this doesn't work here, I might have to do it in the hall.

BLEEP me. Have you ever seen so much palaver in your life?

And someone is going home.

-Have you've done enough to pull ahead?

-I don't know.

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