North East Fish Great British Menu

This week on Great British Menu,

three of the north-east's top chefs -

returning contender Colin McGurran...

G'day, mate. Chuck another shrimp on the barbie!

..ambitious newcomer Paul Welburn...

No added pressure there, yeah?

..and Michelin-starred Frances Atkins...

So, this is what's driving us to get to the banquet.

..are going head-to-head for the honour of saying thank you

to our World War II veterans

at a banquet commemorating the 70th anniversary of D-day

at the magnificent St Paul's Cathedral.

Yesterday, Frances's personal story hit the brief,

but failed on execution.

..and it was an unrefined plate of food.

And while Paul's dish also let him down,

Colin's technical masterclass stole the show.

About as technical as you'll get in a competition like this.

Today's the fish course,

and Frances needs to deliver to stay in the running.

I'm in a happier place. Yes, let's say that.

But with Colin aiming to stretch his lead...

Keep in mind that he's been to the banquet.

No added pressure there, yeah?

..and the competition hotting up, will the cracks begin to show?

LOUD BANG BLEEP

Banquet? THEY BOTH LAUGH

-Arrrhhh...

-Yep, OK.

This year the chefs are paying tribute to the generation

whose efforts ensured our freedom

by commemorating 70 years since the D-day landings.

Hello, Tom. Pleased to meet you.

Absolute pleasure.

Their challenge?

To produce patriotic dishes that tell the story of wartime Britain.

Wow.

Inspired by personal memories of the Second World War.

That's lovely!

I think Grandad would've been blown away.

Give you a gold star.

Judging them all week

is two-Michelin-starred former fish course winner, Phil Howard.

There has to be a stunning piece

of pure fish on the plate -

simple, but with intelligence -

a brief-related twist.

Well, it's no secret I wasn't very happy with my starter course,

but onwards and upwards.

Three points different at this stage means nothing. I promise you.

I'm hoping I can get closer to you

-and put some water between myself and you.

-I'll be on your heels.

First up is Michelin-starred Frances,

with a menu inspired by her soldier father's experience in World War II.

Yesterday nerves hit and she struggled with her execution of her starter,

scoring a disappointing five points.

Just think about service at work,

you have to get on with it

and make sure you don't have another one.

So, slightly rocky start.

You must now draw on your very considerable experience of cooking

at the very highest level.

So, what have you got in your box, and what are you cooking?

Well, this is called On The Boats,

and this is a continuation of my father's journey during D-day,

as he's sailing over the English Channel,

desperately trying to cheer himself up,

and thinks about a lovely dinner

that he had with his fiancee,

and it was a Dover sole

with squid and clams

-and these little cheery beech berries.

-And these are...?

-These are buckthorn.

-Buckthorn.

And I've got something else also going into all this -

kuzu dumplings - seafood dumplings.

And why did you choose kuzu?

Because the brief was to push boundaries.

There's some honesty.

Good.

Frances's is a collection of ingredients that I like.

Unfortunately, she needs to instil some belief in me

that she can actually deliver under the pressure of the competition.

Next, it's ambitious newcomer Paul, with a menu paying tribute

to his grandfather, a soldier in World War II.

Yesterday he scored a steady seven

and today he is focusing on going one better.

The fish course I'm confident with. I've practised many times.

There's a couple of pitfalls, and nothing will get past Phil.

It's got to be cooked perfectly.

Give me the title of your dish.

Title of the dish is Preservation Of British Waters.

OK. Explain.

It's my link to the preserving techniques during the war,

and how we can take those techniques

and use them in modern cooking.

The main part of it is some lovely Scottish salmon.

What's the thinking behind salmon?

For me, it's a banquet fit for veterans.

For me, I'm using the king of the fish.

So, I'm going to basically cure it in salt

and different citrus fruits.

Basically, complement that with some surf clams.

-Pickle those along with some cucumber.

-Yep. Oysters?

-These will be served with a watercress puree.

-Yeah.

This I'll do two ways - with a yoghurt,

and the claws in a brown crab butter.

So, Paul, you're middle of the ranks.

A simple one point behind Colin.

Fish course. Fresh opportunity.

Yeah, fingers crossed.

I understand where he's coming from.

I'm just not quite sure how it's all going to come together as a dish.

Needs some deft judgment to pull it off.

Last up is Colin, a former banquet winner

who failed on his second attempt in the competition.

Yesterday, he took the lead with a technical dish

inspired by a soldiers' ration packs and his grandfather,

who was a stoker on a ship on D-day.

I think my fish course is a strong contender.

It's going to hit the brief.

I've got all the best chance of staying ahead in this competition.

So, come on, tell me - the title of your dish?

From War To Peace. It's all about the beaches.

If you go back 70 years, to what the beaches were like then,

the monstrosity there, compared to - forward 70 years -

people enjoying them as beaches should be enjoyed.

So the fact we can get wonderful produce like langoustines

and we've got beautiful lobster.

Fantastic produce that perhaps we couldn't afford all those years ago.

So, with this dish, it's all about enjoying a barbecue on the beach.

We're going to barbecue the langoustines - or should I say,

YOU'RE going to barbecue the langoustines, as the diner.

Just talk me through that. How is that going to...?

Basically, in the plate, we'll have coal

so you can actually sit and barbecue your langoustine -

cook it how you like.

Next to that were going to have a savarin mould of shellfish,

which will be in linguini.

So we'll make a pasta with my squid ink,

and we'll have little textures -

little crackers and... to give the texture of the beach and the sand.

-So, good day yesterday?

-Thank you, yes.

Although I appreciated it, and I'm glad to be ahead,

I know that it can turn like this in this competition.

You're absolutely right.

-I've seen the other baskets and they have some great stuff coming.

-Yeah.

By Colin McGurran.

The barbecue element, I like.

It needs to be intelligently thought through,

otherwise it'll be clumsy, and certainly at banquet level,

just not viable.

There's an awful lot of labour going in to create a squid ink tyre.

Not quite sure what its relevance is.

Having yesterday failed to execute the technical aspects of her starter,

today Frances is pulling out all the stops

with her multi-element Dover sole dish.

I think, after the downs of yesterday,

Frances is a lot more focused today.

Are you confident today?

I'm in a happier place, yes. Let's say that.

-What about you?

-Yeah, fantastic. Good.

Seeing your calmness has calmed me, as well.

Frances is attempting to elevate her dish to banquet standards,

with the inclusion of sea dumplings

and using an unexpected thickening agent - Japanese kuzu root.

-Frances, you're using kuzu in your dumplings?

-Yep.

Another technical ingredient?

Stepping out of your comfort zone again?

Yes. Perhaps I shouldn't have done that.

HE LAUGHS

Got to give it a go, haven't you?

-Exactly. It's a competition.

-Yes.

-You got to take risks.

-Is that right, Colin?

-It is. Yeah.

-This is the place to do it.

-You're not, though, Colin.

You look really, erm...

-..sorted.

-This is definitely not, erm...

relaxing and cool.

Returning champion Colin is cooking another highly technical dish,

lining savarin moulds with squid ink linguine,

ready for a seafood mousse - a fiddly process.

I'm looking forward to seeing this at the banquet.

You need a bit of patience and a bit of skill to do it, erm...

but it's all worth it in the end, I think... Oh.

Well, the reality is sometimes you have to put in a huge effort

-to achieve a very subtle effect.

-Absolutely.

And it's tricky... Turn them out the wrong way and they all unravel

and you end up with spaghetti on the plate.

Yeah, yeah. I'll come back at that point, then!

That's very kind, thank you. A bit of pressure.

Aiming to hit the wartime brief using great British ingredients

is newcomer Paul and his dish, Preservation Of British Waters.

He's preparing crab two ways -

mixing the white meat with yoghurt, herbs and lemon,

and cooking the claws in a water bath with brown meat and butter -

processes veteran Phil is keen to question.

One thing I'm not quite sure about on your dish is temperature...

-How's it all coming together?

-It'll all be room temperature.

The only item that will be slightly warm, or tepid,

will be crab claw in the butter.

It's not going to be hot.

-So you won't get a contrast of hot and cold.

-OK.

But it all comes on one plate, does it? So to speak?

That's right. And I'll garnish it

-on those little decorative sandbags.

-OK.

Brings that sort of feel of the beaches.

I know what Paul's doing.

It'll be lovely, but will the veterans get a little confused

as to whether it's a hot or cold dish?

Hoping his choice of salmon will win him the points,

Paul is using a traditional salt cure for his fish,

and to give it his own twist,

he's also adding lemon and orange zest for extra flavour.

Obviously, during the wars

they had to use techniques to preserve fish

because it was a luxury item.

I think that's why I have taken that idea of the luxury item

-to say it would be fit for a banquet.

-Yes!

Honouring the soldiers.

Paul visited Billingsgate fish market in London to find out about

the fish trade during the war,

a subject with a direct link to the man who inspired his menu.

Yes, my grandfather, after the war, after the prisoner of war camp,

after everything he went through,

he actually supplied fish to many businesses in Scarborough and the area.

This is the real inspiration for me.

He met Roger Barton, a trader at the market for over 50 years.

So, what happened with the actual supply of fish during the war?

Well, there was still a supply of fish.

It was limited because they just didn't have the boats,

you didn't have the men.

You had to be so careful where you went.

I'm using salmon in my dish as one component.

-You can't beat wild salmon.

-Fantastic.

-That's the finest in the world.

-Fantastic.

To learn about the availability of his chosen fish

in World War II, Paul visited Lance Forman

at H Forman & Sons smokehouse, a family run business

which has been in continual operation since 1905.

Salmon has always been a scarce commodity.

Right the way through the '40s, '50s, '60s, '70s

cured salmon - smoked salmon - was that number one item

that you would see on any important banquet or feast.

But during the war,

what was a luxury became a super-luxury in many respects.

Obviously, knowing it was a luxury item then,

would be great for a banquet to celebrate the end of the war.

Absolutely.

With a better understanding of the history behind his dish,

Paul wanted Lance to taste-test his salmon.

Mm! It's really... I mean, you're getting the freshness of the salmon,

which is what you should be tasting.

Great. It's a perfect balance of flavours.

I don't see how you can better it, actually.

So much great feedback,

and I'm more confident than ever my dish is a winner.

With his fish element under control,

Paul's playing with the visual side of his dish.

Wow, dry ice.

Yeah, I'm just experimenting.

I wanted to get the effect of a sea fret

coming out of the sandbags.

To be honest, it's a last-minute addition.

I don't really want it to come out like Count Dracula's laboratory,

I just wanted little vapours.

Just put a little bit of water in there...

should get it started.

But Paul's attempt to bring theatre to his dish

isn't quite working out.

Paul, the dry ice, if you need any advice,

I've done it twice in the competition.

Normally stood me in good stead, actually, so...

Keeps reminding us that he's been to the banquet.

No added pressure, there, yeah?

At this level, he probably should have practised,

to make sure it was going to come out.

If he hasn't practised it, at this stage, it's kind of wasted, really.

Working with a different smoky effect is Frances,

who's smoking chervil root over oak chips.

Like all her menu, it's thoughtfully linked to her father.

-And why the oak smoke?

-Because oak runs throughout all my dishes.

-My father was mentioned in military dispatches for bravery.

-Oh, OK.

And for that, you get the tiniest little oak leaf, a bronze oak leaf.

OK.

Fascinating. Thank you.

It's nice. I'm still not convinced it has a place on that dish.

I'd love to have that with some loin of venison.

That's where that should be.

Not in a little trip to the seaside.

Also using a smoking technique is Colin.

He's incorporating a miniature do-it-yourself barbecue

on his technical shellfish dish,

and threading langoustines onto skewers

which will be served on the dish uncooked.

If it went to the banquet, I could see this being a grand part of it -

everyone sitting there, cooking their langoustines.

I understand they're going to cook their own langoustine.

Do you think they'll know how to do that?

I think everyone loves a barbecue, you know?

In my opinion, anyway.

Even if they don't know how, I'm sure they'll have a go.

It's a bit of fun.

It's a risk, obviously, in a banquet.

If they're going to cook them right.

Cook them over, cook them under, burn themselves...

But it'll be great theatre if he pulls it off.

First to plate up his Preservation Of British Waters

is ambitious newcomer Paul, who's hoping his combination

of great British ingredients and props will impress.

I hope you're not playing it too safe, Paul.

I'm playing it safe in the service of it,

but certainly not in the preparation of it.

He portions his cured salmon and places on the plate,

along with salted and pickled cucumber and pickled clams.

Next, the white crab and yoghurt mix,

finishing with a sprinkle of sea herbs

and dots of watercress and oyster puree.

Is the sea fret happening? Is it whizzing up?

Erm... I'll try it on the pass and see.

He serves the plates on mini sandbags.

I'm going to try this... see if it works.

Hmm... OK. OK.

Will victory be yours, with this dish?

-I hope so.

-Come on, then.

There's only one way to find out. Let's go taste.

I don't think the dry ice has worked as much as he wanted it to.

It's not quite how I had it in my mind.

The salmon's just lovely.

It's got a nice outside-shell flavour to it.

The clams bring a bit of liveliness to the salmon.

Does the flavour of the oyster

come through enough in the watercress puree?

Could be maybe a touch more on the plate.

Do you think of everything being at the same temperature -

if it was to go to the banquet - it'd be welcomed?

I think anything that tastes well, is welcomed.

I tell you what, I've missed off the brown crab.

Obviously, with the pressure in the kitchen...timings...

..sometimes things slip your mind.

-You'd have thought he'd remember to put the brown crab meat on.

-Yes.

But, having said that, it's a nice dish,

and it doesn't seem to have stopped you from eating it all, does it?

-Can you see veterans eating this at the banquet?

-Definitely.

OK, so give it a score.

If it had the brown crab claw on there,

I'd probably say... an eight.

I think, for food, I would score it may be, give it seven or eight.

For me, there's no real brief there.

-I'd drop him a point and give him a six.

-I'd agree with that.

-How did you get on, Paul?

-Yeah...

Couldn't believe it.

Forgot me brown crab butter claw.

Actually, I thought, it maybe didn't need it, you know?

I didn't either. It was lovely.

Very diplomatic of you. I'm so frustrated at myself!

Next to plate up is returning contender Colin.

His dish From War To Peace

symbolises how the Normandy coastline changed

from the scene of conflict to a place of enjoyment,

with a DIY beach barbecue.

First on the dish is prawn and langoustine powder.

He breaks up crackers made from starch paper, dried seaweed

and shrimp,

and dresses the dish with nasturtium flowers and sorrel.

Did you have these designed specially?

Yeah, this is clay from the Humber Bridge.

Under the Humber Bridge there's a tile place, next to me.

Funnily enough, they look like a U-boat.

Not meant to be, but I'll take anything.

Colin then carefully places hot coals.

G'day, mate. Chuck another shrimp on the barbie.

FRANCES LAUGHS

He covers the coals with safety wire,

drizzles langoustine oil onto the skewers,

and adds the dish ready for cooking.

Finally, he removes his delicate shellfish mousse

from the savarin moulds, and adds...

Drum roll...

Ah, cool. Fantastic.

There we go.

How are we supposed to eat it?

You put it on there, cook it how you like, enjoy the aromas.

Let's go. Let's go and taste this thing.

I'll turn this over for you...

I don't want you shouting if it's overdone, chef.

Do you think you'd have to give any kind of instruction at all, with it?

I would hope that's quite self-explanatory.

FRANCES: It won't be chefs at the banquet cooking langoustine.

And they won't know how long to cook it for.

-And achievable for a banquet?

-Yeah.

FRANCES: It's a fine line between what is beautiful

and what is sensible for a large party.

-How you wanted it?

-Yeah. I think beautifully cooked.

FRANCES: Oh, look! It's so lovely. And he studied so accurately.

-The flavour of the mousse is fantastic. It's lovely.

-Yeah.

And those small shrimps are amazing.

Barbecued langoustine?

Yeah. I think it's delicious.

So, do you think it hits the brief from the idea behind it?

No, I wouldn't understand it, if I hadn't been told.

Veterans... Do you think they'll...get it?

I think I love it. You know...

LOUD BANG

-Oh, hello.

-Oh, that's nice...(!)

LOUD CLICK Oh!

-Well, obviously, it's just the heat.

-Yeah. OK.

Banquet? PHIL LAUGHS

Arrhhh...!

-Oh, dear.

-Bit of drama.

Final score?

Me? I really believe in this dish.

I would love to, you know, achieve a nine on this dish.

OK.

-What would you give it? Seven.

-Yeah. Seven.

I hope that Phil can see through that, and judge me as a cook.

Very disappointed.

Here he is.

Your dish was a cracker!

Hehehe!

Last to serve is Michelin-starred Frances,

who's telling the story of her father's journey into Normandy.

Having failed with the execution of her starter,

it's imperative she gets her fish course right.

So, Frances, are you happier coming up last today, rather than...first?

It prolongs the agony!

Frances starts her plate with a brush of squid ink sauce,

the Dover sole,

and sea dumplings made with scallops, herbs

and the Japanese kuzu.

Next it's chopped squid, scallop,

and smoked chervil root.

She dresses the dish with buckthorn berries and samphire.

And finishes with clam sauce, razor clams

and shrimp powder.

"Darling, my orders were to take men across the waters to Normandy.

"It was June, and the sea rough,

"I thought of you as I stared at the cold sea,

"of the lovely fish that we shared together.

"You are with me constantly. Tom."

This is my father, again.

And he's going to arrive on the beaches at Normandy.

I have written these letters, but it was true. Obviously, I have...

-It's a bit of...

-You've accessorised it for the banquet.

-That's fair enough.

-Yes. Yes.

-I think we must go and taste this one.

-Thank you.

Do you think they will understand its relevance to the brief?

Yes. I do.

I quite like the stories. Nice little touch, really.

Dover sole is a lovely fish.

Yes. Maybe I've cooked it slightly too much.

-She's managed to keep the razor clam tender.

-And the sole?

Probably slightly overdone, for me.

So, the sea dumplings...

-You were a little apprehensive about them.

-They're fine.

She's used that kuzu.

-It's tasty.

-Very nice.

-Mm.

Odd ingredient out, for me, was the chervil root.

That's still got a place on the plate for you?

It acts as an antidote, if you like,

to the saltiness, the sea flavours.

-Delicious.

-Lovely.

-I could eat it all day long.

The buckthorn berries, are they playing the role you intended?

Very much so. I love the flavour.

Whoa...!

-These sea buckthorn berries are very sharp!

-Wow!

Are you confident it's a dish to help you catch up with the other two chefs?

I feel I'm back on track.

Cooking flavours - seven.

For the brief - six.

If you were in my shoes, what would you give your dish?

Hmm... Eight.

-Hello.

-Hello, there.

-How was that?

-OK.

-Better?

Fine, yes. Yes, I feel in my heart that I cooked better.

I think we all cooked very good today.

It depends on the scores.

You might be a clear leader by the end of it all.

Well, I hope so.

Paul, start with you.

With your Preserving Our British Waters

with salmon, crab and clams.

Lots of positives.

The slow-cooked salmon...

It had that lovely translucent look of a cured piece of salmon.

Full of flavour.

The white crab meat from the body.

Those components came together well.

But - and we know there's a big "but" -

we were missing an exciting component of the dish.

The crab claw is a special and luxurious thing,

it was one of those dishes and perhaps,

because it didn't have all its components,

where the whole was slightly less than sum of the parts.

And again this was perhaps a little bit restaurant-y.

It has to have an element of extravagance or flair.

A very accomplished plate of food,

but to get to the banquet, it's got to be more than that.

Colin, next, for your War To Peace

of langoustine and shellfish mousse.

Again, another witty and strong take on the brief.

A stunning plate of food, in general.

It's not often that you put something in your mouth

that is really absolutely perfect,

and I thought that langoustine was just...

It was a cracking thing to eat!

On the downside, I think, you have to focus at the savarin...

For all the work and the labour that goes in there,

it just underwhelmed.

But most importantly, I think, is the logistics of it.

The plate cannot crack,

the coals have to stay hot enough,

We can't burn St Paul's down -

there's some very real issues with that dish to be addressed

to make it a genuine contender.

Frances, for your On The Boat with Dover sole, squid and scallops.

There is an undeniable deliciousness

about a piece of well-cooked fish

and a sauce made from the juices of shellfish with cream.

And it worked a treat.

I was unconvinced about the chervil root,

and I couldn't quite see how it was going to fit in,

but the truth was, the whole thing came together.

The downsides perhaps are,

I just find the buckthorn berries too much for me. Too aggressive.

I thought the squid got a little bit lost in there,

a little bit inconsequential.

If you're going to get a dish to the banquet,

it has to somehow out-dazzle and outshine

everybody else's dishes, and what it was was just a wonderful plate food

that was really fit for a restaurant.

So, to the scores.

Paul, for Preserving Our British Waters, I'm giving you...

..a six.

Colin, for your From War To Peace,

I am going to give you a score...

..of eight.

Frances, for your On The Boat,

I am going to give you a score...

..of seven.

OK, so next, the main course.

It's game on.

See you tomorrow.

Thank you.

-You can't question it.

-You can't knock, can you?

I knew the crab claw would come back to bite me.

Quite literally!

Two courses down, and Colin stretches his lead,

with Paul three points behind

and Frances four points from the top spot.

I'm three points ahead.

I feel confident and I feel comfortable.

Disappointed with the score.

Hopefully, I can claw that back tomorrow.

I think that was fair,

but I want my scores to climb.

Tomorrow it's the main course,

and Colin is banking on his family connection to maintain his lead.

I'm feeling the pressure now -

this has got to be the best pie that Phil's ever eaten.

But with Paul and Frances out to catch him...

I'm determined to do the memory of my father proud.

Who will emerge victorious?

I'm going to give you a score of 10.