Scotland Judging Great British Menu

It's been a tough week for three of Scotland's best chefs.

BLEEP!

Double Michelin-starred Stevie McLaughlin...

I'm cooking from the heart, I'm not cooking for awards.

..and unconventional Neil Rankin...

I really want to get through to these finals.

..went up against experienced Jacqueline O'Donnell...

Do you know what, guys? Pink's not a colour. It's an attitude.

..for the chance to cook at a banquet commemorating

the 70th anniversary of D-day at the magnificent St Paul's Cathedral.

Yesterday's dessert course saw Stevie march through.

With a score of nine, Stevie, you'll be cooking again tomorrow.

And Jacqueline beat Neil by just one point. How do you feel? Speechless.

First time this week.

Today, Stevie and Jacqueline will fight it out...

It's got me worried.

Anything I can do to get you worried today, Stevie, is surely a bonus.

..to impress the judges...

It's clearly been a pretty tough battle.

Let's see if it continues today.

..who want dishes worthy of war heroes.

It is just wrong on all levels. This is divine.

To ensure the dishes evoke the British spirit that helped

win World War II, there's a fourth judge - D-day veteran Jim Radford.

What age were you? 15. It's a sobering experience.

Had to grow up very quickly.

Today, only one chef will make it to the finals.

And the winner is...

Aprons on and both chefs are gearing up for the battle ahead.

Are you making any changes? I've made a couple of tweaks

here and there. I'd better watch myself. You've put up

a good fight throughout the week.

We're here for the judges' chamber. Let's do it for Scotland.

But only one of us will go through. Maybe it'll be me.

Two Michelin-starred chef Stevie began the week with a low

scoring starter but went on to get a ten for his main course.

There's been much more pressure this week than I expected.

I want to win this more than anything.

I want to be the one representing Scotland in the banquet.

But, with over 30 years of experience in the kitchen

under her belt, Jacqueline won't be going down without a fight.

I'm in the kitchen with a double Michelin-starred chef.

Scotland's finest. But I'm going to give him a run for his money.

Stevie, watch out.

Judges Prue Leith, Matthew Fort,

and Oliver Peyton are getting a preview of the chefs' menus.

Well, it's been the battle of the Scottish chefs this week.

And Stevie McLaughlin has two stars,

and I rather like the look of his menu.

I think Jacqueline might just surprise us.

She is a really experienced chef. And I love the sound of her menu.

It's just quite homely and rather witty.

Listen, two new chefs, fresh blood,

let's hope we can get a Scottish chef to the banquet.

Today, the judges will score

each of the chefs' four courses individually.

Ah! Well, our starry chef seems to be doing well,

but didn't he start badly? Six for a starter. Shocking!

Well, I think the difference between Jac and Stevie is the main course.

It's in theory been a tough battle.

Let's see if it's going to continue today.

PRUE: Hi, guys. Morning. Morning.

Well, Jackie, you've obviously had a very, very steady week.

Good numbers. What's it like cooking with a Michelin two-starred chef?

It's been pretty tough but I think I've risen to the challenge.

Looking at those scores, you clearly have.

She's been snapping at your heels all week. Definitely. Tough old week.

You had a ten for your main course, but a starter, six,

what went wonky there? First-day nerves.

There is no place for nerves today. We are looking for spectacular food.

And you've got to deliver it.

Pretty scary, yeah? That really brought it home. Yeah.

Jacqueline's up first with her starter.

A modern take on a homely, old-fashioned favourite

for which she scored eight points.

Jeremy loved that, didn't he?

Yeah. That's why I thought not too many changes.

You're actually improving a good dish. It's got me a bit worried.

Anything I can do to get you worried today, Stevie,

is surely a bonus for me.

85-year-old World War II veteran Jim Radford writes folk songs

about his D-day experiences.

And he's here today to make sure the dishes tell a wartime story.

A seat at the top table at last. At last, you've arrived.

We've been waiting just for you. So, Jim, you were there on D-day.

I was, yes.

I was a 15-year-old galley boy on the rescue tug Empire Larch.

We were building the Mulberry harbour, that was our job,

to create the harbour on which the success of the invasion depended.

I was just a kid.

I didn't know I was being thrown in at the deep end, as it were.

You must have been the youngest lad on the D-day landings.

They can't find anybody younger than me. It's an amazing story.

And what were your personal responsibilities? General dogsbody.

Cooked all the meals, I peeled all the spuds.

Do you cook, or do you like food? I do cook, yeah.

I taught my wife to cook. Did you? Yes. So, are you up to the task?

Absolutely. I'm ready to eat for Britain.

Good man!

Jacqueline starts her serving pans with onion puree.

And tops with calf's liver fried in butter, garlic and thyme,

followed by granola made from hazelnuts, pecans,

seeds and paprika.

And an onion tuile garnish. I really need to impress them.

I came this far, stayed beside you, and now I need to go a bit further.

You've got me worried on this one.

But it's just liver and onions. But not like Mammie's!

Finally, Jacqueline places pots of cassis sauce on the side.

Well done. Thank you.

PRUE: Oh, goodness.

Did you see much liver during the war? We did, yeah.

It didn't look like this, though.

STEVIE: Do you think they'll like the simplicity?

The simplicity bit is me coming forward as a chef.

That's what I like.

OLIVER: I think the dish itself is extremely brave

to cook something so simple.

This is divine. The liver has been absolutely perfectly cooked.

This is gourmet liver, this is.

The crunchiness of the granola on top is actually a masterstroke.

STEVIE: First dish in the judges' chamber, how does that make you feel?

What are they saying? Do they like it?

If this was to go through to the final, it's a big opening statement.

You think more of a main course, almost. This is a great dish.

I agree. The hero is the dish.

JIM: Well, I wasn't thinking about where it goes on the menu.

I was thinking how it tasted. It tastes great.

And your opinion is the most important opinion.

Stevie's up next with his starter, Normandy 1944,

based on ingredients a D-day soldier might have come across

on his journey through France.

With artichoke, cured ham and Camembert mousse,

it scored just six points during the week.

So, Stevie, have you made any changes today? Yeah.

Jeremy thought the portion was big. I've got baby artichokes today.

I'm going to put a little bit less ham, cut it thinner to try

and get a little bit of lightness back into the dish.

I thought the flavours in that dish were amazing.

Stevie starts his plate with cured ham and wilted spinach.

He drizzled with calvados butter.

Next, artichoke cups filled with mushroom ketchup.

Followed by Normandy Camembert cream mousse, and crispy onions.

I'd love to eat that.

PRUE: Well, that looks a lot more homely than the description sounds.

I think they'll love the fact that we've used all the ingredients

that are from the north of France.

Well, I think it's rather an ingenious

sort of acknowledgement to the French side of D-day.

All the sort of classic Normandy ingredients. I don't really like it.

JIM: I think I'm along the same line as Prue. It doesn't excite to me.

I mean, he's only doing it

because he's trying to put Normandy ingredients together.

It's a load of French ingredients on a plate,

which I don't really think work well together.

My story was through ingredients.

Do you think they'll get the same story for you?

Yeah, I think it's Normandy 1944.

The first course has got to set the tone for the greatest meal

that the veterans of D-day will have eaten in their lives.

And this ain't it.

I'm sure it's well cooked, but I don't care for the ingredients.

Listen, Jim, look on the bright side - it can only get better.

Fish course next. Yes. Let's go.

Jacqueline's up first with her Black Market Silver Darlings,

a dish based on a tale she heard about the rumoured illicit

trading of herrings for whisky in hay bales during the war.

Although praised for telling a story on a plate,

Jacqueline was marked down for under seasoning and scored seven points.

Jacqueline starts her plate with cucumber jelly.

Different consistency?

Yeah, I've set it

with a cold gelatine this time and put it at the bottom.

She prepares her herring tartin.

Are you happy with the seasoning? It's getting there.

I am super checking this time.

She tops the cucumber jelly.

Followed by pickled cucumber.

What have you got there? Pickled cucumber.

I've done it a wee bit different this time.

Instead of curing it in the whisky, I'm just going to let them

drink the whisky.

Jacqueline puts the plates in her hay bale presentation,

and finishes the delicate parcels with herring encrusted in oatmeal.

Finally, wee drams of whisky go on the side.

Let's go.

SHE EXHALES HEAVILY

MATTHEW: Straw bales.

JIM: That looks like a bale of straw to me!

It says, "Then and now."

And then, on the other side:

Ah! Silver darlings being herrings. And the gold being whisky.

JIM: I just wonder what the rate of exchange would be.

How much whisky do you get for a herring?

I hope that those wee tweaks that I made make all the difference.

I think the jelly could be slightly more jelly-like.

It's melted, hasn't it?

JAC: I think they'll get it. I love that dish.

I think what she's been is very clever.

She's combined the background story with, actually,

a pretty contemporary piece of cooking.

JIM: I like it. It pleases me.

It tastes good.

I notice since you had a hefty slug of whisky,

your mood seems to have improved tremendously!

That always helps, yes.

Wee nip, lifts the spirit, and sharpens the wit.

PRUE: This is perfect for the fish course cos it's small,

it's light, it's delicious. And it's memorable.

I think it's very delicately balanced. I think the oatmeal

on the herring is very nice together. And I think

she's done a very nice job on it.

Stevie's next with his fish course, Food To March On,

a celebration of the seafood we have today

served in a reproduction ration tin.

A dish that scored him eight points earlier in the week.

Stevie starts his tins with spicy tomato mousse,

followed by aubergine puree which he tops with crab meat,

razor clams, and lemon and cumin cured mackerel.

That's looking quite a wee bit different. Why did you change it?

Exactly the same ingredients, it's just a little bit prettier.

I've upped my game because of you.

Stevie fills his tin with sea vegetables.

You've got your tweezers out there, Stevie. Is that you feeling at home?

Look at these eyebrows.

To finish his Food To March On, he dresses with seaweed mustard.

I like your presentation. Very you, Stevie. Pretty? Pretty!

And you've changed the board. Jeremy didn't like it.

Well, I mean, it's a cover of a ration book on a tin.

Shall we have a look inside?

PRUE: Oh! Isn't that cute? MATTHEW: That is very pretty.

You must love fish. Yeah, I do. My fish pies are famous.

If you come around my house, likely to be a fish pie on the menu.

Are we all invited? You're all invited, come now and any time.

There are a few surprising flavours in there.

A little bit of spice, just to bring it to life.

I mean, it's a very sophisticated piece of modern cooking.

Well, it's lovely. It's really light and fresh.

I would love to agree with you, Matthew, but I'm not going to

because I think it is an absolute car crash of a dish.

There's loads and loads of very strong flavours here.

But I expect to be able to taste the prime ingredients,

which is the fish, and I can't.

It's true I can't really taste the mackerel,

but mixed all up together, I love it.

Well, I have to say, it doesn't excite me.

Do you think they'll get a story?

Ration book was down, it's quite the opposite of what you'd expect.

It's a real celebration of things that they didn't have.

I cannot see any real connection between the title and the dish.

I agree with you. That's where he falls down.

I think it's food march away from. Oh, dear, oh, dear, oh, dear.

At the halfway point, while the chefs are preparing their main

courses, the judges are discussing their scores so far.

Do you know, I am so thrilled with this morning

because I just am delighted with what Jac is done.

But, you know, Stevie will come romping back. I have given a ten.

But there have also been some disappointing bits.

And I've given a five. I'm not anywhere near a ten, actually.

I'm a high on an eight and five on a low.

Don't forget that Jeremy gave Stevie ten for his main course,

which was beef Wellington. I love beef Wellington.

But it's the wrong man, and the wrong place, wrong battle.

Stevie's beef Wellington is part of a dish inspired by the fantasy

dinner of a young soldier at war.

Also featuring Woolton vegetable pie, this dish pushed him

out in front early in the week.

You're my first ever ten. BLEEP!

Took the words right out of my mouth.

Stevie's Woolton vegetable pie,

named after the then Minister of Food,

is made to an authentic wartime recipe.

He tops with lard and potato pastry.

And, with the clock ticking, he assembles his beef Wellington.

He spread chicken and mushroom mousse over pancakes.

This the one that got you the ten with Jeremy.

It's also the one I was most worrying about of all my dishes.

Stevie adds fillet of beef wrapped in spinach

before encasing in puff pastry

and placing in the oven.

It's absolutely no hope I want to go home today.

We're going to fight this out to the end, aren't we?

Fight this one on the beaches.

SHE LAUGHS

Hi, Jim. Hello!

Lovely to meet you.

Jim, how are you doing? Nice to meet you. Welcome.

So you were actually there.

I was there.

What age were you?

I was 15 years old.

It's a sobering experience.

You have to grow up very quickly. Have you been back since?

I didn't go back for about 30 years and then I went back

and I was very moved when I went back.

On the beach where I'd seen all these dead bodies,

now there were little kids playing and building sand castles

and I could see the change that there was.

Change for the better.

How's it going in the judge's chamber?

There's been highs and lows,

and at least one ten I know of.

It's interesting.

Good luck, both of you. Thank you.

What a story, Jac, eh?

I think that's why it's been such a tough brief.

These guys are what we're doing this for.

Stevie gets back to meticulously monitoring the temperature

of his beef Wellington.

You've been checking that about five times. Everything OK?

It just hit home how important this is.

I want to make sure it's absolutely perfect.

He brings out his Wilton vegetable pie

and serves it in a special wartime parcel presentation.

Finally happy, he serves his beef Wellington,

pours his red wine gravy and his dream soldier's parcel is complete

with a wartime-inspired letter from home.

Thank you.

How do you feel? Relief.

It's up to the judges now.

Wow. It's like having an ammunition case.

Ah!

Oh! Look at that!

That is absolutely splendid.

Letter From Home.

"Dearest son,

"we can only hope that this parcel somehow reaches you safely.

"We send this parcel to remind you

"that you're in our thoughts every hour of every day.

"May your dreams of home keep his strong

"through these dark days until your return safely to us.

"Love, Mum and Dad."

When they cut it open, if it's as I want it,

I think they'll love it.

Wow! I must say that beef is a perfect colour.

The quality of the flavour in that fillet just melts in your mouth.

It looks good, it tastes good.

As near perfection as you can get.

The Woolton pie, I've not changed a single thing, it's an authentic recipe of the time.

The Woolton pie was not exactly haute cuisine

and actually I think it tastes absolutely delicious.

The two dishes with pastry on it,

do you think that's too much?

No, not at all, I think it's the young soldier's fantasy food.

I think to have two lots of pastry is probably unnecessary.

What? No.

You love it.

This was one of Churchill's favourite dishes.

Do we have a winner on our hands here?

It's pretty good. Do you want my comment on that, Oliver?

Yes!

I give it more than two.

THEY LAUGH

Jacqueline is next with her main course.

A Homecoming Platter for the D-day soldiers,

which was criticised for being over-seasoned,

with too many side dishes.

Jeremy suggested there was too much going on around the board,

so I have cut down on one of the potatoes

and one of the cabbage dishes.

Halved the dish. So I have, I've halved the dish.

Jacqueline stirs cream into her ham and Savoy cabbage

and this serves it in mess tins.

She brings out her apple and potato gratin

and pork crackling.

She slices her cured pork shoulder,

and adds roast pork cutlets,

and finally pours parsley cream sauce into jugs.

Wow, that looks good, doesn't it?

Whoa!

I'm not sure they would have liked just so much going on.

I just think this is passionate cooking.

Much better.

it is really unbearably salty.

I think it's a bit rich for me.

You're all going soft!

If I'm absolutely honest, the crackling is too salty, too.

Oh!

I think really well done to her.

She has shown a lot of passion but it is not a banquet dish.

I couldn't eat a lot of this.

I think you need another campaign medal added to those,

Survived the Homecoming Platter.

With just one course to go, it is Stevie who is plating up first.

That's us, Jac, nearly over the line.

We're nearly there, come on!

Stevie's desert is a tribute to Winston Churchill.

A chocolate-coated parfait V for Victory

hand sign and signature cigar,

filled with bitter chocolate cream, which Jeremy gave nine points.

Stevie starts his first plate with Union Jack bunting.

You're changing things again.

I'm just flying the flag.

He starts his second plate with a hazelnut, white chocolate and coconut crumb.

Adds crushed dried raspberry and poppy seeds.

Finally, chocolate cigars,

and chocolate V for Victory parfaits.

Wow! A little V for victory.

The Churchillian cigar to go with it.

It reminds you of Winston Churchill,

it reminds you of the victory of the war,

and it reminds you of why we're here.

ALL: Mm!

It says something about the sort of creamy

softness of this parfait...

It's seduced you.

I love the cigar.

Really beautiful quality chocolate, isn't it?

Will one of you gastronomes please tell me what the stuff is

that makes this perfect ash?

Poppy seeds, and then you have

dried raspberry...

I would have poured a drop of rum over it.

I think you're a bit of a connoisseur on the quiet.

I tend to pour rum over any sweets.

THEY LAUGH

A very popular sweet.

We had big sacks of American dried apricots.

Cut them up, throw sugar in them, and custard,

and if we had any rum, we'd pour rum on that.

That sounds really delicious.

Final dish, Stevie, how do you feel?

I feel very good, feel great it's done, feel I've done a good job.

Happy man.

There is a real level of skill involved in this

and I think it's really beautiful. It's perfect for the banquet.

It's not the most brilliant, dazzling,

original piece of gastronomy we have ever been

faced with... No.

..But it is clearly a chef who has enormous technical ability.

Jacqueline's final dish is a white chocolate

Candle of Remembrance

in honour of those who didn't return from D-day.

Jeremy Lee was impressed and awarded Jacqueline an eight,

despite finding some elements too sweet.

BLEEP. Broke one.

Everything OK, Jac?

Yeah, I just broke a candle.

Luckily for Jacqueline, all is not lost.

Thankfully, I had a spare one.

Once the candles are secured, she adds lemon curd,

followed by ginger wine jelly,

spiced gingerbread

and lemon mousse.

Imagine doing this for a banquet.

Hopefully we'd be allowed some help.

She finishes her candle with a white chocolate wax effect

and, finally, a wick.

Oh...my...goodness.

Ooh!

I'm told we have to pull the wicks out now.

What do you think? They'll get it? I think they'll like

everything and I think they'll get everything.

I think there's a tremendous amount of ingenuity and, indeed,

modelling skill gone into these.

I notice little dribbles of wax down the side.

I think they'll like the flavours.

They're of that time.

I don't like the white chocolate very much.

The jelly side of it is so acidic.

I think it's delicious.

I think it has some wonderful flavours in it.

I think lemon and ginger together are terrific.

I think the jelly's delicious.

I wanted to finish today

on, "Let's stop and think about the ones that didn't make it."

And I hope that they get that feeling.

I think the idea of Candle of Remembrance,

which you then knock down and eat, just seems to be bizarre.

The chocolate isn't great

and there's something uncomfortable about the

Candle of Remembrance then being gobbled up.

My main objection is I just don't like the taste of it.

It is just wrong on all levels.

It is not to be remembered.

So, who is going through?

Close one, I think.

It's hard to think that one of us won't go through

cos we've just gave it our all.

I've had a great day, I have dined well.

THEY LAUGH

I've had three dishes I will remember for a long time.

What to me has been amazing about the day

is at half-time Jac was well ahead,

but Stevie comes storming back.

So now I don't know quite where we are.

Welcome, chefs.

Today has been a really mixed bag.

We've given three tens.

Also, I'm sorry to say,

I gave one of the lowest scores I've ever given

in any Great British Menu competition.

When we added up all the scores,

in the end it could not have been closer.

There was only one point in it.

The winner has won by the skin of their teeth.

And the winner is....

..Jac.

Well done.

Oh, my goodness, thank you so much.

Brilliant, I am so surprised. How do you feel?

Gobsmacked! Stevie...

how do you feel about it? Gutted,

very disappointed, but not disappointed to lose to Jacqui.

She's been really tough this week.

She's done well and deserves a place.

Jac. We all loved your herring dish. That was one of the standout dishes of the day.

It was brilliant.

I thought the combination of flavours was fantastic,

the texture was terrific, the concept was amusing,

and I gave it a ten.

Thank you.

Jac, if there is one dish

you'd really have to do something about,

it was the candle dish.

I'm afraid that was disastrous.

I was the only person who liked it

and I only liked the filling.

It almost cost you the competition.

Stevie, your Wellington, when that came down and sat there,

I was salivating.

Very rarely do we polish our food and want more.

But that was one of those dishes. Absolutely perfection.

I gave it a ten.

Thank you very much.

I loved the beef Wellington too, and I gave it a ten.

Star dish from my perspective. Thank you.

Stevie, profound commiserations for that.

She just cooked a blinder today.

It's a tough competition this week.

Thank you both very much indeed.

Well done, well-deserved.

She is a fighter, Jac,

and she did a brilliant job.

Just doing that for the veterans, I put my heart and soul

into something that they really fought for.

She did a brilliant job, really cooked from the heart, cooked amazing food.

It means so much to me.

I've had a great week.

SHE SOBS

A great day, I'm pleased to see you experts agree with me

on so many things.

THEY LAUGH

I enjoyed it.

CORK POPS

Oh! Thank you.

If I was going to get beat, I'd rather be beat by someone like you.

Thank you so much. Well done.

Folk singer Jim comes back into the kitchen

for a special farewell.

Before I go I'm going to sing you a song

inspired by my experience in Normandy.

# In the cold, grey light

# Of the sixth of June

# In the year of '44

# I little thought when I left home

# Of the dreadful sights I'd see

# But I came to manhood on the day

# That I first saw Normandy

# As the years passed by

# I can still recall

# The men I saw that day

# Remember those who made it so

# On the shores of Normandy. #

That was fantastic. Cheers.

This summer, BBC TWO takes a look at the Brazilian superstars

who aren't on the pitch.

HE SPEAKS PORTUGUESE

See what life is really like in the favelas.