0:00:02 > 0:00:07You know, we believe that Britain has the best food in the world.
0:00:07 > 0:00:11Not only can we boast fantastic ingredients...
0:00:11 > 0:00:13Look at them!
0:00:13 > 0:00:15..outstanding food producers...
0:00:15 > 0:00:17Oh, wow!
0:00:17 > 0:00:20..and innovative chefs...
0:00:20 > 0:00:23..but we also have an amazing food history.
0:00:23 > 0:00:24So it's safe to say
0:00:24 > 0:00:28- that's what the Romans brought to us - the art of cooking itself. - Absolutely.
0:00:28 > 0:00:32It's like a savoury summer pudding.
0:00:32 > 0:00:35Now, during this series,
0:00:35 > 0:00:38we're going to be taking you on a journey into our culinary past.
0:00:38 > 0:00:40Everything's ready, so let's get cracking.
0:00:40 > 0:00:43We'll explore its revealing stories...
0:00:43 > 0:00:44Wow!
0:00:44 > 0:00:48..and meet the heroes who keep our food heritage alive.
0:00:48 > 0:00:50Pontefract liquorice has been my life,
0:00:50 > 0:00:53and I've loved every minute of it.
0:00:53 > 0:00:56And, of course, be cooking up a load of dishes
0:00:56 > 0:00:59that reveal our foodie evolution.
0:00:59 > 0:01:01That's a proper British treat.
0:01:01 > 0:01:05Looks good, tastes good, that's going to do you good.
0:01:05 > 0:01:06Quite simply...
0:01:06 > 0:01:08BOTH: the best of British.
0:01:24 > 0:01:28You know, nothing defines Britain more than the fact that we are an island race.
0:01:28 > 0:01:32The sea that surrounds us provides us with nourishment, a livelihood...
0:01:32 > 0:01:36And combined with the fruits of our rivers and lakes,
0:01:36 > 0:01:40we have some of the best fish and seafood in the world.
0:01:40 > 0:01:45But sometimes it's easy to forget what's right on our doorstep.
0:01:45 > 0:01:48And in this show, we'll be celebrating the best our fertile waters have to offer,
0:01:48 > 0:01:53whether it's traditional favourites like Morecambe Bay shrimps, scallops and crabs...
0:01:53 > 0:01:57..or ancient stalwarts like trout...
0:01:57 > 0:01:58and duck.
0:01:58 > 0:02:03We're going to pay tribute to the amazing bounty we have in our British waters
0:02:03 > 0:02:06and their important place in our culinary history.
0:02:11 > 0:02:14First up, in the Best Of British kitchen,
0:02:14 > 0:02:18we're going to serve up one of the jewels of our ocean's treasure trove.
0:02:18 > 0:02:22And show you just how simple it is to sear a scallop.
0:02:23 > 0:02:28Scallops are so easy and I think for children, they're such an easy eat.
0:02:28 > 0:02:31It's meat, there's no gristly bits, there's no fat.
0:02:31 > 0:02:34It's brilliant and scallops are ours.
0:02:34 > 0:02:36Look, you can buy them like that
0:02:36 > 0:02:39or you can buy them like that.
0:02:39 > 0:02:44I'll show you how to get that out of that in a minute
0:02:44 > 0:02:46and it is so simple, it's ridiculous.
0:02:46 > 0:02:51- They're really like fish marshmallows, aren't they?- Exactly that, exactly that, yes.
0:02:51 > 0:02:54And scallops go well with lots and lots of things.
0:02:54 > 0:02:57You can pair it with cauliflower cheese, fabulous, celeriac,
0:02:57 > 0:03:02but we're pairing it with two of its almost spiritual brothers - bacon and black pudding.
0:03:05 > 0:03:12This classic combo of salty bacon, delicate seafood, and the rich earthy flavours of black pudding
0:03:12 > 0:03:17is served up on a cloud of fluffy mashed potato and greens.
0:03:17 > 0:03:20Known to the Irish as colcannon.
0:03:20 > 0:03:23It's our island life on a plate.
0:03:24 > 0:03:28We've got some potatoes on here which are poaching gently.
0:03:28 > 0:03:33When you do mashed potatoes, it's quite important that you poach the potatoes, rather than boil them.
0:03:33 > 0:03:35You will get a fluffier mash.
0:03:35 > 0:03:42Right, kale. Kale's lovely, it's very good for you, it's very high in iron, vitamin C,
0:03:42 > 0:03:44and all sorts of lovely things.
0:03:44 > 0:03:48We're going to take the main tough bit out and this is what we're interested in -
0:03:48 > 0:03:51the leaves here, so I'll crack on with that.
0:03:51 > 0:03:56First chop the curly kale, then finely dice a small onion
0:03:56 > 0:03:59and sweat in olive oil.
0:04:00 > 0:04:05So you don't get long, stringy bits, turn your thingy round
0:04:05 > 0:04:09and put the knife through it the other way.
0:04:09 > 0:04:11Hail the kale!
0:04:11 > 0:04:17- It's a great, great dish. Oh, it's brilliant.- Good bit of roughage, that kale.- Really good for you,
0:04:17 > 0:04:23- full of vitamin C, full of iron, fabulous.- Colcannon is like Irish bubble and squeak.
0:04:23 > 0:04:27And the colcannon can be cooked with either spring onions or cabbage, ours is with curly kale.
0:04:27 > 0:04:31- Can I put the kale in now, Si? - Yeah, absolutely, mate. Crack on.
0:04:31 > 0:04:34We'll fry this down on top of the onions, they're translucent,
0:04:34 > 0:04:38just pop that in and it'll drop quite quickly, it'll cook quickly.
0:04:41 > 0:04:44The kale's beginning to drop already, mixed with the onions
0:04:44 > 0:04:48and because you're just cooking it in the onions and the oil,
0:04:48 > 0:04:53it's going to keep this wonderful green colour. It's like a little postcard from the Emerald Isle.
0:04:53 > 0:04:55That's lovely, isn't it?
0:04:55 > 0:05:00Once you've strained the potatoes, pop them back into a warm pan to dry off.
0:05:00 > 0:05:05You can see the steam coming off, but don't colour them in any way, shape or form. Keep an eye on them.
0:05:05 > 0:05:08And look, they dry out really quickly.
0:05:08 > 0:05:13and that's what you want because that potato will produce lovely fluffy mash.
0:05:13 > 0:05:16We're going to press those potatoes through a ricer
0:05:16 > 0:05:19and again there'll be no lumps in this
0:05:19 > 0:05:22and you could put your beaters on the food mixer,
0:05:22 > 0:05:24just so it's lovely and creamy.
0:05:24 > 0:05:27and in this pan we're going to melt some butter,
0:05:27 > 0:05:29and some cream and don't be shy.
0:05:29 > 0:05:35Melt 50g of butter in 200ml of double cream.
0:05:38 > 0:05:42Now let's start to add the cream and the butter.
0:05:42 > 0:05:44This is quite luxurious.
0:05:49 > 0:05:52Just put in the kale and the onions, just make sure
0:05:52 > 0:05:56that you evenly distribute all that kale and onion through your mash.
0:05:56 > 0:05:59Beautiful. Dave's just going to add a bit of pepper there.
0:06:02 > 0:06:06- Ho-ho!- Oh, that is good, yeah? - You'll want for nothing better, would you?
0:06:06 > 0:06:07Hey, man.
0:06:07 > 0:06:15The colcannon keeps warm in the oven while we make our magical trio of bacon, black pudding and scallops.
0:06:16 > 0:06:18Bacon and scallops are a marriage made in heaven,
0:06:18 > 0:06:21going back to the original coquilles St Jacques,
0:06:21 > 0:06:23bacon, scallops and cheese.
0:06:23 > 0:06:25But, you know, scallops go with so many things.
0:06:25 > 0:06:31It goes great with cauliflower, make a wonderful cauliflower puree with cheese, sit a scallop on top,
0:06:31 > 0:06:32it's fantastic.
0:06:32 > 0:06:35We do one with black pudding, apple and scallops.
0:06:35 > 0:06:37Scallops - fantastic.
0:06:37 > 0:06:39This is really good streaky bacon so, if you can,
0:06:39 > 0:06:45don't skimp on your streaky because it forms a really important part of the dish,
0:06:45 > 0:06:47just fry that off, now it needs to be crispy.
0:06:49 > 0:06:52Don't overcrowd the pan, and what we're going to do,
0:06:52 > 0:06:56we want to save all that lovely bacon fat.
0:06:56 > 0:06:59Some bacon, you'll get loads of water out into the pan.
0:06:59 > 0:07:01At this point, you'd need to strain that off,
0:07:01 > 0:07:05but this is good bacon, that's just fat and oil.
0:07:05 > 0:07:06And this is black pudding!
0:07:09 > 0:07:14It comes in many forms, you get square black pudding, you get ones like a knotted muscle,
0:07:14 > 0:07:18but this, we want little roundels - this is good black pudding.
0:07:18 > 0:07:24Fry for two minutes on each side until the pudding is lovely and crispy all over.
0:07:24 > 0:07:27There was a song about black pudding, wasn't there?
0:07:27 > 0:07:31# Oh, all of a sudden a dirty black pudding came floating through the air
0:07:31 > 0:07:34# It hit me mother and missed me father and knocked them off the chair
0:07:34 > 0:07:37# Oh! # I love that.
0:07:37 > 0:07:40I'm just going to pop the black pudding in the oven to keep warm with the bacon.
0:07:43 > 0:07:48Now for the star of the show, our king scallops from Devon.
0:07:48 > 0:07:52The scallop shell is associated with a lot of symbolism.
0:07:52 > 0:07:55Think Botticelli's Venus, the goddess of love and fertility,
0:07:55 > 0:07:59rising from the sea on a scallop shell.
0:08:01 > 0:08:04It also became a symbol of St James of Compostela,
0:08:04 > 0:08:06the patron saint of fishermen.
0:08:06 > 0:08:12Legend has it that St James was washed up on the beach covered in these shells.
0:08:12 > 0:08:16And the pilgrims also wear a scallop shell around their neck
0:08:16 > 0:08:21and apart from being the sign of St James, it also makes a handy little drinking vessel,
0:08:21 > 0:08:25- so you can go and get a cup of water.- How lovely is that?- It is lovely. Been around a while.
0:08:25 > 0:08:29This one's easy cos it's opened, but if it isn't open and it's tight,
0:08:29 > 0:08:32there's a little black dot at the back there
0:08:32 > 0:08:36that just keeps that shell closed
0:08:36 > 0:08:41and then all you do is work your way round the side, like that -
0:08:41 > 0:08:42the flat bit of the shell.
0:08:42 > 0:08:49All you do is just cut the scallop away from that part of the shell.
0:08:49 > 0:08:52And then you just push this down, like that,
0:08:52 > 0:08:54and then just underneath...
0:08:55 > 0:08:59..just ease it off, then turn it the other way up
0:08:59 > 0:09:01and then just pick away...
0:09:02 > 0:09:05..that membrane from that lovely piece of meat.
0:09:05 > 0:09:11That is just a nugget of pure, high-grade seafood.
0:09:11 > 0:09:15It's just great and if you don't want to do that, you can buy them
0:09:15 > 0:09:16ready done, like that,
0:09:16 > 0:09:19so don't be frightened of them, please, please eat them,
0:09:19 > 0:09:23because they're harvested from our own waters and they're brilliant.
0:09:23 > 0:09:26Now for a sauce worthy of a king...
0:09:26 > 0:09:28scallop!
0:09:28 > 0:09:33We're deglazing the black pudding and bacon juices in the pan with a drop of Marsala,
0:09:33 > 0:09:35which is a Spanish fortified wine.
0:09:38 > 0:09:42- Oh, man!- Needs to cook down. It's beautiful, isn't it? - Oh, God, it's gorgeous.
0:09:43 > 0:09:48Marsala's a wonderful ingredient. It's great with liver, it's great with scallops.
0:09:50 > 0:09:56Dry and season the scallops with a little salt and pepper and a drizzle of olive oil.
0:09:57 > 0:10:00So let's get those scallops sizzling.
0:10:00 > 0:10:03You need to have that griddle
0:10:03 > 0:10:05banging hot, OK?
0:10:05 > 0:10:08- You want the scallops almost to jump off.- You do.
0:10:12 > 0:10:15- Look at that.- There we are. Just hold him there for a minute.
0:10:15 > 0:10:19That is hot. The most important thing at this point is not to move them, just leave them.
0:10:19 > 0:10:22because if you move them now, you'll rip the flesh
0:10:22 > 0:10:26and you'll see, as it cooks, they'll just come away nice and easy
0:10:26 > 0:10:28and it's literally a minute either side.
0:10:28 > 0:10:30- The scallop will tell you when it's ready.- Yeah.
0:10:30 > 0:10:34- Look, coming away.- You see people thinking, "It's stuck!" It hasn't.
0:10:34 > 0:10:35Just not ready.
0:10:35 > 0:10:38- They're not far off, are they? - Absolutely not, mate.
0:10:38 > 0:10:39- Brilliant.- Oh, lush, lush.
0:10:39 > 0:10:42Shall I get the rest of the players out the oven?
0:10:42 > 0:10:44- Please, man.- We can start the build.
0:10:45 > 0:10:46A plate.
0:10:49 > 0:10:51Put the bacon on top of the colcannon,
0:10:51 > 0:10:53the black pudding...
0:10:56 > 0:11:00This is the Marsala and the chicken stock and the fats all reduced,
0:11:00 > 0:11:02so really you can have gravy with your fish.
0:11:02 > 0:11:05I'll let a little bit of that fall provocatively onto the plate.
0:11:05 > 0:11:09And the black pepper in there... I think that's enough, do you?
0:11:09 > 0:11:11That's absolutely gorgeous.
0:11:17 > 0:11:19Mmm!
0:11:19 > 0:11:21Scallops don't have to be this namby-pamby starter.
0:11:21 > 0:11:23That's a really robust dish.
0:11:23 > 0:11:27It's meat and two veg and we've even got gravy.
0:11:27 > 0:11:29I know you're not supposed to talk with your mouth full,
0:11:29 > 0:11:34but if there's one dinner you cook for your family,
0:11:34 > 0:11:36cook this one. It's fab.
0:11:36 > 0:11:40I think that's a fitting celebration of one of the finest products
0:11:40 > 0:11:41of our island race.
0:11:41 > 0:11:43Too right!
0:11:45 > 0:11:48Now it's a testament to our island history
0:11:48 > 0:11:52that for centuries the biggest and busiest fish market in the world
0:11:52 > 0:11:54was at Billingsgate in London...
0:11:54 > 0:11:58..the beating heart of our fishy food history for almost a thousand years.
0:11:58 > 0:12:04Billingsgate fed lucky Londoners with fish from every corner of the British Isles.
0:12:06 > 0:12:08ARCHIVE: 'Every day 250 tonnes
0:12:08 > 0:12:13'will be hurried in and carried out on its way to caterers, fish shops and restaurants.
0:12:13 > 0:12:20'Billingsgate market is the quickest way yet invented of getting the fish out of the sea and onto the table.'
0:12:24 > 0:12:27Its history is the stuff of legend.
0:12:29 > 0:12:34The story goes that in 400BC, a Saxon chap called Belling, King of the Britons,
0:12:34 > 0:12:40spied a good business opportunity on a sheltered inlet on the shores of the River Thames...
0:12:40 > 0:12:43..the perfect port for boats laden with fish.
0:12:44 > 0:12:47He erected a mighty gate for all fishermen to pass through,
0:12:47 > 0:12:49for a small fee.
0:12:49 > 0:12:51Billing's gate, Billingsgate, do you get it?
0:12:54 > 0:12:57And in the Middle Ages when fish was a vital part of our diet,
0:12:57 > 0:13:00the market was granted a royal charter...
0:13:00 > 0:13:03..making it of-fish-al!
0:13:03 > 0:13:04Official! You see?
0:13:06 > 0:13:09By the 18th century, 150,000 tons of fish a year
0:13:09 > 0:13:14were unloaded here and sold from ramshackle stores and sheds around the dock.
0:13:15 > 0:13:16It was time for an upgrade.
0:13:22 > 0:13:27The City of London commissioned the prestigious architect of nearby London Bridge, Sir Horace Jones,
0:13:27 > 0:13:31to construct a grand hall to house the market.
0:13:31 > 0:13:36The new trading hall boasted the latest in Victorian technology...
0:13:36 > 0:13:42..steam generators which powered the lifts and boiled the shellfish at the same time.
0:13:42 > 0:13:46And the catacombs below were packed with ice to keep the fresh fish cool.
0:13:48 > 0:13:50It was state of the art.
0:13:50 > 0:13:53And fishing boats docked from all over the British Isles.
0:13:53 > 0:13:57- Vessels from Yarmouth brought smoked fish.- Oysters came from Colchester.
0:13:57 > 0:14:01- Mackerel from Cornwall. - Sprats and herring from Sussex.
0:14:01 > 0:14:03And cod from Yorkshire.
0:14:03 > 0:14:08A carved figure of Britannia proclaimed our fishy prowess to the world.
0:14:08 > 0:14:10But Billingsgate's most famous legacy
0:14:10 > 0:14:14may be the eccentric behaviour of its colourful characters.
0:14:14 > 0:14:17ARCHIVE: 'For 700 years, the commonplace activity
0:14:17 > 0:14:21'of buying and selling fish has produced a unique subculture
0:14:21 > 0:14:24'with its own highly-distinctive camaraderie, wit and smell.'
0:14:24 > 0:14:27We don't look too bad on it, do we, and smell?
0:14:27 > 0:14:30Its history has even become part of the English language.
0:14:30 > 0:14:33The expression "swearing like a fishwife"
0:14:33 > 0:14:36comes from the sharp-tongued language of the women who sold the fish.
0:14:38 > 0:14:42And "to billingsgate" means to curse like a porter with a heavy box of fish on his head.
0:14:42 > 0:14:45Thank goodness for bobbin hats, then!
0:14:46 > 0:14:50'Nothing much as fashion goes, but a necessary protection against both wet and weight.
0:14:50 > 0:14:52'Bobbins, they're called.'
0:14:52 > 0:14:57At its beginning, Billingsgate had provided hungry Londoners with a vital food source.
0:14:57 > 0:14:59One thousand years on,
0:14:59 > 0:15:01it has become a specialist international market
0:15:01 > 0:15:06which also served exotic fishmongers and posh restaurants.
0:15:06 > 0:15:11From abroad, we have the American squids, mainly going to Chinese restaurants.
0:15:11 > 0:15:15- Where does this red mullet come from?- This comes from Greece. Quite big supplies coming in
0:15:15 > 0:15:20for the immigrant population, for example, we have the Portuguese sardines
0:15:20 > 0:15:22and grey mullet as well.
0:15:23 > 0:15:26And though its move to a large, airy warehouse in the docklands
0:15:26 > 0:15:28marked the end of an era for some...
0:15:28 > 0:15:33It'll take about 300 years to get the atmosphere down here that we had in the other market.
0:15:33 > 0:15:37Billingsgate's survival through history and its colourful culture
0:15:37 > 0:15:39is as much a celebration of our island life
0:15:39 > 0:15:42as the wonderful array of fish from our shores.
0:15:43 > 0:15:44Do you like fish?
0:15:44 > 0:15:47I love it, and I mean that.
0:15:50 > 0:15:54There are many wonderful delicacies you can pick up at fish markets like Billingsgate.
0:15:54 > 0:15:58And our next recipe uses one that people often think is difficult to cook,
0:15:58 > 0:16:01but take it from us, it's simple and fantastic.
0:16:02 > 0:16:04The crab.
0:16:04 > 0:16:05The crab delivers.
0:16:05 > 0:16:07It delivers on flavour,
0:16:07 > 0:16:10it delivers on texture, it's brilliant.
0:16:10 > 0:16:13Yes, the crab is undoubtedly the king of crustaceans.
0:16:13 > 0:16:18- It is, Dave. It is! And we're going to show you what to do with it.- Aye.
0:16:18 > 0:16:23We've created a recipe that combines the crab with the mighty leek.
0:16:23 > 0:16:28Here's how to make the most out of these glorious crustaceans with our crab and leek tart.
0:16:28 > 0:16:32All tarts start with a pastry base,
0:16:32 > 0:16:34and this one is half wholemeal, half flour...
0:16:34 > 0:16:36- Leeks!- # Take a leek... #
0:16:36 > 0:16:38- Off to your mummy wi' you! - DAVE SINGS HEARTILY
0:16:38 > 0:16:41Two trimmed leeks and I'll just crack on with them.
0:16:41 > 0:16:45We're going to saute those off in a frying pan with a little bit of butter.
0:16:45 > 0:16:50The important thing is we don't want any colour on them. We simply want them to sweat.
0:16:50 > 0:16:51Take wholemeal flour...
0:16:53 > 0:16:54..in a processor...
0:16:54 > 0:16:57mix with plain.
0:16:57 > 0:17:01To your wholemeal and plain flour, add little knobs of butter
0:17:01 > 0:17:02like so.
0:17:02 > 0:17:05You can put it into cubes and it looks all posh,
0:17:05 > 0:17:07but there's no need to.
0:17:07 > 0:17:11It's a very quick and easy tart, this. It's really nice and it tastes immense.
0:17:11 > 0:17:14- Oh, it's fantastic, innit? - Yeah, it is.- It's a fave.
0:17:14 > 0:17:16But leeks, you know...
0:17:16 > 0:17:18# They make you sing! #
0:17:18 > 0:17:21- Oh, God!- No, they're meant to be good for your voice.
0:17:21 > 0:17:24Emperor Nero believed - and he was very vain about his singing voice -
0:17:24 > 0:17:29that leeks made him sing better, so he ate loads
0:17:29 > 0:17:34- and his nickname was Porrophagus which means a leek-eater. - It doesn't.
0:17:34 > 0:17:37DAVE HUMS HEARTILY
0:17:40 > 0:17:42- You'd better get going, son. - I've eaten loads in my time.
0:17:42 > 0:17:44- Not enough.- Oh!
0:17:49 > 0:17:53Blitz the flours and the butter in a food processor until you get fine crumbs.
0:17:55 > 0:17:59Then add the egg in a thin stream until it all comes together.
0:18:00 > 0:18:01Now this is a short pastry.
0:18:02 > 0:18:07It's shorter than Ronnie Corbett wearing sandals, this one.
0:18:07 > 0:18:11- Now butter your tin liberally. - Put your leeks in for about three minutes.
0:18:11 > 0:18:13You don't want any colour on them,
0:18:13 > 0:18:15you want them to sweat, sweat, sweat, sweat.
0:18:15 > 0:18:17Think Benidorm.
0:18:20 > 0:18:24So just roll that flat, and put that great big lump in your tin.
0:18:25 > 0:18:29Now you could try rolling it out, get yourself in a kerfuffle,
0:18:29 > 0:18:32just press it in with your fingers in an even way.
0:18:32 > 0:18:37It's so easy. The thing is, it's short, it's full of butter,
0:18:37 > 0:18:43it's going to be tasty because sometimes wholemeal pastry if you don't have loads of butter in,
0:18:43 > 0:18:45quite frankly, can be like a beer mat.
0:18:45 > 0:18:46That's them.
0:18:46 > 0:18:50Turn them off, take them off the heat, let them cool.
0:18:52 > 0:18:55See? No colour on them. We've just sweated them. Lovely. Look at that.
0:18:55 > 0:18:58Look at that. The hands of a master.
0:18:59 > 0:19:05Just get it nice and even. It's so much easier than trying to wrestle with a rolling pin.
0:19:05 > 0:19:09- And, you know, it's a personal touch.- It's Dave's personal touch.
0:19:09 > 0:19:12As you can see, it's beautifully even.
0:19:12 > 0:19:15Now what we do is we prick this with a fork
0:19:15 > 0:19:19and just pop this in the fridge to chill down for half an hour before we blind bake it.
0:19:19 > 0:19:21Look at that - beautiful!
0:19:21 > 0:19:23Ow! Eee! Ow! Eee! Ow! Eee! Ow! Eee! Ooh! Ahh!
0:19:23 > 0:19:24Oooh! Aah!
0:19:28 > 0:19:32Now if you've just tuned in, you may wonder why is he baking a bean pie? It's not.
0:19:32 > 0:19:35This is the process known as blind baking.
0:19:35 > 0:19:40What happens is we pre-bake the base and as you can see,
0:19:40 > 0:19:43the beans will hold the pastry to the sides of the tin.
0:19:43 > 0:19:46Also, apart from giving us a pastry case with a good shape,
0:19:46 > 0:19:48it's going to make sure that it's cooked,
0:19:48 > 0:19:52- so you'll never get a tart with a soggy bottom.- No, that's wrong.
0:19:55 > 0:20:00- Right now the filling...- Let's crack on.- Right now... Thank you.
0:20:01 > 0:20:03Now...
0:20:05 > 0:20:08We need three eggs, whisk lightly and then...
0:20:08 > 0:20:10Creme fraiche. Look at that.
0:20:10 > 0:20:15That's going to make a tart rich, tasty and unctuous.
0:20:15 > 0:20:18Look, creme fraiche falls in a certain way. Look at that.
0:20:18 > 0:20:20Look at that bit there.
0:20:21 > 0:20:24This is truly island life.
0:20:25 > 0:20:29An island of creme fraiche in a sea of egg.
0:20:29 > 0:20:32Right, mate - next, the brown crab meat.
0:20:32 > 0:20:35Now, crab comes in two parts -
0:20:35 > 0:20:38the back, which is the brown stuff,
0:20:38 > 0:20:42which personally I think is one of the great gastronomic gifts to mankind,
0:20:42 > 0:20:43and the white meat.
0:20:43 > 0:20:46- The brown meat goes into the base. - OK.
0:20:46 > 0:20:54So we've got now eggs, we've got the creme fraiche and now we put in the brown crab meat.
0:20:58 > 0:21:00Oh, don't forget the base.
0:21:00 > 0:21:04- Take the beans out. - Taking care not to burn your mitts.
0:21:07 > 0:21:12That's cooked, lovely. What we still need to do is firm it up a bit more.
0:21:12 > 0:21:16So we'll pop that back into the oven without the beans for ten minutes,
0:21:16 > 0:21:18but keep an eye on it, we don't want to burn it.
0:21:25 > 0:21:30- Oh, lovely, mate!- Yeah?- Nice.
0:21:30 > 0:21:31Look at that.
0:21:31 > 0:21:36It's like a well formed digestive biscuit, which is what we want.
0:21:36 > 0:21:40- Now, in here, our leeks go. - Put me beans back.
0:21:44 > 0:21:47And again, just whisk them in.
0:21:47 > 0:21:51The white crabmeat mixture goes into the base,
0:21:51 > 0:21:54and the leeks and brown meat mixture on the top.
0:21:54 > 0:21:56Starting from the middle.
0:22:02 > 0:22:05- Look, a couple of little 'uns, Kingy.- Perfect, dude.
0:22:05 > 0:22:08It's what you call cook's perks - waste nowt!
0:22:08 > 0:22:12- It's a thing of joy, isn't it? - It's lush, man!
0:22:12 > 0:22:16And top with grated Cheddar. Cook's perks, cook's perks!
0:22:16 > 0:22:19I'm not worried about these overflowing, these are just for us.
0:22:19 > 0:22:24So pop that into an oven for about half an hour at 160 Celsius.
0:22:24 > 0:22:26- Ready...- Steady...- Go!
0:22:31 > 0:22:38- Smells great!- That is... oh, look at that, man! It's epic! Yes!
0:22:38 > 0:22:44- That's beautiful, isn't it?- Ah, look how it's bubbling away there, Dave.
0:22:44 > 0:22:49The crust is perfect. Now, you could serve this warm, couldn't you?
0:22:49 > 0:22:52You could. I think it needs to cool a little bit, doesn't it?
0:22:52 > 0:22:55- Yeah, it just needs to be, like, blood warm.- Yes, it does.
0:22:55 > 0:22:58- Cup of tea?- Aye.- Might as well.
0:23:03 > 0:23:05Time for snackeroonies!
0:23:07 > 0:23:10- Ooh!- The leek and crab tart.
0:23:10 > 0:23:12- Mr Myers. - It's a good cutter, isn't it?
0:23:12 > 0:23:18- And that base is so thin.- Oh, yes!
0:23:18 > 0:23:23- It's crisp, the bottom's crisp. - Beautiful. Bon appetit!
0:23:23 > 0:23:25- Mm-mm!- You know,
0:23:25 > 0:23:28our Great British eating crab, it's punching through
0:23:28 > 0:23:31all those flavours and keeping a taste of its own.
0:23:31 > 0:23:37Yeah, it is. A truly Great British harvest of the sea, man. Fantastic.
0:23:41 > 0:23:44Of course, crab isn't the only crustacean in town.
0:23:44 > 0:23:47The sea provides us with many of Britain's most memorable
0:23:47 > 0:23:50and popular traditional snacks.
0:23:50 > 0:23:52And for us Hairy Bikers,
0:23:52 > 0:23:55there's one seafood speciality that's unbeatable.
0:23:57 > 0:24:00Potted shrimps from Morecambe Bay.
0:24:00 > 0:24:03A real British classic that Si and I remember from our childhoods.
0:24:07 > 0:24:10For hundreds of years, shrimp catching and potting
0:24:10 > 0:24:14has been at the heart of the local economy here in Morecambe Bay.
0:24:14 > 0:24:16When the tide rolls back,
0:24:16 > 0:24:21it reveals 120 square miles of sand, containing tasty brown shrimps.
0:24:23 > 0:24:26Renowned for their delicate taste and unique texture.
0:24:28 > 0:24:33Until the 1960s, horses and carts dragged nets behind them.
0:24:33 > 0:24:36Then, tractors took over, able to pull two nets each,
0:24:36 > 0:24:39- up to 15 foot long. - And on the other side of the bay,
0:24:39 > 0:24:45boats have traditionally dragged nets behind them as the tide goes out.
0:24:45 > 0:24:49The shrimps are then boiled on board and sent off to the potting factories.
0:24:51 > 0:24:56We want to find out what makes these potted shrimps taste so very special.
0:24:56 > 0:25:01So, we're in Morecambe to visit the oldest shrimp potting business in town.
0:25:01 > 0:25:05James Baxter set up his potted shrimp business in 1799
0:25:05 > 0:25:07and it's still going strong today.
0:25:07 > 0:25:13The company has also been purveyors of potted shrimps to the Royal household since the 1960s.
0:25:15 > 0:25:18The catch of the day is still shelled by hand.
0:25:18 > 0:25:21And then, the magic happens.
0:25:21 > 0:25:24The humble shrimp is transformed into a local delicacy -
0:25:24 > 0:25:27potted shrimps in spiced butter.
0:25:30 > 0:25:33But, is it their 300-year-old secret recipe
0:25:33 > 0:25:36or their technique that matters?
0:25:36 > 0:25:40Manager Mark Smith is putting us to work, so we're hoping we might get to find out.
0:25:45 > 0:25:50- Good morning, ladies.- Good morning! - Good morning, ladies.
0:25:50 > 0:25:54Morecambe Bay shrimps are one of the culinary treasures of the world.
0:25:54 > 0:25:57There's nothing else like it.
0:25:57 > 0:26:01This is true, we're a delicacy and we still do everything by hand.
0:26:01 > 0:26:05We don't mass-produce. But what we do produce is quality,
0:26:05 > 0:26:08and it's always been about the quality.
0:26:08 > 0:26:11You can keep your caviar, you can keep your snails.
0:26:11 > 0:26:14There ain't nothing like Morecambe Bay shrimps.
0:26:14 > 0:26:16So, what happens here, Mark?
0:26:16 > 0:26:21What Anne's doing now is melting the butter, then she'll add the spices.
0:26:21 > 0:26:24- What's in the spices? - Can't tell you that.
0:26:24 > 0:26:27There'll be mace, won't there, that's traditional.
0:26:27 > 0:26:33- Yes, we have a secret recipe, and it will remain so.- Good lad, good lad.
0:26:33 > 0:26:38It looks like that's one recipe that will stay secret forever.
0:26:38 > 0:26:42I bet the Queen doesn't even know what's in her potted shrimps!
0:26:42 > 0:26:46But one thing's for sure, it's not just what goes
0:26:46 > 0:26:50in the spiced butter that makes these shrimps special.
0:26:50 > 0:26:51It's how you stir it in that counts.
0:26:51 > 0:26:56- Are you putting your back into that?- I am, yeah, but I'm trying to keep them in the pot!
0:26:56 > 0:27:00- Ha-ha! There's a knack, in't there? - There's a knack that you have and I don't.
0:27:00 > 0:27:04- Are you going to have a go? - It's easy, it's like rowing a boat.
0:27:04 > 0:27:09- Is it?- How are you rowing a boat? - What, like that?- No, one hand.
0:27:09 > 0:27:13That's how my oldest does it!
0:27:13 > 0:27:18Room for improvements! We won't call them if we're on holiday!
0:27:18 > 0:27:21Once the shrimps have been stirred,
0:27:21 > 0:27:26they're boiled for 15 minutes in their famously secret spiced butter.
0:27:31 > 0:27:33And after the ritualistic tea break,
0:27:33 > 0:27:36the Morecambe Bay shrimps have cooled.
0:27:36 > 0:27:38Time to get these shrimps in their pots.
0:27:38 > 0:27:39One there.
0:27:39 > 0:27:44Put it on the scale now. And it's got... Hey, exactly right!
0:27:44 > 0:27:47- I don't believe it.- Oh, aye. On the money! Natural, see?
0:27:47 > 0:27:51It's in me blood. You're miles out!
0:27:51 > 0:27:55I think I'll have to leave this to the experts, I'm a bit slow.
0:27:55 > 0:28:00One spoonful. Make sure it's covered.
0:28:00 > 0:28:02Make sure the whole spoonful goes on.
0:28:02 > 0:28:05Cos you see, it's not just for taste, is it?
0:28:05 > 0:28:09It's a preservative, the butter keeps the air out,
0:28:09 > 0:28:11it's one of the real old methods of potting.
0:28:11 > 0:28:17This method of preserving meat and fish was particularly popular with sailors of the 17th century.
0:28:17 > 0:28:21They left our fair isle on long voyages with a wide
0:28:21 > 0:28:25variety of potted meats and fish, which helped them beat malnutrition.
0:28:25 > 0:28:29And there's still a big demand for potted shrimps today -
0:28:29 > 0:28:33they sell around 100,000 pots every year.
0:28:33 > 0:28:35We've always loved Morecambe Bay shrimps,
0:28:35 > 0:28:38- but I reckon we love them even more now.- Do you?- Yeah.
0:28:38 > 0:28:42- Thanks very much. Thanks, Mark.- Magic.
0:28:42 > 0:28:46- Thank you. - Thank you.- See you, dears.- Bye!
0:28:46 > 0:28:50Isn't it nice to think that one of our pots of shrimps might be
0:28:50 > 0:28:52enjoyed by Her Majesty?
0:28:52 > 0:28:55It makes you proud to call these British Isles home.
0:28:55 > 0:28:59Let's hope they keep at it for another 300 years.
0:29:01 > 0:29:06It's not just the oceans that produce delicious grub.
0:29:06 > 0:29:11We've been fishing our 2,200 miles of inland waterways for millennia.
0:29:12 > 0:29:16We've been getting food from our waterways for centuries,
0:29:16 > 0:29:20from shooting ducks to fishing, even harvesting watercress.
0:29:20 > 0:29:25From the poor old poacher's tickled trout to the mega posh, aristocratic
0:29:25 > 0:29:28fishing parties, Britain's waterways have given everybody
0:29:28 > 0:29:31nutritional food for thousands of years.
0:29:34 > 0:29:37We've been fishing for our supper since the Stone Age.
0:29:37 > 0:29:41But it was in the 6th century, when the Church banned meat on fast days and Fridays,
0:29:41 > 0:29:46that fish became a regular feature in our diets.
0:29:46 > 0:29:48Fish on a Friday!
0:29:49 > 0:29:54By the Middle Ages, monks were stocking their moats and ponds with
0:29:54 > 0:29:58freshwater fish, which they served as an alternative to meat.
0:29:58 > 0:30:03They soon became inventive chefs - salting, smoking and drying their catch,
0:30:03 > 0:30:08creating culinary delights, often by cooking a single fish
0:30:08 > 0:30:09in three different ways.
0:30:12 > 0:30:16The tail fried, the head boiled and the middle roasted.
0:30:18 > 0:30:23What started as fodder for fast days soon became the food of feasts.
0:30:23 > 0:30:25The nobility filled their castle moats and ponds
0:30:25 > 0:30:32with barbel, crayfish, chub, eel, dace, lampril, lampern, perch, pike, pimpernel and tench
0:30:32 > 0:30:36from the local rivers, and so had a permanent source of fresh fish.
0:30:42 > 0:30:47If you really wanted to flash your cash, you had to have an angler on your staff.
0:30:47 > 0:30:51And one of the best river-dwelling treats you can catch for your tea is trout.
0:30:57 > 0:31:00Next up in the Best of British kitchen,
0:31:00 > 0:31:06we're going to show you a cracking recipe for this lovely little fish.
0:31:06 > 0:31:10Here's the Hairy Bikers' homage to the Great British waterways.
0:31:10 > 0:31:14But with ingredients that you can find at your local supermarket.
0:31:14 > 0:31:18We're going to do rainbow trout with a creamy prawn sauce
0:31:18 > 0:31:19on a bed of watercress.
0:31:21 > 0:31:24This is a classic fish sauce. It's good with all fish.
0:31:24 > 0:31:31Dover sole, cod goes nicely with it, any meaty, white fish is good too.
0:31:33 > 0:31:38Oil goes into a pan. What I want to do is first brown off some onion, fennel,
0:31:38 > 0:31:43which goes very well with fish, celery and carrot.
0:31:43 > 0:31:48And this is rustic, we want the veg for flavour, not for appearance.
0:31:48 > 0:31:51So none of your fancy brunoise, mirepoix or 'unks!
0:31:54 > 0:31:57- Fennel's great with fish, isn't it, Kingy?- Lovely.
0:31:57 > 0:32:01What's nice about fennel is, it has a lovely aniseed flavour,
0:32:01 > 0:32:05but it's very gentle, very nice, little sweet as well, which is good.
0:32:05 > 0:32:08And don't worry about browning this veg -
0:32:08 > 0:32:10you kind of want a bit of colour on it.
0:32:10 > 0:32:14- Celery leaves.- Fabulous, Dave.
0:32:14 > 0:32:18These are full of flavour and hardly anybody uses them.
0:32:18 > 0:32:21But do, because they're... Ah! Lovely, man.
0:32:30 > 0:32:33This really will start to smell good.
0:32:34 > 0:32:37We're shelling the prawns to use later in the sauce,
0:32:37 > 0:32:40but we're not going to waste the heads and tails.
0:32:40 > 0:32:41They'll flavour the stock.
0:32:41 > 0:32:46So what we're doing now is take the heads off. Shell 'em.
0:32:46 > 0:32:50You can do this while that's cooking down.
0:32:52 > 0:32:56There's the poop tube, down the prawn.
0:32:56 > 0:32:59See that? Like a black elastic band.
0:32:59 > 0:33:04You want that out. You don't want to eat what the prawn's been eating!
0:33:04 > 0:33:07This bowl may look like a fisherman's dustbin.
0:33:07 > 0:33:13That's full of flavour, that's the foundation stone of our sauce.
0:33:13 > 0:33:18- Yes. If you can get flavour out of it, don't throw it away.- No.
0:33:18 > 0:33:24And now, these go in here. Because this is the basis of your stock.
0:33:26 > 0:33:31You could write a cookbook - Things To Do With Stuff You Should Have Put In The Bin.
0:33:31 > 0:33:36Now, a top tip - get a wooden spoon, or two,
0:33:36 > 0:33:39and give them a bash.
0:33:40 > 0:33:45- So you're extracting as much flavour as you can.- Give it a mush.
0:33:45 > 0:33:47We're going to strain this sauce
0:33:47 > 0:33:50so all the big chunks of veg, all these prawn heads,
0:33:50 > 0:33:54tails and everything, they go in the dustbin once we've extracted the goodness.
0:33:54 > 0:33:59- Smells great. - Next step, tomato puree. Just put this in for a minute.
0:34:01 > 0:34:05A good old glug of wine in true Floyd tradition.
0:34:05 > 0:34:09I always remember one thing that Keith Floyd said that stuck with me
0:34:09 > 0:34:15was never use wine for cooking that you wouldn't be prepared to drink.
0:34:15 > 0:34:17- He is right.- Absolutely.
0:34:17 > 0:34:20What's the point in putting cheap wine into great food?
0:34:20 > 0:34:22- Let's have a bit more then!- Go on!
0:34:24 > 0:34:29To this we add water. And salt.
0:34:32 > 0:34:36And that, my friends, needs to simmer for 40 minutes.
0:34:38 > 0:34:41- Cor, look at that! - After the stock has simmered,
0:34:41 > 0:34:44we're going to make sure there's no bits of prawn shell left in
0:34:44 > 0:34:46by straining it through a muslin cloth.
0:34:46 > 0:34:49Make sure it's clean. Don't use dyed cloth.
0:34:49 > 0:34:54Or your sauce will turn purple! I know, I've done it!
0:34:54 > 0:34:58- My mother used to use her old tights, but it's not nice.- No.
0:35:00 > 0:35:04- Did you get many visitors for dinner after school?- No.
0:35:06 > 0:35:08Mash it through.
0:35:09 > 0:35:11Next!
0:35:17 > 0:35:19That's quite a potent broth.
0:35:22 > 0:35:24We will reduce this even more.
0:35:25 > 0:35:29Add cream and salt and then cook the prawns in that sauce,
0:35:29 > 0:35:35and that is what we are using to dress the watercress and the trout.
0:35:35 > 0:35:39All reduction means is reducing the volume to intensify the flavour.
0:35:39 > 0:35:44That means that if we lose weight, we should get stronger!
0:35:44 > 0:35:46Which would probably be true.
0:35:46 > 0:35:48Let's talk trout.
0:35:48 > 0:35:51These are rainbow trout fillets.
0:35:51 > 0:35:55Rainbow trout is what you will find in British supermarkets.
0:35:55 > 0:35:59We first farmed trout in Britain in the 1950s
0:35:59 > 0:36:03and it was a Danish entrepreneur who set up a trout farm in Lincolnshire.
0:36:03 > 0:36:07Now we have 360 fish farms in Britain
0:36:07 > 0:36:10producing 16,000 tonnes of trout a year.
0:36:10 > 0:36:13And that's a testament to the amount of trout that we eat.
0:36:13 > 0:36:17We have mega-flavours going on in that sauce.
0:36:17 > 0:36:19So the trout, it's a pure flavour, it's lovely.
0:36:19 > 0:36:23We're not going to confuse that. We will fry them in oil and butter.
0:36:23 > 0:36:26Place these in, skin-side down.
0:36:26 > 0:36:29Don't forget that top Hairy Bikers tip -
0:36:29 > 0:36:32oil in the pan first, then the butter.
0:36:32 > 0:36:35The oil stops the butter from burning, and you still get the butter flavour
0:36:35 > 0:36:38and that lovely golden colour.
0:36:40 > 0:36:45Now add cream to the reduced stock to give it a rich loveliness.
0:36:45 > 0:36:49- It's intense. - We'll drop the prawns in.
0:36:49 > 0:36:55That will add to the flavour of it. We're using fresh raw prawns,
0:36:55 > 0:36:59which will turn a lovely pink colour when cooked.
0:36:59 > 0:37:02Be careful you don't overcook them, or they will end up as a chew.
0:37:02 > 0:37:08Once the trout has cooked for four minutes skin-side down, the skin is really easy to take off.
0:37:10 > 0:37:13And the other side just needs to cook for another three minutes.
0:37:13 > 0:37:18See how the skin's coming away? That's what I want.
0:37:18 > 0:37:24Easy-peasy, lemon squeezy! This is good fish.
0:37:24 > 0:37:27As soon as those prawns are pink, we're ready.
0:37:29 > 0:37:33- We're ready to talk watercress. - We certainly are.
0:37:33 > 0:37:36This is watercress from the chalk streams of Hampshire.
0:37:36 > 0:37:38It's sold in posies.
0:37:38 > 0:37:43This goes back to Victorian times, when the train would go up to London
0:37:43 > 0:37:48and children would go round the streets, selling posies of watercress.
0:37:48 > 0:37:52Victorians would eat them like ice-creams.
0:37:52 > 0:37:54What was lovely, a watercress sandwich,
0:37:54 > 0:37:58it's so full of iron and purifying things for your blood.
0:37:58 > 0:38:01People would have watercress sandwiches for breakfast.
0:38:01 > 0:38:06It's full of vitamin C. It's full of calcium.
0:38:06 > 0:38:08It's a bit of a super-food.
0:38:08 > 0:38:13It's very peppery. We used to mix it with samphire and serve it with fish - samphire's salty,
0:38:13 > 0:38:17it was like nature's salt-and-pepper.
0:38:22 > 0:38:24Let's get a couple of these trout fillets out.
0:38:26 > 0:38:29I think you will agree, that's kind of perfect.
0:38:32 > 0:38:33Beautiful.
0:38:33 > 0:38:37Simon King, prawn sculpture -
0:38:37 > 0:38:40that's what you call prawnography on television!
0:38:45 > 0:38:47There we have it, our homage to the British waterways.
0:38:47 > 0:38:53- Trout with...- Prawns, on a bed of... - Hampshire watercress. Ooh!
0:38:54 > 0:38:58Looks good. Tastes good. By golly, that will do you good!
0:39:03 > 0:39:07Of course, cooking fish from the supermarket is all very well.
0:39:07 > 0:39:10But if you want them at their freshest,
0:39:10 > 0:39:13you've got to do as our forefathers did and catch them in the wild.
0:39:13 > 0:39:17So we're hitting the road to try fly-fishing
0:39:17 > 0:39:20on one of our finest waterways - the River Usk in Wales.
0:39:23 > 0:39:27The Glanusk estate is home to Tiggy Pettifer and her family.
0:39:27 > 0:39:31They've been fishing for their supper for generations.
0:39:33 > 0:39:36Growing up by the river, Tiggy learnt to fish as a young girl
0:39:36 > 0:39:38and is now a fly-fishing instructor.
0:39:40 > 0:39:43We're looking forward to improving our techniques
0:39:43 > 0:39:47with some top tips from a master!
0:39:47 > 0:39:54- Good morning.- We're going fishing! - We have so looked forward to this.
0:39:54 > 0:39:56A bit of screaming reels, hopefully.
0:39:56 > 0:39:59Let's say our casting is not maybe the most delicate.
0:39:59 > 0:40:03We're what's known as... We fish quite a lot, but we're a pair of thrashers.
0:40:03 > 0:40:05You won't be by the time I've finished with you both!
0:40:05 > 0:40:09Good, great because, yes, we need to know.
0:40:09 > 0:40:13As far as casting's concerned, for us, it's 10-to-2, 10-to-2,
0:40:13 > 0:40:15poke their eye out! It seems to work.
0:40:15 > 0:40:17That is a different technique than I know,
0:40:17 > 0:40:19but we'll give it a go.
0:40:19 > 0:40:21- We do lose a lot of fish, don't we.- Yes.
0:40:21 > 0:40:23We have a lot of stories, but not so many in the pan.
0:40:25 > 0:40:30'The estate has relied on fishing to keep it fed for centuries
0:40:30 > 0:40:34'and there's a room dedicated to the family's fishy history.'
0:40:34 > 0:40:37With all Great-grandpas, and Grandpas
0:40:37 > 0:40:41and his stags, and his fish. Here's the rods.
0:40:42 > 0:40:45What is it, if you could sum it up,
0:40:45 > 0:40:48what is it about fishing that you love?
0:40:48 > 0:40:49It is the most exciting thing.
0:40:49 > 0:40:53It is the anticipation of every single cast.
0:40:53 > 0:40:57You think, "This is the one, this is the one!" So exciting.
0:40:57 > 0:40:59It is the most lovely feeling.
0:40:59 > 0:41:03What I love about fly fishing is you get to eat what you catch.
0:41:03 > 0:41:04I love that.
0:41:04 > 0:41:08You take it to the table. You eat it. That's like the full cycle
0:41:08 > 0:41:10which has gone on since pre-historic times.
0:41:10 > 0:41:12'Family tradition means every fish caught
0:41:12 > 0:41:14'is noted down and over the years
0:41:14 > 0:41:17'the estate has had some impressive trophies.'
0:41:20 > 0:41:22My grandfather caught
0:41:22 > 0:41:2658 trout in one day.
0:41:26 > 0:41:27It's the all-time record.
0:41:27 > 0:41:31- 58 trout?!- To his own rod, him.
0:41:31 > 0:41:36- Good grief!- They go all the way back to 1904.
0:41:36 > 0:41:39The fishing is in your blood?
0:41:39 > 0:41:43It really is. We've been incredibly lucky to have a mother
0:41:43 > 0:41:47- and a grandmother who both stalked fish.- Yes.
0:41:47 > 0:41:50And Dad was absolutely up for his girls
0:41:50 > 0:41:52doing exactly the same as the boys.
0:41:52 > 0:41:56So one was - it was always assumed we would want to.
0:41:56 > 0:42:00I think what's fascinating about this, it is a reflection of how many
0:42:00 > 0:42:03fish were caught to eat.
0:42:03 > 0:42:07- Yes.- And is that how the estate fed itself?
0:42:07 > 0:42:11Very, very much so. The whole estate was a community to itself.
0:42:11 > 0:42:15It had its own dairy, creamery. Mum can remember making the cream
0:42:15 > 0:42:18and the butter. So the whole estate was sustainable
0:42:18 > 0:42:21within a community and everybody fed everybody.
0:42:21 > 0:42:26- Thanks so much for showing... - Not at all.- Can we go fishing?!
0:42:26 > 0:42:29Yes, come on, let's go catch fish!
0:42:29 > 0:42:32'Ooh, I'm so excited.'
0:42:32 > 0:42:33'It's time to get suited...'
0:42:33 > 0:42:35'And booted.'
0:42:39 > 0:42:41Marvellous!
0:42:41 > 0:42:43- Lovely.- You look good, Kingy.
0:42:43 > 0:42:45So do you, dude.
0:42:46 > 0:42:48Come and meet Stuart. He's got some rods
0:42:48 > 0:42:51- and then we will head on down. - Morning, Stuart.
0:42:51 > 0:42:54Very nice to meet you, sir.
0:42:54 > 0:42:57We've two rods. They're both identical.
0:42:57 > 0:42:59- A standard river trout rod.- Yes, sir.
0:42:59 > 0:43:02- That's lovely.- Perfect.
0:43:02 > 0:43:04How long have you been fishing this river?
0:43:04 > 0:43:10I think I have fished it for 40 seasons. As near as damn it, yeah!
0:43:10 > 0:43:13'Right, we've got the best guides in the business,
0:43:13 > 0:43:15- 'and we've got all the right gear...'- 'But no idea!
0:43:15 > 0:43:18And Dave's caught something already!
0:43:21 > 0:43:24OK, Dave. Creep in.
0:43:26 > 0:43:29'But we're not just here to catch dinner,
0:43:29 > 0:43:30'we're here to learn.'
0:43:30 > 0:43:32OK, rod tip down, relax.
0:43:32 > 0:43:34- OK.- We're fishing.
0:43:36 > 0:43:38Well done, great. That's the best cast yet.
0:43:38 > 0:43:40Very nice, Dave.
0:43:40 > 0:43:44'Fly fishing takes years of practise to become a master caster.
0:43:44 > 0:43:47'Tiggy and Stuart's knowledge of this river is amazing.'
0:43:47 > 0:43:50There was a reasonable fish rising there.
0:43:50 > 0:43:54'And, up until today, I thought I knew what I was doing.'
0:43:54 > 0:43:57- Just... Don't... D...- Sorry!
0:43:57 > 0:44:00Don't drop it behind you!
0:44:00 > 0:44:03'The art of fly fishing has been around for centuries.'
0:44:03 > 0:44:06'The idea is to trick the trout into believing that your hook
0:44:06 > 0:44:09'is actually an insect that has landed on the water.'
0:44:09 > 0:44:11There's a little rise.
0:44:11 > 0:44:14Which is when the trouties have come up
0:44:14 > 0:44:16and they're just sucking the flies off the top
0:44:16 > 0:44:18and then dropping back down again.
0:44:18 > 0:44:20Ha-hey!
0:44:20 > 0:44:22'It appears as if I've got the hang of it.'
0:44:22 > 0:44:24- Are you in?- Oh, aye.
0:44:24 > 0:44:26Oh, well. God love him.
0:44:29 > 0:44:30Just keep him...
0:44:30 > 0:44:32'You can't eat those, they're too small.'
0:44:32 > 0:44:34Oh, it's another monster.
0:44:36 > 0:44:39We're going to catch one. Don't you worry, we'll beat them.
0:44:39 > 0:44:42- That's five, Kingy.- Five, mate?- Yep!
0:44:45 > 0:44:46You know, this is absolute heaven.
0:44:46 > 0:44:51Izaac Walton wrote, "Time spent fly fishing,
0:44:51 > 0:44:54"isn't deducted from the sum total of your life."
0:44:54 > 0:44:58So two years on the river means you've got an extra two.
0:44:59 > 0:45:01In that case, I should live till 200!
0:45:01 > 0:45:02BOTH LAUGH
0:45:03 > 0:45:06Fishing isn't just a passion of us Hairy Bikers,
0:45:06 > 0:45:09it's a national obsession.
0:45:09 > 0:45:13And, officially, it's Britain's most popular pastime.
0:45:14 > 0:45:18But it was the Victorians who made fishing fashionable fun for all.
0:45:18 > 0:45:20For posh and working classes alike.
0:45:20 > 0:45:25And provided the British with the perfect excuse to get out the house!
0:45:27 > 0:45:29There's nothing like it. Nothing in the world.
0:45:29 > 0:45:32But it's the sense of competition that's half the fun.
0:45:33 > 0:45:36This is a float tube. It's a sophisticated inner tube
0:45:36 > 0:45:38from a lorry tyre.
0:45:38 > 0:45:40With the tube, you're so low down that they come in
0:45:40 > 0:45:44very close to you. You can usually get two or three shots at them.
0:45:44 > 0:45:47It's just absolutely addictive.
0:45:49 > 0:45:53So pike, carp and other coarse fish
0:45:53 > 0:45:55favoured by those foody monks of the middle ages,
0:45:55 > 0:45:58now help us to prove our manliness.
0:46:01 > 0:46:02What a lovely fish.
0:46:02 > 0:46:05Only an expert can bring in his fish this way.
0:46:05 > 0:46:07'And our womanliness.'
0:46:09 > 0:46:13I think women are better at fishing. Women have far more patience
0:46:13 > 0:46:18and tenacity and so, consequently, they stand a better chance of catching a fish.
0:46:19 > 0:46:21Now relax.
0:46:21 > 0:46:22Have a jolly.
0:46:22 > 0:46:27'And it appears that my guide's feminine touch is paying off.'
0:46:28 > 0:46:29Dave...
0:46:29 > 0:46:32eat your heart out, honey.
0:46:32 > 0:46:33SI LAUGHS
0:46:33 > 0:46:36You've got the little ones, but we've got the big ones!
0:46:36 > 0:46:39- Well done, Si.- Thank you, darling.
0:46:39 > 0:46:41Well done, mate.
0:46:41 > 0:46:42Thanks, mate.
0:46:42 > 0:46:45Right, job done, let's get cooking.
0:46:46 > 0:46:49Wow, hunter gatherer's provided dinner. You're good at this,
0:46:49 > 0:46:50you, aren't you?
0:46:50 > 0:46:53- It's just quite fun, isn't it. - Fantastic.
0:46:53 > 0:46:56There's not many food sensations beat this, is there?
0:46:56 > 0:47:00- No.- The river, catch the trout, put it on a fire, eat it.
0:47:00 > 0:47:02- Can you get a better lunch?- No.
0:47:02 > 0:47:05Can't beat it. Here's to you, boys.
0:47:05 > 0:47:07Well done.
0:47:07 > 0:47:09Mmm. Yummy, yummy.
0:47:09 > 0:47:11Oh, God, that's good.
0:47:11 > 0:47:14You see, look. There's something elemental about this.
0:47:14 > 0:47:18At some point in our evolution, we've all done this.
0:47:18 > 0:47:20Fished, cooked it, eaten it.
0:47:20 > 0:47:22Brilliant.
0:47:22 > 0:47:26Mate, I've got to hand it to you, I mean, I got five, but, you know,
0:47:26 > 0:47:30they were so small. But today, you are the man!
0:47:31 > 0:47:34- Tig?- Yes, Si.- Shall we tell him?
0:47:34 > 0:47:39Lunch has come from two pools up there two nights ago.
0:47:39 > 0:47:41You mean you...planted them?
0:47:43 > 0:47:46Well...I didn't.
0:47:46 > 0:47:49I just held the rod.
0:47:49 > 0:47:50Oh, bless you.
0:47:50 > 0:47:54We had to have something just in case we didn't have any luck.
0:47:54 > 0:47:57I've learnt more the past two hours than I have in 30 years
0:47:57 > 0:47:59of thrashing the water on me own.
0:47:59 > 0:48:02- Does life get any better than this? - Not really.
0:48:10 > 0:48:13It's not just the fish from our waterways that has kept us
0:48:13 > 0:48:17fed throughout history. The birds that swim on the surface
0:48:17 > 0:48:19have also provided us with nourishment.
0:48:21 > 0:48:24And so, for out final recipe in the Best Of British kitchen,
0:48:24 > 0:48:28we're cooking up a traditional wild roast duck
0:48:28 > 0:48:32with Bramley apple stuffing and a sherry gravy.
0:48:32 > 0:48:35Ooh, that sounds absolutely quacking!
0:48:38 > 0:48:42Ever since I was a little 'un, and I still do it now, I go down
0:48:42 > 0:48:45to the pond, the lake or the river bank with me little bag of bread
0:48:45 > 0:48:49and I just have a pleasant half hour feeding the ducks.
0:48:49 > 0:48:52Well, now it's these little beauties' chance to feed us.
0:48:52 > 0:48:55It's true. We're doing wild ducks.
0:48:55 > 0:48:56Wi-ild.
0:48:56 > 0:48:59Look, see, that's what they look like with their kit off.
0:48:59 > 0:49:02That's our English Mallard - a treasure of our waterways.
0:49:02 > 0:49:04- We've been eating those for 2,000 years.- Yeah.
0:49:04 > 0:49:07This recipe works perfectly well with the ducks
0:49:07 > 0:49:10that you buy from your butcher or the supermarket.
0:49:10 > 0:49:13And the quantities will work just as well.
0:49:13 > 0:49:17We've got three little Mallards here, just one big fat duck from a
0:49:17 > 0:49:20supermarket, use this stuffing, satisfaction guaranteed.
0:49:20 > 0:49:23They look scrawny, but what meat you get is good.
0:49:23 > 0:49:27It's rich, it's tasty and we're going to do a mega stuffing
0:49:27 > 0:49:29for the ducks.
0:49:29 > 0:49:31- I think we better get on. - I think we should, mate.
0:49:35 > 0:49:40- Put some oil in there.- Could you pass me hazelnuts, Dave, please?
0:49:40 > 0:49:43Now, these hazelnuts are part of the stuffing.
0:49:43 > 0:49:47I'm just going to roughly chop them. Not easy, with the hazelnut.
0:49:47 > 0:49:50If you don't want to chop them by hand, you could
0:49:50 > 0:49:54put the hazelnuts in a plastic bag and bash them with a rolling pin.
0:49:54 > 0:49:56or just give them a quick whizz in a food processor.
0:49:56 > 0:50:00This is three slices of bread. All good stuffing contains bread,
0:50:00 > 0:50:04but this isn't going to be crumbs or croutons, it's just going to be
0:50:04 > 0:50:05little cubes.
0:50:07 > 0:50:10The bread cubes are fried until golden brown in oil
0:50:10 > 0:50:12and a little butter.
0:50:16 > 0:50:18- Look at these, coming up beautifully now.- Beautiful.
0:50:18 > 0:50:22Just before that bread's completely cooked,
0:50:22 > 0:50:26a couple of teaspoons of chopped fresh rosemary.
0:50:26 > 0:50:29And that frying is releasing all the flavour.
0:50:30 > 0:50:35Things will gravitate towards this bowl in the construction of the stuffing.
0:50:35 > 0:50:39First in is the Rosemary bread cubes.
0:50:40 > 0:50:45I'm going to take some hazelnuts and put them in the pan
0:50:45 > 0:50:48that we've just fried the bread and the rosemary in.
0:50:48 > 0:50:50And we want to toast those off.
0:50:50 > 0:50:54The thing about nuts is, keep an eye on them, cos we want them to toast,
0:50:54 > 0:50:55but not burn. If you burn them,
0:50:55 > 0:50:58they get really bitter and that's
0:50:58 > 0:51:02just going to murder all those lovely flavours in our stuffing.
0:51:02 > 0:51:05- So keep an eye on them. - It's a lovely stuffing, this.
0:51:05 > 0:51:07It's very nice with pork.
0:51:07 > 0:51:10It's very old fashioned, isn't it. It's a really good
0:51:10 > 0:51:12old fashioned stuffing.
0:51:13 > 0:51:17Finally chop the onions and garlic and then soften in butter
0:51:17 > 0:51:19for three to four minutes.
0:51:20 > 0:51:22And now for the magic ingredient.
0:51:22 > 0:51:26- Mate, when you've done that, can you pass us an apple, please?- Yeah.
0:51:26 > 0:51:29- Bramley or eating, Kingy? - Bramley, mate, please.
0:51:29 > 0:51:31- Incoming! - Thank you.
0:51:33 > 0:51:36D'you know, we've been eating ducks for a long time,
0:51:36 > 0:51:39but it's kind of tradition to eat them with some nice kind of
0:51:39 > 0:51:42fruity sauce. We've been doing it for years.
0:51:42 > 0:51:43All right, mate?
0:51:43 > 0:51:47So what I'm going to do is quarter a Bramley apple
0:51:47 > 0:51:51and then we're going to cut it into chunks.
0:51:52 > 0:51:57And that is also going to go into the stuffing.
0:51:57 > 0:52:00But everyone has their own culture of fruit eating with duck.
0:52:00 > 0:52:02We have ours with apples and peas,
0:52:02 > 0:52:06Polish people have it with red cabbage and sweet sultanas...
0:52:06 > 0:52:09And the Italians have been known to have it with duck and cherry.
0:52:09 > 0:52:11French have the duck a l'orange,
0:52:11 > 0:52:14Iranians, they have duck with pomegranate and walnuts.
0:52:14 > 0:52:17But it's not just duck that has a history in our country,
0:52:17 > 0:52:19Apples have as well.
0:52:19 > 0:52:23In our isle, there are more than 2,000 varieties of apples.
0:52:23 > 0:52:26That's a different type of apple for every day for six years!
0:52:30 > 0:52:34Cook the apple with the onion and garlic until soft and squishy.
0:52:35 > 0:52:37It smells fabulous.
0:52:37 > 0:52:40I love the way apple goes so well with fatty meat.
0:52:40 > 0:52:42Like apple and belly pork or apple and duck.
0:52:42 > 0:52:46It's the sharpness of apples like Bramleys that offset
0:52:46 > 0:52:49- the grease and the fat in the meat. - Yeah, it's that acidity.
0:52:49 > 0:52:53Just goes straight through, ooh.
0:52:53 > 0:52:56Shortly we're going to add some parsley and the zest of an orange.
0:52:56 > 0:52:58BOTH: Oooh!
0:53:03 > 0:53:06Stick the apple, onion and garlic in with the hazelnuts
0:53:06 > 0:53:09and the golden brown bread cubes.
0:53:13 > 0:53:17Parsley in stuffing is great. And the orange zest will give it a zingy
0:53:17 > 0:53:19citrus kick!
0:53:19 > 0:53:24And the hot apple will begin to make those golden croutons go soggy,
0:53:24 > 0:53:28which is what we want. Remember that's all going to bake in the duck.
0:53:30 > 0:53:32Not it's time to...stuff a duck.
0:53:32 > 0:53:35It's not every day you get to stuff a duck, is it?
0:53:35 > 0:53:39They're only little, these, so you can have one duck per person.
0:53:40 > 0:53:44Proper old fashioned, earthy, lovely flavours.
0:53:44 > 0:53:48In the tin, I've just made a bed of sliced onions.
0:53:48 > 0:53:51It's like a little trivet for the ducks to rest on
0:53:51 > 0:53:55- and ultimately, that's going to give us really good gravy.- Really nice.
0:53:55 > 0:54:00The problem with wild ducks and wild game, is it going dry.
0:54:00 > 0:54:04Grease it well with butter and lay on the rashers of bacon.
0:54:04 > 0:54:06We want a truly succulent bird.
0:54:06 > 0:54:10To insure this, we only cook it for 35 minutes.
0:54:10 > 0:54:13It's best eaten slightly on the pink side.
0:54:13 > 0:54:18You know, if you overcook this, it will be like a doggie chew.
0:54:18 > 0:54:23Now, place these in a pre-heated oven about 200-220 degrees Celsius.
0:54:23 > 0:54:26It's a hot oven. It's a short, sharp shock of a cook.
0:54:29 > 0:54:33- A short time later... - 35 minutes to be exact.
0:54:36 > 0:54:38- ..it's ready.- Oh, lovely!
0:54:41 > 0:54:44Let's get 'em out and it's time to make the gravy.
0:54:53 > 0:54:56Put the roasting tin on the hob and stir in a little flour.
0:54:56 > 0:55:01Any flour will do. Then scrape up all of those lovely crispy bits
0:55:01 > 0:55:02and the onions.
0:55:05 > 0:55:08Fruity flavours go really well with duck and game
0:55:08 > 0:55:10so I'm going to put some sherry in the gravy.
0:55:11 > 0:55:14Just let that bubble for a few minutes
0:55:14 > 0:55:16then top it up with chicken stock.
0:55:19 > 0:55:21Marvellous.
0:55:22 > 0:55:25Oh, yeah, that's lovely, isn't it?
0:55:25 > 0:55:29'Mmm. Dave, do you ever find gravy really hypnotic?'
0:55:29 > 0:55:33'Mmmm, gravy?'
0:55:36 > 0:55:40Snap out of it! We've got to crack on and make this gravy silky smooth.
0:55:44 > 0:55:48Saucepan for the sauce. Sieve for the lumps.
0:55:48 > 0:55:50Look at that!
0:55:50 > 0:55:53That's great gravy. I'm just going to put that on a low light now.
0:55:53 > 0:55:55Just to cook a little bit more.
0:55:56 > 0:55:59- Shall we have a little tasting platter?- I think so, me old mucker!
0:56:00 > 0:56:03Little bit of crispy bacon - never go wrong.
0:56:06 > 0:56:08Yeah, that's cooked nice.
0:56:08 > 0:56:10Just a little spoonful...
0:56:10 > 0:56:12of the gravy.
0:56:12 > 0:56:16And, not forgetting, some of that wonderful stuffing.
0:56:16 > 0:56:19You know what, for me, I think the stuffing's the best bit.
0:56:19 > 0:56:22But, mind you, I thought that since I was a kid.
0:56:26 > 0:56:28Wow.
0:56:31 > 0:56:32I'll agree with that.
0:56:32 > 0:56:35- That's very, very good. - That stuffing's great, isn't it?
0:56:35 > 0:56:38Oh, yeah. The flavouring of that duck breast...
0:56:38 > 0:56:40is really big.
0:56:40 > 0:56:44It's a very different flavour, a very different texture
0:56:44 > 0:56:45because it's a wild animal.
0:56:45 > 0:56:48It works hard.
0:56:48 > 0:56:52The flavour, I think, is a bit deeper and it's a lot more gamey.
0:56:52 > 0:56:55Which justifies that wonderful apple and herby stuffing.
0:56:55 > 0:57:00- Absolutely.- Really, that on a plate depicts the British countryside
0:57:00 > 0:57:04and the waterways. We've got the wild mallard from our rivers
0:57:04 > 0:57:06We've got the apples from our orchards,
0:57:06 > 0:57:09- we've got the hazelnuts, the rosemary, the herbs.- Yes.
0:57:09 > 0:57:12And it really is, kind of, Britain on a plate, that.
0:57:12 > 0:57:15It is and very proud we are of it too.
0:57:16 > 0:57:20To make our Hairy Bikers roast duck with apple and rosemary stuffing
0:57:20 > 0:57:24and sherry gravy, you can use any shop bought duck.
0:57:24 > 0:57:28Although we used Bramleys, any nice tangy variety of English apple
0:57:28 > 0:57:30will do the job just as well.
0:57:33 > 0:57:36With all the variety, flavours and textures
0:57:36 > 0:57:39that our seas and waterways provide,
0:57:39 > 0:57:41island life ain't bad at all.
0:57:41 > 0:57:45Whether you stop in Morecambe Bay to sample traditional potted shrimps...
0:57:45 > 0:57:48Cast a line out for trout to take home for supper...
0:57:48 > 0:57:52Or head to our capital city to buy fish from our famous Billingsgate Market...
0:57:52 > 0:57:56Every corner of the British Isles has provided us with
0:57:56 > 0:57:58delicious bounty for centuries.
0:57:58 > 0:58:00And we love it.
0:58:01 > 0:58:03And to find out more...
0:58:03 > 0:58:08Visit...
0:58:08 > 0:58:12to discover some amazing facts about the history of food.
0:58:12 > 0:58:17And to find out how to cook up the recipes in today's show.
0:58:42 > 0:58:45Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:58:45 > 0:58:48E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk