Leicester Len and Ainsley's Big Food Adventure

What you got going on here? Ham, egg and chips?

Great British food.

As a chef, food is my life. Lovely.

THEY LAUGH

Don't try that at home!

But, as far as my mate Len goes, we're on a different planet.

My rules are this:

Never eat anything you can't spell,

and never eat anything you wouldn't want to step in.

This is the chicken's feet.

-Chicken's feet?

-That's right.

-No.

I've travelled the world,

but never had the courage to experience new cuisines.

SHE YELPS

And always stuck with what I know.

-Look, what's your favourites there?

-Chips.

-Chips?

But after using a pancake once to wipe me face...

What is he like?

..my family decided enough was enough...

-Yes!

-..and that my taste buds

needed to be brought into the 21st century.

-Hot!

-There's a lot more to this culinary world of ours

than pickled walnuts.

It's time for me to show Len a whole new culinary world...

-I'm going to do it.

-..that will make his palate purr.

-You're not talking food adventure?

-Food adventure, indeed.

-Ho-ho!

-Ho-ho!

What's that I see? Is it a tandoori chicken?

-I liked it.

-And that's all I need to know.

For the last decade, I've been a judge on Strictly Come Dancing.

London born and bred, 71 years ago,

my taste buds have been influenced by my nan's cooking.

I've never eaten spaghetti, had a curry, and even pizza -

well, it looks a bit exotic.

I was also born and brought up in London but, as a chef,

my palate has experienced and travelled to every part of the globe.

Over the last 20 years, there's been a food explosion across Britain

and now, no matter what you desire, every cuisine is catered for.

For me, I have ten favourites that are never far away

from the table at home.

And my perfect dinner?

Well, prawn cocktail to start,

full English breakfast - ho-ho - and a jam roly-poly!

Oh, it's food heaven!

My mission during our time together is to educate his taste buds

and see if I can replace anything on the Ten from Len board,

and show him that there's more to life

than a prawn cocktail from 1976.

Today's food adventure has brought us to

the East Midlands city of Leicester.

Knife and forks at the ready, because on today's menu...

after 71 years,

Len gets his first-ever taste of Indian curry.

Water!

Water!

We need water, madam.

I get stuck into some traditional Cypriot tucker...

Don't tell me...this is couscous.

..and Ainsley gets inspired by the local grub

and knocks up a treat for me - hey-hey! - and the natives.

There's been no complaints whatsoever.

Well, that's all right, then.

Hey! And we get to shake it, shake it, Bollywood-stylee.

Come on, flap them hands!

Well, Len, this is a lovely welcome to Leicester, isn't it?

Well, it's a bit drizzly, but yeah.

-Who cares?

-Who cares?

-Have you been here before?

I've been to the De Montfort Hall in Leicester,

which is like a...and done some dancing competition,

-but I've never been into Leicester itself.

-Yeah.

Of course, Richard III was dug up in a car park.

-Yes, that's interesting, wasn't it?

-Yes.

-So, it's got a bit of a royal connection, really.

-Yes, it has.

And maybe we'll be able to discover some royal food, do you think?

Oooh, that would be nice, wouldn't it?

I don't know what that actually means.

Well, I do - it'd be, like, neck of swan.

Neck of swan? No, we can't have that.

No! The Queen...we'll be beheaded. We couldn't have that.

That wouldn't go down well at all.

First on today's menu is a cuisine I know Len has never tried

in his life, and one that to say he's nervous of is an understatement.

But to the nation, it's delicious, aromatic and gorgeously spicy.

It's Indian.

There's a rich ethnic diversity in Leicester,

and it's home to one of the largest Asian communities in Britain.

The British Nationality Act of 1948

gave every Commonwealth citizen

the right to move to the UK - eh! - and many did,

helping fulfil Britain's post-war labour requirements.

Attracted by the affordable private housing in the area, immigrants from

the Indian subcontinent began to arrive in Leicester in the 1960s.

Some worked as chefs on the ships that brought them,

using that experience to set up and work in Indian restaurants on land.

And by 2007, there were more than 30 curry houses

within the city boundaries.

I want Len to experience the rich spices

and aromatics of Indian cuisine.

Now, I need to talk him into it.

There's something that seems to be sort of quite traditional

in this country on a Friday night. You get together with your mates,

you might have gone out for one or two drinks,

then you end up having a Ruby Murray.

-Have you ever done that Len?

-No.

-Did you never do that?

Didn't your mates ever come to you and say, "Come on, Len, let's..."

We'd gone out. I was about 22, 23.

-We went out, had a few beers.

-OK.

So, my mates drag me into a... to have a curry.

And I said, "No, I'm not having... I'll have a beer."

So we're sitting there and my mate said, "Try a bit of this,"

and I said, "What is it?" He said, "It's an onion bhaji."

I said, "Oh, go on, then", so he cut a tiny bit and I eat,

and I must say I liked it. So I ordered two onion bhajis.

And what happened after? What's the next course?

Because that's normally a bit of a starter.

-Did you have anything...?

-No, I had nothing else.

That is truly the whole experience of Indian cuisine.

You're talking 50 years, Len, since you've tried a curry?

-I've never had a curry.

-Really?

-No, I've had two onion bhajis.

I get the impression that your idea of a curry is a bit of meat,

chicken or fish splashed with a hot yellow sauce?

-In a bowl.

-In a bowl?

And, generally, I don't like any food in a bowl.

-OK.

-Other than soup.

I think you've got your work cut out today.

-I think I always have my work cut out with you.

-Yeah.

There's nothing...I'm trying to persuade you to eat something

that you don't want to eat!

Well, come on, let's get it over with.

Let's hurry and have a curry. Come on.

Indian food encompasses a vast, exciting spectrum

of regional cuisines,

each with their own unique methods and set of ingredients.

Today, I'll be introducing Len to the distinctive taste

of the Kerala province in Southern India.

Networked by 44 rivers,

and with 1,000 miles of inland waterways, it's not surprising

that Kerala is one of the top fish-producing areas in India.

And fish is always on the menu.

Bringing a bit of Kerala to Leicester

is this multi-award-winning local restaurant.

Kayal has been creating traditional south Indian food

for the last ten years, and is the first authentic

Kerala seafood-inspired eatery in the UK.

Ha-ha! Hello. Nice to meet you.

-Nice to meet you.

-Hello, how you doing, my man? Pleased to meet you.

Looking after us is General Manager Sajit

and Restaurant Manager Marshall.

Hey guys, really looking forward to this.

-Of course we are.

-Really excited about it, aren't you, Len?

Yeah, I am, sort of excited, yeah. Little bit...

-He can't help himself.

-Little bit nervous.

You have a chat, I'm off to the kitchen.

Shall we go to the kitchen? OK. Lovely.

And we'll have a little sit down. Lovely.

This is going to be a tough one.

Curry has never passed this boy's lips.

Everyone around me bangs on about balti this, tikka that,

but I'm on a food adventure, so it's time to give curry a go.

-Good morning. How are you?

-Fine.

-Is it Bejol?

-Bejol.

Bejol, Ainsley. Pleased to meet you.

And what are you cooking for us today?

-We are cooking fish curry.

-Fish curry. Oh, wonderful.

And the fish used is kingfish, which is a nice meaty fish.

This one over here? That's amazing.

What goes into it?

He uses shallots, turmeric, ginger, garlic, red chillies.

-Many different things.

-Real southern Indian flavours.

-Absolutely.

And we've got onions, fenugreek.

-Mustard seeds.

-And the mustard seeds.

-And the curry leaves.

That's one of our most important ingredients.

-OK. Is that ginger? And garlic?

-Garlic.

OK, Chef.

-Is this chillies?

-Green chillies, yes.

Well, I'm not too sure what Len's going to think about those chillies.

That's a lot of chilli there, Chef.

Once the coconut milk goes into it,

it calms it down and gives a nice subtle flavour.

Sajit, I've got to be honest, I'm a little bit nervous,

because this is the first time, really, I've ever entered

an Indian restaurant and am going to sample some of the food.

Now, what type of food is it that you specialise in?

We are specialising in seafoods,

but we are doing vegetarian dishes,

meat, duck and old dishes as well.

And what sort of fish is it?

Is it like cod and plaice and haddock?

Not really. There are lots of different types of fishes.

Signature fish is kingfish.

-Kingfish?

-Yes. It's a white, fleshy fish.

-Right.

-Yes.

-Lovely.

We all coming from a place named Kerala,

which is the southernmost spot of India.

So, are you by the seaside, are you?

Yes, actually, the place is called as God's Own Country,

as it's surrounded by three oceans.

-No! God's Own Country?

-Yes, exactly.

Never! I thought that was Kent? But no.

No, it's Kerala, definitely.

As you know, England is seven counties,

the Kerala is seven districts,

and each districts are familiar with their own food dishes.

-Right.

-So, we pick the best out of it and we're serving it here.

And what is it about your type of cuisine

that is different to the others? What is the secret?

It's simply the aromatic spices what we're using

-and the proper aromatic taste.

-Yeah.

Well, I do like fish,

-and I like spices, if they're not too hot.

-No.

-So, you know, things are looking good.

-Yes.

-Yeah.

Quite a lot of tomatoes. Heavy-based tomato dish.

And he cooks it over quite a high heat.

It's almost like you're stir-frying.

Once the coconut milk goes in, then the heat will go down a little bit.

-Is reduced down?

-Yes.

-OK, then it's more of a simmering effect?

-Yeah.

-This is the one. Can I pour it in for you, Chef?

-Yeah, sure.

-Yeah?

Lovely. Beautiful. Look at those colours now.

And you've got that lovely leaf there, the curry leaves.

Marshall, we just don't seem to do enough of this.

We don't seem to sort of cook with curry leaves.

We tend to buy paste or you buy something

because we want it simple, but that's just a wonderful way of cooking,

and the freshness of everything.

And speaking of fresh, it's time for that beautiful kingfish

to crown the curry.

And how popular is it here at the restaurant?

Being a south Indian restaurant,

like, we have to have kingfish on the menu,

and we have people coming back especially for this curry.

-OK.

-Just for the kingfish curry.

That's lovely. That is really lovely.

This is charming.

You know, it's got a lovely ambience about it.

And these lanterns, what is the significance of those?

These are the lanterns used by the fishermen

back in our place when they go to sea in order to catch fish.

-Yeah? Oh, how romantic.

-Yes.

-So, they're out in their little fishing boats...

-Yes, exactly.

It's dark and they've got these little lanterns glowing,

and you look out into the sea

-and, there they are, fishing away for the kingfish.

-Yes, exactly.

Oh, yum-yum. Sounds great.

-Yes.

-I'm getting a bit peckish - and I'm getting ready,

I'm bracing myself to have a go.

This has been cooked down. You've got all these wonderful herbs and spices.

I mean, it's an endless kind of list of ingredients,

but when it's all brought together

and then fused with the tomato and coconut milk - wow.

Look at that. I'm going to have another smell.

Fantastic, Chef. That's wonderful.

And, Marshall, how long does this type of curry take to cook, then?

-Oh, just 20 minutes.

-Yeah, because it's fish, isn't it?

-It is, yeah.

-Even though we're talking about a firm fish.

I'm going to be introducing this to Len, who's never had curry before,

so is this...how would one say?

-Is this a good introductory sort of curry?

-It is.

It's, like, between mild and medium, so it would be perfect.

I'm looking forward to it. Hopefully Len is too.

71 years in the making,

I can't believe I'm about to dive into my first ruby.

Look out, there it comes.

Oh, I tell you what, mate, look at this.

That's the beautiful kingfish curry there, but there's so much more.

Look at all the other additions here, Len.

-Dosti appam.

-What is that?

It's appam. It's a rice fermented pancake.

Ooh. And what is that?

What's that? It's not a Cornish pasty, is it?

-What is it?

-Poori.

Oh, no.

The chefs have also prepared dosa, a crepe made from rice batter

and black lentils.

-What, that's almost like a crisp, is it?

-That is exactly what it's like.

-Look at it.

-Eh, well, this is it.

-It's a great way of introducing you to curry.

-OK.

This is kingfish, which is more like a...it's like tuna.

-It's quite a meaty fish.

-I like a bit of meaty fish.

-Yeah, OK.

-Thank you.

-So, all right, then?

-Yeah.

-Lovely.

Now, what I'm going to do, I'm going to be a bit bashful to start.

-I'm just really going to have a go at the fish.

-OK. Fair enough.

Right, now, here we go. First ever curry.

Hold on to your hat, madam.

The fish is delightful.

I was expecting hot.

-Mm.

-You know? "Give me water, water."

But, no.

It's not hot. It's flavoursome.

And it's obviously spicy,

but it's a nice spice.

Yeah, good. Good blend.

I'm going to have a bit. Do you want to have a bit of the old dosa, too?

-Yeah, not half.

-Go on, then, boys, break that.

Look at this, Len. Look, look.

This is an amazing thing. And is this typical from southern India?

It's not all over India, this long tube of...?

No, it's more...it's southern Indian speciality.

Come on.

Oh, me chilli's just dropped down my trousers.

You haven't got chilli on your willy, have you?

-I'll tell you what, it's got down there somewhere, Len.

-No!

-Nothing worse then a bit of chilli on the willy.

-Oh, dear.

I've done it. Look. I've gone through it again.

This is so rare.

All your mates that you went out with when you were a young lad,

eating them onion bhajis, are looking at you now, thinking,

"We never, ever thought that Len would do that."

-You know, Ainsley...

-Yeah?

..truly, I'm enjoying it.

-I like it.

-Oh, yeah?

'And Len's not flinched,

'so I think it might be time to turn up the heat.'

That is nice and mild. What about trying another one?

You quite prepared for that?

What, another dish?

Another curry dish, yeah.

-Go on, then.

-Go on, then. Absolutely.

We're on a bit of a roll here now.

This is the fish curry.

This is tilapia.

-Tilapia?

-Yeah.

-It's a white soft fish.

Softish fish.

'I feel a bit mean, but when in Rome...

'I mean, Leicester.'

Mm.

Would I be wrong in thinking this is slighter hotter?

-That is spicy.

-Yes.

-Hot.

And it's unfortunate that we didn't have a nice glass of water handy.

Right. Do you want water now?

-I will do in a moment.

-THEY LAUGH

To put out the fire.

It's either that or we have to get the fire brigade in.

Yeah, it's a little bit hotter...

..and because my palate isn't used to spice,

it's quite a shock to my mouth.

Water!

Water!

We need water, madam.

HE SPLUTTERS

Gordon Bennett!

Yeah, now that is what I imagine.

-This is what I imagine curry to be. Too hot.

-Yeah.

-This is too hot for me.

-OK. HE COUGHS

-You had any of that?

-I have. I'm trying to!

-Don't you find it hot?

-A WATER!

He wants water, madam!

Oh, thank you. Very kind.

Ooh, yeah.

-Now, let me ask one question?

-Yes.

Which is the more popular dish,

this or the hot and fiery?

Definitely this gentle Kayal fish curry.

Yeah. You know, I couldn't eat too much of that

because it would be murder, but that - I'm fine.

We're going to order that again.

We'll have it again, and this I love, this big crispy.

Let me tell you, it's been great.

Thank you so much for your hospitality here,

-but I think it's time to move on...

-Mm.

..try something else,

and continue the food adventure.

Come on! Thank you.

Wahey! Pat myself on the back. Roll out the carpet.

Get 'em in, Ains. I did it!

Goodman quaffed a curry in a hurry.

-Come on!

-Yes, you did. Go on, my son.

Ah, that was lovely. How's your gob feeling?

Well, I'll tell you, that second, the hot one,

I'll tell you what, I could still just jump straight in that fountain.

Put your mouth under the lions.

You, you were crafty,

because that first curry - light, delicate,

lovely fish - I loved it.

And all the accoutrements that went with it, the bits and pieces.

-Yeah.

-Beautiful. Then you were a crafty little devil.

No, but do you know what, Len?

What I wanted to show you was the fact that curry

doesn't necessarily need to be spicy.

Yes, we had a spicy one later on,

but I introduced you to it in that mild,

sort of coconutty, wonderful aromatic form.

You sent me up a Boulevard of Wonderment,

and then you ended up the Boulevard of Broken Dreams,

because the second one - wooo, that was hot.

-Shall we get out the rain now?

-Yeah, I think so.

-Mind you, while we're here I might...

-Oh, you can do that,

-I'm going.

-Hot!

He's almost dancing on the ceiling,

so I'm going to keep him there with a little treat.

Actually, Ains, I think I deserve a big treat!

How about something to work off all that delicious curry,

courtesy of the Desi Masti Dance School?

THEY LAUGH

BOLLYWOOD MUSIC

'Wow! As soon as you walk in, there's an amazing energy.

'The buzz around this place puts a huge smile on me old boat race!'

Ha-ha-ha! Wahey!

'Ains, you've done well, son!'

-Hee-hee! What a relief!

-I love this stuff.

Can't help myself. Ainsley, I'm going in!

Wahey!

Go on, Len!

Clap 'em, my boy.

Shimmy, shimmy, shake and bake. Go on, Ainsley.

AINSLEY LAUGHS Look at the old flaps going there, look!

I think Ainsley's got a bionic bum!

LEN WHOOPS AND SHOUTS

Come on, baby! Come on, to me!

THEY CHEER

THEY CLAP

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

That was totally brilliant!

I love, love, love that.

Fantastic!

-I'll tell you what...

-The energy and the enthusiasm.

Have you been dancing Bollywood-style for a long time?

-Yes, since more then ten years.

-Yeah?

-Yes.

-And these are your students?

-These are all my students.

Our motto says "Have Feet, Will Dance", so anybody can dance.

-So, you'll see we have all the different age groups.

-Yeah.

And we listen to Bollywood music and we groove on it

and do our best and full of energy.

Well, it makes you feel good just to watch it, let alone to do it.

It's so lovely and uplifting.

It's great and I think all of you, if I was judging you,

you would all get a Ten from Len.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Well done. I'm going to have a lie down. Come on!

While we stagger up the road to the next tasting session,

next on the menu is one of Britain's most traditional and famous dishes.

And it's local.

Be upstanding for the pork pie.

In Melton Mowbray, Dickinson and Morris

have been baking them since 1851.

In 2009, the Melton Mowbray pork pie was awarded

Protected Geographical Indications status.

Meaning, in order to use the name, they must be made within

a designated geographical area and comply with a strict specification.

The company MD, Stephen Hallam, is going to let us in on their secret.

The pastry is what we call hot water paste.

So you can't use the pastry straightaway when you've made it,

it's too hot. So, we leave it to cool overnight.

Once the pastry has cooled,

it must be made soft and pliable.

And that's what I've been doing with my hands, just tempering it.

The pastry is traditionally hand-raised using a wooden dolly -

or a pork-pie mould, if you like -

before adding the filling of seasoned British pork shoulder.

Throw the meat in with some gusto...

in it goes,

So it doesn't trap any air down at the bottom.

It helps retain its shape when it's in the oven.

Stephen flattens the meat and pops the lid on.

And creates the classic Melton Mowbray pie shape

by crimping the pastry edges.

The pies are then chilled in the fridge before baking.

For these pies, our ovens here, it's about an hour and 20 minutes.

They usually sell 4,500 pies a week,

but this goes up to 30,000 in the lead-up to Christmas.

Who ate all the pies? Ha-ha! Nearly everyone, it seems.

Now, once the pies are cooked, two holes are made in the top.

One to let the air out and one to let the jelly in.

it's actually bone stock jelly made from pork bones

and water - boiled up and then reduced down.

Ooh, lovely.

As the meat cools, it absorbs the jelly.

And the proof of the pie? Well, it's in the eating.

Mmm.

That's what a pork pie is all about.

Now that Len's worked up an appetite again,

it's time to hit another restaurant and another cuisine.

This time, we are heading to

the Eastern Mediterranean island of Cyprus.

This is a completely different side of Leicester's gastronomy

and it might not be what Len's expecting.

Here we go, Len.

Oh, yes, this is it. Fish and chips.

Yeah, but there's a lot more than you think.

Oh, no. Fish and chips.

Ah, this is no ordinary chippie.

-No, no, no. Come on.

-No.

Len! Leave that.

It's got a touch of the old Narnia, has this restaurant.

Through the magic door and we are in a wonderland

of Greek-Cypriot food and fun,

run by husband-and-wife team Pez and Andrea.

You don't want to worry about that. You don't want to worry.

This is where we are. Hey! Andrea, how are you?

-I'm very well, thank you. You?

-Nice to see you.

-Lovely to meet you.

-Hello. Nice to meet you. How are you?

I'm very, very well. Thank you very much.

Now, are we off to the fish and chips?

No, no, no. This is not fish and chips. It's all about the taverna.

-I'm going into the kitchen. See you later.

-OK.

While I chew the fat about Cyprus with Andrea,

Ainsley disappears into the kitchen with Pez.

-Pez?

-Hello, sir.

-Hey, Ainsley.

-How are you?

I'm fantastic. Now, what are you cooking here?

-I'm cooking some pork and chicken kebabs.

-Pork and chicken?

Chicken being in the middle, pork on the outside.

I put the pork on the outside

because it holds the chicken in on the skewer, otherwise it slides off.

Nice little tip. That's a great little tip, isn't it?

Fantastic. I wouldn't have thought of that.

-Trial and error.

-Yeah, it is.

-Everything in life.

You just kind of work it out.

And you've spiced them up with something, haven't you?

Some salt and black pepper and some oregano.

-Just very, very simple?

-Keep things simple. It tastes better.

Sometimes you just need things which are really simple.

You don't need to over-indulge it with heavy sauces

and stuff like that. Where did you learn your skills from?

I learnt from the chef we had here many years ago

and my mother, especially.

From my grandma, relatives.

Your mothers, your mothers. They're the ones, Pez! They're the ones!

And I don't think we realise, we probably sit down there,

it might even be in the high chair, just observing what they're doing.

Yep. That's how it is.

Andrea, this is what they call in the Greek a "taverna".

Yeah, it's a traditional Greek-Cypriot taverna.

Ah, yes. How long have you been here?

30 years. Since 1985.

My father-in-law start the business.

-We are still here.

-Yeah.

-He just retired.

-We took over from him.

-Right.

-So, and carry on.

-Yeah, lovely.

It's a most marvellous mix

of different tastes and foods here.

That is meze. You try a little bit of everything.

It's a bit like in Spain, the tapas?

-Tapas, yeah. Like tapas in Spain, yes.

-Yeah?

That is tzatziki.

-Is yoghurt, cucumber and garlic and mint.

-Right.

That is called, is hummus. It's chickpeas.

-Yeah.

-And that is taramasalata. It's a cod roe.

All right. Do you know, I was hoping this was blancmange.

-Now, is that onion rings?

-Calamari.

Uh-oh, no.

See, anything with a tentacle,

it's not really my cup of tea.

Just try it. Maybe you will change your mind.

Just for you, because I like you...

-Thank you.

-..I'm going to try...

-That's good.

..calamari. I'll have that, top notch.

Uh-oh! First time knowingly eating

a tentacle creature - ooh! - from the deep.

No...

Yeah, I don't mind... I like anything battered, anyway.

That's why I love fish and chips.

I'll finish that.

So, what else are you going to be cooking for me today, Pez?

-Kleftiko. One of our main dishes.

-Ah!

Traditional Cypriot dish people enjoy.

Even now, even though you've got the foil on top,

I'm getting this wonderful smell coming out of there.

-Now, smell that.

-Oh, wow, man.

This is beautiful shanks of lamb

that's cooked down with potatoes. What else goes in there?

Salt, black pepper,

oregano - plenty of oregano.

Commandaria - commandaria is a dessert wine.

It's known as a dessert wine, but it's also a communion wine

we use in church. So, same time as you're eating it,

you're getting blessed. By God above.

Maybe I should try a little bit of the Greek salad.

Yeah. Why not?

Because I...I've had a Greek salad before and I like it.

I like this lovely...cheese.

The salad is nice with halloumi.

-And this is what? Pork?

-It's pork, yeah. It's called lountza.

Lountza. You don't know how brave I am.

It's nice.

So, I suppose the Greek culture is a very family-orientated...?

-Yes. It's crowded.

-Yeah?

-And loud.

-Yeah. And I can imagine, you know, in your garden,

with the lovely table, out in the sunshine.

Yeah, with everybody, friends, friends of friends.

-Shall I have a bit of that?

-Yeah. Tzatziki, yes.

-Is yoghurt...

-Yoghurt?

-..cucumber, garlic and mint.

Oh, that's nice.

It's lovely, it's refreshing.

It's cold, sort of...yeah, very lovely.

-Yeah, it's tasty.

-Tasty it is.

OK, and how do you serve this, then, Pez?

With some couscous. Po-kor-i, in Greek.

-How do you say it in Greek?

-Po-kor-i.

-Po-kor-i?

-Po-kor-i.

I didn't know that. Po-kor-i. OK.

-If you pass me the plate.

-OK, Chef.

So, then we just lay the kebabs at an angle.

-I can just put them on the counter behind you.

-Beautiful.

A bit of colour. Always helps the eye. Helps the palate.

This just reminds me, it's like you're on the island of Cyprus.

You're there, you're having a holiday. You can smell the charcoal.

You can smell the meat or the fish cooking.

And I think that Len is going to go for this.

-He likes his kind of really nice, simple, clean food.

-I hope so.

-OK, and the kleftiko.

-Kleftiko.

-Usually, I serve one piece to two people.

-Mm-hmm.

That one piece will be more than enough, Chef, just on that plate.

-Yeah?

-Yeah, that's lovely.

-Here you go. We'll put it there.

The final bit of the kleftiko is the Commandaria.

If you pass me the bottle just there. The end one. Dessert wine.

OK. There's a little bit of a...

-Oh, wow, yeah!

-Nice that?

-Yeah, yeah!

-Beautiful.

-Now you're blessed.

-That's interesting.

-It's like a fortified wine, isn't it?

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

Always put asparagus on to finish it.

-Come on, Ainsley!

-Yeah, I'm coming! Coming!

-Uh-oh!

-Here, lookout.

-Here's the food.

-Bring that over.

-Prepare yourselves.

Beautiful char-grilled pork and chicken there, Len.

What is this? Lamb shank?

Yeah. Lamb shank. You've hit the nail on the head.

Kleftiko, they call it. Look what Pez has done here, eh?

Well, I'm going to have a go at this. This is lamb kebab?

Pork with chicken.

Pork with chicken.

Don't tell me - this is couscous.

-So...

-You're right.

-So good they named it twice.

-Is that what it is?

-No, it's not New York, New York, it's couscous.

Couscous. I better have a bit of the old couscous.

What is this? It's like wheat? Mm...

Look at that.

There you are.

Nothing wrong with that.

I've been trying to tell you that for years, Len!

'From curry to couscous in one day.

'Will wonders never cease?'

All right. You've had a touch of the old chicken

and the pork char-grill - what about the slow cook lamb?

That's been cooking for seven hours.

-Oh, just look at that.

-Look at that.

-Ooh!

Oh!

-Go on.

-Little bit of that.

-It just falls away.

-And these onions have been cooking with it, Len.

-Do you like a bit of onion?

-I do.

-Try a bit of that.

-Lovely.

I like this type of meat, when it just falls apart.

Bit of the old how's your father.

Oh, lovely.

I know, tell me about it. When it came out of the oven,

he hadn't even taken the foil off it yet and it was so aromatic.

-You like that?

-Yeah.

That is lovely.

OK. There you go. So, that's what you'd order if you came here,

-would you?

-Lamb shank.

-Lamb shank.

-Kleftiko.

-Kleftiko.

HE GIGGLES

What you've done here is genius.

Because you started me off with all of this delicious,

what I'd call titbits, which were nice.

-Meze. OK.

-Meze. Very nice.

Then you went on here,

which, again, was equally nice,

if not a tad nicer.

But, then, you came in with the coup de grace.

-This...

-Kleftiko.

-..the old kleftiko,

-which is absolutely gorgeous.

-Mm.

Traditional Cypriot dish.

Guys, it's been fantastic. Thank you so much.

You've introduced me and Len into something new, something different.

We really appreciate that.

-Cheers!

-To health.

-Yup.

-Lovely.

And a wife. Happiness.

-Wealth.

-Good food. Prosperity.

-That's all that matters in life.

-Yeah.

I'm sorry you didn't get your fish and chips, Len,

-but I think I rewarded you fairly well there.

-You did, indeed.

You know, I would have liked a touch of the fish and chips,

but once we got into the Greek,

I must say, I was pleasantly surprised.

Out you came with the hot stuff.

Absolutely. The kebab, which you were quite impressed with.

The chicken and the pork. A bit of lemon juice on top.

Yeah, and couscous.

Don't forget the couscous.

Which I didn't mind,

but then we had the lamb shank,

which was beautiful.

-That's the top of the cream, that one.

-It is.

But, do you know what?

-The food tour continues.

-No!

-Yes, absolutely.

-Fish and chips?

-Fish and chips! Get out of here!

Well, Len's taking his taste buds into unknown territories

and, I'll tell you what, he's come out swinging today.

But his food adventure's not over yet.

Inspired by our trip to India, I'm cooking my spiced fishcakes

with a fresh coriander and mint chutney.

It really represents all the wonderful flavours

that come from that part of the world.

Big, really sort of bold flavours that just set your mouth alight.

First, I'll make the chutney.

Just love the smell of fresh coriander.

Pop that straight into our food processor.

Along with the fresh mint, too.

Absolutely lovely.

Some of those chillies.

As you can see, I'm just removing the seeds there,

because that's where all that fiery heat is.

Take the seeds out and you're taking down that temperature.

Quite a bit. Remember, this is all going into a food processor,

so just give it a rough chop.

I've got some fresh lemon.

Just get that and just squeeze it in there.

Fresh ginger now. Just chopped up that ginger.

OK, a little sprinkling of sugar.

Beautiful.

Blitz that down.

You want to keep it quite sort of chunky, actually,

because this is going to be served with the fishcakes.

And then we can incorporate the coconut into it afterwards.

Into it, this is the grated coconut.

And, then...

just transfer that chutney into our bowl here.

Ready to go with our fishcakes.

Into a warm pan, put the garam masala,

cumin and red chilli powder.

Now, I'm toasting off those spices,

and, so, whilst that's happening, chop up our onion.

Instantly, that's wonderfully aromatic.

It really just captures all those wonderful smells.

I'm going to drizzle a little bit of oil in there now.

Just a touch. Help that sweat down a little bit.

By sweating, that means it's sort of opening up the onions

and just allowing them to cook a little bit.

Want to keep that going three or four minutes,

just to soften them slightly.

Over, as you can see there, a medium heat. Not too hot.

Now, going to add some of this nice ground ginger.

Again, wonderfully aromatic.

Once you've incorporated that, let's just transfer that

into our food processor and blitz it down a bit.

But before that, I'm going to prepare that main ingredient.

I've got some beautiful fresh cod here and, of course, my fresh prawns.

You want a nice firm fish here. You don't want anything too soft.

And then we're going to transfer that to our food processor.

Now, I know my food processor looks a little bit grotty

from making my mint chutney, but it's all of those lovely flavours.

You don't really need to wash it up to put your fish in there

and let it all blend together beautifully.

Now, a little bit of fresh coriander and a touch of salt.

Simply give that a quick blitz.

Let's have a look at this. I think that's a lovely texture.

You can see that, it's still got bit of bite to it.

There's still a bit of fish in there. You can see that.

But it's not completely pureed down.

And just before we're going to cook them,

we're just going to flatten them slightly, like that. You see that?

Now I'm just going to fry these little fishcakes off

in a small amount of oil.

You're literally talking about three or four minutes each side.

No more than that, depending on the thickness of your fish.

But try and keep it nice and juicy. You don't want it to dry out.

Oh, lovely.

Just going to lay my fishcakes in there.

It's nice to have that dosa there, because it kind of represents

what we're here for, south Indian cooking.

Little fan of tomato. That's it. Beautiful.

Oh! Now, once again,

it's over to Len.

Now, I know I might be pushing my luck a bit with another dish from

India, but I reckon these spiced fishcakes will finish Len's time

in Leicester with a Bollywood special.

-Well, Ainsley, what we got here?

-I'll tell you what, mate,

I've done something really special for you.

This is south Indian fishcakes,

and I've served it with a nice fresh mint and coriander chutney.

-Ahh.

-You've got to have a little bit of a tuck into that.

-A fishcake?

-Yeah, a fishcake,

and it's got all those lovely spices that we associate

with south Indian cooking.

-Look at that. Beautiful. Tuck into that.

-I thought it was a burger.

Well, it kind of, you could say it's a burger,

but it's a fishcake, and I haven't breaded it up,

because I think sometimes the bread gives you a different taste.

Do you know what's nice...

this has got a little bit of a kick,

but this somehow cools it down.

Absolutely. That's the idea.

So, you've got a bit of hot...

One complements the other. A little bit of spice in there, OK?

I've got a hint of chilli in there.

I've got a hint of garam masala.

-Ooh!

-And I've just cooked that down.

Lots of fish blitzed down,

little bit of onion cooked down with those spices.

So, you kind of smoke the spices a little bit.

What happens, you smoke them in the pan, then you add your onions,

and you fold it all in, blitz it down, and I've cooked those off.

-It's lovely.

-You like that?

Yeah, I'd easily give that a 7.8, or maybe even an eight.

-An eight?

-An eight.

-Eight?!

-For someone who doesn't like spicy things?

-Yes.

Oh, that's fantastic, Len. OK, ladies and gentlemen.

Oh, beautiful.

Come on, Leicester, roll up, roll up, roll up, Leicester,

for the finest southern Indian fishcakes.

What do you think?

Gorgeous.

-Really?

-Absolutely lovely.

The coriander, the flavours are fully coming through.

-Absolutely gorgeous.

-And what about you, madam, now come on?

I don't normally like fish. I can't stand it,

but I love that. That is so tasty.

-What do you reckon?

-Seems fresh.

-It is fresh.

That was swimming about in the sea about two hours ago.

-Very delicious.

-Yeah?

-It is very delicious.

-What do you reckon?

-Beautiful.

-Tasty.

Mm, coriander. No, beautiful.

-What's it like?

-Lovely, delicious.

What can taste? Tell me that.

-Lots of different...

-Spices.

-Herbs and spices.

Yeah?

And a little hint of fish in there?

Yeah, lots of flavour.

How's it going down there, Len? Is it going well?

So far, there's been no complaints whatsoever.

Well, that's all right, then.

Now, look, he's going for the second one.

Hey, watch him, Len, watch him.

-Can I have one, mate?

-Yeah.

-Thank you.

-Thank you very much, indeed.

What score would you give it?

-Ten!

-Ten!

It's a ten from Len!

-You've got a ten!

-You only gave me a 7.8!

Well, Leicester's given you a ten!

HE LAUGHS

That's charming, init?

7.8 from Len, and the lovely people of Leicester -

-ten!

-Yay!

I love you all.

-What a day.

-What a day.

Fabulous. Absolutely fabulous.

God, the curries.

One was right up my street, really.

Not too spicy, just nice.

The other one, a little bit on the hot side...

-Yeah.

-..but, overall, you know...

-It balanced.

-It was a balance.

And what about the Greek-Cypriot food?

You were expecting fish and chips!

I was indeed. Yeah.

But, again,

such a...eclectic mix

of different bits and pieces to start with,

and then that gorgeous, um...

-lamb shank.

-Ah, delicious.

And then we danced a bit of it off.

-Not too much, though.

-No!

We lost a few calories, surely!

So, on the day, I had my first taste of Indian curry...

The fish is delightful.

We boogied on down to a Bollywood groove...

Tucked into a Greek-Cypriot meze...

You've got all of this and, really, this is just like the starter?

-Just like the starter, yes.

-Mm.

Will any of these dishes make it into the Top Ten From Len?

Well, unfortunately, not today, Ainsley.

Although I did think the kingfish curry was quite delicious,

it wasn't enough to wobble my favourite fish and chips

off my all-time top ten list.

This just proves, you know,

the wonderful country that we live in,

this multicultural country that we live in, that gives us

so much diverse cuisine, so much laughter,

so much fun, so much joy.

-Yeah.

-And a little bit of sunshine.

-Let's walk into it, Len.

-Yeah, come on.

-And how beautiful it is.

-Lovely, eh?

-Yeah. Can't beat it, Len.

-Can't beat it.