Letter O The A to Z of TV Cooking

If you're in the market for some fantastic food,

you're in the right place. We've chosen the very best dishes

from some of the nation's favourite chefs

and we're serving them up alphabetically here on

The A-Z Of TV Cooking.

Today, we're looking at all things linked by the letter O,

and here's just some of what's on the menu.

Jamie Oliver knows his onions and today he's having them baked.

Basically, all of that is going to kind of like

cook straight into the onion, which is going to be lovely.

We'll see what Valentine Warner has got in-store for some new friends.

For lunch, I'm going to make them a delicious stew

using my very favourite summer ingredient, octopus.

And Michel Roux prepares a pear omelette souffle.

First, though, something to set you up nicely for the rest of the day.

Here's Sophie Dahl and her O - a very particular type of omelette.

The perfect selfish day would have to begin with breakfast,

because it's my favourite meal. Ever.

Going to make an omelette Arnold Bennett, Arnold Bennett was

a writer in the '20s who used to stay at The Savoy

and was obviously a very exacting fellow.

He concocted an omelette and then demanded that, wherever he went,

it should be made for him, to order.

So, it was named the Arnold Bennett.

Creme fraiche, which for Arnold Bennett would have been cream.

He'd be rolling over in his grave at my version of his, but that's OK.

Good handful of grated Parmesan.

There's meant to be that cardinal sin,

that you never mix fish with cheese,

but actually the Italians secretly do.

I believe Arnold used Gruyere.

A good bit of lemon zest.

I think to have a dish named after you, you have to be a bit of a diva.

I do however, I think, have a bra named after me.

Much rather have a dish, but I have a bra.

Now, I've poached the haddock in the oven for about 13 minutes

in some milk with some bay, knob of butter, some peppercorns.

The joy about cooking haddock in your omelette

for your alone indulgent day is no-one's there to complain

about the smell.

It's not the most sexy smell,

cooking haddock.

Trying to remember when I first had Arnold Bennett, I think I was...

..staying in a posh hotel and I think on my own

and pretending to be very ladylike.

Sitting with my newspaper,

but secretly being nosy and looking at what everyone else was doing.

And I just thought, "What more delicious combination than eggs,

"cheese, fish and cream?" Heaven.

So, really hot pan, hot butter,

I've got three eggs for this solo omelette.

And because you want this to be really light and fluffy,

I'm going to agitate it a bit.

Then add the creme fraiche, Parmesan, lemon mixture.

Which is going to sort of bubble up. Add the haddock.

I'm going to pop it in the oven at 200 for about five minutes or so,

where it's going to puff up and get burnished on top.

Oh!

Here we are.

That might even make Arnold Bennett happy.

It's souffled up, the burnished cheese, it smells totally delicious.

Even though it's just for me, I want it to look perfect.

Any day that began with this would be a beautifully selfish,

self-indulgent day.

Now, O is for onions and one man who knows his and

knows what he wants to do with them is Jamie Oliver.

Right, let me get me onions and they're cooked -

just want to drain them.

I've cooked them for about 15 minutes on a boil. Bring them back over here.

Basically, we always use onions in dishes to sort of make it tastier -

in stews, in curries, stir fries, this, that and the other.

And they very rarely get used as a vegetable in their own right, do you know what I mean?

What I do is take the tops off like I have and then I get the onions

and I get the knife and you just stick it in carefully at an angle.

So, what you're doing is, you're going to remove

a squash ball-sized chunk,

You're kind of hollowing them out, basically, like that.

Then, I'm going to make my little filling that's going to fill it.

I was trying to think

what are the best things that I know of to go with onions?

So, I was thinking, like, "Smoky bacon, rosemary, cream,

"Parmesan or cheese," and, you know, so I put this together

and it worked first time and, since then, I've never looked back, mate.

Just get rid of the colander.

Just chop all these little bits up.

Just do that.

Whack that on the heat. Get some nice olive oil.

You want a couple of lugs of that. Just to sort of get it all going.

Then a good pinch of pepper.

You want a good pinch of salt.

Start frying straightaway. It's lovely, I love that sound.

And give a little stir.

Grab a garlic clove.

Just finely slice it. And get them in there.

And, tell you what I'm going to do, we've got some sprigs of rosemary,

I'm going to keep like six back. Pull off the tips.

Just cut them in half a little bit.

We'll get that in, as well, cos rosemary, onions - really good combo.

And all of a sudden it starts smelling fantastic.

I've got some smoky bacon and I can just imagine, sort of, onions,

smoked bacon - it's like a wicked combo.

It's dry-cured, rind off, so get an onion and I wrap this around it.

I get all me sprigs together, I want to cut them at an angle

so they kind of go sharp.

And all I do is literally get it and poke it through the onion like that.

And you secure it like that, it looks fantastic,

and that smoked flavour really gets into the onion, which is lovely.

Line them up.

Easy as that.

Another bit of onion.

I tell you what, it's fantastic cooking for Jay Kay and the boys,

because I've been listening to them since day one.

Not being gushy or nothing,

but it seems funny now, like, I'm cooking dinner for the lot.

All round, bit of a good day, really.

That's it, all of those done.

Bring this over and I've got some double cream.

You need about sort of six to eight tablespoons.

Just to kind of loosen it all, get all the flavours coming together.

Let that sit for a bit.

I want some Parmesan.

So, what I'm going to do is just grate like two big handfuls of this

and this is going to be perfect with these onions and like I've served

these onions with fish, chicken, pork, you can use it with anything.

I mean, like, a nice, big, warm salad with one of these onions

when they've got nice and crispy and golden. Just rip it open.

Beautiful, mate. Parmesan shavings. Oh, I feel quite hungry now.

So, get some cheese in there.

Give it a stir.

And it's gone really claggy.

Then you fill it up.

Basically, all of that is going to kind of like cook

straight into the onion which is going to be lovely.

And it's quite nice, really, if it sort of cooks over,

cos it kind of cooks all around the bacon and stuff.

I mean, since I've done these, I haven't looked back, really.

I've done them loads,

so give them a little shimmy of how's your father over the top -

Parmesan.

And that's it, beautiful, best onion dish in the world, right.

And what's going to happen is, when it goes in the oven,

it's going to be really crispy bacon on the outside,

really golden brown, cheesy on top, really, really nice onions.

Next, onion soup, a good recipe for any would-be chef

to have up their sleeves, so here come the Two Fat Ladies.

I love onion soup, don't you?

And the great advantage of it is that even the seediest,

most run-down of village shops, you will always find onions.

This is a very good recipe for using up leftover Stilton.

And what I've got softing here is some butter

and I'm just going to add some onions to it.

They're perfect to take camping, because they're terribly portable

and it doesn't really matter if they get wet.

You can just chop them up and make a big pot of onion soup.

The colour of onion soup is a matter of caramelisation,

and it's really entirely up to you.

-I don't like dark-brown onion soup, but that's just me.

-I do!

Well, that's very good. I'm glad for you, but you're not getting it today.

And so the darker you cook your onion, the darker your soup will be.

And they will take a bit of time to soften.

Just keep stirring them while you're doing it.

-I love the smell of cooking onion.

-So do I. I love it.

Except when it's old. You know, when people are doing it in the street.

-And then it smells of old sweat.

-Yes, it does. Horrid, isn't it?

Disgusting.

I remember once when I was at school and my mother sent me

a chicken which wasn't sufficiently cooked,

and so we cut it up and we put it in the electric kettle

and some idiot went and tipped in a packet of onion soup.

Can you imagine the smell? I mean, you could smell it for days.

This nun kept coming round going, "What is this funny smell?"

JEN LAUGHS

I'm going to add some stock. This is stock mixed with beer.

You can mix it with beer, you can mix it with wine,

or you can leave out the alcohol altogether if you like.

But it's actually better with a bit of something

just to give it a bit of oomph.

And some thyme. Thyme is a lovely herb and again readily findable.

Just a bit of thyme. Not too much, or you kill the taste of the onion.

And some salt.

And pepper.

My soup's simmering away nicely now, so I'm going to add the Stilton.

You can use Stilton rind for this.

Believe me, because I didn't believe it

when I was told to grate up your old Stilton rind and put it in.

But what I've got here is just some grated Stilton,

and I'm going to put it in and leave it to cook down

and melt into the soup.

I'll put a lid on and leave it for about another 15 minutes

while I cook my croutons!

You can never have too many croutons.

It's one of those rules of thumb.

However many croutons you cook it's never enough.

-It's like bread sauce.

-Absolutely. Never enough.

I'll just test the oil.

There's an earwig. Never mind. Go on.

-There's nothing like a little fried earwig.

-Pop it in.

CLARISSA CHUCKLES

You can put garlic in with your croutons if you want.

-I like the way you left the crusts on. I love the crusts left on.

-Hm.

I do like a bit of body myself.

If you don't have the oil hot enough when you put your croutons in,

they just go... SHE SLURPS

they take it all up and you'll have greasy croutons and no oil.

So that soup is beginning to smell now. Can you smell it?

Really smelling nice.

-Bubbling!

-Aye, but it's meant to bubble.

-It's lovely.

-Mmm.

-It's suddenly got it.

-Good for cold.

-It is, actually.

Onions are terribly good for you. Culpepper says...

Culpepper, in 1640, says, "Onions and garlic burn away the fat that

-"grows around the heart."

-They've always been considered very healthy.

I know, but it takes the medical profession that long

to re-remember things, doesn't?

There we are, those are done. All golden and lovely.

A total comfort dish after a long day.

Thanks, ladies.

Now from onion soup to onion stew, and with his take on it,

here's Nigel Slater.

Nothing puts me to rights like a great big bowl of lentils or beans.

Something that's very frugal and something that I can have

in the fridge and keep going back to and heating up whenever I want it.

Today I'm cooking one of my favourite suppers, a lentil stew.

It's also got a twist from paprika,

with a topping of sweet caramelised onions.

To begin with,

I'm cooking some roughly chopped onions over a low heat.

I could start those onions softening in oil or butter,

but I'm actually going to use bacon fat.

Or even better, some pancetta.

To make a vegetarian version of this dish, simply leave out the bacon.

If you cook this on a high heat, it will sizzle and seal,

and I don't want that to happen.

I want the fat to slowly ooze out, almost to melt,

so I can cook the onions in it.

I want some sweetness in my lentil stew,

so I'm pulling up a few baby carrots.

Parsnip would work just as well.

SIZZLING

Pop the lid on for a few minutes just to keep the moisture in there.

Next, the spices.

There's two sorts of paprika -

there's the very spicy, hot one,

and then there's a softer one.

And that's the one I'm using.

about half a teaspoon.

To start with - they can always add a little bit more later.

And then the cinnamon.

Barely half a teaspoon.

And then nutmeg.

And you can buy it ready-ground,

but I like it as a whole nutmeg...

..which I then grate.

LOUD SIZZLING

I'm going to use these slate grey Puy lentils for my stew.

They hold their shape during cooking, and are deliciously nutty.

Next, some liquid.

You can use water or stock - I'm using half and half.

Then leave for a good half an hour

so the lentils soften

and the carrots give up all their sweetness.

As the stew cooks,

I am going to make the wonderful topping.

If you want to up the sweetness factor in any recipe,

then onions slowly cooked over a low heat is a way to do it.

Their sugars will caramelise on the pan

and they'll add a rich, mellow sweetness to whatever you're cooking.

While the onions are sizzling,

I'm adding chopped parsley to the lentils.

So I'll put some of the parsley in now,

just so it can quietly cook with everything else

and then some of it I'll add at the end

just to give it a bit of a green blast.

So much of our cooking is about fast and frantic - it's about speed.

This is the sort of cooking you take your time over.

Just put things on a low heat,

and let them get on with things themselves.

Once the onions are golden brown and very soft,

I am going to finish them off with a tiny pinch of nutmeg.

What I'm after is sweet warmth.

Now that is just going to get a little bit of creme fraiche.

This just adds that little touch of luxury,

and doesn't cost very much.

And lovely sweet onions.

That's something to warm you through and through.

It's just so sweet and mellow.

With lovely soft spicing in the background.

This lentil stew is so comforting -

the warm spices are given a lift by the caramelised onions.

Now let's head to Italy for our next O -

here are the Two Greedy Italians with a delicious orzotto.

After making all those sausages,

there was no pork mince left.

Well, maybe just a little bit.

-Don't tell me this is the pork.

-Yes.

This is what they left me.

No. You can do a soup or something.

-Perhaps a soup.

-No.

-We would be happy with that.

-No. Actually, what I'll do...

I am going to make orzotto.

150g of minced pork is what we need.

The dish is like a pork mince risotto,

but instead of rice,

you use this lovely pearl barley.

One small onion.

-Chopped.

-Chopped.

-Finely.

-Finely.

Lovely olive oil.

Nice olive oil.

I love it.

This is from Calabria. It's very good olive oil there, you know?

It is, indeed.

They produce quite a lot, but I think they don't export a lot.

I love their music.

-Lovely. You fry the onions.

-Let it sweat.

The difference of a sweat, and not a burn -

it is that when you are jogging,

you start to sweat, you know?

One is burning when you stand under the sun,

and you get red like a pepperoni.

Then, you get a pork mince...

Yes.

Slowly...put him inside.

See, this stage, you seal the meat,

now you have to seal it properly, but...

Yeah, but let it cook a little bit, as well.

Oh, yeah. Well, I'm... Look.

Then you put...the pearl barley.

Pearl barley is a kind of superfood.

It is full of B vitamins and minerals, like iron and zinc.

Just a little bit more for me and you.

When I was a kid, we didn't do twizzlers or nuggets,

this is the kind of food we ate.

And keep stir it.

Because when it's nice and hot,

I have to splash with a little bit wine.

Here comes the splash of wine, yes?

Oh, lovely!

Here, I've all ready - nice, very hot stock.

Yes.

Could be a vegetable stock.

Could be a beef stock.

You start to add nice, hot stock.

Keep stir it.

As soon as the stock has evaporated, you add more.

I will cook roughly about 25 to 30 minutes.

And keep stir it.

We stir it, we stir, we stir it.

Very nice.

Make sure it not get burned underneath.

We will use spinach, as well.

Yes. Yes.

-This should be enough for me and you?

-Yes, enough.

-OK.

Not too thin.

The reason why - because if too thin, it will mostly disappear.

Mmmm...!

Another few minutes.

At this stage, I will put the spinach inside.

Quick stir.

That cat reminds me a little bit of you, you know.

What do you mean?

He's fat.

-Have you never looked to yourself?

-I've lost a little bit of weight.

-Yeah, when?

-Well, a little bit.

Remember, the wine you use for cooking,

this is the wine you have to drink.

There is no-such cooking wine.

If you put a good wine in the dish, you take it out, as well.

-Olive oil.

-Mm!

Let's cream it.

-The smell is wonderful!

-Look at the way it's creaming up.

Creaming makes it goes all round the barley.

It makes an emulsion.

Yeah, makes an emulsion.

Mmmm, looks good!

And no cheese here.

There's no cheese.

It looks very good.

Lovely!

Parsley on top.

Come on.

Mmm!

Mmm!

The flavour is fantastic.

Say no more.

Orzotto con maiale!

Make sure you give it to the kids -

like Antonio, they will love it!

From Italy to France, and now our next O is for Oysters.

Here's Rachel Khoo keeping them nice and simple

and putting all the effort into the garnish.

Armed with two dozen oysters,

I'm off to my friend Benjamin's house to prepare my next recipe.

Benjamin may have worked in some of the most talked-about restaurants in France,

and helps run one of Paris's biggest food fairs,

but today he will be my sous chef.

-Parisians love oysters, don't they?

-Yeah!

-You can't go wrong with oysters.

-No.

Oyster purists would frown on eating anything but the oyster itself,

but I am going to make three delicious garnishes

to take the edge of swallowing one.

My first one is a true classic.

I'm going to make a traditional mignonette which is shallot with red wine vinegar.

First, finely dice your shallots.

You want it quite fine.

-You can prepare this in advance, can't you?

-Yeah.

Red wine vinegar with my shallots.

Couple of tablespoons.

A little bit of salt.

Pinch of sugar with your mignonette.

Let it sit for a little while.

Benjamin is shucking my oysters.

You should do this just before your guests arrive

to make sure they remain fresh.

You must be very careful with oysters.

If it is open, it is dead.

It is really important for it to be alive.

Yes. The oyster has to be alive.

The rule is simple - if the oyster is already open, do not eat it.

My second garnish is an apple and Calvados mignonette.

And it's a tribute to where the oysters come from.

For this little condiment, I was inspired by Normandy,

because they obviously have a lot of apples.

Chop it into fine little cubes.

I need a tiny bit of Calvados...

'But an apple brandy would work just as well.'

..and some cider vinegar.

It's all about having that acidity.

It's like a lot of people have lemons with oysters.

It's the acidity...with some flavour.

Add a pinch of salt

and leave to stand so that the apples can soak up

the flavour of the Calvados.

-You done?

-Yeah.

-Oh, you know what?

You could do my watermelon.

My sous chef is helping me out with the third garnish

which I'm giving an Asian twist.

What are you using with this?

Watermelon, cucumber,

and rice vinegar.

That's fab. Yeah.

Oh, my goodness, your cubes are so much better than my cubes!

THEY LAUGH

You could just do my cucumber.

Look at him go! Watch those fingers..!

OK, so if you put the cucumber in... Go for it.

-I think the colours look great, don't they?

-Yeah, yeah.

Add two tablespoons of rice vinegar.

OK.

I think that's quite good, actually.

Yeah. It's perfect.

Yeah, cool. Let's put it in our little dishes.

You only need about half a teaspoon

of the condiments on each oyster,

as they should enhance, not mask the flavour.

So each bowl should be enough for 12 to 15 oysters.

OK.

All we need now are the guests.

DOOR BELL

THEY EXCHANGE GREETINGS

Hey, how you doing?

RACHEL WHOOPS

-Little aperitif?

-Yes.

I'm going to have more! It is really good.

Cucumber and rice vinegar with watermelon... Perfect!

Thanks, Rachel.

And cooking with oysters doesn't mean it has to be just a fish dish.

Oh, no.

Here is a traditional British recipe

which dates back hundreds of years,

and doing the honours is Raymond Blanc,

a Frenchman cooking a traditional British dish.

Bon appetit!

Raymond's next recipe is a much-loved English pudding.

A savoury dish of succulent steak, kidney and oysters

encased in a rich suet crust.

I did this dish about 38 years ago

when I first came in Great Britain

in a little pub where I started to cook.

I took that frying pan and it changed my life completely.

I discovered my passion.

As I was leafing through this book,

I stop on a recipe which said "steak, kidney and oyster pudding".

And I started to laugh.

"These English! "Ils sont fous, les Anglais!"

I started really to laugh about this, "it is not possible!"

- such expensive ingredients in a pudding

that you are going to steam for five hours.

So I immediately gathered all these ingredients,

following very... The recipe by the letter, as well.

Then I steamed it.

A little smell...

Just a burst of a little smell,

and it was rather nice.

Then after three hours,

really a massive smell across the whole kitchen,

beyond the kitchen, and it was divine.

Versions of this dish date back to the 15th century.

Today, it's perfect for special occasions as the pudding

requires some costly ingredients.

So we have a magnificent piece of rump here.

I've got some gorgeous oysters. English, native, from Cornwall.

We have the third component. These kidneys. It's an incredible mix.

I'm going to start with the suet crust.

First, Raymond combines 300g of self-raising flour

with 150 grams of suet.

-A pinch of salt, and 200ml of water.

-Don't use your hands.

It will be quite messy here. Better to use the spatula.

It's not the most refined of pastries.

Turning, just pulling it together with your hand.

Voila. Now we are OK.

We're in business. That's the texture I am looking for. Quite soft.

There is a little trick here. A Victorian trick. She's lovely.

I'm going to cut a quarter of the pastry for the lid

which I'm going to keep.

Voila. Tres bien.

The remaining pastry forms a neat cone which lines

the pudding basin. Next, Raymond dices the beef and kidneys.

In about one-inch cube, roughly.

He coats the meat with two tablespoons of flour to help the juices thicken

during cooking, then prepares the last luxury ingredient.

I'm rubbish at opening oysters, so I'm doing my best at the moment.

It's rather lovely. Now, what we are going to do is to do the sauce.

Next, Raymond boils 200ml of red wine.

A good little trick as well, to fasten the speed of the reduction,

heat the pan before. Very, very hot.

-He adds this to 200ml of chicken stock.

-Voila.

And that is going to be the base, which is going to make

the gravy for the pan. So now, all that we need to do is to fill it up.

To the meat, Raymond adds a chopped onion, 180g of mushrooms and

a pinch of thyme to create another layer of flavour during cooking.

Look at that! Tightly-packed.

More oysters.

That's perfect. And now we are going to add the jus.

It will sink in rather than go outside of it.

Raymond then seals the pudding underneath the suet pastry lid.

A quick brushing on the outside so to help the sticking.

He tucks in the edges and covers the pudding in aluminium foil.

And tighten it up, this vacuum, so to speak, completely sealed.

It's now ready to be steamed.

Bring the water to simmering point,

so the water is reaching basically half.

That will take exactly five hours long to simmer.

You take your hand.

I can feel the sense of ownership from Adam here about his country!

Ooh, la la, Adam!

Oh, majestic.

After steaming for five hours, the tender, meltingly soft meat

and rich red wine gravy is ready, all held inside its crisp,

golden suet crust, a hearty English classic.

-It doesn't look too good to look at.

-What do you mean, doesn't look good?

-You don't like this?

-Yeah, I love it. But it's not the most attractive...

-No, smell. You can... Have you tasted it?

-No.

-Shall we?

-Yes.

So, Adam, what do you think?

It's lovely, really good. I love the pastry.

The way it's soaked up all the juices. It's my favourite.

Adam loves his food to be a little bit on the rich side, I would say.

That's why I'm going to baptise this dish, Adam's Dish. For you, Adam.

-Thank you, chef!

-OK?

Now, here's quite an ambitious dish that our chef Valentine Warner

knows won't be everyone's favourite at first. Why?

Because his O is for Octopus.

No-one can deny that peas are marvellous eaten

straight from the pod but I want to show the Bream gardening club

that peas don't have to be eaten just as a side dish.

For lunch, I'm going to make them a delicious stew using my very

favourite summer ingredient - octopus.

-How do you feel about octopus and peas?

-I'll let you know later.

There'll be green peas and pink octopus

and it's quite a nice thing to look at.

-Well, the tasting will discover that.

-Well, I hope to please you.

And I won't be too shy to say if I don't like it.

You're a very vocal man. I'm sure I'll know if you don't!

You certainly will. I shan't beat about the bush.

Whilst I slice up 12 large spring onions and a bulb

of home-grown garlic, Gerald pods 300g of the club's various peas.

You don't want to be out the back all the time or anything like that, mind.

Come on! Give us a chance!

Fry the onions and the garlic in a glug of olive oil.

Now, on to Gerald's favourite.

I'm going to cut up the octopus, this terrifying beast.

I really hope I can win you over this, Gerald.

-I don't want to be rude, and that.

-You can be as rude as you like.

Have you rinsed it, or it's soaked in salt water?

It's all been rinsed.

When the onions and garlic are nicely browned, remove from the heat.

-I want to get this nearly smoking hot.

-Yes, like doing Yorkshire pudding.

The sliced octopus goes into the pan. What would your wife say, Gerald?

-She wouldn't look at it.

-See, it's changing colour. It's going pink.

Add bay leaves, thyme and peppercorns,

along with the cooked onions and garlic.

Octopus is full of water, so it doesn't need any extra liquid.

Pop a lid on it.

Hour and a half, that will be beautifully tender.

Actually, I seem to have gone off my food all of a sudden!

To finish the dish, remove the octopus and reduce

the juice until it's the consistency of single cream.

Squeeze in half a lemon.

Return the octopus and add the peas and cook for five minutes.

If Gerald called this rubbery, I wouldn't believe him.

Finally, give it a splash of olive oil and a scattering of fennel tops.

# Pass the peas, pass the peas, pass the peas... #

Sardinian octopus with peas.

Wow! My God! Wowee!

-Marvellous.

-Now, sit down, Gerald. I think, just in case.

Don't want you keeling over!

With the excitement!

Those peas look beautiful.

Well, come and have a taste. Come on, girls.

In fairness to you, I've got to say this.

It is very, very nice and tasty.

Gerald, I have to say that you've made my year!

Have I?

No, it is nice and to show that I really mean it, I'm going to have another piece.

Wa-hey! My husband will never believe it.

-I've had garlic and...whatever that is!

-And octopus!

-Octopus.

To all of you, thanks for a really fun day. It's been brilliant.

-The Bream gardening club, cheers!

-Cheers!

Our next O is for Offal, which, as it refers to animals' internal organs,

isn't considered particularly appetising to many people.

But sweetbreads are offal,

and rated as real delicacies by those in the know, like Rick Stein.

Well, this is Shaun Hill's lamb sweetbreads with potato and

olive cake and what I'm doing here is just peeling some of the membrane

off these sweetbreads which have been soaking in water, for about an hour.

I'm just going to poach them in a little water,

white wine vinegar, and shallots.

Now, interestingly, I think

Shaun originally wrote this dish for calves' sweetbreads but you know,

this is really odd, but you can't buy British calf sweetbread.

You can rear calves for veal,

but you can't buy British sweetbreads, so anybody that

rears veal calves has to throw the sweetbreads away

and if you want to eat calves' sweetbreads in this country,

you have to buy them from Holland.

Is that crazy, or what?

Anyway, those are done now, looking exceptionally plump and tasty.

I'm just going to leave these to cool right down to cold on this trivet

and I've made some potato cakes.

That's mashed potato and green olives stuffed with anchovies

and a little bit of egg and I'm passing those through some flour,

beaten egg and fluffy white breadcrumbs

and then I'm going to shallow fry them in vegetable oil

till they're light and golden brown

and drain them off on kitchen paper.

I sort of worry that offal like this

is not passing down to the next generation.

I love sweetbreads and liver and everything

but I know my sons just don't have a lot of time for it.

It's a real shame because there's something quite special about sweetbreads.

Now I'm frying them here with just a little bit of oil till they're light brown on both sides.

Now I take them out of the pan and keep them warm while I make the sauce.

Now, I take about a quarter of a pint of good chicken stock

and add some finely chopped shallots and some of those little tiny capers.

They look much better in a sauce.

And a good quantity of parsley, a couple of tablespoons.

I put that on the heat, bring it gently to the boil,

take it off, and add two or three tablespoons of mayonnaise.

Now I whisk that vigorously to blend it all together.

Then I push it back onto the heat, and just bring it up.

Now, I don't want to boil it because it will split but I want to

thicken it slightly, about the consistency of double cream.

The thing about Shaun Hill, he's amiable and humorous

but underneath, there's a hidden depth and I think it's

the deceptive simplicity of his food that makes him

such a great cook.

We started the show with an omelette

and we're going to finish it with an omelette and here's

one from Michel Roux which makes an absolute perfect pudding.

For dessert, I am cooking a pear omelette souffle with salted butter caramel sauce.

First off, we need to prepare a sugar syrup.

Pour water and sugar straight into a pan and flavour with a vanilla pod.

Very important to get the seeds out cos that's where all the flavour is.

These Concorde pears are already peeled,

so squeeze on lemon juice to stop them from going brown.

As the syrup has now boiled,

pop in the pears to poach gently for about 20 minutes.

Perry pears or the old heritage pears take a bit longer.

Put all that lemon juice in there as well,

which helps to keep them nice and white.

Now, start on the caramel sauce.

I've added together a big wedge of butter and unrefined caster sugar.

Now, blast away until it bubbles to a lovely caramel colour.

Add double cream, and it's as simple as that.

These pears, they're perfectly cooked.

Put half the pears and a few spoonfuls of juice into the blender and blitz.

Pour the puree into a pan.

To thicken, mix together cornflour and pear brandy.

You just soften it up and slake the cornflour

until it's a lovely, smooth paste.

Mix together with the puree and as soon as this comes to the boil,

it will thicken up. Then transfer to a mixing bowl. Now, the egg whites.

They've been whisked until they're soft, so they're nice and glossy.

Beat in half the egg whites into the puree.

A lot of people are worried and they think, "Oh, I mustn't over-mix,"

and they're too delicate with a souffle, but you can be quite rough.

You can go for it. Especially that first mix.

Then the second mix, you have to be a little more delicate

and a lightness of touch.

So this time, fold in with a spatula until it's smooth.

Now is the critical time not to overwork.

Just until that last little lump of egg white has been mixed in.

Heat up a knob of butter in a mini omelette pan.

Pour in the mixture and leave it on the heat for a few seconds

but watch out, as it could burn.

And you can see the caramel there. You can see the butter frothing,

you can see the colour, and you can most importantly smell.

If it smells of caramel, you know you're in the right direction.

So into the oven it goes, at 180 degrees for 5-6 minutes.

Meanwhile, I've got just enough time to dress the plate with

the poached pears, pear brandy and caramel sauce.

Now, the moment of truth. The souffle.

That's just, just right.

It's bouncy, it's got the right texture, it smells divine.

And there you have it. My omelette pear souffle with caramel sauce.

This looks and smells beautiful.

Breaking into it like that with that lovely, soft souffle.

Mmm-hmmm!

Salted butter caramel, the pear brandy and that lovely,

soft, unctuous souffle

but you can feel of the grain of the pear. It's so delicious.

Well, what a delicious way to end today's show.

And I hope you all enjoyed it.

Thanks again to our wonderful chefs and I'll see you again next time.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd