Letter E The A to Z of TV Cooking

If you're in the market for a feast of fantastic food,

you're in the right place.

We've chosen the best dishes from some of the nation's

favourite chefs and we're serving them up alphabetically here,

on The A To Z Of TV Cooking.

Today we're looking at things linked by the letter E.

Now, people are right when they say you can't beat an egg,

so let's get cracking.

And here, with something completely different, is James Martin,

with a crispy, deep-fried duck egg.

Now, for this recipe we're going to soft boil the duck eggs.

First of all, boiling salted water.

And what I'm going to use is a touch of vinegar.

Now, it's a good trick putting vinegar in because as the eggs

roll around in the boiling water, sometimes the shells crack

and doing so will allow the whites to actually come out.

If you put the vinegar in there

it'll actually hold it all in together.

Hen's eggs soft boiled, you want about 5 minutes.

With duck eggs, you're looking at about 5½ minutes.

Purely the fact it's all down to size.

And you can see the difference between the two,

if you crack open a hen's egg, then a duck egg.

And you can see straight away on here, the size of the yolks

but most importantly, the size of the whole egg.

Which is a whopping 30% larger than a hen's egg and worth every penny.

Our eggs are ready.

This can come straight out into the ice cold water.

Just instantly stops it from cooking.

We can leave those now just to go cold.

While I make a pickle.

It's very, very quick, very simple but tastes delicious with this.

All you need is some pitted cherries, a sliced shallot

and three, store cupboard staples heated together -

rice wine vinegar, a pinch of salt

and a sprinkling of sugar.

It's nothing more complicated than that.

Normally if you're making pickled onions and that kind of thing,

you'd have to wait three or four months.

This is really quick, really simple. Great flavour for our salad.

And while that infuses, we can peel our eggs.

Now, always, on an egg,

you have a little white membrane that's just underneath the shell.

So, the idea is to get your finger just underneath that membrane

first of all and it becomes easier to peel.

Once that's done, you can coat them in the breadcrumbs.

So, you've got the flour, the egg and the crumb. So, first off...

roll it around in the flour.

Then in the egg.

And then in the breadcrumbs.

So there you have it.

Nice, little sort of egg, ready for deep-fat frying.

Now, with that, I'm going to do a little salad.

Using some mixed leaves with a sherry vinegar

and olive oil dressing that's going to go brilliantly with my next ingredient.

I'm going to incorporate into our salad this duck confit.

Now, this, you can actually buy these nowadays, in jars.

But what it is, is basically a duck leg that's been salted

and cooked in duck fat.

So, we're just going to basically,

just break the duck confit like that.

Little bit in there. I've got some bacon.

Just a simple little salad.

And before we dress it, we can deep-fry the duck egg in hot oil.

And once in the fryer, it wants to deep-fat fry

for about 20 to 30 seconds.

Until it's a lovely shade of golden brown.

And there you have it.

A deep-fried, crispy duck egg.

How easy was that? Time to put everything else together.

So, just dress the salad in some of your sherry vinegar dressing.

Add some of the cherry and shallot pickle.

And then what you're looking to do really,

is just build a little nest on the plate.

So your duck egg can be placed on the top.

It's lovely and gooey and soft in the centre.

And then what I like, is just a pinch of rock salt on the top.

And look at that egg yolk.

And what's great about this dish,

is you get...the egg yolk gives you a nice dressing,

you get the crispiness of the outside,

the whites are full of flavour.

Mmm! It's proper, proper flavour, is that.

It's how eggs should taste.

And that's what it's all about, the taste.

That's what food should be about. Taste.

And with a duck egg, you really get that. It's delicious.

Now, I hope you haven't had enough of eggs

because here's Rachel Khoo

with a French recipe called oeuf en cocotte.

Get it? En-oeuf?

Oeufs en cocotte, eggs in pots.

This dish is a Parisian, kind of store cupboard dish.

I'm going to use teacups for my recipe

but traditionally you would use ramekins.

It's my little British touch.

Cup and saucer. Tea for two.

And if you want to try and prepare it my way, make sure

the teacup porcelain isn't too thin, or it'll crack in the oven.

Creme fraiche, nice dollop.

The creme fraiche has a light,

sharp flavour that'll cut through the richness of the egg.

Full fat creme fraiche, bien sur.

I mean, if you want to, you can do a light version.

But that's on your own conscience.

Season it with a bit of nutmeg.

You could add a pinch of cumin if you'd like, paprika,

little bit of chilli powder. It's really as you like.

Pinch of salt.

Pepper.

And then you add your eggs.

Add some dill, which has a lovely fresh taste...

..and one more spoon.

I've made them before with a bechamel sauce

or cheese sauce as well.

That's really delicious too,

but this is the quickest version. Et voila.

That is your oeufs en cocotte, your eggs in pots.

All you need to do now is bake it.

Grab a tray or you can use a baking dish

and you can put your cups in there.

In it goes.

Just some lukewarm water out of the tap.

Fill the improvised bain marie

so the water covers half of the teacups.

That will make them cook evenly at 180 degrees.

I love my eggs on the runnier side,

so it's about 15 minutes in the oven.

But if you want them firmer, give it a little longer.

Let's have a look.

Oooh, yes.

They look perfect.

And now for the finishing touches.

I'm going to add a bit of...

A little bit of salmon eggs on top.

Salmon eggs were a great discovery for me

and you can get them in specialist shops in the UK.

They work really well in all egg-based dishes.

Adds a little bit of saltiness to the oeufs en cocotte.

The loveliest thing about this recipe

is you can dress it in any way you like.

You can root around your fridge or cupboard

and see what you've got left over.

Couple of slices of ham, mushrooms, whatever you like.

And let's not forget some baguette soldiers. Quite important.

You need some dipping action.

Don't even think about using soft, white bread here.

It's the crunch that'll pack the punch.

Oh, they look so pretty.

And that's it. That's my oeufs en cocotte.

This is the fun part, the eating it. It looks pretty amazing.

I don't know what to say, it's good.

The tastiest teacup you've ever seen.

Glorious, gooey egg and the crunchiest, freshest of baguettes.

Next up, an ingredient that some people love

but some people can't cope with.

Now, our next item, Tony and Giorgio both agree they're not

fans of the classic London jellied eel.

But here's a recipe they do think is worth the effort.

So we've got four natural seams, yeah?

Cut all the way down one, number two, number three

and number four, the belly side. Right?

And the reason we do that, we cut them

because that skin is very hard to get anything into, yeah?

Let me tell you about the marinade.

Equal quantities of wine and olive oil, yeah?

Then a couple of tablespoons of chopped oregano

and a couple of cloves of finely chopped garlic.

In the fridge, 24-48 hours, 48 hours I think is best.

They should take about half an hour

but they actually tell you because the flesh just falls off the bones

and you've got a lovely crispy skin.

Because I always thought that if you cook it in the skin,

the skin, even when it's cooked, is very leathery.

It's not, it's very crispy. It's like a savoury biscuit, it's fabulous.

Right, well, I'm going to let them tick away nicely there.

And I'll knock up some mash.

I think one of the secret of mashed potato,

never to let the potato cool down, no?

Course it is, that's why I'm warming the milk up to the same temperature.

-So, I've got shallot, peppercorns...

-Yeah. Or ground black pepper.

-White wine and white wine vinegar? Are you going to use both?

-Yeah.

I'm going to use a bit and a bit

because I think you want it nice and sharp because the fish

already got a quite nice, sort of, like, fatty flavour, hasn't it?

Yeah. No, you need it sharp.

The amount of fat in the eel, although the majority of it

comes out when it's cooking, it still needs something like that.

-I tell you, it's so under-rated.

-What?

-Eel.

-It's a very speciality thing, isn't it?

-It's a spec...

Well, it never used to be, Giorg.

It was a really big cultural thing around London.

25 years ago, outside every pub, there used to be jellied eel stalls.

Ah, but jellied eel, man. It's terrible, man.

And then you used to go to the pie and mash shop, there was one everywhere around London.

I think jellied eel is terrible actually. I don't like that at all.

I could never get my head around them either.

I'm going to add a touch of cream.

OK. Bring it up to boil.

-Phwoar, what's happened, Giorg? Sharp?

-I just breathe in.

Yeah, it is sharp enough.

Did that make you want to sneeze?

-Ton, it's not burning, eh?

-Giorg, keep it serious.

I'm not saying it is burning, I'm asking you if it is burning.

-You're not burning my sauce, Giorg, are you?

-Don't worry about that.

Forget about it.

And when we talk like that, please call me Chef.

So, when you are happy with the reduction of the onions

and white wine, then you take it off the fire

and slowly you start to add your butter.

And the butter will melt down, it will melt down to a sauce.

-When you going in with the mustard, mate?

-At the end.

-The end?

-You told me to put it at the end. And now you change your mind.

Half the butter, then mustard and then

see if it'll take any more butter.

Right, let's go. A nice bit of mustard.

And a little bit of mostarda di Meaux.

What have you used, Giorg? You've use the grain mustard and the Dijon?

-And the other one, that's what you say.

-Yeah, I know, I know, I know.

I'm just double checking. I have to keep my eye on you.

The most important thing is not to warm it up too much.

-Otherwise you will split it, which means...

-That's the nuts.

Right, mash on the plate, Giorg.

So, we've got one fillet.

Like-a-so.

Right in the middle.

-Sauce?

-Yeah, round the edge.

-Don't be shy with the sauce, Giorg. Crispy skin, Giorg?

-Crispy skin.

-Crispy skin, cor!

-Really crispy.

-But you see what I mean about how edible it is, the skin?

-Oh, wow.

There you are, Giorg. British classic, mate.

-All the way from the Thames onto the plate.

-Mmm.

Mmm.

The best thing is the sauce actually.

Now, pudding time, and if these won't make your mouth water, I don't know what will.

This is Raymond Blanc, and his E stands for chocolate eclairs.

Can you smile at me, Adam?

-I know it's early, a proper smile.

-That is a proper smile.

That's a killer smile, OK?

Next on the menu, eclairs.

The lightest choux pastry fingers, bursting with rich,

chocolate cream, topped with glossy, sweet icing.

The perfect first time pastry for any novice baker.

Many people believe that choux pastry is difficult, impossible,

challenging. No, not at all.

It's the most simplest patisserie you can make

and you've got a 100, no, let's say a 99% success rate.

OK? Pretty good.

For the choux pastry, Raymond mixes 65 millilitres of water,

65 millilitres of milk and 55 grams of butter.

In the milk, it will give a bit of colour

but mostly it will give the moisture.

And when the little choux are done,

the little steam, she is trying to escape from the little choux.

Cannot, so it steams out, pushing the little choux into, in puffing out.

OK, four grams of sugar and a tiny pinch of salt.

So, now, let's put that on.

He brings the mixture to the boil.

That is perfect. The butter, the water and the milk are mixing.

Then adds 100 grams of plain flour.

Because after we are going to dry that base,

that's when you need a bit of muscle power, eh?

And you stir.

Voila.

Next, four whole eggs are vigorously beaten in.

Look at that, look at that. That's lovely.

The choux pastry is now ready to be piped onto a lined tray.

Voila.

So, it's very important, of course, to do them straight as possible.

And compared to my patissiers who do that every day,

so theirs are "boom, boom!" Like that.

Mine are OK, all right.

So, we go 180 degree.

This will take between 30 and 35 minutes.

Food, actually, is a very inexact science.

If you cut them very big, it will take longer.

Raymond will fill the eclairs with a rich,

chocolate and vanilla pastry cream.

It's a builder's job, it's simple.

To half a litre of milk, Raymond adds a little vanilla essence.

So, just a little bit like that. Voila.

I'm going to bring it to the boil.

Pastry cream, or creme patissiere, is a custard thickened with

egg yolks, flour and arrowroot.

So, the milk is about to boil.

So, I put a little bit here.

Voila.

The pastry cream is cooked over a medium heat until glossy and thick.

Voila, you can see the texture.

Voila.

That's ready. Voila.

Tres bien.

So, there we have a lovely cream,

which of course, you can flavour any way you want to.

But what we are going to do, is to do chocolat.

Non-sweetened cocoa powder.

To 15 grams of cocoa powder, Raymond adds 20 grams of dark chocolate.

Wonderful smell.

Really wonderful smell, but again, you need quality ingredients.

Take that out, tres bien. Voila.

After half an hour, the choux pastry is cooled on a rack

-and ready to be filled.

-You take a nozzle...

Raymond uses a piping nozzle

to make three holes in the underside of the eclair.

Then, you are ready to receive the cream inside.

So, then you fill up.

Oh, lovely!

Beautiful.

Tres bien.

To glaze the eclairs, Raymond melts 200 grams of fondant.

Voila.

A tablespoon of cocoa mixed with water makes a dark, shiny finish.

Voila. And look at that beautiful colour.

To ice, he uses a flat wide nozzle.

Voila.

A splash of kirsch

and a little natural food colouring make a perfect pink.

So, the girls will love it. Voila.

Of course, can buy them in a beautiful shop, OK?

And that is also lovely and easy, but I think to make your own,

really - even if it's not perfect - it is hugely satisfying.

Shall we try it?

Raymond has invited Julia from his office

to taste the eclair as a treat for her birthday.

Look at that.

-Rich, beautiful, want a taste?

-I'm going to taste.

-Oh, they're good.

-How is it?

-Very good.

It's super because the filling is so soft and creamy

and yet these haven't gone soggy at all. Sometimes you eat them

-and they're soggy on the outside but they're so crispy and delicious.

-You're right.

What out of ten? How much?

I'm going to say ten, of course!

Of course.

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.