Episode 14 The Chef's Protege

Getting to the top of any profession takes not only skill and determination,

but a few breaks along the way.

Show me what a good cook you are!

Tom Kitchin, Theo Randall and Michel Roux Jr

have all been helped in their careers by someone who believed in them.

I think it'll be very difficult for any chef to achieve greatness without a mentor.

Put it through one more time.

Now they want to give someone else that same chance...

Ow! Ow! Ow!

..By going back to catering college to find a young student they can each take under their wing

at their own protege.

It's such a gruelling industry.

If you want to get to the top, you need to work with the best.

-Look at you! You're excited! Eh?

-Yeah! Definitely.

Hallelujah!

Tom, Theo and Michel are searching for someone who they think is a worthy apprentice.

-Happy chef, Shona?

-I think so.

They each have a week to select and train up their strongest candidates...

Mmm!

Two things on the go at the same time! Come on, come on!

Or even three things on the go! Multitask, come on!

..Before they compete against each other to see who has the best protege.

This week, it's Michel's search,

and he's short-listed four students from some of the brightest young talents

at University College Birmingham.

-Why are you here?

-I don't know.

-There you go!

-Yeah.

-Bingo!

-Brill.

Well, I haven't dragged you out of bed at the early hours for nothing.

I'm going to take you to somewhere very, very special.

Today, Michel's bringing them to Cliveden House in Buckinghamshire,

where, back in the '50s, his father, the legendary Albert Roux, worked for the wealthy Astor family.

This really is a special place.

It's the first place that my father worked in England,

and it was as a scullery boy.

It was basic chores, cleaning, a really tough, horrible job,

and that was at the age of 18.

I think, deep down, he's actually very proud of having worked for such wonderful family

in such a beautiful place.

It was here Albert had his first taste of cuisine bourgeois

or grand country house cooking.

As the Astors played host to Mahatma Gandhi, royalty, Churchill, Charlie Chaplin and the Beatles,

all of whom were treated to some of the very best hospitality and food in the country.

Wow!

We all...? Come on, then.

Thanks.

Oh, this is strange!

Oh, this is really strange!

Right, guys. You're going to be cooking for two very important guests.

It's the two chefs that we are up against.

Theo Randall, Theo Randall is coming and so's Tom Kitchin.

Oh!

So they're expecting something very special and very Roux.

-I want Reece on the starter.

-Yeah.

Sophie on the middle course.

OK.

-Rebecca on the main.

-OK.

-I've seen you make a wonderful sweet. I want to see if you can do some savoury now.

-OK.

-Which means you are on the dessert. All right?

-Yeah.

Really, really prove to me and to Theo and to Tom

what you guys are made of.

I want them to sit down to their food at lunchtime today

and go, "Wow!"

OK?

Let's go.

I want the students to come up with some great cooking, some classics, something that's very me,

but also some food that befits this house.

Cuisine bourgeois, as we call it in French, it has to be rich, it has to be elegant, yet simple.

Michel has already sampled both Tom and Theo's students' cooking,

and they're keen to eye up the competition.

Look at the grounds, the trees!

I'm kind of feeling that Michel might be trying to intimidate us a wee bit here.

Well, it's a pretty impressive building.

-It's not your normal surroundings, is it?

-No.

Let's have a look.

Michel has been impressed by Reece from the start,

but he's become worried about his shaky performance in service

and will be looking for improvement.

I think these are going to be the most important people I'll ever cook for.

And I need to get it right today because the last challenge I didn't do very well.

Reece has chosen to do a very ambitious starter,

a venison and pheasant consomme.

-Have you made a consomme before?

-No.

-No?

I know how to go about it. I've never done it and it's exciting.

The key to the dish is the flavour of the consomme,

and my stock's got to be bang-on as well.

Has to be golden, has to be clear, can't be cloudy.

If it's not, I've failed.

Oil?

-Have you put oil on there?

-Oh, in there?

We're not dry-roasting!

These are such a bony fish.

From a weak start, Sophie has gone from strength to strength.

Today for the middle course she's chosen mackerel with a classic beurre blanc sauce.

The tricky thing with this sauce is you can't split it.

If the butter should split... but, yeah.

Good so far.

Chef, do you want to taste this now?

It's just a little bit rich,

but once you've passed it and you've pressed it...

-Pressed it out...

-It will thin itself a bit.

-Your seasoning's very good.

-Thank you.

And...so we've got that... the kale as well to deep-fry.

-I've cut it like that, because I think this might shrink.

-It will shrink.

-Well, you've got time, do a tester.

-Yeah.

Yeah, but go!

Guys, watch yourselves now.

Don't walk past. Do not walk past!

CRACKLING - Firework display! - OK.

Whoo!

Looks very impressive, doesn't it?

Oh, look at this, silver cutlery. Lovely!

-This is everything that typifies the whole philosophy of the Roux Brothers.

-Yes.

You know, this is grand, this is gastronomie, isn't it?

-And I'm so looking forward to this meal.

-Mmm.

Yeah, it should be good. Better be good.

For their sake!

Rebecca's already impressed Michel with her pastry skills,

but he wants to see her perform at the same level with her main course, roast loin of pork.

Her first job is to make an apple calvados sauce.

Once everything's coming together

I'll be a lot more confident.

Right now, I just feel... sick to the bone.

Go on!

Oh, dear! Hang on, hang on!

-Yeah?

-OK.

I thought these days were over.

-There you go.

-Thank you.

Now you need a big pan.

Into there.

Drizzle of oil.

Keep an eye, keep an eye...

-keep an eye.

-Coming.

From Day 1, Michel has seen a spark in Alex.

He's hoping to impress him today with a faultless orange chocolate fondant.

What in the blazes is this?

Does that look right?

It has come out like that before, and I have got it back from there.

-You reckon that's going to work?

-Yes, chef.

-Well, you've got time. I'd like to see a test.

-OK.

-Because I'm not confident.

The perfect fondant must be light and spongy

with a free-flowing, rich, chocolate centre.

There's a little bit of seed of doubt in my head but I'm still confident with the recipe I've got.

Hopefully it will show when the fondant comes out in the test.

This is like a double-edged sword for Michel,

because he's had the advantage of seeing our guys,

so either he's petrified or he's ultra confident and he's now flexing his Roux muscles,

-and then he's saying, "Welcome to my world".

-"This is how it's done," I think, yeah.

-Oh!

But let's hope the students deliver.

For the last hour, Reece has been striving to create a rich stock as the base for his consomme.

I did say that this needed seasoning, didn't I?

It needs more?

More?

-I've tasted tap water that's got more salt than that!

-No!

-I have!

To clarify the stock, Reece combines egg whites with flavour-enhancing herbs, juniper berries, mushrooms,

and finely chopped pheasant breast.

The cooled stock is then added to the mix.

This is the part where everything could go wrong.

When it reaches boiling point, you need to take it off the heat and simmer,

-so that the egg whites cook and catch all the impurities.

-OK.

If it boils like mad, the egg white will cook too quickly

-and won't have time to catch the impurities.

-OK.

-All right? I'll leave you to it.

-OK.

I understand it completely.

Just keep moving it, as soon as it comes to the boil, bring it off, let it simmer,

cook the egg out, sorted.

If only it was as easy as that, eh?

Reece looks terribly nervous.

He has been nervous from the very beginning.

It was his idea for consomme.

Fantastic! That really is so, so... difficult to get right.

But he's never actually made one.

You guys should be thinking now about plating up, how it's going to look.

Sophie's practising the presentation of her dish,

using scrunched-up paper towels and a kitchen cloth.

It's really doing my head in.

You've got plenty. Why don't you actually plate it up with the real ingredients

and that way you've got it in your mind and you know exactly what you're going to do?

I like that. It's very bold, understated.

-Is that mackerel cooked right there?

-You have a taste.

Might be a bit over.

A shade over. You're right, but it's lovely.

-Perfectly seasoned.

-Thank you.

Whoo! That's it! I'm going for it.

To add texture to her main course, Rebecca has been roasting off the pork skin to make crispy crackling.

-Whoar! Look at that!

-Is that OK?

-Wow! That looks lovely!

Put it under the hotplate and it'll stay crispy. That looks yum!

And you have got your sauce here, or the basis of it.

Oh!

What do you think of this, Rebecca?

It's good. It needs reducing, but I think it's got a good base flavour.

Mmm.

I'm getting the pork, the apple, everything is in there.

-Good. I like what I'm seeing.

-Thank you.

Alex needs to convince Michel that his fondant recipe will work, and his test is now ready.

I think I've overcooked it slightly. We'll see.

Ah! Right.

Let's have a look.

It's not as gooey or runny as I expected it to be.

But...

..it tastes lovely. It works.

Thank you, chef.

Reece will be first to serve the chefs.

I don't know about you, Theo, but I'm absolutely starving!

My stomach's rumbling, and I think we're going to get a soup.

Aha! Well spotted, chef!

Handle it very gently,

because we don't want it to cloud.

Let's have a look.

Whoar! Beautiful!

-Well done.

-Thank you.

The consomme will be served with slices of pheasant breast,

but, with minutes to service, Reece still hasn't cooked them.

In a pan. You want me to get the pan as well?

Come on!

-Try to brown it.

-Garnish?

-Would you like me to put the garnish in the consomme cups for you?

-No.

-No?

-Just a hint of urgency would be nice.

-Yes, chef.

-Come on!

Go, go, go!

That is lovely.

Don't know who cooked it, but it's perfectly cooked.

Smashing. Service. Thank you.

That's your first consomme. I remember when I made my first consomme.

-I was absolutely shaking in my boots like you.

-Yeah.

I'm proud, but I'm disappointed still.

Er...

Chef had to get involved and help me out and I didn't want that.

I appreciate it, but...

..it's a mark against me, I think.

That's the clearest consomme I've ever seen!

Very clear.

It's just, like, packed full of flavour.

And that pheasant, it was so juicy!

It was as if they'd cooked it just under, placed it in the bowl,

and then poured the hot consomme over the top to cook it through to perfection.

I mean, I don't want to get worked up here and nervous,

but it's too good!

It does seem exceptional quality.

Reece, take a seat, please.

-Had you ever made a consomme before?

-No. First time.

-First time making a consomme?

-And that's your first consomme?

-Yes. First time I've ever eaten one as well.

-Have you ever thought of opening a consomme restaurant?

-Might do now!

I was very impressive. We both felt you'd had a lot of help from Michel, because it was so exquisitely made.

He was there. If I needed him, he was there. He done bits and bobs for me.

-Thanks. Very good.

-Cheers.

I've learnt more in the space of six, seven hours than I have in three, four months of college.

I'm here to stay and I'm here to learn, and learn a lot.

-Sophie?

-Yeah?

-Ten minutes, yeah?

-Ten?

-Yeah.

So I'd start cooking now, come on. Let's go.

I cannot mess up at all.

Got to cook the fish perfectly. Got to plate it up perfectly.

It's got to be perfect. No room for a mistake.

Remember, not too cooked, please.

Very modern.

It's not entirely what they're going to expect from me.

-Done.

-You happy with that?

-Yeah.

Service, please.

-I like it.

-Thanks.

Yeah? And I'm pretty sure they will too.

Sophie's middle course is pan-seared mackerel fillet served with pickled beetroot,

artichoke puree, crispy kale and a lemon beurre blanc.

How do you feel about it being on a slate?

I have a slight thing about slates. I think they should be on a roof, chef!

-The mackerel's cooked nicely.

-It's perfectly cooked, the mackerel.

-Nice and crispy the skin.

-Yeah.

Good acidity in the beurre blanc, not too thick, not too thin.

I'm not quite sure about the crispy...kale, is it?

Works quite nicely, though, because it's quite salty and quite fresh.

-I thought the essence of the dish felt real.

-It had a soul, didn't it?

-It had a soul. Exactly! It had a soul.

-Mmm.

-Hello.

-Hello.

-Hi, Sophie.

-Hi, Sophie.

-Hi.

-How are you?

I'm fine, thank you.

-So, happy with your dish, absolutely?

-Yeah. I've never cooked mackerel before, so...yeah!

You've never cooked mackerel before?

Well, I think you did an amazing job if you've never cooked mackerel before.

It was cooked to perfection. I couldn't have done better myself. It was fantastic.

-Thank you.

-Well done, Sophie.

-Nice to meet you.

-Nice to meet you too.

-Thank you. Bye.

-Bye-bye.

I've never heard such good feedback, not one negative point at all.

I'm really happy.

And they both said they couldn't have cooked the mackerel more perfect themselves,

so hearing that's quite amazing!

OK, little clean down. Well done. Good.

-I like Sophie.

-She's nice.

-She's a good girl.

-She's got the kind of right attitude, hasn't she?

-Two down and two to go. You're up next!

-Argh!

Once I cut the port, we'll know if it's all OK,

if we can breathe and relax.

Until then, mm-hm!

-So now...cut the pork.

-Yeah.

-One nice medallion, yeah?

-That do?

-That's it, yeah!

Oh! Good, good, good.

For main course, Rebecca has roasted medallions of pork,

served on poached leeks with pommes Anna,

layered slices of potato and onion, cooked with butter and pork fat,

and an apple calvados sauce.

OK. Please, pick up.

That looks incredibly neat. Very precise.

They're going to look at that and they're going to go, "Wow!"

Something I love more than anything, good old crackling!

I think every chef loves crackling.

That crackling is excellent. They've flattened it as well.

-These leeks are... these are not cooked.

-Mmm.

Taste delicious, but it's a bit undercooked.

The pork is moist, it's not overcooked, I mean, that's what you're really looking for, isn't it?

It is delicious.

Maybe missing just a wee touch of seasoning in the potatoes.

-But then saying that, the actual sauce is quite well seasoned, so...

-Yeah, definitely.

Shows good understanding of the marriage of flavours.

-Right, young lady, they're up for you.

-OK.

-Come on!

-Smart?

-Yeah.

-Yes?

-I think so.

You're looking good. OK. Go on. Off you go.

-Hi, Rebecca. Please, take a seat.

-Thank you.

-How are you?

-Er...good but terrified.

-Don't be terrified.

-You've had a day of all emotions, I'd imagine.

-Yeah!

For me, there was a couple of things...

-First of all, the leek, for me, is not cooked properly.

-OK.

But the crackling, that has to be one of the best cracklings I've ever had!

How much do you think you've learned from Michel this past week?

Oh, so much, just in flavour combinations, how to enhance the flavour in something,

and that it doesn't have to have 20 different components.

It can look simple but taste great, so...

-I think you can be really proud of yourself.

-OK, thanks.

-Do you not want your crackling?

-I'll share it with you.

Really surreal, really terrifying, but I think generally happy.

I think at the end of the day, I can go home and think, "Well, it wasn't as bad as it could have been!"

Yours to go.

Oh!

It's really starting to kick in now, it's really got going.

It all boils down to the timer.

Have you got it right?

Do they look right? Have a little touch.

Oh!

Careful.

It smells lovely. I mean, it really does smell chocolatey.

And I think they are still fondant, but you're going to need to move,

because they do carry on cooking.

Come on out!

Whoah! Careful!

Well, that answers our question! It is molten inside.

It's all right, you've got another two. Don't worry, don't worry.

Yeah, that's it, that's it.

Whoah! That'll do, that'll do. OK.

That's it.

-Is it falling?

-Yeah.

-It is? OK.

-Let's go.

-Yeah.

-Thank you.

That was tight, wasn't it? That was very tight.

-That was so far out my comfort zone.

-Da-da-da! I can hear your heart.

Mmm!

Mm-hm!

Mmm.

-That fondant...

-That's a good fondant.

-..Is cooked to perfection!

This orange confit, for me, is quite possibly the icing on the cake,

because it's crispy, it's tender, it's no bitterness,

and the creme anglais, classic French cooking,

with the little addition of the cardamom seed.

-It's a very, very good combination.

-Look at it, it's absolutely perfect.

-There's not too much...

-It's textbook cooking!

-It is really textbook cooking!

I think every dish is textbook cooking, Theo!

-It's really worrying, isn't it?

-Ah, zut!

-How are you?

-About fine...and nervous.

Why are you nervous? You just created a fantastic dessert.

-I don't do desserts!

-Really?

-It's not my forte.

-We'd have paid good money for that.

-Thank you. That means...

-You're enjoying it?

-Yeah.

-You look like you're enjoying it.

-Relax!

-That means...

so much to me to hear that comment.

-Well done.

-Thanks very much.

That warm feeling that you get inside,

I just feel like a little kid again, just...it's such a great feeling.

It's a magical experience.

-The scary thing is, Michel's got to get rid of one of them.

-Yeah!

Which one would you choose?

I've seen my students work their socks off.

They've given it their heart and soul. It's such a tough decision, it really is.

I do feel that Reece has improved as a cook. That consomme was a triumph.

I still worry about him, though, because he needs to be told constantly what to do next.

Sophie had the best day today. She shone, she really did, I mean, that mackerel was heavenly.

I purposefully pushed Rebecca on to the main courses,

and I think she rose to the challenge.

I think she's very pleased with herself, and so she should be.

Alex is so emotional, sometimes to his own detriment.

But he has got the abilities, but he just doesn't believe in himself.

Ultimately, Michel is only looking for one protege.

Now, he must tell one of the students they're going home.

Every time I think, every time I think of it, I think, "OK...

"it's her," and then I think, "No, I can't do that,"

then I think, "It's got to be him," and then I think, "No, I can't do that."

Reece, come with me.

You must feel really, really down, but...

..you've learnt today, you've learnt.

It's not a slight on you.

I expect, when you open your restaurant, to have a consomme on the menu,

-and I'll come and taste it.

-OK.

-Yeah?

-Yeah.

-Good lad.

-Thank you.

-Good lad.

Fantastic. Well done.

The talent has been amazing

and the people I've cooked for has been brill,

but it was a competition and I didn't win, so...

Mmm.

Well done.

I'm absolutely loving every second of it. I'd do it all again in a heartbeat...easy.

I love it so much.

For Michel to still think I'm good enough to stay in the competition is just amazing,

it's a dream, really! I'm so glad to have got through.

So nervous for what's happening next, but so excited,

and it's just...aaargh...incredible right now, yeah.

Aaargh!

Tomorrow night, Michel's hunt for his protege continues

when he opens the doors to a central London kitchen.

It's all about seeing if they have understood everything that I've been drilling into them...

You can talk the talk, can you walk the walk?

Whiz round! Whiz round! Whiz round! Whiz round! Whiz round!

You and measuring and numbers...

-I think at 262 degrees...

-I didn't put it on there, though. I didn't put in on 260.

It was on 180 when I put it in the oven.

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