Episode 2 The Good Cook

Love food? Love cooking.

This series will show you how everyone can cook really lovely food

at home and also introduce to you some new and exciting ingredients.

I'm Simon Hopkinson, and from childhood onwards,

eating good food has always been an adventure.

I love cooking, it's my life, it's my passion.

I opened my first restaurant aged 20,

and have been in and out of kitchens ever since.

But now I'm better known for writing about food.

For me, nothing beats cooking at home.

It is my real inspiration and I want to share my love of it with you.

That is just how it should be.

Tonight, I'm going cook five favourites that I'm really fond of.

Follow my recipes and make them work in your own kitchen.

Lovely, home-made food that will delight your friends.

And if you take my advice, eating at home will always be a treat.

I just love it.

I never see cooking as a chore.

In fact, time spent in the kitchen can be a real pleasure, relaxing even.

I'm cooking rice today. This particular dish, this risotto,

is one of the simplest, the most pure.

You could almost call it the naked risotto.

A few simple ingredients treated with care can produce

a masterful dish worthy of a professional kitchen.

First of all, we need to get some stock hot,

and this is a pale chicken stock.

If you're vegetarian, of course, you could use a vegetable stock.

If you don't have any home-made stock to hand, a good quality cube

dissolved in boiling water will be just fine.

For this risotto, buy the best butter.

The more salty a butter, the more golden it is.

So you can see that's incredibly pale

and it will give you a lovely, white finish to the dish.

Chop the onions as finely as you can.

When you're chopping an onion,

always keep your fingers rather more like this rather than like that.

That's when you'll chop them off.

These want to cook gently and slowly.

Please don't rush them because, me being the pedant that I am,

I don't want any scorched bits of onion

in my perfectly pristine risotto.

Because as with everything I cook,

I want it to be as good as it possibly can be.

Personally, I like to add the wine or vermouth to the buttery onions

before the rice, which is not the usual method.

I'm sure I'll be shouted at by a lot of people

but I find if you add it to the rice you have a raw taste in the rice

which just never goes away.

That's a little bit of a quirk of mine,

I'm just not mad about the raw alcohol taste.

I like it if I'm drinking it, but not when I'm cooking with it.

When the alcohol has almost evaporated, add the rice.

In it goes, straight away.

Most supermarkets stock rice for risotto

and 200g here should amply feed a hungry couple.

Keep the heat on low

while we get those grains of rice coated with the butter.

So we're going to add our first ladle of stock,

which will make a bit of a hiss.

Making a risotto takes time.

Only add stock to the rice once the previous addition has been absorbed.

Energetic stirring is vital, releasing the rice from the starch

making it famously creamy.

The secret of good risotto making is to agitate the rice

a lot while you're cooking it.

Faster stirring is much more preferable to gentle stirring.

It doesn't want that. You need to give it a bit of attitude.

The rice I'm using is Carnaroli,

grown on the plains of northern Italy.

BELL CHIMES

The sleepy village of Desana

is home to some of the finest varieties of rice.

Every autumn, millions of tons of rice are harvested

and the village springs to life.

The rice is dried over a period of 48 hours.

Despite the enormous scale, there remains a personal touch.

Hand-picked samples are scrupulously tested for humidity.

Grains must be absolutely moisture-free.

Once dry, the rice needs to be cleaned.

There are many varieties of rice.

Getting the right one for the job is essential.

Arborio rice is the most common for making risotto

but Carnaroli is my preferred rice here

because it produces plenty of starch,

essential for making this risotto unctuous and velvety.

You get into a nice rhythm, stirring risotto. It becomes...

Well, for me it becomes... a sort of movement.

My tummy starts jiggling about and that's part of my little risotto dance!

HE LAUGHS

And the last bit of stock.

Risotto isn't a garnish, as it is used so often these days

where it's poured into little metal moulds.

If risotto is held in place, it ain't a risotto.

Off the heat.

Rest for three minutes then add extra butter, and some Parmesan cheese.

To achieve the traditional fine texture,

whiz it in a small food processor.

You can keep it fresh and handy in the freezer.

I'm going to put in a little bit of pepper now, white pepper,

because it's a white dish, but I like the flavour too.

This is called mantecare, which translates loosely

as a lot of beating about with butter and cheese.

And what all Italian waiters do when they put it on the table, they do that,

to get this lovely circle.

And always a little extra Parmesan.

It is a beautiful plate of food. It's the dish of creamy rice...

sharp Parmesan, a plain, white plate

and anything else would just get in the way.

Mmm. Boy's done good.

Cooked with patience, care and practice,

a risotto is a pleasure to make.

Clever old rice, butter and cheese.

I love shopping for food.

Always have done, particularly at my local market.

I love places like this. I love the variety, I love the smells.

It's an emporium.

There's all sorts in a shop like this,

from the most basic to the most exotic.

Tins and tins and tins of coconut milk. Huge bags of rice.

Dried chilli flakes. Wonderful.

It is like being a kid in a sweetshop.

This sauce is so hot, I almost... I can't do that.

I have a jar in the back of my fridge which just sits there.

I occasionally get a bit brave and have some.

This is weird stuff, this is called... I think it's asafoetida.

Is it asafoetida? No, it's yellow powder, it's called!

What I've really come in for is this,

this fantastic red spice mix for my tandoori chicken drumsticks.

Don't even think about a takeaway, you'll love making this at home.

Homemade, this dish is succulent and juicy.

Cooked on a barbecue, it is extra special and smoky,

but can be just as easily cooked indoors.

First of all, I'm going to prepare these.

You want the flesh to shrink,

and to do that, just get a knife, a heavy knife like this,

and just push it through, so when they're cooked,

you'll have a nice little handle to hold on to, while you chew away.

Removing the skin allows the chicken to blister as it cooks.

I don't think I've met anybody who doesn't like tandoori chicken.

Well, I have vegetarian friends who wouldn't like it,

but in general, it is a much loved import.

The traditional cuts in the drumstick assure that the yoghurt and spice

will permeate the flesh, also tenderising it.

The tandoor, the clay oven in which these are baked on a long skewer,

very quickly, because it's like the best pizza oven,

it's very, very hot in there.

We have to try to replicate that.

A very hot grill will do the job at home very successfully.

Add salt and also lemon juice to sharpen the marinade.

Use the most common and inexpensive plain yoghurt.

It needs to be very runny, very ordinary yoghurt.

So, we have the tandoori spice mix. I like it, it's got to be red.

It's very nice, doing this. It reminds me of powder paint at school.

Now, for the mess. Just tip it into the chicken.

I should be putting an apron on for this, but just stand back.

For me, the chicken needs at least 24 hours in the tandoori marinade,

to make it taste really good and spicy.

Another day wouldn't harm either.

The fiery red drumsticks are ready, so under the grill they go.

I already preheated the grill so...

you can hear, it's hot and ready.

They will only need about 30 minutes,

and do make sure that the grill is as hot as can be.

While the chicken is grilling and cooking away,

I'm going to make a little dip.

It gives a nice cooling effect on the hot chicken.

Simply, this is yoghurt, salt and sugar,

together with some aromatic chopped mint.

Oh, better check on me chicken.

Oh, it's coming on nicely.

To ensure that the drumsticks emerge trademarked tandoori red

with blackened bits here and there, turn them regularly,

so they burnish evenly.

The dip tastes even better with some fresh green chilli.

Always test by...

..rubbing your finger. Actually, that's quite a hot one,

so, I'm not going to leave any seeds in here. Huh...

And let's give it a whiz.

I think that's all right, actually.

It looks just like my local Indian, so...spot-on.

Good. We've got black bits.

If you are very familiar with tandoori chicken,

you'll know that that looks pretty close to the real thing.

Burn in this dish is quite good.

In fact, it's essential to have bits that burn.

It's unusual to say that, but it's really true.

I can honestly say I'm very happy with those.

I'm going to eat one straight off the grill, if that's all right.

Hot chicken, cool sauce...

Very hot chicken. Hot and hot.

I could eat these until the cows come home, very, very moreish.

Tandoori drumsticks are just dandy as party food,

or for a summer supper eaten outside.

So easy to make.

Certain Italian ingredients make me very excited indeed.

In fact, some of my favourite dishes are inspired by

these wonderful products.

And one of these is truly special - Parma ham.

Not surprisingly, Parma ham comes from the city of Parma,

in northern Italy.

The two-year curing process begins with the highly trained

maestro salatore, or salt master, who rubs sea salt into the pork leg.

After one year, the ham is smeared with a mixture called suino,

seasoned lard mixed with a touch of ground rice.

This coating protects the exposed meat from the elements.

The ham is tested for quality and given a trademark seal of approval.

It is now perfect, with its unique flavour and texture guaranteed.

Parma ham is essential to one of my best beloved dishes.

I also have an excuse to make pancakes,

and less difficult to make than you might think.

Start the pancake mix with two eggs.

Always whisk with vigour as you add the flour, to avoid lumps.

You want to get the flour into the eggs, to ensure a smooth batter.

Add a pinch of salt, some milk...

..50g of melted butter..

..and the rest of the milk...

..whisking until you achieve a pouring cream consistency.

Batter, made.

Leave the mixture to rest for 30 minutes.

Now, to my lovely asparagus. I'm allowing two spears for each pancake.

I peel them, because it's part of my cheffy upbringing

and I just can't help it.

Boil for a few minutes.

They are tender when they can be easily pierced with a sharp knife.

Plunge them into ice-cold water.

This shock treatment keeps that lovely, vibrant green colour.

Pop them on here. Now we'll make the hollandaise sauce.

Homemade hollandaise is a beautiful thing.

The more you practise, the easier it gets.

Begin with three egg yolks.

Whisk the yolks over a pan of simmering water, on a very low heat.

Anything too hot will cook the egg yolks too quickly,

we want to get these thickened and mousse-like.

Now, add the melted butter, whisking all the time.

Very buttery, ever so healthy(!)

Add a little lemon juice to taste.

Add a touch of salt.

I think we're there.

Lovely.

And the hollandaise is ready.

Back to the pancake mix, which is now ready to go.

For the first pancake, grease the pan with a tiny amount of butter.

It is a knack.

My mum used to make them a lot for my brother and I,

just lemon juice and sugar, which, for me,

is still the best way to have a sweet pancake.

Just pour one in.

The first pancake always goes in the bin. We're just seasoning the pan.

Batter, getting to know the pan, and then we're on our way.

That done, all future pancakes should be perfect.

Bang it out.

Place the Parma ham and asparagus in the pancakes, roll up,

and put in a baking tray.

Cook in the oven for about 20 minutes at 180,

until they begin to crisp at the edges.

Coat each one with a spoonful of hollandaise sauce.

Then briefly flash the pancakes under a hot grill...

..until they're only just golden.

There we have them.

Delicious delice.

It's a dead elegant little dish.

It is made by that delicious Parma ham.

It gives it that lovely savoury note.

Quite clever.

One pancake mix a wonderful starter.

Two or three would make a delicious lunch.

A classic quiche Lorraine is a beautiful thing.

Over the years its reputation has been tarnished by careless cooking.

I'm going to show you how to make it properly.

This quiche shall banish bad memories of the wedding buffet.

A French classic, it can be truly special.

And mine is the real McCoy.

We called it "kwiche" at home when I was a little boy because We didn't know any different.

In fact, it was generally known as bacon and egg pie.

This is going to be a very nice quiche.

So, put the machine straight on the scales.

We are going to need 60g of butter.

And 60g of lard.

And then add 200g of flour.

Whiz all the ingredients together in a food processor.

Have a quick look.

I don't want it so fine that it's like sand.

Just a few tiny lumps of fat.

Add two to three tablespoons of ice-cold water to bind it together.

I am quite old-fashioned in that, as my mum always did, I use a knife.

Stir with a knife, stir with strife.

Lightly knead the dough.

And dust with flour.

This looks fine. Good pastry baking needs care and attention.

Put the pastry into a plastic bag and leave it in the fridge for 30 minutes.

One very important thing I'll do now before I forget

is to put a flat baking sheet in the oven.

A nice solid one, this.

This heated up will help to cook the bottom of the pastry case when it's baking blind.

It will give a nice, crisp...

bottom to the tart.

Set the oven to 180, or gas mark four.

Now it's time to make the filling.

Lightly fry the smoked streaky bacon.

Take the chilled dough from the fridge and roll out as thinly as possible.

I love making and rolling out home-made pastry.

I know most pastry can be bought ready-rolled.

But I am a traditionalist at heart.

This is a very well behaved pastry, by the way.

It's not too difficult to roll.

I would say it's untemperamental.

Place the pastry in a well greased tart tin.

Make sure you push the pastry right into the corner.

Try not to have too many of

what are called little folds.

Now, just go straight over with the rolling pin.

Pull that off.

Now make a few pricks with a fork into the base of the pastry.

Don't worry, these will close up again once they are cooked.

It just prevents the pastry from rising too much.

That feels good.

So, we're going to blind bake the pastry, which, in effect, means pre-cooking.

Butter some tinfoil and place grease-side down onto the pastry.

Then weight it down with either some lentils, chickpeas or any dried bean.

And that is ready to go into the oven.

Place on a flat baking tray and cook for about 15 minutes.

Now remove the lentils and foil.

And cook for a further 10 minutes.

Back in.

While the pastry is becoming nice and crisp, I'll begin the filling.

So, we've got three eggs. I'm going to have four yolks.

Whisk lightly and add pepper.

Plenty of pepper, I like a peppery quiche. White pepper.

Then add whipping cream.

And grate in a third of a whole nutmeg.

Good. That's perfect.

The pastry should now be pale golden and cooked through.

I'm going to pop the bacon in the bottom.

Just distribute it around.

And back into the oven.

This is very nice.

Very nice puffed-up quiche.

Quiche should never be eaten piping hot, straight from the oven.

It tastes much better warm or even at room temperature.

Hot quiche has little flavour.

Wobble, wobble. Lovely.

Gently does it. Ooh, wobble, wobble.

I don't think you ever need a knife with a quiche.

Quiche is to be forked.

It's a voluptuous thing, this.

It's bliss, it's really bliss.

Very happy.

I can see this quiche Lorraine becoming a lovely family favourite.

This way, it's in a different class to the dried-out quiches of old.

These days, I have become a bit of an early bird.

Every morning, I like a walk by the river before breakfast.

Even at this early hour, I think about cooking.

And a cup of coffee gets me going.

Coffee can be a great flavour to play with, and, obviously, for something sweet.

Believe it or not, I'm going to make something that only has two ingredients.

Coffee and sugar.

The only other two things you need to make it is a freezer and a fork.

These frozen coffee crystals, similar to a sorbet

but with attitude, are astonishingly easy to make.

Your friends will ask, "How did you make that?"

Now, I'm going to fill this with water.

The coffee itself in here. It's going to be full.

So you get almost double strength, like an espresso.

If you don't have a coffee-maker like mine,

then just make very strong coffee in the way you normally would.

And for the finest flavour, use the finest ground coffee.

Now, if you're going to make something like this and take time over it, take time over your coffee.

I do like my cup of coffee.

So, let that bubble away.

And what we need is a metal tray.

To make this coffee granita successfully, put a metal tray in the freezer to get really cold.

Also put serving bowls in the freezer, too.

Once the coffee is made, add the sugar until it dissolves.

It just needs to be "put finger in and need to take out quickly" hot.

Pour the sweet coffee into the ice cold tray.

So, into the freezer. Leave for about 40 minutes.

It's now that the granita

needs a little attention.

About every half hour, take a fork and drag it through the mixture,

moving the crystals that have formed into the liquid part.

That's done. Straight back into the freezer.

You'll need to do this three or four times.

It is the key to achieving the perfect melt-in-the-mouth texture.

This is perfect. You can see it has changed colour.

Actually, you get quite a lot of servings from this.

If you think back to how it was when it was liquid or even how that

last stage was, it's almost filling the dish now.

Put it back in the freezer for the last time, just to keep it while I whip some cream.

I know I said two ingredients, but I can't resist adding whipped cream.

Add a vanilla pod, I'm going to put a few seeds in. Scrape those out.

Then add some icing sugar.

Not too much, it's just to add a touch of sweetness.

When you beat cream, just the agitation of doing it warms up the cream.

However cold it is, a little bit of crushed ice as you're whipping away

just keeps the temperature cool.

Just take a few ice-cubes and crush them in a tea towel before adding to the cream.

This keeps the cream cold and adds lightness.

You want to get it so that it's just dropping off the whisk.

That's fine. Time to serve the granita.

Wow.

It really makes me smile, this.

And it's that...

that I really love.

Coffee and cream, all melting. It's marvellous.

This combination of ice-cold coffee and soft, rich cream

is the classic Italian cafe treat.

Perfecto.

Next time, I'll be showing you five more super recipes.

All of them special,

all of them easily made in the comfort of your own kitchen.

Restaurant quality, made by you.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd