Remove the bitter green from garlic
That little green bit in the middle of a garlic clove is bitter, so remove it. Now you’re ready to cook!
Pimp your rice
Rice is whatever you want to make it! Stir all your favourite bits through plain rice and it becomes something magnificent. Look at this!
Baked mash potato
For a really special mash, bake the potatoes first on a bed of salt instead of boiling them. Check they’re soft, let them cool…
Butter garlic crab
This is butter garlic crab, and it’s utterly indulgent. Bring 3 tbsp water to a bubble, drop in 150g unsalted butter and whisk to…
Poach eggs to serve later
This is how I poach eggs for ten people! Use super fresh eggs and water that’s barely simmering, not bubbling. Lift each poached egg…
Carbonara tips
My top tip for carbonara: before you cook the pancetta, gently cook a garlic clove in the oil until fragrant and lightly coloured, then…
Making pesto in a pestle and mortar
Pesto made by hand in a pestle and mortar has a texture and flavour a blender just can’t match. The pounding releases the oils…
Thinly sliced garlic with a truffle slicer
I don’t have lots of gadgets, but my truffle slicer gets used constantly. It’s perfect for radishes, and even more for wafer-thin garlic. I’ve…
Making clarified butter
Clarified butter can be heated hotter than regular butter without burning, and it’s the base for béarnaise and hollandaise. Gently melt butter and let…
The finishing touch for coq au vin
As so often happens on a Sunday, I made dinner for four and only two of us are eating. Children with hangovers! My coq…