How to Cook Like Heston ep 6 – Potatoes

In How to Cook Like Heston ep 6, Heston challenges the way we cook the humble spud. Potatoes hold together most meals in Britain but surely there is more to spuds than mashing, boiling or roasting?

 

Heston will shine a light on the neglected champion of the home cook and take viewers through a radical compendium of tips and techniques to transform your Maris Pipers into a mouth-watering main course – from his legendary Triple Cooked Chips to Potato Donuts, Potato Skin Jam and the perfect mash.

 

How to Cook Like Heston ep 6 recipes:

 

Roast potatoes

roast potatoes

This recipe makes roast potatoes just the way I like them – with a crisp, glass-like crust and a fluffy interior. The key is to cut the potatoes so they have lots of sharp edges then to cook them until they are almost falling apart. Don’t scrimp on the amount of oil added to the pan – it is the fat gathering in the cracks that makes the potatoes so crispy. Olive oil works really well or you can use goose fat or beef dripping, but they will give a different flavour. The garlic and rosemary are optional. You can either add them to the water when boiling the potatoes or to the roasting tray 5 minutes before the end of the cooking time.

Heston Blumenthal’s perfect mash

Heston Blumenthal’s perfect mash

The technique in this recipe, i.e. cooking waxy potatoes at a very specific temperature, is designed to hold on to the starch in the potatoes and prevent it from leaking out and turning the potato gluey. The end product is the creamiest smoothest pommes purées ever. If you want to be extra decadent, go 50:50 potato to butter. Adding lime jelly cubes to the mash for a fresh burst of flavour is optional.

Exploding potato doughnuts

exploding potato doughnuts

Donuts are normally made with flour but substituting some of the flour with potato flesh gives a lighter, springier donut which can then be coated in crystallised potato and dipped in potato milk jam (follow the link below to my recipe) … all this from the humble spud! The coloured, exploding coating is really for the kids but I love it too!

Triple cooked chips

triple cooked chips

These chips are one of my proudest legacies! You see them on menus up and down the country now but the original recipe came out of endless experimenting at home long before I even opened the Fat Duck. The first secret is cooking the chips until they are almost falling apart as the cracks are what makes them so crispy. The second secret is allowing the chips to steam dry then sit in the freezer for an hour to get rid of as much moisture as possible. The final secret is to cook the chips in very hot oil for a crispy, glass-like crust.

 

How to Cook Like Heston ep 5 – Cheese

In How to Cook Like Heston ep 5, Heston takes on one of the most popular ingredients in the UK, the humble cheese. Cheese does of course come in many guises and Heston will show viewers what to do with them all… well almost.

 

He will reveal the key ingredient for the ultimate fondue, how to convert a block of cheddar into a staggering 4 meter long cheese string, and Heston will transform the much loved cheese toasty from a hot bag of napalm into the ultimate guilty pleasure.

How to Cook Like Heston ep 5 recipes:

Cheese fondue

Cheese fondue

The cheese in this fondue should be runny and stringy, not thick and stodgy, and the key to achieving this is using cornflour and white wine. The cornflour prevents the proteins in the cheese coagulating and the acidity in the wine keeps the cheese stringy.

Cheese on toast ice-cream

Because it blurs the boundaries between sweet and savoury, this is one of those recipes that could be presented as a starter, a main course or a dessert. But whenever you choose to serve it, make sure you include all three elements – it’s the combination that makes it so good.

Macaroni cheese

If you want a real centrepiece, cook the mac and cheese in the hollowed-out rind of a cheese – it adds to the overall cheesiness and looks great. But if you can’t buy the whole cheese, this recipe includes instructions for cooking it traditionally. If you can’t get hold of these specific British cheeses, you can substitute them for a good quality cheddar.

Cauliflower cheese

Preparing the florets in three different ways before mixing them with the cheese sauce provides a combination of textures and flavours that makes this cauliflower cheese really special. Like my mac and cheese recipe, cornflour is the secret ingredient to a really good cheese sauce.

 

How to Cook Like Heston ep 4 – Chicken

In How to Cook Like Heston ep 4, Heston challenges the way we cook chicken, the most popular meat in the world, but an old bird well in need of a makeover. First up, Heston attempts to revolutionise the way we roast a chicken by sharing his low and slow cooking technique. Then he gets to grips with the chickens many delicious parts in a chicken autopsy.

 

At his village hall Heston challenges the local hockey team to a blind stock tasting match before introducing his own super flavour-boosting stock – the secret of which is a sprinkling of milk powder to increase the levels of protein and sugar. With the basics under our belts, Heston reveals his guarded recipe for his dreamy chicken and ham pie, and demonstrates a shortcut to make a Michelin-star worthy chicken consommé.

For a final bit of theatre, Heston teaches us how we can use hot water, dry ice and essential lemon oils to flood our kitchens with chicken enhancing aromas.

How to Cook Like Heston ep 4 recipes:

Chicken and ham pie

Chicken and ham pie

A great technique for thickening sauces and pie fillings is to use a tablespoon of agar agar flakes instead of starch. Agar agar is a setting agent derived from seaweed and it ensures a really smooth finish without masking flavour as starch does. Agar agar is also a good vegetarian replacement for gelatine in recipes, and it is a lot more heat resistant.

Heston Blumenthal’s roast chicken

Heston Blumenthal’s roast chicken

This recipe is a firm family favourite. The roast chicken is made extra juicy by brining the chicken before roasting it, then cooking it for a long time at a gentle temperature. Brining is a fantastic technique for keeping moisture in food and it is incredibly simple to do. It involves a little forethought but minimum effort and it will guarantee a juicy and succulent bird every time.

Brown chicken stock

Stock is the hidden hero in hundreds of recipes, so it’s vital that it’s packed with flavour. One way to boost the deep meaty flavours is to add milk powder to the chicken wings before cooking them. The resulting stock tastes like the essence of pure roast chicken and you’ll never look at a stock cube again!

Chicken consommé

Consommé is a beautifully clear rich soup but it can be a real hassle to make. However, I’ve found a way to make it at home that’s as good as you’d find in any Michelin-starred restaurant. The technique used in this recipe of freezing and defrosting the natural gelatine is great for clarifying any stock. You can then serve it on its own or use it as a base for different flavours such as soy, ginger, garlic, chilli, spring onions, noodles and pak choi.

 

How to Cook Like Heston ep.3 – Chocolate

In How to Cook Like Heston ep.3, Heston challenges the way we cook chocolate. The secret to success with cooking this luxurious ingredient is gentle seduction – indirect heat and away from moisture. With these simple rules Heston lifts the lid on his magical popping candy passion fruit gateaux with an exploding base, an amazing flowerpot Tiramisu with edible chocolate soil and he even manages to transform this sweet tooth favourite into a surprising savoury main dish. Then there’s a magic twist as Heston turns dark chocolate into rich chocolate wine.

 

Any excuse to use a power tool, for his next recipes Heston arms himself with a few! There’s a can of keyboard dust cleaner to shock freeze melted chocolate into a pliable chocolate sculpture, a paint sprayer loaded with velvety dark chocolate to coat a frozen cake, and a pneumatic drill to explain how chocolate is made,

He visits his village hall to show the colourful characters from the local am dram group the best way to make a hot chocolate, and then invites them round for tea to try his magical flower pot tiramisu.

How to Cook Like Heston ep.3 recipes:

 

Exploding chocolate gateau

Exploding chocolate gateau

Don’t tell your guests about the popping candy in this simple chocolate ganache gateau. Instead, sit back and watch the surprise on their faces as the base starts exploding in their mouths. This dessert recipe is the perfect excuse for getting the power tools out, namely a paint gun, which can be bought at any good hardware shop. It’s great fun to use and the effect is spectacular, but the gateau has to be frozen for it to work.

Iced chocolate wine

iced chocolate wine

This unusual sounding drink is based on a historical recipe for a restorative elixir from the eighteenth century. It may sound like a strange combination but it is completely delicious.

Chocolate truffles

chocolate truffles

“At the heart of a good chocolate truffle is the ganache,” says Heston Blumenthal. “It sounds poncy but really it’s just 50:50 cream and chocolate and it’s really easy to make. Once you have mastered the basic recipe, you can infuse the cream with different flavours to create your own unique truffles.”

How to Cook Like Heston ep.2 – Eggs

In How to Cook Like Heston ep.2, Heston Blumenthal challenges the way we cook eggs – the most versatile ingredient in the kitchen. He reveals the secret to a great boiled egg – don’t boil it. Bring it to the boil, then take it off the heat and let it stand for six minutes in hot water. After revealing his special techniques for poached eggs and confronting how his local Bray Women’s Institute scramble, Heston makes his signature scotch egg with a runny yolk.

 

Then he reveals how to achieve a perfect lemon custard tart every time using a thermometer. Finally, a bit of magic, as he invites the Women’s Institute over to sample his famous bacon and egg ice-cream, made with dry ice. Their verdict? The best thing ever to come out of a witch’s cauldron.

How to Cook Like Heston ep.2:

 

Soft-boiled eggs

Heston Blumenthal’s soft-boiled eggs

My method for cooking soft-boiled eggs is so simple but this recipe works perfectly every time. The trick is to use freshly laid eggs, then to let the residual heat do all the work.

Poached eggs

Heston Blumenthal’s poached eggs

There are many different approaches to poaching eggs – creating a whirlpool in the water, adding vinegar, etc. – but my approach in this recipe is very simple. It relies on using only the freshest egg –the white will be firmer and therefore the egg will hold together better in the water. And straining the eggs before cooking them to get rid of all the straggly bits is an important step.

Scrambled eggs

Heston Blumenthal’s scrambled eggs

To get the creamiest scrambled eggs, you need to cook them really gently. In this recipe I use a bain marie (a heatproof bowl resting on top of a saucepan of simmering water). This guarantees a gentle but consistent heat that is just right.

Bacon and egg ice-cream

Heston Blumenthal’s bacon and egg ice-cream

This is one of my signature dishes at The Fat Duck. What makes this recipe so special is being able to make instant ice-cream at the table with the help of a little dry ice. Dry ice can also be used to turn bought smoothies and custard into ice-creams and sorbets. I serve this dish with marmalade because its bitterness and acidity cut through the richness of the ice-cream.

Lemon tart

Heston Blumenthal’s lemon tart

Heston Blumenthal shares a few simple tips to help replicate his lemon tart recipe. “For this tart to achieve greatness, the filling has to be exactly the right texture – not too soft but not too firm either. The most reliable way to get it right is to use a digital probe which takes out all the guesswork. When blind baking, the pastry should be treated like a biscuit; if you think it is done, cook it for a little bit longer. Also, use the best lemons you can so that they contribute great acidity.”

Scotch eggs

Heston Blumenthal’s Scotch eggs

The challenge with a Scotch egg is making sure the sausage meat is cooked while the yolk is still runny in the centre. With this recipe, be warned, as the eggs are not fully cooked when you peel them, you have to be very careful. These are great snack or appetiser.