The best of British

When he thinks about his role as a chef, Tom Kerridge says he’s “much more like Gareth Southgate now rather than Jack Grealish”.

Kerridge, who runs a string of restaurants, including The Hand & Flowers in Marlow, Bucks – the only pub in the UK with two Michelin stars – says that while his role might have changed over the years, his approach to food hasn’t.

“Fundamentally, I’ve stayed exactly the same. The ethos, the energy – the food that we cook is always produce-based,” he explains.

“It’s about taking something that people recognise and turning it into something world-class, whether it’s a pie, whether it’s a steak, whether it’s just doing fish and chips, these sort of things. Understanding what it is that makes it, and how do you make it the best thing ever.”

Marlow-based Kerridge has put this ethos into his latest cookbook, Pub Kitchen: The Ultimate Modern British Food Bible, a follow-up to 2013’s Tom Kerridge’s Proper Pub Food.

The first book included recipes such as steak tartare, bone marrow on toast and fish and chips – dishes Kerridge calls “beautiful British cookery”.

Why not try out some of his recipes?

Chicken and mushroom pot pies

Ingredients:

(Serves 4)

750g chicken thigh fillets

500ml chicken stock

5 black peppercorns

4 sprigs of thyme

2 bay leaves

2tbsp olive oil

200g baby chestnut mushrooms, halved

2 banana shallots, finely diced

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

150g chargrilled artichoke hearts, quartered

50g butter

50g plain flour, plus extra to dust

1tsp Dijon mustard

1tsp wholegrain mustard

1tbsp tarragon, finely chopped

100ml crème fraîche

1tbsp sherry vinegar

500g packet ready-made puff pastry

1 large free-range egg, lightly beaten with a pinch of salt

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Method:

1. To cook the chicken thigh fillets, put the chicken stock, peppercorns, thyme and bay leaves into a medium saucepan over a high heat and bring to a simmer. Add the chicken thighs, reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and cook for 15–20 minutes or until the chicken is tender.

2. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a frying pan, add the mushrooms and cook for two minutes. Add the shallots and garlic, stir and cook for three to four minutes or until softened. Remove from the heat, stir in the artichokes and set aside. Remove the chicken thighs from the stock and set aside on a tray. Strain the stock. Leave both to cool slightly.

3. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a saucepan, stir in the flour and cook for two minutes. Now gradually whisk in the chicken stock and continue to whisk over a medium heat until the sauce thickens. Stir in both mustards, the chopped tarragon, crème fraîche and sherry vinegar, then the mushroom mix.

4. Cut the poached chicken into bite-sized pieces and fold through the sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste and leave to cool slightly. Divide the pie filling between four individual pie dishes and place in the fridge to chill.

5. Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface to a 5mm thickness. Cut out four rounds, two centimetres wider than your pie dishes. Brush the edges with egg, then lay a pastry round, egg-washed edge down, over each pie dish. Brush the tops with egg wash and rest in the fridge for 20 minutes.

6. Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C Fan/Gas 6. Cut a couple of slits in the top of each pastry lid, to let steam escape during cooking. Bake the pies for 30 minutes or until the pastry is crisp and deep golden brown. Let stand for a few minutes before serving, with a green veg and mash on the side if you like.

Paneer and pea fritters

Ingredients:

(Makes about 24)

Vegetable oil, to fry

1tsp cumin seeds

1 onion, finely chopped

150g frozen peas, defrosted

1 green chilli, deseeded and finely sliced

175g gram flour

1tsp chaat masala

3tbsp finely chopped coriander leaves

250g paneer, coarsely grated

Salt and freshly ground pepper

To serve:

Mango chutney

Method:

1. Heat two tablespoons of oil in a small frying pan then add the cumin seeds and let them sizzle for a few seconds before adding the onion. Cook for five to seven minutes until the onion is softened, then remove from the heat and leave to cool. Preheat the oven to 150°C/130°C Fan/Gas 2.

2. Once cooled, tip the onion and cumin mix into a bowl and add the peas, chilli, gram flour, chaat masala and chopped coriander. Stir to combine and season well with salt and pepper. Pour in 200 millilitres of water and mix well. Add the grated paneer and stir through gently.

3. You will need to cook the fritters in three or four batches. Heat a 4-5cm depth of oil in a sauté pan to 180°C (check with a thermometer). When it is hot, drop spoonfuls of the mixture into the hot oil, spacing them apart. Cook for two to three minutes on each side or until golden and crispy.

4. Remove the fritters from the pan with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper. Keep warm in the low oven while you cook the rest.

5. Once they are all cooked, season the fritters with a little extra salt and serve with mango chutney and lime wedges on the side.

Sticky date and banana pudding

Ingredients:

(Serves 4)

1tbsp softened butter, to grease the dishes

100g plain white flour, plus 1tbsp to dust

100ml dark rum

1tsp bicarbonate of soda

150g pitted dates, chopped

85g vegetable suet

85g soft dark brown sugar

1tsp vanilla extract

2 large free-range eggs

For the toffee sauce:

200ml double cream

100g soft dark brown sugar

75g butter

A small pinch of salt

To finish:

2 small bananas

2tbsp demerara sugar

Method:

1. Brush four individual ovenproof dishes (250 millilitre capacity) with the softened butter and dust lightly with flour, shaking out any excess.

2. Pour the rum and 100 millilitres of water into a saucepan and bring to the boil, then take off the heat and add the bicarbonate of soda and dates. Pop a lid on the pan and leave to stand for 10–15 minutes to allow the dates to soak up the liquid and cool down.

3. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C Fan/Gas 4.

4. Tip the dates and liquid into a large bowl and add the flour, suet, brown sugar, vanilla extract and eggs. Beat until evenly combined. Spoon the mixture into the prepared dishes and bake in the oven for 30–35 minutes until golden brown.

5. Meanwhile, to make the toffee sauce, pour the cream into a saucepan and add the brown sugar, butter and salt. Place over a low heat, stirring until the sugar is dissolved, then bring to the boil. Simmer for two to three minutes, then remove from the heat.

6. Peel and thinly slice the bananas. Once you’ve removed the puddings from the oven, arrange the banana slices, overlapping, around the edge of each dish. Sprinkle the banana slices liberally with demerara sugar and run a cook’s blowtorch over them to caramelise the sugar.

7. Serve the date and banana puddings with the toffee sauce in a jug on the side.

Pub Kitchen by Tom Kerridge is published by Bloomsbury Absolute