I always felt like the Duke of Edinburgh Award gave me something that almost proved that I was already working on myself and working to achieve things. Signing up to the HertsLive newsletter means you'll get the latest news direct to your inbox each day. It was absolutely delicious and tasted just like the chicken satay sticks at my favourite restaurant!

Jon Watts Beef and Potato Curry - Chef Jon Watts

I changed out the double cream for free from coconut cream which was excellent and now I’m hooked on making more of Jons recipes. As you can probably imagine, being in the Palace two weeks before and then having achieved employment and working in quite an amazing place at the time just gave me that sense of self belief and self confidence. Fast-forward 16 years, I’m working for myself and spend my days creating and sharing recipes, cooking at private and corporate events and helping to inspire others but particularly young people through my cooking. From prison to professional chef, Jon Watts’ debut cookbook shares the story of how he turned his life around through food, inspiring others with his passion for cooking. I started to create and share recipes, at first out of boredom, but I realised very quickly that they were very popular.Each day we'll be sending you a selection of our top stories from across our county, as well as breaking news so you can be the first to know. His life could quite easily have gone one of two ways - he either accepted his life was over and he'd forever be hanging around the wrong crowd, or use the time he had to knuckle down and get himself out. A lot of very successful people I've met in my life dropped out of school at 15, 16 and have been in trouble or their lives haven't gone the way that they're supposed to go.

Jon Watts Crispy Chilli Chicken - Chef Jon Watts

Add a little cooking oil and the butter to a large frying pan, once it’s really hot add the chicken and cook until it is golden brown on both sides.I found myself hanging around with people that were involved in crime and all sorts of other nonsense and it sort of gave me a sense of belonging and a kind of purpose. Cut the butter into chunks, place in a heat proof bowl along with the dark chocolate and melt it over a pan of simmering water until there are no lumps left, take off the heat and set aside to cool slightly. He admits he had "no social life" as he'd often work elsewhere on his days off, such as spending time at Michelin star restaurants to give him an extra edge on his peers.

Jon Watts Classic Scones - Chef Jon Watts

He had also spoken on the programme at an earlier date to talk about the impact of the Duke of Edinburgh Award to Alison Hammond and Dermot O'Leary following Prince Philip's death. I do like the dish to be a little saucy if you like it this way maybe worth leaving it a bit runny as it soon gets sucked up into the pasta when left. I swapped the mascarpone for crème fraise as it was all I had in but worked well) it was a hit with the whole family who said it was very tasty. Fast forward three-and-a-bit years and he became the first person in custody to get their bronze, silver and gold award.Never stop believing in yourself," said Jon, who is hopeful of soon putting together a cookery book. In April of this year his dream came true - he was cooking a chicken and prosciutto Milanese for Phillip Schofield and Rochelle Humes live on one of ITV's flagship shows. I remember being around the chefs who loved what they did, I loved the taste and smells of all the fresh herbs and vegetables that I had never seen or even heard of before. The amount of sauce was perfect for four of us and made the hassleback potatoes to go with it and tenderstem broccoli.