Cooking: Simply and Well, for One or Many

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You’ve done some TV (Great British Menu obviously but I also remember a magazine programme on Channel 4 I think to which you contributed recipe demonstrations including what I recall as an historic version of mushrooms on toast – hope I haven’t misremembered that!) but isn’t it high time you had your own series? Could Cooking be the perfect springboard for that? When Jeremy Lee received the very first copy of his new cookbook from his publishers, he immediately threw it in a drawer, then cycled from his home in east London to get on with his day at Soho’s Quo Vadis, where he is chef-patron. The book, Cooking: Simply And Well, For One or Many, was the result of many years of work, on and off, and he wasn’t quite ready to face its reality.

Oh Telly…well thank you, you certainly know how to make a cook blush. I love telly and think often of Michael Smith, Claudia Roden and Madhur Jaffrey who presented cooking with such ease, charm and style. Should the stars align, perhaps something charming in the loveliest kitchen with the glorious family we made when turning a manuscript into a book? Cooking has quite rightly been described by ESQUIRE magazine as ‘cookbook of the year’ and also ‘long awaited’ which is equally true. What took you so long!Put the 175g caster sugar into a stainless steel saucepan over a moderate heat and gently tilt the pan to keep the sugar on the move as it liquefies and turns to caramel. You want a rich mahogany hue; any darker and a bitter note will be introduced. Swiftly pour the caramel into the mould. Holding the mould with a cloth in each hand, and exercising great care, cautiously swirl the caramel around the bottom of the mould until it is evenly covered. Let this set, which will happen swiftly. I’ve had the good fortune to see chef’s kitchen ‘recipes’ in situ which are often no more than a list of ingredients and weights if they are even written down. The recipes in Cooking are brilliantly written for the home cook and work perfectly in the domestic kitchen. Did that take some mental re-wiring on your part to see things from the home cook’s perspective? Given Scottish chef Jeremy Lee's culinary career - Simon Hopkinson and the recently departed Alistair Little both appear on his CV - and his obvious mastery of prose it’s a wonder why it has taken him so long to pen his first book. Yet, with all good things, it is worth the wait. A beautifully written instant classic that is every bit as exuberant and delicious as the man himself!' Nigella Lawson To make the pastry, put the cold butter, the flour, sugar and a pinch of salt into the bowl of a food processor and render to a fine crumb. Add the egg beaten with the water and pulse until a dough forms. Place the dough on a lightly floured work surface and knead deftly into a drum shape. Cut the dough in half, then gently press down to form a disc. Wrap each disc, and freeze one for another time. Refrigerate the one you are using for at least 30 minutes. Each will fit a 20-25cm x 4-5cm tart case.

Lightly flour the surface and roll the ball into a rectangle, about 40cm x 20cm. Fold this in three and turn 90 degrees. Roll into the same sized rectangle again and fold in three. Cover and refrigerate for 20 minutes. Repeat this two more times, turning each folded rectangle 90 degrees. Chill the pastry for an hour, or overnight, or freeze for future use. A beautifully written instant classic that is every bit as exuberant and delicious as the man himself!’ Nigella Lawson Heat the milk in a heavy-bottomed pan. Add the 2 tbsp sugar, the vanilla seeds and the strip of orange zest. Heat this gently until merely a wisp of steam rises from the surface.Turn the pork chop and cook for a further 2-3 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and spoon the contents of the mortar on to the chop. Discard any excess fat from the pan, pour the red wine vinegar on to the chop, and turn it a few times to make sure it’s evenly coated. Cover and set aside to rest in the pan for at least 3-4 minutes. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6 and line a baking tray with parchment. Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface. Cut the pastry into 16 6cm-wide squares. To serve, gently press down around the edge of the custard, then run a sharp knife around it. Put a deep plate on top of the mould, and in one fluid motion, swiftly flip the creme caramel. Wait for the plop, shaking a little if necessary before lifting the mould. Ah, years of writing columns for the Guardian, other broadsheets and a fair few journals had taught me much. The most important quality was a genuine and honest approach avoiding myriad pitfalls. Most importantly, taking nothing for granted and ensuring a place in the finished manuscript. There were too a wealth of memories from years watching my Granny and my Mum in the kitchen cooking for her family which were easily tapped being buried deep in our, my siblings and my subconscious.

These bakes were all so good. When thinking of 12 puddings for Christmas, I tried to think of all the great classics that many people might enjoy. At the outset of the festive season, Mum would plunder the bookshelves for all her favourite recipes, and the pile of books by Elizabeth David, Jane Grigson, Claudia Roden and many more remained, throughout December, by the stool Mum always sat upon at the counter in the kitchen. The list of books I consult now are pretty similar, and I’ve called on them all to compile this list. It’s been a great adventure, but I underestimated entirely what it would take,” he admits. The pressures of writing daily menus and working in a busy kitchen meant that structuring a whole book seemed overwhelming. Lee hastens to add that at least it didn’t take 20 years to put together, like Alan Davidson’s Oxford Companion to Food. Lay a triangle of chocolate just inside one of the corners of the pastry square. Brush the edges of the pastry with a little cream. Fold the pastry in half diagonally over the chocolate, making a triangular turnover. Repeat with the remaining squares and arrange the turnovers on the prepared baking tray at least 3cm apart.

Jeremy Lee Cooking: Simply and Well, for One or Many

While the pork chop is cooking, grind the garlic, lemon zest, thyme and rosemary with the fennel and celery seeds in a pestle and mortar and set aside. Put the mould in a deep oven tray. Pour the custard into the mould then put the tray in the middle of the oven. Pour enough hot water into the tray to bring the level up to a few centimetres short of the surface of the custard. verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 130C fan/gas mark 2. Spoon the marmalade over the bottom of the tart case. Heap the frangipane in little clods over the marmalade. Strew the chocolate over the frangipane.