Great British Food Christmas 2024

Q: Why domy roast potatoes always stick to the tray and what can I do tomake them crispy? A: The key to a crispy roasty is to first ensure the potatoes are cooked enough that you can really fluff up the edges, but they still hold together. It’s imperative that you pre-heat your roasting tin with plenty of fat so it is hot when the potatoes go in. Then be patient and allow them to cook and seal on the bottombefore you turn them. You can’t rush a roasty. AdamSmith, Woven Q: My son’s girlfriend is joining us for Christmas and is a vegan. What should I cook for her? A: The secret to accommodating vegans at Christmas lies in a bit of foresight. Many traditional dishes are, or can easily be made, vegan. For instance, roast potatoes with rosemary salt, crunchy stir-fried Brussels sprouts, and roasted Chantenay carrots tossed inmaple syrup can be enjoyed by everyone. This leaves only the main dish and gravy to be specifically vegan. We embrace a fully traditional Christmas with an old-school nut roast and onion gravy. Our nut roast combines cashews, breadcrumbs, onion, garlic, parsley and vegetable stock, layered with duxelles mushrooms and spinach, then wrapped in pastry and baked. Marc Joseph, E3 Vegan Q: My braised red cabbage is always too chewy. Where am I going wrong? A: Make sure your oven is not too hot (180 ⁰ C is plenty), and cover your cabbage with baking parchment and foil, which creates steam and stops the cabbage burning. Cook it until just tender then, if necessary, reduce the juices separately in a saucepan until syrupy and stir back into the cabbage. To avoid it becoming too sweet, I like to add red wine vinegar and grated Bramley apple for balance, and stirring a knob of butter through the cabbage at the endmellows the flavour. Mick Binnington Q: My Yorkshire puddings always collapse. How can I make thempuffy and light? A: Yorkshires can be a flat affair unless you follow a few simple rules. To make your batter, use equal volumes of egg, milk and all-purpose flour. Pour in a jug and let it rest, ideally overnight. Make sure your oven is hot – at least 220C. Use a heavy roasting tin or a good quality muffin tray. Pre-heat the tray with fat in the oven for at least 10 minutes. If the batter doesn’t sizzle when you pour it into the tin, stop, and get the oil up to temperature. Cook until golden brown. Do these and they’ll never fall flat again! MarkWogan, Spooning withMark Wogan Podcast Q: I’m sick of turkey. Any suggestions for a different Christmas centrepiece? A: Porchetta is a great alternative and can be quite the centrepiece with crispy crackling and a juicy sage, onion and apricot stuffing, bound with Cumberland sausagemeat. Make sure you use higher welfare pork belly with a good fat content. This will keep it moist during cooking. Make sure the skin is very dry before cooking, and score the skin of the pork in 1cmparallel diagonal lines both ways to achieve a crisscross pattern. Try not to cut too deeply into the fat as this will stop the fat from getting crisp. Sally Abé, The Pem Q: How can I makemy side dishes more interesting? A: I love transforming my veg by pairing them with spices and herbs. One of my favourite tricks when cooking carrots is to throw a stick of cinnamon into the water. The humble carrot gets infused with a gorgeously sweet and warming flavour, with no effort at all. For a real treat, I love making star anise andmaple roasted parsnips. The liquorice-like flavour of star anise combined with caramelisedmaple syrup takes the parsnips to a whole new level. Sanjay Aggarwal, Spice Kitchen 79 greatbr i t i shfoodawards.com FEATURE | CHRI STMAS DINNER