Golden balls
(by peter & susie)
From gold-plated venison meatballs to marriage proposals in front of thousands, the BBC winter Good Food Show at Birmingham NEC was as buzzy, mad and delicious as ever.
We had a blast. It was a privilege (and a giggle) to be on the super theatre and Saturday Kitchen stages with the likes of Pierre Koffmann, Sarah Millican, James Martin, Vivek Singh, Lawrence Keogh, Chris Evans, Tom Kerridge, Jayne Middlemiss and Michael Caines, among others.
There was no shortage of fabulous food, from Vivek Singh’s spiced venison meatballs (served festive-style with gold leaf) to Tom Kerridge’s blow-torched mackerel and James Martin’s delectable passion fruit baked Alaska. A pre-Christmas health drive is called for…
As promised, the various wines for all our selections are as below. Usually on Saturday Kitchen we work to a budget of under £9 but, seeing as Christmas is coming up, we wanted to showcase some wines worth splashing out on to make the occasion all the more special.
Thanks to everyone who came along and made it such a wonderfully enjoyable few days. It’s great to see the enthusiasm out there for brilliant food and drink. Huge kudos also to the brilliant teams at Haymarket and Cactus for putting the shows together.
We can’t wait for the summer show! In the meantime, please check out the newly launched and very exciting Cactus Kitchens – a chance to get up close and personal with top chefs like Michel Roux Jr and James Martin in the venue where Saturday Kitchen is filmed. We’re hosting a very special Valentine’s wine tasting on Thursday 14th Feb and we’d love to see you there.
Saturday Kitchen stage, hosted by Lawrence Keogh
Broth of smoked haddock, leeks, pancetta and poached quail’s egg (Michael Caines) – Villiera Traditional Barrel Fermented Chenin Blanc 2011 (£10.99, M&S)- Deep-fried goujons of plaice with sauce remoulade (Lawrence Keogh) – Marksman Brut Blanc de Blancs 2009 (£22, M&S)
- Bunny chow (Atul Kochhar) – Torre del Falco Nero di Troia 2010 (£7.99, Waitrose)
- Sesame sponge cake with poached plum and green tea ice cream (Tom Kerridge) – Late Harvest Riesling 2011 (£14.99, M&S)
- Braised elbow of lamb with red lentil stew and parsley salad (Glynn Purnell) – Caramany Carmagnole Prestige 2011 (£9.99, M&S)
- Seared feather blade of waygu beef with shallot rings, beetroot purée, curly kale, sautéed potatos and beef jus (Galton Blackiston) – Craggy Range Te Kahu 2011 (£14.39, Majestic)
- Three-hour slow roast stuffed shoulder of lamb with pistachio, apricots and fresh mint sauce (Lawrence Keogh) – Cadet de Ka 2008 (£8.49, M&S)
- Roast pork belly with Austrian cabbage and apples (Lawrence Keogh) – Bellingham Bernard Series Chenin Blanc (£11.99, Majestic)
- Pistachio soufflé (Pierre Koffmann) – M&S medium dry Cava (£8.99, M&S)
- Roast rib of beef with watercress and horseradish (Lawrence Keogh) – Jim Barry The Cover Drive Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 (£10.99, Majestic)
- Roast venison loin with root vegetables and pickling sauce, venison meatballs (Vivek Singh) – Surani Costarossa Primitivo di Manduria 2010 (£7.99, Majestic)
Super theatre stage (sponsored by Tesco Real Food)
Blow-torched mackerel with blini pancakes, warm pickled beetroot and chive crème fraiche (Tom Kerridge) – Finest Tingleup Riesling (£9.99, Tesco)- Roast leg of lamb in hay with vichy carrots, roast potatoes and mint sauce (James Martin) – Finest Viña Mara Rioja Gran Reserva 2004 (£13.99, Tesco)
- Chilli fried tofu with egg fried rice (James Martin) – Finest Rosé Champagne NV (£21.99, Tesco)
- Peanut and dried mango crusted partridge with curry leaf tomato quinoa (Vivek Singh) – Finest Otago Pinot Noir 2011 (£10.99, Tesco)
- Passion fruit baked Alaska (James Martin) – Finest Dessert Semillion 2009 (£6.99, Tesco)
- Jose Pizarro’s deep-fried chicken wings al ajillo with braised peas and jamon with eggs (James Martin) – Codorniu Vintage Cava Brut 2010 (£10.49, Tesco)
- Duck à l’orange (Pierre Koffmann) – Finest Viña Mara Rioja Reserva 2007 (£9.99, Tesco)