Rick Stein’s Cornwall episode 5

Rick Stein’s Cornwall episode 5: Rick Stein meets his good friend, the actor and comedian Barry Humphries, who fell in love with Cornwall in the 1960s when he escaped London to develop his now famous character, Dame Edna Everage, with near-disastrous consequences. Barry talks about his friendship with Britain’s favourite poet, John Betjeman, and asks Rick to review his homemade fishcakes. Rick also goes fishing for crab, before cooking a simple yet delicious crab omelette. And he takes a dip in the chilly north Atlantic with an eccentric group of wild water swimmers called the Perranporth Blue Tits.

In this new series Rick Stein reveals the Cornwall that he knows and loves: a unique part of the British isles with a strong sense of identity and a history rooted in its Celtic past. With his famous natural inquisitiveness, Rick shares the road less travelled – championing the food, history, music, art and culture of the county many locals argue should be a country in its own right.

Rick Stein’s Cornwall episode 5 recipes:

Crab omelette

A basic omelette is given an indulgent twist with rich clotted cream and sweet crabmeat. It feels special, but couldn’t be simpler to make.

Method:

• Heat the butter in a medium frying pan and add the shallot. Fry for 2 minutes, until softened.
• In a medium bowl, lightly beat the eggs with the clotted cream. Stir in the Parmesan, crab meats, herbs, salt and pepper.
• When the shallots are soft, pour in the egg and crab mixture. Reduce the heat to low and, using a spatula, occasionally draw in the sides as they start to set. While the egg is still wobbly and soft, flip one side of the omelette over the other to form a semi-circle.
• Slide the omelette onto a plate, cut in two and serve each half with a side salad and bread.

Rick Stein

Christopher Richard “Rick” Stein, CBE (born 4 January 1947) is an English celebrity chef, restaurateur and television presenter. Along with business partner (and first wife) Jill Stein he has run the Stein hotel and restaurant business in the UK. The business has a number of renowned restaurants, shops and hotels in Padstow along with other restaurants in Marlborough, Winchester and Barnes. He is also the head chef and a co-owner of “Rick Stein at Bannisters” at Mollymook and Port Stephens in Australia, with his second wife Sarah. He has written cookery books and presented television programmes.

After graduating, he converted a mobile disco in Padstow, which he had run as a student, into a quayside nightclub with his friend, Johnny. It became known for its freeze-dried curries. However, the nightclub lost its licence and was closed down by the police, mainly due to frequent brawls with local fishermen. The pair still had a licence for a restaurant in another part of the building, so they continued with that to avert bankruptcy.

Stein ran the kitchen using the experience he had gained as a commis chef. Eventually he converted it into a small harbour-side bistro, “The Seafood Restaurant”, with his first wife Jill in 1975. As of 2015, his business operates four restaurants, a bistro, a café, a seafood delicatessen, a pâtisserie shop, a gift shop and a cookery school. In 2007 threats against Stein’s businesses were made by Cornish nationalists. His impact on the economy of Padstow is such that it has been nicknamed “Padstein”.