Rick Stein’s Cornwall episode 8: On the wild north Atlantic coast, Rick heads out to sea to go fishing for lobsters with his old friend and celebrity chef Nathan Outlaw and learns about a revolutionary new conservation programme which is making lobster fishing a sustainable enterprise. In the historic and pretty harbour town of Port Isaac, Rick and Nathan cook up a fabulous lobster risotto.
At Tresillian House, near Newquay, Rick meets with head gardener John Harris to find out more about his Victorian walled garden, an oasis of calm where Rick discovers how harvesting by the phases of the moon means better tasting veg. Rick cooks a Cornish Briam, a tasty slow-cooked dish of fresh vegetables.
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 8 recipe:
Cornish briam (roasted vegetable traybake)
Briam is a Greek slow-cooked roast vegetable dish. No need to fry, no need to stir and you can use any vegetable you have in the fridge. It’s also vegan and gluten-free! Serve it as a side or main course.
Method:
- Preheat the oven to 190C/170C Fan/Gas 5.
- Use 2 tablespoons of the oil to grease a roasting tin (about 25 x 35cm/10 x 14in), or a shallow casserole dish with a lid.
- Spread the potato slices in the tin in a single layer, then season with salt and pepper.
- Layer over the carrots and season again. Add a layer of courgettes, then onion and garlic, and season once more. Scatter over the broccoli, and cover with the tomatoes. Scatter over the herbs and a final sprinkling of salt and pepper. Mix together the passata and the remaining oil and pour over the vegetables.
- Cover the roasting tin tightly with foil or put a tight-fitting lid on the pan and bake for 1½ hours. If the vegetables have released a lot of liquid, pour it off into a pan and reduce down to a thick and tasty sauce. Pour it back over the vegetables and allow to cool slightly before serving as a side dish or as a main with crusty bread or rice.
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”.