On The Side

Last week’s venture into the wonderful world of Greggs steak bakes turned my mind to pies. And with us being in the month of December, I suppose that even a dyed in the wool, bah humbug type must permit discourse on the topic of Christmas. So consider this. Go into a butcher’s and ask for…

In the drinks world, the word terroir is a well known one. It’s used to describe the properties of a very small area of land and the particular characteristic of what grows there. Yes, I hear you ask, but what has that to do with gin or rum, two spirits which are distilled, blended and…

OK, OK, don’t write in. At least I didn’t take up your time with a competition. So what would you have included under U? Ugli fruit was the only thing which came to mind, and that’s just a hybrid which looks like a misshapen grapefruit. All that the Larousse Gastronomique could add was unleavened bread, and to…

You may recall that I was given an air fryer as a birthday present last year, and in this column I logged my first faltering steps as a user. The blasted thing packed in after just a few months. It probably speaks volumes to relate that I had no hesitation in sourcing an immediate replacement.…

In the world of food, there is a variation on a slur sometimes cast at teachers. Those who can, cook; those who can’t, write about it. Discuss. Very well, since you ask. In the case of some food writers, the lack of culinary knowledge is embarrassingly obvious from their writings. The converse, however, is equally…

In a new feature for Tom’s Food! award winning wine expert and writer Diana Thompson has agreed to contribute an occasional series of articles. This month she is in Portugal, ahead of next week’s Wines of Portugal Fair in Edinburgh Home to 250 indigenous grape varieties, Portugal produces wines from tip to toe of this…

This is the second in a series of two short articles with some food memories of a month spent in Liguria and Piedmont. Last week we were reminiscing about Ligurian pasta. Travel north to Piedmont and it’s a very different story. In Turin, they will enthuse about their tarajin. They’re a variation on tagliatelle, cut more…

Liguria Think global, act local. That’s one of the mantras of Patrick Geddes, a great hero of mine. Without him, half of Edinburgh’s Royal Mile would have been demolished a century ago. I suppose my twist on it would be, travel global, eat local. Today’s article is inspired by having spent most of last month…

Some things just creep up on you, don’t they? Old age is the most pernicious one, but at least you have the advantage of an annual excuse to celebrate. I knew I had been punting out these columns for a while, but I didn’t half get a start the other day. Searching for something or…

Chef Watch Featuring Kei de Freitas of Macau Kitchen, Edinburgh How long have you been a chef? On and off for about 10 years, and full on for the last 10 years. So 20 years. Why did you become a chef? I enjoy cooking food for people, and seeing them enjoy that food. Food is very…

Sorry, Jay. For once you’re getting no sympathy from me. My food hero Jay Rayner has written a cookbook*. In a recent article in the Observer Food Monthly he writes about the problems of a bish-bash-bosh cook trying to explain to his readership how to make a particular dish. Tell me about it, mate. When I set out…

Well, we all do it, don’t we? Get beyond the age of, say, 40 and the way you were taught things generally remains the way you do them. For many it remains the only way to do them, all others being heresy. In the context of cooking, how easy is it for professionally trained people…

Where do you get your ideas from? I’m often asked. Well, today the inspiration came from a pinny (that’s an apron for you non Scots.) I had a chuckle when I saw this in a shop the other day. Sound advice, probably, for the average man in the Scottish barbecue season. Note that I used…

Chef Watch Featuring John Williams Executive Chef, The Ritz Hotel, London   How long have you been a chef? 50 years. Why did you become a chef? I became a chef because of my deep-rooted passion for cooking that started in my childhood. Ever since I was a kid, I loved watching my mum cook;…

In life, as in baseball, you can often be thrown a curve ball. If, like Babe Ruth, you have exceptional talent, reactions and flexibility, you can smash it out of the park. To be a successful columnist, advance preparation is everything. (Actually, that’s a big fat lie: but it can make life less stressful.) Take…

STUFFED A History of Good Food and Hard Times in Britain Pen Vogler Atlantic Books                      pp453                                        £22 The Godfather; Back To The Future; Beverly Hills Cop.…

When writing the Caesar Salad recipe last week, I began to discourse on Chicken Caesar. I had got as far as a rant about grilled chicken, then realised I would end up with an article twice the required length. The more I thought about it, the more I thought some chicken musings might be appropriate.…

Cesare “Caesar” Cardini   I notify you of this a week in advance so you have time to prepare. To gather the ingredients, to deck the halls. But to celebrate what? Let’s think of all the things that happened in 1924. In January, Ramsay Macdonald became the UK’s first ever Labour Prime Minister (though he…

We’ve met Wendy Barrie before in this column. That was in a feature about Slow Food Scotland. Despite it having been in existence since 2002, I have to confess I knew little about her core business, the Scottish Food Guide. This lady has many strings to her bow. So it was back to Aberdour. This…

Diana ThompsonPicture by Phil Wilkinson If you’re interested in wine and don’t know the force of nature that is Diana Thompson, you are a disadvantaged person. Fortunately help is at hand. Come to the Assembly Roooms in Edinburgh’s George Street on Saturday 1 June when Diana is running the second annual Edinburgh Uncorked Wine Fair.…

The recent spell of half decent weather has cheered up the general population – but not nearly as much as it’s brought a smile to the faces of ice cream makers and sellers. Observing the eating of ice cream in the street is very much like watching the growth cycle of the average homo sapiens.…

I suspect we all suffer from impostor syndrome from time to time. In my case I had it in spades a week or so ago, finding myself on a bus with a bevy of beauties, food professionals all. Thanks to the lovely Cat Thomson, journalist and hen keeper extraordinaire I found myself invited on a…

Back? Did it ever go away? And where did it come from? Maybe it was just in my newspapers of choice (yes, paper ones, and yes, I do know how that dates me) but I’ve been reading a lot about this recently. Stuart Ralston is one of Scotland’s most influential chefs (Aizle, Noto, Tipo and…

Chef Watch Darin Campbell Head Chef, Cromlix, by Dunblane How long have you been a chef? I’ve been a chef for nearly 30 years. I started out working in a small local hotel in my home town of Largs. I realised I had a passion and talent for cooking so I moved to Edinburgh and…