Pub Kitchen: The Ultimate Modern British Food Bible: THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

Welcome to my Pub Kitchen

When I opened The Hand & Flowers eighteen years ago, I set out to create the kind of place I wanted to hang out in on my days off. Working as a chef six days a week in a lot of top-end environments, I wanted to be able to go somewhere I could relax with a pint, where I’d feel comfortable, where I could wear a T-shirt and jeans – all while enjoying some great quality food.

Pubs are familiar, warm and reassuring. We all know how they work. You go to the bar, have a chat with the bar staff, someone hands you a drink and then you might order something to eat. This knowledge is ingrained through years of British history.

For centuries, pubs have been the backbone of our society – they’ve been hubs and sanctuaries for connecting people and communities. There’s something so quintessentially British about being in a pub garden in the sunshine or sitting in a comfy chair next to a roaring log fire; I don’t think it can be replicated anywhere else in the world. It’s been ten years since my first cookbook, Proper Pub Food, came out and this new book invites you into my Pub Kitchen today. It’s a continuation of that first book and a celebration of how far we’ve all grown as a culinary nation. Ten years is a long time!

British pub food has become so strong over the past decade or so, and it’s been really exciting to see. I’m so proud to be part of such an incredibly eclectic and continually evolving food scene. Now, wherever you are in the country, you can find fantastic local gastropubs with super-tasty dishes on their menus – and, as customers, we won’t put up with anything less.

Great food is no longer about having to get dressed up in a shirt and tie and sitting at white linen tablecloths. It’s not based around a sense of formality but more about living in the moment – you can turn up at one of my pubs in a football shirt and that’s no problem! The way we eat now is about enjoying great food that’s been made with care, and the recipes in this book reflect this.

It’s the kind of food you might enjoy if you pop round to your local pub for lunch, or stop by for a drink and a snack and then end up staying for dinner. It’s simple, strong food that celebrates great ingredients and isn’t afraid to play around with flavours. I’ve used easy techniques to transform the dishes you know and love into something really special – and they’re all recipes that, with just a little bit of effort, you can recreate in your own kitchen at home.

What’s on the menu?

Another reason I think people love pubs so much is that you can order pretty much whatever you feel like at any time of day. No judgement. You can drop in for a bowl of soup or a sandwich at lunchtime, but equally you can have a three-course meal. You can share two or three starters between your table or have just a main dish each. And no one will blink an eye even if you head straight to the puddings section on the menu!

I’ve grouped the recipes in this book to reflect the ways we eat, and chapters follow how you might approach a menu when deciding what you want to cook. If you fancy a pie, head straight to Pies & Roasts where you’ll find individual and larger sharing pies. Or maybe it’s a roast you’d like to serve up. If you want something meaty, you will find chicken, beef, lamb and pork recipes grouped together in the meat chapter. Or you might prefer fish or something veggie… And, once you’ve decided on your main course, you can build from there if you want to add something to start or a pudding. You’ll also find a whole chapter of my favourite pub snacks at the beginning of the book.

I’ve taken the most popular items on the menus in my pubs and given them a few fresh twists. The lightly battered tempura cod with an Asian dipping sauce is my play on classic battered fish. There’s a slow-roasted lamb shoulder with roast potatoes, but I’ve flavoured it with some incredible deep Indian spices and it’s served with a quick fresh chutney that takes mint and adds coriander, lime and sugar. It’s a bit different from your regular lamb and mint pairing, but still has all those slow-cooked vibes and smells amazing.

I love to add new flavours and play with different techniques to provide a different spin on dishes, but I’ll always respect the classics too – a beautiful piece of poached salmon served with Jersey Royals and brown shrimp butter (see here) is perfect just as it is and I don’t think it needs messing with. You’ll also find roast pork belly with a sweet-sharp apple sauce, steak with green peppercorn sauce (here) and some traditional pies and puddings, because I’m not sure you can improve on those. Most of the time, I think it’s about respecting the quality of the ingredients that you’re using and not overcomplicating things. That’s why I think people continue to come back to my pubs, and it’s what I hope this book delivers to you too.

Our diverse food nation

One of my favourite things about the continually evolving British food scene is how culturally varied it is. Because Britain is such a beautifully diverse nation, we see that in our food too. The same menu in a pub or restaurant might see influences from right across Europe, Asia, Africa and the American Deep South sitting together, and customers will think it all sounds fantastic. It’s like we’re all on an exciting food adventure together and we’re willing to try a bit of everything.

You might still want a classic roast beef on a Sunday with irresistible puffy Yorkshires and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that – I think that sounds amazing – but maybe you’ll order some padrón peppers as your starter or finish with a pannacotta rather than root vegetable soup and a steamed pudding. We’ve not abandoned the classics and I don’t think we ever will, but we’re up for trying a different take on things.

I’ve seen first-hand in my pubs that people are excited to try flavours or ingredients that may have been unfamiliar to them a few years ago – such as the liberal use of spices like sumac, za’atar and ras el hanout, or dried seaweed flakes used as a seasoning in mayonnaise, or a creamy burrata with their roasted pepper salad. It’s a crossover of the flavours we all love already with a bit of a leaning on global influences.

Or maybe you’re settled into your usual seat in your local, but rather than drinking an ale or a G & T, you’re enjoying a cocktail or a cold lager from Japan. Pubs have fully embraced the international food scene over the past few years and being part of that exploration has been a fantastic journey.

How pubs have changed the way we eat

It’s true that Britain used to have a pretty poor reputation globally for food, but thankfully that’s all changed. From street food all the way up to three-Michelin-starred dining, people’s expectations are at an all-time high when it comes to what they’ll spend their hard-earned cash on – and understandably so. Through watching cookery shows, attending food demonstrations, increased travel, sharing of ideas over social media, and with the quality and welfare of the produce we eat becoming an increasing priority, people expect good-quality ingredients and top-notch food wherever they are.

People know what fresh fish tastes like now, they know how things should be cooked. You’ll find locally caught fish, grass-fed beef and free-range chicken as standard on most menus. And when the public demand more, pubs and restaurants have to step up their game and become competitive and more creative with their menus – and I’m here for that! If we’re all demanding more and better from each other, then that’s going to create better quality food up and down the country.

It used to be that we’d go to our favourite pub because it had a good range of local ales, but now people are more likely to recommend somewhere because it does a tasty handmade pie or fantastic fried squid. In pubs all over the UK you’ll find chefs doing really exciting things with diverse, interesting ingredients. You’ll still get the classics on the menu too, like burgers and steaks or a Sunday roast, but they’re made with so much love and attention – homemade burgers, perfectly cooked steaks from good cuts of meat, and roasts with incredible side dishes or that have been given a bit of a flavour twist. People just expect more these days, and it’s great to see.

There’s been a definite shift towards this in restaurants too, and I think they’ve taken a lot of influence from what’s been going on in pubs. The focus everywhere is more on creating a relaxed, inclusive environment where people can really enjoy themselves without any of that lingering air of pretension. Good food is becoming more accessible to everyone, and people are embracing quality dining from all walks of life. Food snobbery is being crushed and destroyed and I’m very happy to see it!

I love nothing more than when people come to The Hand & Flowers or The Coach and tell me that it’s their first Michelin-starred experience, it makes me feel super-proud. It means I’ve created somewhere people feel comfortable to be themselves, where they can actually enjoy their time without feeling they’re having to put on a show.

I see this every summer at the Pub in the Park festivals too – brilliant Michelin-star chefs cooking outside, away from their high-tech kitted out kitchens, and everyone wandering round in their shorts (or, OK, more likely their wellies) just enjoying eating tasty food during a family fun day out. Small producers and exhibitors doing chocolate brownies, sausage rolls or Cornish pasties, local gin distilleries running tasting sessions, barbecue chefs cooking over fire pits – all these things that are led by passion.

In my opinion, some of the best dishes in the world are not fussy or complicated at all, they’re the stews and braises and terrines, or Indian-style curries, or great street food from Singapore or Thailand. And what we’re celebrating in them are all those amazing flavours. Good-quality, delicious food doesn’t have to be super high-end, it can be as simple as a well-made chicken burger that’s been marinated in spices and coated in a crunchy crumb, or a perfectly grilled pork steak with a punchy flavour-packed sauce – and to me that sounds much more exciting. Though, of course, if you’re cooking a special meal there is still a place for luxuries like truffles and lobster.

When we first opened The Hand & Flowers in 2005, we didn’t have two Michelin stars, we were just cooking the food that I liked and creating an environment I wanted to spend time in. My food is not about showing off; it’s about getting the most out of great ingredients and elevating ordinary dishes into something extraordinary by balancing flavours and textures. Nothing has changed for me in that regard, and the recipes in this book are a continuation of that aim. This is food for everyone, it’s the food that I enjoy cooking and eating, it’s the food if I went to a pub today, I’d be very excited about. It’s the food I like to cook at home, and I hope you enjoy it too.

snacks

Bar snacks have now gone way beyond a packet of salt and vinegar crisps. They’re an integral part of any pub menu and are treated with as much importance as the main courses when it comes to our pub kitchen planning. You might order a few for the table while you’re deciding what to eat for the rest of your meal, or to share with a round of drinks to get your evening started. They’re more substantial than a bag of nuts or pork scratchings (although there’s always a place for pork scratchings!) but they’re not quite a starter.

There are a couple of things I think make for a perfect pub snack: first, you have to be able to eat it with your hands; this isn’t the place for fussing about with cutlery. Second, they need to tick all the boxes for being that irresistible combination of salty, fatty, satisfyingly substantial and a little bit naughty – preferably with a great crunch to them too. Crispy pastry is always a winner: try the Crab and Cheddar straws; as is something that’s been deep-fried until crisp, like the Branston and three-cheese or Smoked ham croquettes respectively. And I would definitely recommend you give the Charred flatbreads with beef dripping butter a go.

As a chef, small snacks like these are also a fantastic opportunity to get creative in the kitchen. You don’t need to consider how to construct a fully balanced plate in terms of starch, proteins and veg. It’s just about doing lovely things with flavours to produce something that’s all about the pleasure of eating it. I think I could write a whole book just on delicious bar snacks! That said, some pub snack staples have stood the test of time because they are such reassuring classics, and sausage rolls will always hold one of the top spots. I’ve added nduja for a little bit of heat to the mini ones here.

You could make a few of these snacks if you have mates coming round and impress them with a massive upgrade on your usual bag of chips and dips.

Charred Flatbreads with Beef Dripping Butter

Few things beat the satisfaction of giving your dough the necessary punch back once it’s proved and doubled in size. These sensational charred flatbreads are drizzled with an unctuous beef and shallot dripping butter that includes sherry vinegar and cornichons for a little acidity to cut the richness. They are full of flavour and personality.

Makes 6

450g strong plain white flour, plus extra to dust

2 tsp salt

1 tsp caster sugar

2 sprigs of rosemary, leaves picked and finely chopped

30g beef dripping, melted

7g sachet instant yeast (about 1½ tsp)

Beef dripping butter

50g beef dripping, melted

3 banana shallots, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 tsp thyme leaves

4 anchovies, finely chopped

2 tbsp sherry vinegar

12 mini cornichons, finely sliced

50g butter, softened

1 tbsp finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

Salt and freshly ground pepper

To finish

1 tsp dried urfa chilli flakes

1 Put the flour, salt, sugar and chopped rosemary into a large bowl and mix well. Pour 300ml warm water into a jug and stir in the melted beef dripping and yeast until combined. Pour into the dry ingredients and mix well to form a dough. Tip onto a lightly floured surface and knead for a few minutes until smooth and springy to the touch.

2 Wipe out the bowl and place the dough back in it. Cover and leave in a warm place for an hour or until the dough is doubled in size.

3 Meanwhile, make the beef dripping butter. Heat the beef dripping