The Michelin-starred chef on the art of food and the smells of home – spinach and boot polish
My first passion was art at school. Now I doodle a dish as an idea, then a dish based on the doodle, and finally a Polaroid of the finished dish to put in another Moleskine travel book. It’s the only way I know how to do it. For example, I’ll draw on the theme of winter, game, cold, berries, orchard fruit – what’s going through my head is the repertoire of seasonality, of what’s available to me – then build 10 dishes for a taster menu based on the flow, temperature, the contrast of texture. It’s a beautiful journey with someone knowing their craft.
There’d be no seasoning in hell. Seasoning is the magic. It’s what separates each chef – getting that balance right and changing a dish from amazing into incredible. That could involve a fraction of vinegar, or oil, salt, seaweed. That’s the gift.
