02x25 - Helford River

[bunniefuu]

This is my son James.
And this is my dad d*ck.

We're exploring the coastlines of the
south-west in search of ingredients

to cook on board
our boat The Morwenna.

We're going to call into ports and
harbours along the way, meet the locals,

then pick up great ingredients
to cook some tasty dishes on board.

Which is just as well,
because we're very hungry sailors.

'Today, we're heading up
the Helford River,

where we'll be serving at a soup
kitchen with a difference...'

As fast as you can dish it,
they eat it. [CHUCKLES]

'...fishing for a monster
from the deep...'

Then you go, James. That's what
we're going to be catching. Ha! Oh, God!

'...and foraging for fungi...'

The flavour in that little handful.
Yeah. d*ck's happy. Yeah.

'...all to make dinner for some very
special guests!

Here's your starter.

No, don't beat up the blackberry.

Really, really good. Excellent.
You'd make a good wife.

'We're sailing along the coast
of Cornwall's lizard Peninsula

on our quest to find great food.'

'We're weaving our way through
commercial shipping,

heading for the deep waters
of Falmouth Bay.

Our route takes us to the relative
calm of a beautiful estuary.'

'We're in no hurry.
It's a lovely day for sailing

and skipper Rob is obviously
enjoying himself.'

'From Coverack to the Helford River
is a distance of about six miles,

which gives me plenty of time
to work on my rope skills.

I've mastered the bowline knot.

Now, I have to lasso
a small wooden pin,

apparently a very handy knack
if I ever want a job on the docks.

It's not as easy as it looks,

but practice makes perfect.'

Yeah!

'Yes ! '

[LAUGHS] I did it.
Dad, your go.

Son, it took you two days.
I'm not going to have a go at it.

'At least it stopped him asking,
"Are we nearly there yet?,"

while Rob and Morwenna guide us up
into the mouth of the Helford river.'

There are seven creeks here.

Frenchman's Creek is probably
the most famous

because that's where Daphne du
Maurier set her only romantic novel.

Helford village
is also an interesting place.

It was once a thriving
and cosmopolitan port.

In fact, trade ships used
to bring all sorts of things -

like French rum, tobacco and lace.

That meant that during
the Napoleonic Wars,

plates and free traders
holed up on the river.

There were seriously rich pickings.
We hope they'll be rich pickings,

'cause we'll be heading inland
to get some great ingredients.

And today, I'm going to be doing
the main course.

I get to do the starter and pudding

and then the guests will decide
who's is the best.

Good luck, Son.
Yeah, you too.

'We're mooring our boat where the
river narrows, between the villages

of Helford on the south bank
and Helford Passage on the north.

It's a busy crossing.'

There's been a ferry running across
these waters since the Middle Ages.

Not this particular one.
Obviously, they've updated it.

It was vital for joining
the two communities

so that they could
barter, exchange food

and take produce to
the Falmouth Markets.

In the early days, the ferry had
the cart on it, had the driver on it,

but no horses -
they had to swim behind.

It's been upgraded completely,
as James says,

and now you can go in
there with a pushchair,

even with your
bicycle, but no h*m*.

Thank you very much.

'We're going to explore
this unspoiled corner of Cornwall.

We've taking the ferry
to Helford Passage.

Our bikes have already
been dropped ashore.'

'These days,
it's a sleepy backwater,

and a haven for tourists
and sailors like us.

Hard to imagine, but this area
was once a bustling centre

of the tin trade
in the 19th century,

when ore from the mines around
Helston was shipped through here.'

'There's a thriving fishing
industry in Helford.

It's worth around £1 million a year
to the local economy.

Oysters, crab and lobster are plentiful,

and catches of everything
from monkfish to mackerel.

With so much right under our noses,

it's a fair guess that fish
will feature on our menu.'

'There are narrow lanes
and tiny villages tucked away

alongside the creeks
either side of the river.'

This is Port Navas.
It's at the head of a wooded creek

on the North side of the River Helford.

In the 19th century,
it used to be a major port,

shipping out granite and limestone
from the nearby quarries.

Today, it's a lovely, quiet village.

Very, very popular with the visitors.
There is no shop, there is no pub.

But there is a full-time core
of local residents,

and they've got a cracking way
of keeping the community together.

'Once a week, the village hall
becomes a gourmet soup kitchen.

And today,
we're in charge of the menu.'

We're expecting about 30 hungry
villagers and the clock's ticking.

We've got £3 a head to cater
for a soup and then a dessert

so we've got a lot of cooking to do.

BOTH: Hello!
They're here!

Hiya! Hello, hello!
Good to see everyone.

We're ready. Come in, yes.
You're ready? You've started.

Hello.
Lovely to see you. Hiya. Hello.

'When the local yacht club closed,

there were fears that Port Navas
would lose its social heart.

So a couple of locals brought
the club's old reading room,

and turned it into a community centre!

'Soup kitchens are usually places
where the hungry are fed for free.

But here in Port Navas,

this one began as more of a way
of bringing people together,

and it worked. The hall is full
to capacity pretty much every week.'

They come together
and people sit here and eat,

and soup's the order of the day,

but you're in charge of the soups,
aren't you?

I'm going to make a peppered hock
and green pea soup with soda faris.

I'm doing an Eve's pudding,
which is going to be an apple base

with a sponge on top,
and you guessed it, custard.

'To start off, and softening some
onions in a little oil...

In go the dried split peas...'

So it's softening.

'...then plenty of water.
I'll leave that to simmer.'

I've got to peel and slice up
a gazillion apples.

Off comes the skin, out comes
the core, and it goes into slices.

'Amazing. Great machine.

Then, a good sprinkle of cinnamon

while the apple slices soften
In butter!

What I'm going to do now is just
make a few soda farls.

It's a dead easy bread to make.

,'So into the plain flour -
a little bicarb of soda,

and a beaten egg.'

Lovely free-range eggs,

the sort of thing you'd expect
in a lovely village like this.

And 300mi of buttermilk.

I'm going to incorporate that
into a very basic dough mixture.

What happens if it starts
to rise as soon

as you mix the dry
and the wet elements together.

One of the very important things
about community

is having people to rely on
in times of need.

I happen to have a self-confessed
phobia of pressure cookers.

I know they're safe
and them an improvements

and I know on a eco point
of view, they're excellent.

But I just hate them.
It scares you, big fella, doesn't it?

Yeah. We'll have to turn that down
because you just needed on a simmer.

That'll just tick away.

What's happening in there, you
containing all of the - Whoa, whoa.

That's not funny at all.

'My joint of ham has cooked
perfectly in the pressure cooker,

and in a third of the time, plus
it's produced some beautiful stock.'

What I've got there is lovely
ham hock stock,

and my peas that have just started
to soften down with the onion.

'It goes back on the heat
to continue simmering.'

'The softened apples go into tins,
ready for a layer of cake on top.'

Whenever I make my sponge,

I've got a very simple rule.
It's called 4-4-5-2.


of self-raising flour and two eggs.

I've just made this four times as big.

'Once the ingredients are mixed together,

and there are no floury lumps,
it's carefully spread over the fruit,

ready for baking.
That'll make a lovely light sponge.

There you go.

Everyone's getting ready behind us.

We've got last-minute
things to pull together.

It's quite exciting. There's a lot
of people waiting outside as well,

but the pressure's on.

The hall only holds 30
but more have turned up.

We've got a lot of soup. Have you
got a lot of people? 40 people.


Yes.

'We'll have to feed some
of them al fresco.'

'Some lovely gammon cubes will fry
up nicely as a crispy ham garnish,

with some pink peppercorns.'

'A few chopped chives will add a
little extra flavour as they cook.'

'Our lunchtime crowd
are ready for their grub.'

'My soda bread has risen nicely.

I've separated the dough
to equal portions

to roll and mark into quarters,
so they'll be easier to break up.'

This'll be a flatbread
cooked on a griddle.'

'It's nearly time to serve and the
ham hock is falling off the bone.

I'm blending the soup and adding
a little bit of extra black pepper.'

'It's all hands on deck
in the kitchen and dining hall.

James's soda bread is cooking

and we've got some baguettes
as back up for the extras.'

'The pea and ham soup
is finally ready to serve,

with chunks of hock,
crispy gammon croutons,

and for anyone feeling
a little bit more adventurous -

some savoury popcorn.'
Ooh, lovely.

'It seems to be going down pretty well'

How are we getting on? I'm just
going to take second and enjoy it.

I haven't felt this part
of a community for a long time,

and the fact that it's a cheap meal
that's going a long way,

and you get people coming out
of their homes for a nice feed.

It's very special to be a part of.

And I just hope they like the soup.

'I think we can safely say
they enjoyed it.

At this rate, you'll definitely
be invited back.'

You've liquidised meat in there,
haven't you? Yeah.

It's good. It's been quite fun.
It's not too peppery, is it?

No, it's delicious, thank you.
Good.

'Back in the kitchen, the custard for
pudding is coming along nicely.'

I've got to thicken this up,
otherwise there will be a gap,

and they're liable to eat each other.

'My apple cakes are looking good.

There's a tidy helping of fruit
and sponge for everyone

with that lovely, creamy custard.

Good old-fashioned comfort food.'

As fast as you can dish it,
they eat it.

'I'm running out of bowls.
Step on it, James!'

Come on, I need some hauls now, please.

'There's a lot of bowls to wash
and it is a team effort.'

He's going to start shouting at us.
Hang on.

You tell him to hang on.

I just made that. Local apples,
bit of sponge, some custard.

Mmm. Yummy.

The sponge is very light.

'That was a lot of fun.
Now time for a chat

with two of the soup kitchen's
organisers - Margaret and Tiffa.'

The soup service was manic.

There's an awful lot of people. But
the noise of everybody chatting...

That's what strikes us...
It's even worse.

It's just no different
than it usually is.

It's really...
That's very special.

It's just like it is.
Is it a social thing?

Looking around here, the number of
people that were coming in and out -

It's not a soup kitchen - it's completely
the wrong phrase, isn't it?

It is, rather. In fact,
we've been asked about that.

Why 'soup kitchen'
in a place like Port Navas?

We said,
'Well. what else do we call it?'

We said,
We're talking to the two of you

but I must have seen 8 or 10 people
sewing, washing. Exactly right.

That's how a community works.
It's a whole happening,

and there are a lot of people
working hard as well.

It's a lovely part of the world. Where do
you suggest we go to next? Local knowledge.

Maybe go and do a spot of foraging?

There's good foraging around here,
is there? Yes. Superb.

If you go to the other
side of the river,

there's lovely woods,
National Trust woods.

In fact, I know someone who works -
Go on, you can tell us.

My son-in-law.

'Personal recommendation
is always the best,

so a-foraging we will go.'

Time to test out
that 1,000-year-old ferry

to the south side of the Helford Estuary.'

'We're exploring the Helford Estuary

in search of great ingredients
to cook on board our boat.'

'This is an ancient river valley
or rian that was drowned

when sea levels rose at the end
of the last ice age,

around 10,000 years ago.'

'We've come over to the south bank
of the river

for a leisurely look around.

I'm hoping to find mushroom
for my starter!

This is Tremayne Quay.

It was built in the 18405
for a visit of Queen Victoria.

The story she never actually got
here because it was raining.

It's surrounded by lovely
ancient woodland,

and we're on our way to meet
an expert forager.

This is beautiful.
I reckon mushrooms,

maybe other bits and bobs,
what you reckon?

We've been to Port Navas,
we've seen Margaret,

she's sent us here to Tremayne Woods
to meet Justin, her son-in-law,

he's the head ranger.
He's actually a 'fun guy'...

who's a mushroom expert,
he's going to take us foraging.

It's a bad joke.
That was awful, James.

That was terrible.

Justin, hello! This is Woody.
Hello, Woody. [BARKING]

All right, hop in.

'We're following a tradition
of foraging in this area

that dates back before the iron Age.
More than 500 BC.

Groups of hunter-gatherers

would roam these steep,
wooded valleys in search of food.'

'It's not long before
Justin spies a mushroom

he wants us to have a look at.'

You spotted it as 'sinister'
just driving past it.

You called it 'sinister'?
Well, I wouldn't eat it.

You just drove past it.
It looks white and edible.

I know, but it's...
Shall I pick it?

One of the giveaways...
Here we are.

It's an amanita, which is the same
family as the death cap.

God.
OK, that's bad.

It certainly poisonous,
possibly deadly.

Here we are.
And... Yeah, potato.

You smell potato?
That's remarkable.

'Justin foraged as a boy with
his dad, and he's a proper expert.'

So it's exactly the same family
as the death cap,

possibly slightly less poisonous
than a death cap.

This must be a good place
for the fungi if that's growing.

Yeah. This is what we like.

This where we've got this lovely old
ancient woodland, sessile oaks.

Even though there's poisonous ones in here,

there will be good ones in the same
environment. There should be.

Come on, come on.
Here we are, look.

Ah, the orange ones. They're
chanterelles! They're chanterelles.

Chanterelles are...
There's a little cluster down there.

I don't want to step on them.
Look at these.

This is good eating, isn't it?
These are the best.

These are the finest. Look at those.

Those cost a fortune, mate.

When it comes to cooking with those...

They look incredibly orange.
I saw the white ones over there,

I thought that looked really tasty,
these ones, to me, look dangerous.

It's a weird thing with these mushrooms

'cause it's often the most unappetising
looking ones are the best.

Now, that you found when
they're popping up...

I would be marking that
little notch in the tree

and saying chanterelles
were here. Yeah.

Do they pop up...? Yeah, they do.
Generally, if you find in one place,

they will continue to come up again.

The flavour in that little handful...
Yeah.

d*ck's happy.
Yeah.

'I can't stress how important it is
to know exactly what you're doing

when it comes to picking wild mushrooms.

Don't ever be tempted
to try eating one

if you're not 100% sure what it is.

Justin wasn't joking when he said
some of them can k*ll you.'

Hello, hello.

d*ck, the forager.
I am a forager.

Oh, won.
on, my goodness.

I'm going to cook that for you,
son, 'cause I love you.

I think this is an amethyst deceiver.

Oh.
An amethyst...

That is an amethyst deceiver.

Do you see I how I got that?

I've been doing this for a long time,
I've just never trusted myself.

These have got nice long stems
on these often.

Look at the colour of it.

'Looks are deceptive,
who would have thought

that these little purple ones
would be a delicacy?'

Well done, Justin.
We're getting there.

'Justin keeps an eye out
for wild food every day

in his job as a ranger here
in the Lizard Peninsular.

He wants to show us something
that looks odd, to say the least.'

Beefsteak fungus.
Beefsteak fungi. Whoa.

Looks like a tongue sticking out.
Should I get it?

James, that's a cliff.

I'm used to jumping off the boat
onto things like that.

'Why are the most interesting ones
in the least accessible places?'

'Wiggle it out?' Have you seen
it's got weird sticky -

Just wiggle it out!

Son, positive foraging man.

Tough, isn't it?

Whoops. Ooh.

Wow. Isn't that the most
peculiar thing?

That's amazing. I'm going to throw it.
Are you ready? I'm ready.

No real discernible smell
No.

Look at that.
It's like jelly. Yeah.

What's it called?
It's called beefsteak fungus.

How do you cook and eat that?

They're called beefsteak fungus,

'cause it has got a remarkable
similarity to a piece of beefsteak.

I thought you meant tomato.

And...there you are.

It's meaty. It's got a real texture
to it. It's very meaty, yeah.

It's slightly bitter,

and...what they do suggest
is you soak it in milk

for a couple of hours
before you cook it.

But I've never found it that bad.
Especially a young one like this.

The mushroom season is a very short
one, so how do you extend it?

Drying them, pickling them,
bottling them.

So, all sorts really.
I've got some...

There's some bottled blewits,
from last year,

they're just in olive oil.
From last year? From last year.

They're great on pizzas
or mixed in with a salad.

Or just as mushroom oil.
Yeah, the oil is great.

Pouring the oil
over a pizza or something.

Truffle oil, only local.

And then these are the seps
and boletus ones.

The smell of these. These are dried.

Yeah.

Wow.
That is...amazing.

They're amazing, aren't they?
Sort of woody...

They smell like everything
that's good

when you go for a walk in the woods
mixed with the best pizza.

If want to cook these, where would you
suggest is a good local place for us?

Near to here? Yeah. We could live
up to a very good friend of mine,

David, up at Gear Farm.
Right. Does fantastic pasties.

I would like a pasty. Yeah. I'm
sure he'd let you use the kitchen.

If you ask nicely.
That sounds great, yeah.

I can imagine there's going to be
some mushrooms being cooked.

Get them cooked fresh.

Absolutely. You going to give us
a lift? If you like. Good man.

'It's obviously a really
close-knit community.

I love the fact that everyone
around here

is happy to recommend their friends
and neighbours to us.'

Look at that.

Gear Farm.
Hey.

Sir, thank you very much indeed.
Where are we going? Just in here.

David should be in.
Good to meet you, Justin.

Will you come to us in the boat
for a bite to eat? That would be fantastic.

We'll get some mushrooms
on the menu.

See you later.
Bye. Cheers, mate.

'Justin's dropped us off
at Gear Farm,

with former policeman David Webb

does an arresting line
in organic pasties.'

Good to meet you. How are you doing?
I'm James. How are you doing, James?

'Growing winter veg used
to be the farm's main business.

At one time, they supplied


to big supermarkets.

David wanted more autonomy,
so he diversified.

First, into organics,
and then into pasties.

He produces 1,000 a week,
all handmade.

Chanterelles, beefsteak,
and what's that?

I'm suddenly feeling quite left
out. I don't have any ingredients.

Erm...I think I might go fishing or
something and then leave you to it.

But I can't not come here
and take something away.

You've got to have a pasty.

'But hold on, there's a famous
sailors superstition

that you should never take
a pasty on boat.'

He's going on a boat, mate.
He can't, can he?

Er, yes, he can.
Just break the end off,

and that will let the devil out,
and then you can take it on a boat.

You are joking?!
Ah, eureka!

Now I can have pasties... Otherwise
it's bad luck and the boat's going to sink.

'I'm super glad we found a way
around that superstition.

While my dad experiments
with his mushroom starter,

I need to find a stunning
ingredient for my main course.

David's cousin Simon and his wife
Linda are going fishing,

and they've offered to take me along.
Sounds ideal.'

'In his commercial kitchen,
David has a wood oven.

I'm going to get cooking.'

So with those,
I'm going to cook them up first,

we'll make a nice little filling

and then we'll see about
turning them into our little puffs.

Puffs doesn't sound manly.

Two very manly blokes here talking
about little mushroom puffs.

It's not as manly as a pasty.

'I want to start by trying the beefsteak
mushroom Justin found for us.

It's very fleshy and I'm intrigued
to find out how it tastes,

simply fried in butter.'

It's meaty.
You have to chew it, but erm...

somehow I don't think that's going
to win me any cooking competition.

Right. So because of that, it's plan B.

And plan B is let's get the rest
of these mushrooms ready.

'I'll stick to the chanterelles
and the amethyst deceivers.'

They'll need a thorough clean
to remove any bit of grit and dirt

from the woodland floor.'

'First, some finely chopped garlic
goes into melted butter...'

'Then I add the mushrooms
and soften them.

Finally, some fresh thyme to give
my little mushroom puffs

a lovely herby flavour.'

'I'm going for bite-size patties
made from ready-rolled puff pastry.'

'A generous teaspoon full
of the mushroom mix

should be enough for each one.'

I've made my pastry toppers
a tad bigger than the bottoms

so they'll be easy
to stick together.

There's a final trim into a neat circle,

ready for David's wood fired oven.

Put these in the back.
How far back?

'We've made just a few to taste.

If it works, it'll be on the menu tomorrow!

They're not exactly man-sized pasties.

No, they're not pasty-sized
but they smell nice.

Can't remember what I put in there.
It was toadstools and...

Perfect.

Nice. I think you did the right thing
not putting the beefsteak in there.

That is wonderful.

'With a vote of confidence from David,

I've made a few more to take away
and cook on board our boat.'

So they taste all right.
Wonderful. Yeah. Fantastic.

We're ready to take these back.
Are you going to come and join us?

That sounds brilliant. You're getting
more of these maybe. It's worth it.

Thank you, sir.
It's been a pleasure.

I'll see if I can get
these back in one piece.

It'll be dead easy. I'm sure.

'I've tucked them safely into panniers

for a leisurely cycle back
to the Morwenna.

Inspired by the mushrooms,

I've decided to do
a little bit more foraging.

The hedgerows are just what
I need for my pudding.'

Blackberries.

Always come prepared,
like a little Boy Scout.

The best blackberries
are always at the top

and you should always collect them
where there's not a lot of traffic.

Who wants fumes on their blackberries?

I don't really want to cook these
with apples,

'cause everybody would expect it.

So I'll have to do something
a little bit different.

But I have a plan.

'All this wild fruit is sure to give
me the upper hand against James

when the cook dinner on board
our boat tomorrow.

My mind is buzzing with ideas.'

I could do a bramble jelly.

I could do...a coulis.

[man] It was at my old job,

'The latest leg of our coastal
cooking journey around Cornwall

has brought us
to the Helford estuary.'

'So far, we've got two guests -

forager Justin and
farmer-c*m-pasty-maker David,

both coming to dinner
on our boat tomorrow.'

I'm about to go out fishing for something

that is known as poor man's lobster,

but is actually pretty expensive,
very meaty, and it's got huge teeth.

It's monkfish.

And I have to say, I'm pretty
afraid. Just don't tell Simon.

'Fisherman Simon Filmer
has invited me to join him

on a trip out into
the Falmouth Bay.'

I suppose Filmer's Fish
go out in any weather?

Mmm...dependant.
Dependant.

What's this like, condition wise?
Yeah, not bad. Not bad at all.

'It's getting quite late in the day
but the tides are perfect

for checking his nets,
and the weather is on our side too.'

'For Helford Passage, we're heading
out to the deep-water channel

that runs down the middle
of the estuary to the sea.'

Now, I'm assuming that considering
monkfish can be 1.5m in length,

we're not going fishing in this.

No. A little bit bigger.

Yes. Yeah? It's a catamaran
that I bought on eBay just as hull.

My father-in-law's got a barn.
I put it away on the barn,

and did the Chitty Chitty Bang Bang thing.

It went away, came out April,

and we had a boat.
As you'll see.

And this your wife.
This is my wife.

Hiya! Ahoy, skipper.

'Simon and his wife Linda have been
fishing together since 2007.

It's a small-scale operation and
they sell directly to the people

who live, work and holiday
in the Helford area.'

Today, we're picking up monk nets,

so it's the size of the mesh that
helps to catch that type of fish.

'Monkfish are also known as anglerfish

and Simon's got one on ice to show me.'

There you go, that's what
we're going to be catching. [LAUGHS]

Oh, God!

As you can see,
they're bottom feeders,

with the size of its mouth... It
actually swallows other fish? Yes.

And it's got a little juice.
I've seen this on television.

This dangles like that
and it'll lay in the mud.

And it's 100% dead?
Yeah.

Such sharp teeth as well.
They are very very sharp teeth.

And they're all pointing like
a shark - backwards, inside.

So obviously once it gets hold
of something, it won't get away.

So if we catch one of these,
will it be coming up dead

'cause it's been in the net?
No, it'll be coming up alive.

Going on a two-night lay,
these ones. Erm...Linda,

we need to turn the boat around.

'I was only half joking.

That was a seriously scary fish.

Time to man-up as the first
net is reeled in.'

Hey!

A spider...
We try to get them out whole

because we get a better price for them.

Less damage and a finer product
to sell, I guess. Exactly.

If they're too small, then they go back

and we'll catch them when they're
a bit bigger. Yeah.

Yeah!
[LAUGHTER]



Do you want to just check that one?

That's all right.
James, have another one.

[LAUGHTER]

♪ JAWS THEME
Come on, monkfish, come on up.

Monk coming.
Whoa!

It's a little 'un.
That's big enough, isn't it?

It's only a little one.
Yep, that's fine.

Shall leave that one there?
Present for you, James.

Get hold of it by the back of it.
Do I hold its tail? Yep.

Oh, my God.

It's huge.

I love monkfish to eat,

but this is the most vile...scary,
ugly-looking thing I've ever seen.

Whoa. A monkfish.

Monkfish tail. Apparently Simon was
telling me you can use the cheeks -

the chaps - in a curry.

And loads of other good bits
but that it's a serious beastie

from the bottom of the sea.

Right.

'That was nothing compared
to what came up next.'

Do you want to get your camera?
James is wearing it. Oh, my God.

What should I do?
That's all right. It's coming in.

That's the one.
Oh, boy!

'It's enormous.

Monkfish often grow
up to 1.5m in length.'

There's your monster. There's your
monster. That's the most...

Another one.
Another one?

We haven't got this one under control yet.

'The largest one ever caught,
up to 2012, weighed in at 253lb.

That's a whole lot of monkfish curly.'

Basically, as you can probably tell.

I'm absolutely drained because my
adrenaline has just gone pewww

out of fear, and now I'm exhausted.

I just hope I've done enough to take
away some monkfish to cook with.

I've had an incredible time.
I'm not going to lie, I was scared,

I was excited but I know me and
my dad would love to cook you a meal

just to say thank you. So will you
join us? Yes, I'd love to.

I'll give you a kiss and a hug.
Amazing fun.

That's it. Home time.

'That was spine-tingling stuff.

I've really enjoyed my time
on board The Emily Jane.

I hardly even noticed it getting dark.

I hope I don't get any nightmares.

We've got a busy day cooking tomorrow!

'The day of our dinner dawns fair.

The sun sparkles on the estuary, and
the locals hurry out onto the water.

Meanwhile, I'm shut up in the galley.

I've got to get cooking.'

Pudding - I've got some cracking
little blackberries.

I think what I'm going to do
is use the blackberries,

sharpen them up with a little bit of lemon

and then put them
into a crème brûlée.

First things first,
always test your blackberries.

I don't need the lemon.

'I do need a bit of sugar though.'

I'm now going to put these
on for a very gentle simmer.

Making a crème brûlée - it's a
custard but it's a very rich custard.

So I'm going to use eight egg yolks
to a pint of cream.

'First, the yolks are beaten
with some caster sugar.

A little bit of cornflour
will thicken the custard.

A vanilla pod.

Inside the vanilla pod
is just thousands of little seeds.

'Both seeds and pods go
into the pan with the cream.

I'll heat that gently on the hob
while I strain the stewed fruit.'

Now, we're just going to pass these
blackberries through a sieve.

And I'm going to pop that
into the bottom of each ramekin.

I've warmed my cream
with my vanilla in it,

and it's not quite boiling.

'You need to add the cream
little by little to the eggs,

whisking all the time
to stop it scrambling.

The strained mixture goes back
onto the heat

until I've got a thick,
smooth, creamy custard.'

'It easier to pour from a jug.

Less chance of me spilling
as I fill each of the ramekins.'

I don't want my crème brûlée
to bake too quickly,

so I have to put some water
around it, a bain-marie,

which will keep the temperature
at 100C maximum.

In the oven, slow cooked
about 40 minutes at gas mark 2, 135C,

or whatever Morwenna's oven the side
to let us do, but it's gentle.

'While my little pots of creamy,
loveliness are baked,

they're left to cool.
Just before I serve them,

I'll make the crunchy caramelised
sugar that finishes them off.'

'My dad's commandeered
the galley on-board,

so I've set myself up a prep
kitchen on the shoreline.

I had a brilliant fishing trip
with Simon and Linda,

and I've got the perfect recipe
to show off our catch -

a fragrant monkfish curry.'

Helford Village is an incredibly
beautiful location.

It's quite exotic with the creek,

so what I'm going to do is take
that inspiration

and make a creek curry using
my monkfish and plenty of spices.

'To start with, I need some crushed
garlic and chopped green chilies,

seeds and all, then I can grind it
up with my pestle and mortar.'

A pinch of salt really helps
when you're bashing up things

like garlic and chili. I'm going to
work this into a nice green paste.

'Once I've got the garlic
and chill nicely pulped,

it into a bowl with a really good
teaspoon of crushed lemongrass,

the zest and juice of a lime...

...a few fenugreek seeds,
and a good handful of curry leaves.'

Some ground ginger...

About half a teaspoon.

And a couple of teaspoons of turmeric.

'I'm also putting
in two cinnamon sticks.'

Those are the raw ingredients
of the spices

but to that I'm going to add
in a little bit of sugar...

'That's going to give it
a hint of sweetness.

And a good glug of sesame oil

will really help fuse all
those flavours together.'

I'm confident it could beat my dad

but it just depends how well
he does with those mushrooms.

'The sauce will mature
until I'm ready to cook my curry,

and then the gloves are off.

I'm lagging behind my dad
by just one star.

It's my first chance
to catch up with him.

I really need to win this won.'

'We're moored in the tranquil waters
of the Helford River in Cornwall

on our quest for great food
and people to share it with.'

'We've picked up some amazing ingredients

and we've invited four guests
to join us for dinner later.'

'For tonight's dinner,
I'm making the starter and pudding,

and James is doing the main course.'

My starter is going to be a frothy
mushroom cappuccino, with potatoes,

a puree of potatoes, very very fine,
poached egg on the top,

a little drizzle on top of that
of some truffle oil

and just basically it's going
to be mushroomy.

'First things first, I need to
rehydrate some of the dried mushrooms

that our foraging friend
Justin gave us.'

But these are bought mushrooms.
They're quite exotic.

So we've got some oysters

and we've got some little pretty
ones that are just a bit odd.

Here, I've got my mushrooms with
some garlic, thyme and some butter,

cooking very slowly, well infused.

Now, my secret weapon -

Justin's dried mushrooms have been
rehydrated in the boiling water.

And that simmers for a little bit.
Some of the liquor will reduce

and this is going to be,
potent, potent mushrooms.

'In goes a whole pot of cream.

Mustn't be mean.'

This is a lovely, light,
coffee colour -

hence my mushroom cappuccino.

The only thing is I need to froth it,

and we haven't got a frother, but...

...I've got this and my son
will make it into one.

I need something to turn my mushroom
goop into mushroom cappuccino.

Right. A miracle?

It's as simple as that.
Right.

So shall we get the mushroom soup
and give it a go?

No. We're going to make a machine.

What was wrong with good
old-fashioned hand...

Look at this.
That's a bit long.

It saves cutting it in half
if we used the whole thing.

No. Oh, come on,
I hate using the hacksaw.

Have you guessed what it is yet?

When this goes around, we want
the thing at the end to go up and...

This is a ridiculous length.

'I'm sure a whisk we do the job
just as efficiently.

But no. He insists he wants
a Helford River fungi frother,

and he says we're going to build it.
Typical'

'Where's your sense of curiosity?

Don't want to see how your clever
old Dad's going to make it work?'

If we saw
that...on the end then...

'The crankshaft will convert
the circular motion from the drill

at the end of this unfeasibly long
metal rod

into up and down movement at the other.

Simple engineering.'

Right, here we go.

Imagine...
You've got to picture this

'cause I'm going to be doing it later on.

It's filled with lovely mushroom
flavoured cappuccino...

It's going up.

Right, OK, it's going up,
it's going down.

Look at this. It's going up and down.

It's going up and down.
Now, you can go a bit faster

'cause I need some more froth, Son.

Now, tell me that's not going to froth.

Push it. What about... What about...

I'm not going anywhere near it,
I tell you.

It looks impressive.
We want froth! Do it again.

We don't want to drown Morwenna
in mushroom soup.

It's not soup.

'I still think a whisk would have
been easier and less messy.'

'My fantastic fungi frother
is coming back to the Morwenna.

It's going to work a treat.'

'Meanwhile, I need
to get on with my curly.'

My dad's just gone back to the boat
to carry on with his starter,

and what's going to be a really
fancy, fungi cappuccino

kind of thing.
The benefit of my dish -

It's nice and easy and I get
to stay here on the beach.

'It's time to start cooking
my curly.

All I'm going to do is soften some red
onion in a bit of sesame oil...

'Then I'll add that lovely blend
of spices I made earlier.'

Give it a decent stir
and then add in the coconut milk.

The coconut milk's going to take
the heat out of the spice mix

but then really infuse with flavour
on a low simmer for a long time.

'I've also included a few slices
of lime for a bit of extra zing.'

'While that's simmering, it's time
to prepare the monkfish tail.

It's a really meaty fish
with a very firm texture.'

So, it's cut into chunks and seasoned.

They'll only take a minute or two to cook,

sell I'll add them at the very end.'

I've got to get the curry
to the boat,

so I'm going up the creek
without a paddle.

But I do have a peddle, though.

'Everything's shaping up nicely
and our guests are due soon,

but where's James?'

All of those miles
on the bicycle have paid off.

And the key thing
is the curry is safe.

Uh-oh.

Ohhh!
[LAUGHTER]

Which way are you coming alongside?
I'll just reverse.

You're reversing. Look at you.

One creek curry ready
for the guests.

Finely mashed potatoes
to go in my mushroom cappuccino.

I've got to put my little mushroom
puffs in the oven.

A bit of egg wash on them.
Dave and I made these.

'And now, the moment of truth for
the Helford River fungi frother.'

Don't press the trigger. Have you got
it turned down to minimum speed, Son?

I do now. Oh, dear God.

Here we go.

You can give it some more speed now.
Give me some more thrust, Scotty.

Good man. Give me some more button.
A bit lower. Oh, I can see a bubble.

We're bubbling, Son. We're bubbling.

We have froth!

There's froth from the fungi frother.

Oh, dear.

Oh, look at this.
See the bubbles forming?

Behave. Behave. James, behave.

I'm getting you bubbles.
I haven't got all the way through

on the speed thing. You
don't have to go to the top.

I think that's frothy enough.

Service!

So on the menu tonight, it's my
frothy mushroom cappuccino

with mushroom puffs.

James's main course of monkfish curry

which will be sewed with Jasmine flee,

and to finish, my crème brûlée
with blackberries.

Hey! Hiya.

'Our guests have arrived and
they have relied on peddle power.'

Hello, Justin, mate. All right.
Flip flops on a boat.

'There's pasty-maker David,
mistress of the monkfish Linda,

our foraging guide Justin,
and fisherman Simon.

We're going to serve them
their starter up on deck.'

'I've pureed potatoes
to make little islands

in my creamy sea
of frothy mushroom sauce.

Onto each, a lightly poached egg.'

Finally, 'cause it's not tall enough yet,

mushroom puffs full of
locally foraged flavour.

Oh-h*-h*, here's your starter.

Just grab that.
Wow.

Straight into the egg.
Wow.

Pretty hearty. Yeah.
The best mushrooms are so strong

with all those dried mushroom
from Justin.

A rich starter.
It's says welcome to Helford.

All collected from the woods
just around us here.

Really good, yeah. I'm busy.

[LAUGHTER]

Perfect.

'Time to get the monkfish on

and cook some rice
in a nice big enamel teapot,

with a couple of jasmine tea bags
thrown into the boiling water.'

I hope you enjoyed your starter.

Do you fancy joining us
for your main course?

Yep.
Sounds good to me.

'I've got some steamed broccoli
that I've popped into a pan

with fried garlic,
coconut and papaya.'

Don't ask. Just don't ask.

'The chunks of monkfish
have cooked perfectly,

and the sauce is spectacularly tasty,

and the sauce even if I do say so myself.'

There's more heat in the veg
than there is in the curry.

There is. It has a real depth
to it, it's lovely.

Nice with the rice as well.

Monkfish is lovely.
Lovely and tender.

Was it worth the fight with that big
monkfish on the deck of the boat?

Excellent. You'll make a good wife.
Superb. Best monkfish I've had.

'It's shaping up into a close contest.

Maybe the crème brûlées
can swing things my way.

A sprinkle of sugar on top
of each one,

and a careful blast from the cooks
torch to caramelise.'

'Not forgetting a plump,
juicy blackberry on top.

We're looking good.'

I love crème brûlée at the best
of times and that's just wonderful.

The fact that it's foraged as well.
Just adds to it.

All the parts of the hedgerow.
Really good. Excellent.

No, beat up the blackberry.

Sharp enough, isn't it?

Sharp enough to cope with
that really nice, sweet custard.

I love the burnt bit on top as well.

It's not burnt,
it's caramelised. No, but...

Finished. Great, thank you.

'I think the special flavours
in my foraged mushrooms

and those blackberries will give me
the edge over James, but we'll see.'

If your favourite course was the
first course, raise your hands.

Two. OK. If your favourite course
was the main course,

please raise your hand now.

If your favourite course was
the pudding, please raise your hand.

Thank you very much.
Well done. It's a victory for Dad.

[LAUGHTER] Thank you so much,
by the way, it's been great.

'I really thought I had him there
with my Helford Creek curry.

So close. I could have pulled even.'

Helford Creek - it's another blue.

Ah. Well done. It's nice
to keep my lead going there, Son,

'cause you were catching up far too
quickly. I was. There's plenty left.

'We've really enjoyed our stay
here on the Helford estuary,

but the open sea beckons.

So, it's onto another set
of harbour lights,

and the next chapter of our coastal
cooking adventure.'