Product Description

A cookbook with memoirs and opinions by Richard Corrigan, presenter of the BBC's Full on Food and one of Britain's leading chefs. Richard Corrigan is one of Britain's most respected and outspoken chefs. He has been a key pioneer in the rehabilitation of British and Irish food, a champion of small producers and, above all, the creator of a highly personal repertoire of innovative dishes utilising ingredients that once formed the basis of a vibrant native cuisine but which had been largely ignored recently by fashionable chefs.

Corrigan's food is based, to a large extent, on Curnonsky's dictum that 'everything should taste intensely of itself'. Never a slave to fashion, his approach to food reflects his down-to-earth, countryman's celebration of endemic foodstuffs. At his restaurant in Soho, Lindsay House, and more recently his fish restaurant, Bentley's, he has dedicated himself to rediscovering and reinterpreting the traditional foodstuffs of these islands, from beef and oysters to horseradish and herring, gooseberries and samphire.The Clatter of Forks and Spoons is about joyous eating and the sharing of recipes that all carry the distinctive Corrigan imprint and have been carefully adapted for the home kitchen. It includes an account of the suppliers Richard has come to know and trust, and who are responsible for every item that comes into the kitchen at Lindsay House: farmers, fishermen, gardeners, wine merchants, hunters, foragers and many more. The book is also a memoir of a great chef, telling the story of his move from rural Ireland to the kitchen of one of the world's leading kitchens, the experiences gathered along the way, and the evolution of his philosophy of food.

Michel Roux once famously commented that if Richard Corrigan were to cook an old boot, he would be happy to eat it. Corrigan's natural earthiness, deftness in the kitchen, instinctive passion about real food without fripperies and ruthless honesty marks him out as an important voice in British food.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5700 in Books
• Published on: 2008-10-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 400 pages

Customer Reviews

Restaurant Quality Recipes
This is a really splendid book and the recipes tried so far have been great. The recipes are straightforward to follow, with interesting and well-judged flavour combinations turning out restaurant quality food that's hearty and deeply delicious. I prefer books by cooks instead of TV chefs generally - the latter don't often create anything I would want to cook and I feel let down by some books where there is style above substance. Richard Corrigan's book is quite different - this is the stylish fare of oyster bars and gentlemans clubs - but with an Irish twist and some unexpected pairings of flavours, seemingly simple but sooo clever. As an amateur cook & slow cooking fan - the book has inspired me to try new ingredients and techniques - which is proving a fun exploration - trying new cuts of meat, varieties of fish etc. We especially enjoyed the pork chops with apricot sage & honey, the oyster stout rarebit, colcannon soup and the awesome heritage apple pudding. I notice from his restaurant website that recipes in the book appear on the menu - I look forward to visiting his restaurant soon to compare my attempts with the real thing.

Not just about recipes - just a book you'd love to read
I started buying cookbooks 15-20 years ago after I discovered the pleasure in good food writing that Nigel Slater's 'Real Cooking' brought. But I must admit that for the last few years I'd gone completely off buying cookbooks - finding them a bit 'all the same'.

I was bought Richard's book as a present this Christmas, and honestly, I have read the whole thing from cover to cover. It's as much an entertaining story of where his passion for food has come from as a recipe book. But as you read you can almost feel yourself soaking up the knowledge about food on every page at the same time as enjoying the story - superb.

Sharp Eye on Traditional Values
This is a cracking book in which Richard Corrigan brings the value of strong and simple cooking back down to earth. Praise be! Here's someone who's prepared to reach back in time to show us how to find and prepare great food. It resonated with me. As did the accompanying photographs. I had to search a bit to find the name, but Kristin Peres, who's stunningly simple and evocative photographs capture Corrigan's philosophy so brilliantly, has helped Corrigan create a classic book that will outlast all recent popular recipe books.