My Affair With Food... an interview with Chef Ken Hom OBE. So much has been written about everbody's culinary hero, Chef Ken Hom over the years that it's difficult to know where to start. I've watched in awe as Ken has cooked with such ease, and wondered why mine doesn't turn out the same! So Taste Swansea took the opportunity to ask Ken during his lock-down in Bangkok, about his Affair with Food...
I 'm
aware that you started cooking in your uncle's restaurant kitchen in Chicago as a youth. Can you describe the satisfaction the first time you made a 'full dish' for a customer? And can you remember what you cooked? It was in the summer when I worked full time. An order came in for fried rice and all the cooks were on their breaks as it was quite hot. So I was assigned to make the fried rice. I was so proud of my fried rice and felt I was on my way to being a real cook! My understanding from your recent autobiography is that you never set out to be a TV chef and that it just happened. Many of today's aspiring chefs only wish to be TV chefs. What advice would you offer them when starting their journey into the culinary world? First, learn to cook. I always say I am not a celebrity chef but a teacher. I think some of the most successful TV chefs
are gifted teachers. Know your subject, inside out. And keep learning. It's no secret that one of your favourite British dishes is traditional fish and chips! But much of your time is spent at your homes in France, so what French dish do you consider to be your favourite and why? I love Blanquette de veau which is basically a veal stew. It is great comfort food and French veal is some of the best in the world, as it's cream and butter. I serve it like the French, over rice.
“...some of the most successful TV chefs are gifted teachers."
