Sitting by a roaring fire at Northcote, waiting for Ken Hom to return from his lunch with Nigel, the place appears serene and positively ‘normal’ considering the magnitude of the guest chefs of the days before and the one we’re about to meet. There’s lots of activity; polishing glasses and cutlery, Head Chef Lisa having her portrait taken by Obsession’s photographer Allen Markey (whose pictures you’ve been seeing in the blog), phonecalls coming in (though if they’re after a seat at a table....it’s sold out). Though we offered to help chop some veg (and perhaps see if it’s quite so calm in the kitchen) Lisa politely declines, then heads off to start prepping 150 spring rolls.
When he arrives Ken Hom is just as you imagine, with a knock-out smile that immediately says something about him, a life of doing what he evidently loves doing and a genuine pleasure at meeting new people. It’s his very first visit to Lancashire in forty years of visiting the UK and asked about his first impressions, he is obviously delighted by how green it is and “how warm the people are and actually how beautiful it is”. He is also becoming aware of how many great producers there are in the region, having just tasted the delights of The Clog & Billycock where he enjoyed Fish & Chips with Nigel who, as we know, speaks passionately on the subject. It was Nigel’s passion that brought Ken to Obsession 10 (he changed his schedule to fit it in) that and a good cause; Hospitality Action, the industry’s benevolent organisation, which will benefit from the event this year.
We can’t help but credit Ken with the fact that the UK probably didn’t know what a wok was, before he started to appear on our TV screens. But have we learnt how to cook Chinese? “Yes, it’s now very much part of this country’s fabric, of this country’s cuisine. Several generations have grown up with Chinese food and Chinese Food is as much British cooking as say, Indian.” It’s over twenty years since that first visit to the UK when all he could find in terms of spices were some gnarled, dried up pieces of ginger and no fresh chillis, now he delights in the fact that “people in this country are crazy about spices”.
He was happy to answer some of the questions we’d invited our Twitter friends to pose (see yesterday’s blog) and then we hit on what seems to have motivated him more than anything – he is above anything a teacher. An extra twinkle appears in his eye when he talks about the chance to work with young chefs and the team at Northcote, “One of the great pleasures for me is to share my experience....when they ask me ‘why are you doing it like this?’ It’s nice to explain...and that’s how I learned” .
And finally...is there anything he’s tried on this first, brief visit that he’s not tasted before? Yes, he smiles then describes a small cake, crisp on the bottom filled with currants “it’s delicious !”
Ken promises he’ll be coming back to Lancashire and we’ll be happy to have him back, Chorley cakes at the ready!
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