Trusted British chef recipes, tested at home
Nigella Lawson’s ginger and walnut carrot cake is a single-layer, oil-based sponge packed with grated carrot, crumbled walnuts and finely chopped crystallised ginger. It’s topped with a ginger-spiked cream cheese icing, on top only, not through the middle. It cuts into 8 to 12 slices and bakes at 170C for around 50 minutes. The recipe …
Nigella Lawson’s chicken with red grapes and Marsala pan-fries chicken supremes until the skin is golden, then roasts them with grapes in a Marsala, stock and mustard sauce. The grapes soften and burst, sweetening a rich, savoury syrup. It serves two and takes about half an hour, most of it hands-off in the oven. The …
Nigella Lawson’s black pudding meatballs mix minced beef with crumbled black pudding, herbs and a little chilli, then simmer them in a deep tomato and Worcestershire sauce. The black pudding makes them richer and more savoury than a plain beef meatball. It serves four to six and takes about an hour and a quarter start …
Nigella Lawson’s Turkish eggs are poached eggs on a bed of warm, garlicky yoghurt, finished with a fierce drizzle of hazelnut-brown butter spiked with Aleppo pepper. The runny yolk, cool-turned-warm yoghurt and spiced butter make it a brunch that feels far grander than its effort. It serves two and takes about 20 minutes. The dish …
Mary Berry’s lemon curd is a smooth, glossy, sharp-sweet spread made from just lemons, sugar, butter and eggs, cooked gently over simmering water. It’s bright and tangy with a silky, buttery finish, nothing like the shop-bought stuff. It takes about 20 minutes at the stove and fills a couple of jars. Her recipe on BBC …
Mary Berry’s Yorkshire puddings are tall, crisp and hollow, made from a simple batter of plain flour, eggs and milk with one clever addition: an extra egg yolk. They rise dramatically in a very hot oven with sizzling fat in the tin. The batter takes minutes, and they bake in about 15. She shares them …
Mary Berry’s luxury fish pie layers three kinds of fish in a leek and white wine sauce, studded with hard-boiled eggs, under a Gruyère-topped mash. The salmon, smoked haddock and fresh haddock give it depth a plain cod pie never has. It bakes at 200C for 35 to 40 minutes and serves six. She calls …
Mary Berry’s sweet and sour chicken stir-fries marinated chicken with peppers, celery and onion, in a glossy sauce built from pineapple and lychee juice with a little ketchup. Both fruits go in whole at the end, so it’s fresher and lighter than a takeaway. It serves four to six and comes together in under half …
Delia Smith’s apple crumble layers two kinds of apple under a crisp, short topping spiked with cinnamon and roughly chopped almonds. The Bramleys collapse into a sharp purée while the Cox’s hold their shape, so you get both softness and bite. It bakes at 200C for 40 to 45 minutes and serves six to eight. …
Delia Smith’s British pancakes are thin, lacy-edged pancakes made from plain flour, eggs, and a mix of milk and water, with melted butter whisked into the batter. They’re the traditional Shrove Tuesday kind, rolled up with lemon juice and caster sugar. The batter takes five minutes and the recipe makes about twelve. This is her …
