Great British final

So all the regional finalists for the Great British Menu have been decided and I have to admit that I am disappointed that some of my favourites have been knocked out. I decided a few weeks ago that my dream team for Paris would be Richard Corrigan, Jeremy Lee, Mark Hix and Marcus Wareing but I was thwarted at the last hurdle and Marcus didn’t make it through so I’ll have to say Bryn Williams instead.

Next week they will be whittled down to the final four and we’ll have a menu to showcase Great British food and cooking for Paris. The judges will select their favourites from the seven winners and we, the general public get to vote for our favourite. D and I have promised to recreate the final menu again do I hope everyone votes well. I’ll be extremely gutted if I have to poach an egg in a water bath for two plus hours.

And what would my dream menu be? Bearing in mind that once a chef is chosen to represent his region in a particular course he cannot be selected from again, so I am going to have to choose carefully.

The starters are currently:

Sat Bains' Ham, egg and peas
Bryn Williams' Warm salad of lobster with summer vegetables and herbs and a Welsh water vinaigrette
Jeremy Lee's Crab cakes and mayonnaise
Richard Corrigan's Crubeens (pig's trotters) and beetroot with salad leaves and salad cream
Mark Hix's Mixed beetroots and asparagus with goats' cheese
Atul Kochhar's Seared scallops with grapes and mint dressing
Mark Broadbent's Salad of duck livers, hearts, snails and bacon with a dandelion and apple salad

The judges have these fish dishes to select from:

Sat Bains' Lemon sole and oysters with muscovado jelly and sweet and sour chicory
Bryn Williams' Pan-cooked wild salmon with Conwy mussels, crushed new potatoes and horseradish sauce
Jeremy Lee's A broth of Scottish shellfish
Richard Corrigan's Whole poached wild salmon and duck egg dressing with wheaten bread and country butter
Mark Hix's Scallops, lobster and spider crab with wild seashore vegetables and oyster butter
Atul Kochhar's Crisp-fried spicy John Dory with grilled tomato chutney, cucumber salad and crushed peas
Mark Broadbent's Poached turbot and cockles with asparagus and brown shrimp butter

And then for the main event, there are the following...

Sat Bains' Poached dry-aged beef with textures of the onion family
Bryn Williams' Roast rib of Welsh black beef with oxtail, onion purée and ceps
Jeremy Lee's Fillet steak, pickled walnuts and horseradish
Richard Corrigan's Shoulder of mountain lamb with leek-wrapped loin and champ
Mark Hix's Rabbit and crayfish stargazy pie
Atul Kochhar's Lamb rack and pan-fried lamb patties flavoured with rose petals
Mark Broadbent's Plate of aged mutton, potatoes and broad beans with caper and herb relish

And for the final flourish, these desserts...

Sat Bains' Raspberry sponge with black olive and honey purée, fresh raspberries and goats' milk ice cream
Bryn Williams' Strawberry soufflé with strawberry sorbet and Welsh shortbread
Jeremy Lee's Raspberry shortcake
Richard Corrigan's Carrageen moss pudding with oatmeal and dulse oatcakes
Mark Hix's Perry jelly and summer fruits with elderflower ice cream
Atul Kochhar's Apple tasting of the South-east
Mark Broadbent's Strawberry knickerbocker glory

After much consideration I’ve decided on the quite fishy menu of…

Jeremy Lee's Crab cakes and mayonnaise
Bryn Williams' Pan-cooked wild salmon with Conwy mussels, crushed new potatoes and horseradish sauce
Mark Hix's Rabbit and crayfish stargazy pie
Richard Corrigan's Carrageen moss pudding with oatmeal and dulse oatcakes

Though it could be…

Richard Corrigan's Crubeens (pig's trotters) and beetroot with salad leaves and salad cream
Jeremy Lee's A broth of Scottish shellfish
Bryn Williams' Roast rib of Welsh black beef with oxtail, onion purée and ceps
Mark Hix's Perry jelly and summer fruits with elderflower ice cream

But I wouldn’t be adverse to a seafood extravaganza of…

Bryn Williams' Warm salad of lobster with summer vegetables and herbs and a Welsh water vinaigrette
Mark Hix's Scallops, lobster and spider crab with wild seashore vegetables and oyster butter
Richard Corrigan's Shoulder of mountain lamb with leek-wrapped loin and champ
Jeremy Lee's Raspberry shortcake

But all this entirely depends on my favourite remaining chefs getting through. As we know the judges can be a little hypnotised by certain chefs’ offering, it should be compelling viewing. Let’s hope we get a lot of the chefs and less of Jennie Bond, her random French admonishments and attempts to inflame the rival chefs will not be missed by me anyway. On y va!