Yemi’s Food Stories: A Royal quiche affair

Yemi Adelekan is a food writer and blogger who was a semi-finalist in last year’s BBC TV’s Masterchef  competition. Every Saturday Yemi will be writing on the Stray Ferret about her love of the district’s food  – please get in touch with her if you want her to review a restaurant, visit your farm, taste the produce you sell or even share a recipe.  

 

Today, May 6, 2023, is a milestone in British history, the coronation of a new King after 71 years since King George VI who reigned from 1936 to 1952.

It’s also the D-day for my first food feature, which I am honoured coincides with the King’s coronation and I couldn’t be prouder.

It’s only fitting that this feature celebrates the King’s coronation. My son, as part of Blackburn Cathedral choir, sang for Prince Charles many moons ago and I was opportune to be a Princes Trust mentor for some years.

Many of us only knew the Queen growing up and even though we knew this day had to come, we clung on in hope for our Queen to live as long as possible. God rest her soul.

Today’s celebration calls for something special. The Royal family has never failed to inspire, and make us proud when it comes to pomp and pageantry; this time will be no different.

We can’t think of things that are quintessentially British without certain foods or ingredients coming to mind: afternoon tea, asparagus, rhubarb, quiches, coronation chicken and my favourite which is Victoria sponge cake.

So, in celebration of the King’s coronation, it’s only fitting that we have a dish that screams ‘British’ but also reminds us of the Commonwealth nations that are part of this celebration. The King and the Queen Consort have asked for quiche to be on the coronation menu.

The quiche, a staple in many homes and pub menus, is mostly served cold but I love to eat mine when it is slightly warm. Eating quiche feels a tad more elevated than eating cold sandwiches which I personally find to be soul crushing.

Here’s my version of quiche created to celebrate the King’s coronation. It is a play on coronation chicken using ingredients and some bold flavours of many Commonwealth nations.

Curried chicken, onions, peppers, and chilli Quiche

Ingredients:

Quiche base

250g block of ready-made shortcrust pastry

Quiche Filling – for a 23-inch pan or two 15-inch pans

Poached or Roasted Chicken – breasts or thighs – 100g

1 red pointed pepper or bell pepper

1 medium red onion

½ chilli – chipotle, habanero, or scotch bonnet

2 eggs

125ml of milk

175ml of double cream

100g of grated cheddar cheese

Tart base – using short crust pastry

1 tsp of curry powder

½ tsp Kashmiri pepper flakes

Smoked sea salt to taste

½ tsp of fresh mixed herbs – parsley, thyme, and rosemary

Method

  1. Preheat your oven to 190°C
  2. Roll out the dough into your quiche tin and line with baking paper; add some baking stones and blind bake for 15 minutes. Remove the baking paper and stones
  3. Reduce the oven temperature to 160°C
  4. Cook and shred the chicken or use leftovers from your roast chicken dinner
  5. Add a little oil to a pan over high heat; fry the sliced onions, chillies, and pepper; season with salt and curry powder; add in the shredded chicken and cook for 3 minutes allowing the flavours to infuse into the chicken. Set aside to cool down
  6. Beat the milk, cream, eggs, Kashmiri pepper, herbs, and salt together in a bowl
  7. Scatter half of the grated cheese in the blind-baked base, evenly top with the chicken and peppers before adding the custard mixture
  8. Sprinkle over the remaining cheese. Place into the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes until set and lightly golden. Check at the 25-minute mark.

Tips for getting a great pasty base: 

To avoid the side collapsing: allow the pastry to overhang the tin and trim once it’s cooked, make sure the tart is filled to the brim with the baking beans or rice so the weight pushes back against bottom and sides.
Also I always put my pastry in the freezer for about 15 minutes to harden up before baking which slows down the shrinkage.
To avoid a soggy middle – once pastry is part baked, remove the beans and brush with whisked egg yolk, return back to oven for about five minutes to help seal it before adding the filling.

Serve warm with some salad, spiced chips, and curry-mayo.

Long live the King! Happy celebrations!

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Harrogate mum ‘excited’ to appear on Masterchef tonight

A Harrogate mum has spoken of her excitement at being chosen to appear as a contestant on MasterChef.

HR Project Manager Olayemi ‘Yemi’ Adelekan, 51, will show off her culinary skills on the popular BBC cooking show tonight at 8pm.

The married mum who has two children says she “loves cooking”. She grew up in Nigeria and has lived in Harrogate for the past nine years.

She told her Facebook followers:

“This is such an incredible and amazing opportunity for me and I’m so excited to go on this journey.

“Let’s just have some fun with food.”

Yemi, who is also a blogger, motivational speaker and author, will champion traditional Nigerian cuisine in the competition. However, her journey from Nigeria to the West Indies in 1995, then to the UK in 1997, has also had a major influence on her cooking style.

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Speaking about why she applied to go on MasterChef, she said:

“My boys are now grown up and moved out, so it’s time for new challenges in my life. MasterChef is one of them.”

Tonight’s episode on BBC One kicks off the third week of MasterChef and it is coming up to the halfway point of the heats.

This year the judges are mixing it up. They are introducing a whole new set of challenges that the passionate amateurs must complete to progress in the competition.

Rudding Park launches programme for young aspiring chefs

Rudding Park in Harrogate has launched a new chef development programme for young people aspiring to become a chef.

The 12-month programme is open to graduates, school leavers and entry-level commis chefs or those simply looking for a career change.

The programme teaches students core and advanced culinary skills to allow them to progress in their career as a chef.

The training will be provided by the hotel’s senior head chefs, the executive chef and consultant chef Stephanie Moon.

Kate Robey, head of learning and development at Rudding Park, said:

“In order for us to thrive as a hospitality business and continue to provide our guests with exceptional experiences, it is crucial we invest in the talent of tomorrow – today.

“Matthew Wilkinson, our executive chef and I approached consultant chef Steph Moon, who has a wealth of experience in tutoring in a number of colleges and is a familiar face on the Yorkshire cookery scene. We are extremely excited to launch the programme and nurture budding chefs so they can fulfil their passions, goals and dreams.”

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The trainees will work full-time and earn £21,870 through the year.

Students will work across all aspects of food production and delivery, spending three months in each of the hotel’s kitchens. Areas such as menu inspiration, planning and costing, butchery and supplier visits and food safety and hygiene are covered.