- What you got going on here? Ham, egg and chips? - Great British food.
As a chef, food is my life.
Lovely. LAUGHTER
Don't try that at home!
But as far as my mate Len goes, we're on a different planet.
My rules are this, never eat anything you can't spell,
and never eat anything you wouldn't want to step in.
BOTH LAUGH
- This is the chicken's feet. - Chicken's feet? - That's right. - No.
I've travelled the world but never had the courage
to experience new cuisines,
and always stuck with what I know.
- Look, that's your favourite there. - Chips. - Chips.
- But after using a pancake once to wipe me face... - What is he like?!
- ..me family decided enough was enough... - Yes!
..and that my taste buds needed to be brought into the 21st century.
- Hot! - There's a lot more to this culinary world of ours than pickled walnut.
It's time for me to show Len a whole new culinary world...
- I'm going to do it. - ..that'll make his palate purr.
- BOTH LAUGH - You're not talking food adventure?
- Food adventure indeed. - Oh-oh! - Oh!
- What's that I see? Is it a tandoori chicken? - Oh-oh!
BOTH LAUGH
- I liked it. - And that's all I need to know.
For the last decade, I've been a judge on Strictly Come Dancing.
London born and bred, 71 years ago,
my taste buds have been influenced by my nan's cooking.
I've never eaten spaghetti, had a curry,
and even pizza, well, looks a bit exotic.
I was also born and brought up in London.
But as a chef, my palate
has experienced and travelled to every part of the globe.
Over the last 20 years, there's been a food explosion across Britain
and now, no matter what you desire, every cuisine is catered for.
For me, I have ten favourites
that are never far away from the table at home.
And my perfect dinner? Well, prawn cocktail to start,
full English breakfast, and a jam roly-poly.
Oh! It's food heaven!
My mission during our time together is to educate his taste buds
and see if I can replace anything on the Ten From Len board
and show him that there's more to life than a prawn cocktail from 1976.
Today, I've brought Len to my old stomping ground, south London.
And on today's menu...
We've got a jam-packed day ahead of us,
where we'll be tasting perfect Portuguese fair.
I'll eat all of these, I promise.
- Hello! - ALL: - Hello! - Tucking into a picnic Japanese style.
- No, don't! Don't, you'll make me feel like a failure. - LAUGHTER
And I'm going to try and tempt Len
- and the good people of south London... - Follow me!
..with a brand-new dish, inspired by today's foodie adventure.
We're really trying to get a nice sort of Portuguese theme going.
Get your laughing gear around that.
Ah, this is it.
- South London, this is my domain. - Oh, yes.
- I feel really at home here. - I bet you do.
I used to go to Balham.
Back in the '60s,
Balham was where all the top coaches were, dance coaches,
- all along Balham High Street. - I absolutely never knew that. - Yeah..
- Have you been down here to eat at all? - Never. Never, no.
I mean south London's got so many eating opportunities,
global food everywhere you look.
I've got some really interesting restaurants
- that I'd like to take you to. - Yeah..
- How about something with a continental feel? - Continental?
- Yeah, continental. - This could be a start on the right foot.
Come on, Len, let's go.
To begin our day of discovery,
I want to test out Len's palate on some of the finest fair
hailing from Portugal.
Len and I are in south London, the borough of Lambeth.
We've come to explore the Stockwell district,
which is commonly known to the locals as Little Portugal.
You might be able to see why.
Wow! This place has a real continental vibe
with its lively restaurants and bars,
yet we're over 1,000 miles away from Portugal,
which sits just next door to sunny Spain.
Of the estimated half a million Portuguese people
currently residing in Britain,
over 25,000 of them live right here.
Most came to the UK in the 1960s and 70's,
when Portugal was amongst Europe's poorest countries.
With little opportunity for employment back home,
locals were forced to look for work overseas,
with many drawn to London's Stockwell area.
The local authority encouraged the growing Portuguese restaurant scene
which has sprung up around South Lambeth Road,
which is where we are right now.
- Have you ever been to Portugal? - Many, many times, and I love it.
- I love the tapas, I love the sardines. - Yeah.
You know, there's a little area where you can sit...
Kind of just slip them off the bone, don't you?
- Oh! And of course, pastel de nata. Custard tarts. - Oh, wow!
- Oh! Pastel de nata! - Do you know any other Portuguese words?
- No. Pastel de nata. - All right then.
- Let's go and try some food. - Come on! - BOTH LAUGH
Thanks to Portugal's geographical position on the Atlantic Ocean,
it has a reputation for great seafood dishes.
This lively bar and restaurant
has been popular with the locals for over 17 years.
Antonio and Carlos are in charge of this place.
Before moving to a new life in England at 19,
Antonio earned his crust working in restaurants in his homeland.
And co-owner Carlos has been here for 12 years.
They haven't forgotten their Portuguese roots
but both call the UK their home.
- This looks perfect. - Perfect. Shall I lead the way?
- Hello. - Hello, gentlemen. - Hello. - How are you?
Len, nice to meet you.
- Nice to meet you. - Hi, Antonio, Ainsley.
- Really nice to meet you. - I know what this is.
- What's that? - This, pastel de nata. - Oh, you're right.
- Oh, booyakasha! - You're right. - I could eat all of them.
I'm more interested in the cooking, he likes the eating.
- It smells lovely. - Oh, right.
Can I have a quick look in your kitchen?
- Come and have a look. - Really? Oh, fantastic.
- Come round. - Let them go. - AINSLEY LAUGHS
I'll eat all of these, I promise.
- Oh! - Let's go. - Come on.
- Just come. - Yeah. - Maybe that was the smell. - Hi, guys. How you doing?
- Yeah, good. - The chef. - Hi. - Hi.
- How are you? - Fine. - Isabella. - Isabella.
- Isa-bella? - Isa-bella.
- Isabella. - Isabella.
What do people identify with when they come here?
- Mainly with the bacalhau, the salt cod. - The salt cod, yeah.
The salt cod, that is the most... I think is the most traditional.
- It's almost iconic though the bacalhau? - Yeah, yeah, it is for many,
and we keep it like...our own food.
- Shall we do some cooking? - Yes.
OK, yeah, I'm looking forward to this. This is the...?
- This is the cod fish. - OK, this is the cod that's been salted? - Yes.
- The water has some garlic, salt and olive oil. - Yeah.
- We're going to put it into the water now. - How do they prepare it?
Well, basically, they come dry, salted dry,
so they cut it in small pieces
- and they put into the water to remove all the salt. - Uh-huh.
- So, it's pre-soaked before? - It's pre-soaked.
And we add the potatoes as well,
cos they get the flavour from the cod as well.
- Chickpeas go into it. - So how long will you cook this for?
- For five minutes. - Oh. - Five to ten minutes.
So you're just poaching very lightly?
Yeah. When the water is boiled, it don't take a long time to do.
I think this bacalhau could ease Len into the day quite nicely.
I can't believe that this whole area is...is like going to Portugal.
Yes, it's true. You've got many restaurants on this street,
you got another street on opposite side to this one,
- many places from Portugal, yeah. - Yeah.
And do you get mostly Portuguese people, customers?
- Or do you get also, you know? - At the moment, 50% Portuguese
- and the rest are... - A mixture? - A mixture, yeah.
Yeah. The other thing I like very much are the tapas.
- Oh, tapas, yeah. We do a lot of tapas here. - Yeah?
There's...flamed chorizo, broad bean with pork stew, sardines.
- Oh, I love the sardines. - Sardines as well.
You can go by the water, where the ships come in and...
Oh, yes, really fresh ones.
And they come straight off and they grill them.
- They grill, and if you put the sardine on top of the bread... - Yeah?
..the sauce of the sardines come in the bread,
- it's really, really nice. - Yeah.
They are fantastic. Listen, while we talk...
- Please, enjoy it. - May I? - Yes, of course.
Because it's...it's hell just to look at them.
- Oh! They're great. - Is it all right? - Yeah.
They're fantastic. They really are.
- You've got potatoes, chickpea and cod? - And cod.
Isabella, is this very traditional?
Yeah, this is very, very, very traditional.
- Did your mama cook it for you? - Yeah. - And your grandmother? - Yeah.
- Everyone. - Yeah. - And your husband? LAUGHTER
A boiled egg? I've never seen this before, why the boiled egg?
- Well, it's part of tradition. - OK.
You can't give that to Len. Len won't eat that.
Yes, he will.
Do you get back to Portugal at all? Are you...?
Well, normally, I go two times a...a year.
Portugal has come to you because it's so...
This area, it's like being back in Portugal almost.
Yes, it's true. You come in the street,
instead you say, "Good morning,"
- you say all the time, "Bon dia." - Bon dia?
- It means "Good morning." - Yeah.
We've got the lovely bacalhau,
but what other type of fish would you associate with Portugal?
Well, basically, sardines,
the octopus is very popular,
also the tuna, the hake fish,
- sea bass, bream, all of those are... - Isabella's not giving us a chance!
- What's that, Isabella? What did you say? - The cod is ready.
- It's ready. - It's ready, is it? OK.
OK. Oh, Isabella, Len's going to love that.
- Hey, that is a big portion. - Yes, it is
You would say that perhaps Portuguese people
are more likely to eat fish more than meat?
- We eat both, but more fish, yeah. - More fish?
- Oh, fantastic! Look at this! Oh! - Bon appetit.
Yeah, well, it's not for me, it's for...
I might have a bit. I'll have to try that though.
- Thanks very much. Isabella, see you later. - Bye.
Brilliant, thank you.
LEN LAUGHS
- Ah! How are you, gentlemen? - Let's see. - OK, Len, take your eyes...
Antonio you've seen this before,
but my dear friend Len has never seen that.
- Do you know what that is, Len? - That looks like a piece of fish. - Yeah.
- I'm going to start by saying that. - Yeah, OK.
- It wouldn't be a cod? - Yeah, absolutely. Bacalhau they call it.
- You've probably seen that. - Bacalhau, yeah, I've heard the word.
Yeah, salt cod. Now, Antonio,
am I right in saying this is very traditional?
- Yes, it is. - Yeah? - At Christmas, it's really, really traditional.
- See, what is beautiful is the presentation as well. - Yeah.
You know, the first thing you do is you eat with your eyes.
You look at it and you think,
"Yeah, now that looks...that looks delicious."
I couldn't agree with you more. How do we go at this, boys?
- Just tuck in a little bit? Just try a little bit? - Just try it.
- Just cut down there.
There's a bone in the middle, Len, so be careful.
Yeah. I'm not going to eat that.
Just pull that off, just try a bit of that.
Is this grilled or is it baked?
- Or...? - Boiled. - It's boiled? - Yeah. - Never! - Fascinating.
They boil it and they put a little bit of garlic, onion,
and they put a little oil and salt in the water.
- It has to be boiling water, otherwise the fish breaks down. - Yeah.
If you put it in cold water then bring it to the boil,
the cod just breaks down so this is it. Go on, what do you think?
I haven't tried it yet.
Bacalhau, Len. What's he going to make of this?
- Beautiful fish and...slightly salty. - Uh-huh.
- Yeah? But nice and meaty, not all that noncey, poncey stuff. - OK.
What about you? When you put it into your mouth, what do you experience?
- What does it bring back? - It makes me remember our home. - Home.
- You remember home? - Yeah. - I tell you...
- Since I was born, I eat this cod. - Yeah.
So when I taste it, I remember back.
If this road outside was a golf course,
- I'd never go to Portugal again. - LAUGHTER
I'd just come here, eat here, play golf there.
You wouldn't if it was lashing down with rain,
- you'd be straight out there. - That's true.
Mmm! It's delicious.
If I was to score this,
it would almost be a ten from Len.
It loses... It doesn't quite make it to the ten
and I can tell you why, I'm not sure about these little things.
- Baked beans. - They're like... - No, chickpeas. - I know! LAUGHTER
I'm not sure about these.
Carlos, Antonio, thank you, thank you.
- Hasn't it been great, Len? - It's been great.
- Really, really fantastic. - Thank you very much. - No, thank you.
Apart from those funny chickpeas,
I think I could get used to new foods and flavours.
This food adventure isn't as bad as I thought.
What I liked about the place,
- it had a buzz, there was an atmosphere. - Yeah.
It was almost like stepping back into Portugal, you know,
all the smells, nearly all Portuguese people.
- I was looking round different dishes, you know? - Hmm.
I wasn't absolutely sure how you were going to, sort of, accept the food.
That kind of bacalhau they call it, that salted cod, what did you think?
Well, I love cod anyway because it's a nice meaty fish.
- I don't like too much, you know, dainty food really. - OK.
I was brought up on sort of steak and kidney pies
and puddings and roast dinners,
- so I'm not a great lover of dainty this and that so much. - Yeah.
And what I loved with that cod,
- it was a proper piece of meaty fish. - It really was.
- I found it really delicious, actually. - Yeah.
- Well I've got to say, a lot of that food was very, very simple. - Yeah.
- But the journey I'm going to take you on... - Oh, yeah? Yeah, not so simple?
- Not so simple. Come on. - Oh! Come on! - AINSLEY CHUCKLES
We've just sampled a delicious fish and potato dish,
but this magical food combination is not just loved by the Portuguese.
Us Brits have taken spuds and fish to our hearts
and turned 'em into what we think
is our national dish, fish and chips.
Fried fish was first introduced to London
by Jewish immigrants from Portugal and Spain,
and in the early-19th century,
street sellers would sell it with bread or baked potatoes.
The world's first fish and chip shop is believed to have been Malin's,
which opened in east London in 1860, and by 1927
there were 35,000 fish and chip shops around the UK.
During both World Wars, the war cabinet
ensured that supplies of this national treasure
were maintained off ration,
with Winston Churchill calling fish and chips "good companions".
To keep prices down, portions were often wrapped in old newspaper,
a practice that survived as late as the 1980s,
when it was ruled unsafe for food to come into contact with newspaper ink.
Today, British consumers
eat around 382 million portions of fish and chips each year.
Ainsley, fish and chips,
you've got to say it's a pretty combination, in't it?
It's one of the best combinations.
It's one of those things that when you walk into a chippie
and you smell it,
- you can taste it almost straightaway. - Yeah, straightaway.
You know, when I was a kid, we never ate out, ever.
The only thing my mum would do on occasions, she'd say to me,
"Lennie, here's two bob go down and get yourself some fish and chips."
And that was, for me, the only memory I have of eating out, really.
And I didn't even eat it out, cos, you know,
I took it home and ate it indoors.
It weren't served in a fancy bag, was it?
No, and that was the other bonus,
you got a nice piece of newspaper to have a read of.
- Got a bit of the Daily Sketch. - AINSLEY LAUGHS
- So, yeah. - Mine was always saturated in vinegar.
I put too much vinegar on it.
Oh, I always did. Yeah, swimming in it.
Ben Stiliano has been working in his family's chippie
since he was 14 years old.
I was more or less brought up on fish and chips.
I mean, I took over the business
from working with my parents and stuff like that.
What makes a really good chip is a freshly cut chip.
Fast fried to start with, first blanch take them out,
let them start to cool down a bit,
and then in a nice hot oil, refry them as the customer requires them.
Won't be long.
You've got the crispiness of the chip on the outside,
yet it's nice and soft in the middle and flaky. And they're just perfect.
- Look at that, beautiful fresh bit of fish. - Yeah.
That's what you want, cos it's all about
- the quality of the fish. - Of course it is, yeah.
Cod is definitely the most traditional fish
and the most popular fish that we serve here.
We use Icelandic fish here, which is sustainably sourced.
I think cod's perfect for fish and chips
because it's a nice, white, firm fish, not very strong in taste,
lovely in texture, and it goes very, very well with fish and chips.
- And what about...what about crackling? - A used penny that was.
You could just have the crackling, all the end bits off.
All the bits of batter that have been crispened
in the fryer and they scooped it out.
They scooped it out into a thing
and then you could buy that. It was a penny.
The secret in my opinion to a good batter
is it should be made with some nice cold water.
I know you've got the chef's saying the beer batter,
the sparkling water batter,
but we're talking here about everyday fish and chips.
Traditional batter should be made very thinly,
so that when it fries, it's a very light, crisp coating.
I think fish and chips will last for ever.
Providing you deliver a good meal,
it will live for ever, of course it will. Why wouldn't it?
Ainsley, on our cooking tour...after eating this,
you've got your work cut out, cos this is delicious.
Yeah, it might well be delicious, but the tour that I'm taking you on,
- the culinary tour, a cultural culinary tour... - Yeah, you're right.
..that's going to titillate your taste buds.
I want delicious and tasty.
You're not asking for much are you?
- You want your own personal chef, you do. - Yeah. - Cor, dear!
LEN LAUGHS
While our capital city may be packed with international influences,
this area has become associated
with another locally produced and very British treat.
Just over a mile down the road, being baked every day,
yum, yum, it's the Chelsea bun.
Ohh! The humble Chelsea bun has been around
since at least the start of the start of the 18th century.
And doing their bit to carry on the sweet and sticky London tradition
is Richard Scroggs,
who's the co-owner of the Post Office Bakery in Clapham.
Always busy in the bakery. Never a dull moment.
The business was started in the '80s
by Berlin-born baker, Karl Heinz Rossbach.
He spotted a gap in the British market for artisan bread,
and Richard makes sure his ethos for selling
only handmade products still survives today.
I've always baked bread, initially with my dad
and then, obviously, since then for myself.
Every single thing here is made and baked on the premises.
As well as the vast array
of continental breads and cakes on offer,
the Chelsea bun is doing its bit for Great Britain.
Of the British things, the Chelsea bun is a particular favourite
because of the nutmeg and the mixed spice in it.
It gives it a little bit more sort of zest and zing,
so it's not completely sweet.
You know, I think it's a very interesting bun
to have come from this country.
These are actually currants,
cos raisins and sultanas come from grapes,
and currants are actually their own fruit and they're slightly sharper.
It's important to roll the dough nice and tightly,
so the buns fit snugly into the baking tins,
and, of course, to prevent them from unravelling whilst cooking.
Richard has an interesting theory on the origins of this popular treat.
I believe it comes from 18th-century London.
There was a bakery called the Chelsea Bun House
and the guy who invented it was actually called Captain Bun,
if you can believe it, which is something I might call myself.
We want to have a bakery
where we're actually baking all the goods on site
and selling them straight out of the door fresh.
At the weekend, we have the doors open all night
because we can sell 20, 30, 40 croissants overnight.
I'll put 'em on for 15 minutes.
It's a hard life to be a baker, definitely.
It's really rubbish hours, you have to be up in the middle of the night,
but the satisfaction is you're constantly working with your hands,
you're touching ingredients that you can mess around with for a start.
And the other thing is
that if you're making things that people like,
you get people all the time telling you
how much they like them and that's really nice.
Just got to put the icing on.
People come in this bakery all the time and say,
"Wow! It's amazing what you're doing, we love your products."
So you get a lot of instant sort of satisfaction being a baker.
Len has been eased gently into today's culinary trip,
but I want him to be challenged by the food world that he fears.
I think he's ready to be a bit braver and I've got just the ticket.
The beauty of being in south London
is that you're never more than a few paces away from a tasty new cuisine.
And there's nowhere you can see this more than in Brixton.
This is a vibrant district with a multiethnic community
and the eateries in the market reflect countless different cultures,
from Latin American to Mexican, French Brazilian to Thai,
there's no need to go abroad
if you want to experience food from another country.
There's one type of cuisine served here
that I want Len to get his teeth into...
Japanese.
There are currently around 36,000 Japanese people living in the UK
with most living in London.
While Oriental eateries including Chinese restaurants
have long been a part of our culture,
there are still quite a few of us Brits, including me,
who might struggle to name more than one Japanese dish.
This cosy street-food restaurant is run by a lovely lady called Moto.
Originally from the Japanese city of Osaka,
Moto left her homeland 17 years ago to travel around the world
and experience different foods using the UK as her base.
After deciding to settle here,
Moto brought her memories of Osakan street food with her
and opened up a restaurant using and serving authentic Japanese food.
Although Moto's street food looks very tempting,
today, Len and I are in for a bit of a special treat.
She's invited us round to her house
where her friends are preparing a typical Japanese feast.
Len, I've got to say, I know before you were saying
- you were up for it... - Yeah.
..but I'm taking you down a cuisine route
that you might not be familiar with.
- How does Japanese grab you? - Well, is that like Chinese?
- Like going to a Chinese? - Yeah, you could say it's like Chinese,
- but it's slightly different - I have been to Japan a couple of times.
- Oh, right? - Yes. - OK. - And I tried to swerve the traditional Japanese.
- Have you ever eaten things like raw fish? - I've never had all that...
- No, what do you call it? - Sushi. - Sushi, no.
- I know, don't be disappointed! - No...
That's your trouble, you get all...
- I don't want you disappointed with me. - I'm not disappointed,
I just want to prove that, you know,
we live in this multicultural Britain,
- there's lots of lovely foods for you to try. - That's what I'm doing it for,
I want to... Listen, I know this is my loss. I must be missing out here.
- Yeah. - And I don't want to miss out, it must be delicious,
it's just that I can't bring myself to having it.
I want to learn to enjoy these foods,
but I've never tried raw fish.
But, you know, the beauty of it, it's not just raw fish,
you put a little bit of soy on it, you put a little bit of wasabi.
You know, it's not plain,
- there's something to bring those lovely flavours out. - Yeah.
I like a rollmop.
Yeah.
- Yeah. Come on, let's go. - BOTH LAUGH
Now I know my mate Len loves a bit of rustic Portuguese cooking...
- Hello. - How are you? - Please, come in.
..it's time to turn up the volume
with my mate Moto's more exotic flavours.
- Konichiwa. This is my friends. - Hello! - ALL: - Hello!
- This is Len and Ainsley. - Hello, ladies, how are you all doing?
Now, who's responsible for this? Just Moto or everybody?
- All of us. - Yeah?
- What do you think? - There's no...no chips.
LAUGHTER
There's no chips, but I tell you what, isn't it lovely and colourful?
It looks lovely and colourful...and unrecognisable.
- Yes, I think so. - What is it? What is that?
That's a plum, a pickled plum.
- Well, that sounds nice, pickled plum. - Yes, I think.
- Is that tuna or...? - Salmon. - Salmon?
- Hmm. - Yeah. These are really interesting, these are goat's toes.
LAUGHTER
No, I can see what that is, that's a nicely peeled apple.
LAUGHTER
- And this here? - This is Japanese omelette with a dashi,
- lots of dashi inside. - What's that?
- Dashi is Japanese stock. - Stock?
- And this is sushi and...? - No, this is called onigiri,
which is rice cake and...
seasoned with sesame and plum.
- We should try some of this. - Well, I've already... I know...
- LAUGHTER - We. - What do you mean "we"? - We, we!
- What would you suggest I began with? - Pickled with a pork slice?
Pickle and a pork slice.
'Not only have I never eaten Japanese grub before,
'but I've never used chopsticks either.'
Oh, and chopsticks! Oh, I've never done this.
- You've never done this? - No, never used 'em.
Not too many, only one to begin with, in case I don't like it much.
- Do you like cucumber? - Yeah, I love cucumber.
- That's all right, then. - Ainsley, would you like?
All the time. Oh, please, Moto, you know me,
I'm absolutely for that, definitely.
It takes an hour to get these chop... To get it working.
There we are.
Right, now eat up.
- That is fantastic? - Do you like that? - I like it a lot.
- Right, then keep going. - You just use it like this and then hold.
In and out like that, yeah.
Yeah, OK.
- This is lovely. - You see. - See, this is great.
- Is it because it's familiar? - It's tastes that I'm familiar with. - Yeah.
- Pork, cucumber. - Yeah.
How do you prepare it all? What do you have to do?
- I didn't prepare this one. Who did it? - Yes, I did it.
OK, and tell us, how did you do it? What's the secret of this pork?
- It's slow-cooked for one and a half hours... - OK.
..with a sake soy sauce and some sugars as well.
I've finished me plate. It's great.
- I'm even going to eat this bit of cucumber. - Yeah.
I'd use your fingers, Len, you're never going to pick it up with that.
- No. - That's it.
Pork and cucumber was a nice safe start,
now let's dial it up. What about a bit of the old lotus root?
- Do you think? - Yeah. - Shall we try?
- Now you're pushing the boat out. Lotus root? OK. - LAUGHTER
- Small amount! - That's a little face for you there, look.
- I don't like food that looks back at me. - LAUGHTER
I hope you like it.
Well, here goes! A root I've never even heard of.
- Very chewy. - LAUGHTER
Anything that grows underground other than potatoes,
- I generally don't like. - OK.
- Would you like some salad? - What's in there?
- That's with plum sauce. - It sounds great, cos I love a plum. - Yeah.
- OK. - Yeah. - And a little bit of bonito flakes here.
- What is that, bonito? - Bonito? Football manager, in't he?
LAUGHTER
So tell us about bonito then.
Bonito is a type of tuna, smoked and really, really thin shaved
and we use a lot in Japanese cooking.
- The aroma and flavours are very strong. - Is this the one?
Yes, that's the one.
Here we are. Look at that.
- Cos it looks like wood shavings, doesn't it? - Yeah. - Eh?
- Try a little bit with the salad and stuff. - Yeah.
Yeah, it'll be really lovely.
It's quite strong flavour, but when you eat it with something else,
- it becomes really nice harmony. - Yeah.
No, don't, mate. Don't! You make me feel like a failure.
- It's great. - It's... - I would never, ever have tried that...
- under normal circumstances. - Yeah.
- LAUGHTER - But it is delicious.
- Oyshi. - Oyshi. - Oyshi. Delicious!
- Oyshi. - Your pronunciation is very good. - See.
- Oyshi. - ALL: - Yeah! - LAUGHTER
- Let's have a go at the hot stuff. - OK, come on, please. - Come on.
And what I mean by hot is that wonderful tradition of Japanese tea.
- So, what type of tea is this? - This is hoji tea,
- which is green tea but roasted to become brown tea. - Right.
So it's non-caffeine, so we drink all day long.
- Len, you ever had roasted tea before? - No, I've had green tea. I like tea.
- OK. - Yeah. But this I've never tried.
Oh!
- Oh. - Oh, lovely. - We drink it after meal to calm down and relax.
And what do we say? Cheers or what?
With the tea we don't say cheers, we nod our head.
- OK. - LAUGHTER
- This is what you would have at home with the family and so on? - Yeah.
- Oh, lovely. - I think women often hold the bottom of the cup,
- maybe look elegant. - Elegant. - Yeah.
- Oh. - But then men often drink like this. More kind of... - Yeah.
It's a bit like when you see the posh ladies,
- they always have their...little pinkie out. - Exactly.
- We are posh, so we hold like this. - Look, all of them are like this.
- I'm going to join that. - Right. - So the food we've had today,
is that what you would serve in a restaurant or is it family food?
No, that was more... Yeah, family and we eat at home.
I'd be prepared now to go into a Japanese restaurant and eat,
- but it's knowing... - What to choose.
- What to choose. I need you to come with me. - Hmm! We all come with you!
- LAUGHTER What about me? - We don't want you. - You travel round the country with me
but you want to go with her now. Oyshi to you an' all, mate!
- Oyshi! - Cheers everyone!
- Cheers! - ALL: - Cheers!
ALL: Oyshi! Oyshi. Oyshi.
- Oyshi. - Oyshi to you too, mate.
- Oyshi. - LEN LAUGHS
That was a first for me, the food wasn't all to my liking,
but at least we ended with a nice cuppa.
Well, I've got to say, what an experience.
- It was far tastier than I ever thought it would be. - Sure.
- And I liked the delicacy of it. - Hmm.
And it was it was filling without making you feel bloated.
What about you and the chopsticks then, Len?
Well, I'm not a professional chopsticker as you are,
but I tell you what's great with the chopsticks, it makes you eat slower.
- Hmm. - Doesn't it? - Yeah. - It makes you eat slower.
And they say it takes 15 or 20 minutes for the food to digest,
to send a message to brain that you're actually full,
- so it's a good way of doing it. - I agree.
- Instead of shoving it all in. - Yeah.
I have got my taste buds educated a bit.
Well, I tell you what, Len, I've got something else to show you.
- Never? - Ohh! - Come on.
BOTH LAUGH
Well, we haven't stopped eating all day
and Ainsley still wants to rustle up one last thing for me
and the lovely Londoners.
He better have some room left, because I'm going to cook him
something using flavours and ingredients
that we've experienced today.
Spiced Portuguese chicken
with char-grilled peppers and almond sauce.
For this you'll need some peppercorns.
I'm going to crush those up, you can use a pestle and mortar if you want,
I'm just going to use a good old-fashioned pan.
OK. Just going to chop up a bit of garlic.
You get your garlic on the board, crush it.
You can use a bit of garlic puree if you want.
A bit of smoked paprika in there.
Some fresh thyme leaves, gives it a really, really lovely flavour.
It's very typical of Portuguese cuisine
that they just take their natural, sort of rustic herbs
and just throw them in to any of their marinades.
Really works really, really well.
And, of course, a bit of lemon zest.
And last but not least, a good bit of olive oil.
Stir that round and create that lovely paste.
Just look at that colour.
And, of course...it smells wonderfully aromatic too.
You've got that smoky paprika flavour,
you've got that citrusy lemon coming through,
and, of course, that touch of garlic.
All of these combinations just work so well.
I don't know how they're going to work
on Len though, but we'll find out later.
Ah, lovely!
Now for the chicken. I'm just going to slash my chicken,
I want to try and get some of those lovely flavours in there.
So I'm just going to take the knife,
I'm just going to score that across my chicken like that.
This won't take long, we're talking about four or five minutes
each side for these chicken breasts, no more than that.
OK? They're quite small, straight into the marinade.
Whilst that chicken's marinating, I'm going to make a delicious
char-grilled red pepper and almond sauce.
Take your almonds, just bung 'em straight into your food processor.
Along with some garlic. Got a couple of cloves of garlic
there that have just been peeled.
Just slice that straight into. All right?
In with your red peppers to be char-grilled.
Any of those lovely juices, they can all go in there too.
You can actually use a jar of red peppers, I think it's much easier.
And...a couple of tablespoons of red wine vinegar.
And we can start to blitz that down.
Once you get to that stage where you can see it starting to change,
it's starting to become a little bit smooth,
then you can add your olive oil.
That's it.
And this is our famous red pepper and almond sauce.
OK, that chicken's been marinating a while,
so I'm just going to slap that straight onto our barbie.
Look at those lovely grooves in there, eh?
That's going straight onto the chargriller.
Beautiful! That'll take about three or four minutes each side, as I say,
depending on your thickness, guys.
Let's just turn those over.
That's looking perfect. Now for that almond and pepper sauce.
We like a bit of that.
OK, let's serve up.
I've got some lovely new potatoes here
that I've cooked. Cooked new potatoes.
I've just sliced them up, I've put some chorizo into a pan.
And as they started to bleed and release that lovely paprika oil,
I've put me potatoes, a little bit fresh thyme, salt and pepper.
Five, ten minutes, look at that, lovely.
With me red pepper and almond sauce.
That's it.
Bit of lemon, absolutely perfect. Doesn't that look a treat?
I tell you what, I hope Len's going to really tuck into this,
if not there's a load of hungry people who will do.
Ohh! Now, I think this is delicious,
but let's see if it gets the Goodman seal of approval?
What we got going on here, Ainsley?
Well, I've been cooking up something for you.
- We've got all this lovely sort of Portuguese influence? - Yeah.
So I've got a nice bit of spiced Portuguese chicken
and over here is a char-grilled red pepper and almond sauce,
and that's some chorizo and potatoes,
cos I know you like a bit of tattie and something on the side.
- Yeah. Can I try that? - Yeah. I want you to try it, yeah.
And that's the chicken. You dip the sauce there.
- Do you want a bit of lemon on it? - Go on.
Watch it, don't get it in your eye. There you go, my man.
- Let me try this. So I get a bit of that. - Yeah. Dip that in there.
- A little bit of that. - Yeah. That's it, have a taste of that.
That... I'm telling... Now, look, hold my gaze.
- Yeah? - That is fantastic. - Ahh!
- No, I'm telling you. - AINSLEY HUMS A TUNE
I didn't expect that from you, Len.
- I thought anything spicy, we've got problems. - No, no, no.
- It's not over spiced. - No, that's the secret.
- Let me try a little bit of this, if I may. - OK, yeah.
So I have a little potato, which I know about,
and now this, this is some form of sausage is it?
That's it, the old chorizo sausage, yeah.
- If I was in a restaurant, I could eat...that. - All of that?
All of it. It is truly...lovely.
How do you think the people of south London will take to that?
If we went out onto the street with this,
how do you think they'd respond?
This is a winner, winner, chicken dinner. I'm telling you.
That is it. I'm going to use that line.
Do you want me to go and rustle up a few punters?
Er, yeah, that'd be good.
- Don't eat any of mine. - All right. - That's delicious. I'll be back.
Yeah, all right. Go on, then.
Follow me!
- Have you got some people here? - I've got a few. - Hello, boys, how are you?
Beautiful spiced chicken. Chorizo and potatoes.
Give it a try. You're going to love it.
CHATTER
Roll up, roll up, roll up. See your south London treat!
Move back a bit, because you're impeding
the forward progression of other people.
- Here we are. - Madam, just try that. - Thank you.
You'll love it, it is gorgeous.
It's gorgeous. Get your laughing gear around that.
I like the way it's got sweet and sour together.
Yeah. And you can taste the almond as well.
It's really nice, I love it.
There we are. Get your... There's a fork.
I don't usually eat Portuguese food, but that actually might tempt me to.
- Is this Portuguese? - Yeah, very much so. They use it in Portugal too.
- I'm from Portugal. - Are you? - Oh, there are!
Well, darling, you're in for an absolute treat there.
- Here you go. - So that's really good. - Lovely. Beautiful.
I really liked the mild, red pepper and almond sauce,
cos it really complemented the chicken.
It reminds me of little tapas dishes that I've had before.
We've really tried to get a real nice Portuguese theme going here.
- Looks amazing. - Taste it, it tastes amazing.
This lady wants seconds!
Oh, here's Antonio to check out the competition!
- Are we taking your business away? - Yeah.
Antonio only for five minutes. We'll be gone...
- Where is my customers? - Antonio, just try it.
I'll just give you a little bit more.
Here are.
That's really nice.
Really tasty. Delicious.
It's just got the right flavours, so...compliments to the chef.
HE LAUGHS
- All the best. - Thank you. Bye-bye. God bless you.
I'm giving this food van...
two Michelin tyres.
What is he like?! I'll give you Michelin...
- BOTH LAUGH - You don't get better than that!
Well, I must tell you, I've enjoyed all the food, everything.
- It's really nice of you to say that, Len. - I have indeed, you know.
And what's been nice,
it's been a real contrast in flavours and tastes.
I mean, the Japanese, that whole cuisine
took us down a totally different route.
- We've never been down there before. - Yeah.
And the Portuguese in the restaurant, Len, what did you think?
I loved that cod. It's a meaty...a lovely, meaty fish.
- I wasn't keen on those nuts. - They're not nuts, they're chickpeas.
- Yeah, well, chickpeas. - Nuts! - I wasn't keen on the chickpeas,
but guess what I think was the highlight of the whole day?
The highlight of the day for me was eating your food.
That beautiful chicken, you know.
And slightly, I'm not going to say burnt,
- I don't know what the word is. - Charred. - Charred,
slightly charred, and I'm not saying it because you did it,
there may come a time you cook something and I don't like it,
but it was truly delicious.
'So after our gastronomic gallop around south London,
'tasting punchy Portuguese fish...'
If this road outside was a golf course,
- I'd never go to Portugal again. - LAUGHTER
'..and delicately fragrant Japanese flavours...'
- I would never, ever have tried that under normal circumstances. - LAUGHTER
But it is delicious.
'..will any of these dishes make it into my top ten?'
'I'm going to say yes to Portugal,
'but it's Ainsley's fantastic chicken dish that gets the nod.
'So out goes my favourite roast
'and in comes that spiced chicken with red pepper and almond sauce.
'Delicious!'
- I'm looking forward to the rest. - Winner, winner, chicken dinner.
Ah! That's my boy!
LAUGHTER