BOOK REVIEW:Richard Corrigan's new cookery book is a stylish affair in which he shares the limelight with some of Ireland's best-known artisan food producers, writes Marie-Claire Digby
A chef is only as good as his ingredients . . . and a good chef looks after his suppliers. Perhaps that's why Richard Corrigan generously shares the pages of his first cookbook, a handsome volume called The Clatter of Forks and Spoons, with some of the dedicated people who keep his restaurants stocked with impeccable ingredients.
Although Corrigan has feet on both sides of the pond, with restaurants in London and Dublin, there's a very Irish feel to this production. Interviews with several stalwarts of the Irish artisan food world are woven into the story - although it's a bit annoying that Kristin Perers's lovely portrait photographs aren't captioned. These relaxed interactions with Corrigan are a highlight of a very readable book, although it's debatable whether they'd like to be described as "stubborn, cranky people," which is how he describes the sort of person he likes to have producing his ingredients. In fairness, Corrigan also described himself as "a cranky chef", but you get the sense that underneath the bluster, there's a good heart.
Along with these stories, and a warm and intimate pen picture of Corrigan's family life and childhood in Ballivor, Co Meath, there are also lots of earthy, go-cook immediately, recipes. "The recipes in this book have all been written from the point of view of cooking at home, with only a few that need a bit of time in the preparation," Corrigan says. What a relief! A book we can actually cook from, not just marvel at the pretty pictures. The natural smoked haddock with poached egg, kale and scallions, pictured below, is a case in point, and although simplicty itself, it is so popular that Corrigan can't take it off his menus. Kale is in season now, so give it a go. The only cheffy bit about it is a last-minute whizzing, with a stick blender, of the milk and butter the fish is poached in. The fish is served on a mound of mash spiked with kale, scallions and butter, with a poached egg on top.
For Christmas cooks, there's a chapter dedicated to the traditional - butter poached and roasted bronze turkey - and the more unusual - marmalade goose with gravy, which prompts Corrigan to remember the wild goose his father once shot that was "as tough as a whore's heart". Marie-Claire Digby
The Clatter of Forks and Spoonsis published by Fourth Estate (£25). Bentley's Oyster Bar & Grill is at 22 St Stephens Green, Dublin 2, tel: 01-6383939