Heston Blumenthal: In Search of Perfection
In Search of Perfection
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Three star Michelin award winning chef Heston Blumenthal is chef/owner of the Fat Duck Restaurant in Bray, England. The restaurant was given the distinction of best restaurant in the world in 2005. He uses whatever he can at his disposal to make the best food he can, often using what most would consider molecular gastronomy to achieve his goal. He tries to create what he considers the perfect version of several classic dishes that are favorites within Britain with the aim of having the home British cook be able to re-create these dishes.
Where to Watch In Search of Perfection
7 Episodes
- Fish and Chips
E4Fish and ChipsIn his quest to make the perfect fish & chips, Heston first returns to a childhood haunt - a fish & chip shop in West London - his first time there since age eight. He realizes that the fish & chip culture in England is as much about the ambiance as it is about the food. Not being able to control ambiance, he focuses on the food. For the fish, the travels to Cornwall to test local varieties. His fish of choice, turbot, is an unusual choice and one that offers its own challenges. Because turbot is a flat fish, he has to figure out a batter that cooks as quickly as the thin fish fillet, yet still remains crispy. He turns to the Japanese and tempura for inspiration. For the chips, he ultimately wants to find potatoes that have 22% dry matter, which is the perfect percentage for good textured chips. However, measuring dry matter at home is a virtually impossible proposition, and thus he has to rely on potato variety instead. - Roast Chicken
E6Roast ChickenRoast chicken to Heston is a family meal and thus holds special meaning for him. The first order of business is to taste test different varietals of chicken to see which is the best as a roast chicken ingredient. The winning bird takes him to Lyon, France, where roast chicken is part of the everyday culture. Eating roast chicken in France also brings him back to memories of childhood. In the four step process to make Heston's perfect roast chicken, he is always taking into consideration the problem of moist meat versus crispy skin, as moist meat is accomplished by cooking at low temperatures, whereas crispy skin is accomplished by cooking at high heat. The final touch in his chicken is injecting the bird with added flavor just before serving. With his roast chicken, Heston makes his traditional vegetable accompaniments of roast potatoes, sautéed carrots and broccoli.
