John Torode webchat Thurs 10th Sept 3pm

shysal

Hi John, I am pleased to see that your new book is about home cooking and look forward to purchasing a copy.
I have a question about Masterchef. When the participants have been given the ingredients or brief for the invention type rounds, are they given some time to look up recipes before they begin? Apart from the basics, I wouldn't have any idea of quantities, especially for desserts/puddings.

Gidday, nobody has an advantage over anybody else. Once they walk in the door it starts in earnest. I would think by now many a contestant would be clever enough to have a couple of basic recipes learnt so they're ready for the invention test.

angiehoggett

How do your Christmas Dinners shape up? I always struggle with catering for that many people on the big day, any tips would be appreciated!

I suggest for Christmas, that everybody who comes for lunch has to contribute to Christmas lunch. Should it be that somebody brings the pudding, somebody makes the cauliflower cheese, somebody else makes the stuffing, it'll take the pressure off. And lastly, pay the kids to do the washing up (but pay them lots!).

Nelly

Hi John, thanks for answering our questions.

I love roasting vegetables in the oven and sometimes get a lovely caramelised bunch of them (what I aim for!) but more often than not, just get a watery, bland mess . Can you tell me where I'm going wrong?

Yeah I can, Nelly. First your oven's not hot enough. Make sure it's on about 220C, cut your vegetables bigger than you think they need to be, so they're really big and chunky, put them all together into a mixing bowl and add a little bit of oil and mix them all together so the oil coats every single vegetable and then scatter them over a big tray. Put them in the oven and don't open the door for at least 30 minutes. See what happens...

littleowl

Hi John,
Big fan here. We watch every Masterchef programme. My question is, which Masterchef dish was the best ever and which was the worst.
Also, has there been a contestant that, in your opinion, was a winner from the word 'go' .
Love it when you introduce some Aussie-speak, like 'That's a ripper!' More please.

I don't think it would be very fair to say that I had a favourite dish on all of Masterchef, that's for sure. As to the worst, I tasted a mushroom in a slimy tomato sauce with blue vein cheese, pears and strips of chicken. It was disgusting.

mbody

Please tell me how I can get good Yorkshire Puddings. Mine are either flat and crisp or the bottom stays in the pan!

The recipe for my Yorkshire puddings are online unfortunately not in the new book. However, make sure your oven's really hot and that's all I can say to you.

bumblebee

Hi John,
A somewhat quirky question for you, to break from the norm ... If you were transported to a desert island for 2 weeks, and you could have a maximum of 6 different types of food or drink with you, what would you take? (the quantities of each would be enough to last you the fortnight, and cooking/heating appliances would be made available).

Gidday Bumblebee, what an interesting question. I would probably take some chickens so they could lay me some eggs, sausages, flour to make scones, chorizo sausage to cook with the fish I've just caught a bottle of gin and some tonic.

boo2410

Hellooo John, tell me what is your failsafe superquick creation for a starving family when time is short that doesn't involve oven chips and some sort of freezer chicken!!! Many thanks. Boo.

My new book just for you, because I really understand. Starving families are horrendous. I say a big pot of sticky rice with chicken, prawns and chorizo sausage in it is absolutely perfect. It takes 35 minutes, it's a one-pot wonder and my kids love it. Page 132/In a Rush - One Pot Spicy Rice with Chicken and Prawns.

laura233

Hi John,

I've always had trouble trying to get rice really sticky. I cook it in a bamboo steamer for a good half hour but it never quite does the job. Do you have any tips? Many thanks!

Laura, what you need to do is buy sticky rice and you need to soak it in cold water for 15 minutes before you cook it. Then strain off the water, put it into a pot and add to it 1 and a half times the quantity of rice, in water. So for 100g of rice, it's 150ml of water. Bring it to the boil, with a lid on, simmer for 5 minutes, turn the heat off and leave it. Don't lift the lid for half an hour. I reckon that should work.

GeminiJen

Hello John
Another big fan here!
My question is: If you were planning an extra special celebration meal...
* What would you eat?
* Where?
* Who would prepare it?
* Who would you invite as your guests....
* and Why?

If I was planning sometimes really special, I would probably book a restaurant. Not because of the food, but because of the washing up.

Gagagran

What do you have to eat when you can't be bothered to cook?

Ridiculous! What do you mean I can't be bothered to cook? I'll always cook. However... I do cheat sometimes. And I might, for instance, buy some Indian takeaway and then roast the chicken and serve all the veggies on the side. Chicken and Indian!

Funkyferret

If you were cooking for vegetarians, what would you serve?

Just to say, I cook them what I want to eat. See the thing is, most vegetarians have more than one bias. They definitely have their favourites and so if they're coming round I'll ask them beforehand what they feel like and then cook them up some food. But my butternut squash and noodle dish is pretty popular.

barrypage

Food wise what has been the most inspiring country you've visited...?

I've just been to Malaysia and the food was amazing. Completely different from what I expected, but the best still has to be the street food of Bangkok.

nursey71

Australians are famous for creating great fusion food. What is your favourite fusion recipe?

This is an interesting question. I'm more of a purist. Fusion is an interesting word because sometimes it works and sometimes it's confusion. I reckon that the most creative I get is I add lime pickle to my pumpkin curry, which is made from a Thai recipe, so it's Thai with a bit of Indian.

peanutmum

What 5 food items would you always have in your fridge ?????

I think your fridge tells a lot about you

Gidday, how are you? I love that you're into fridge psychology. What 5 things would I have... Well, as you will see in my new book My Kind of Food, I love spaghetti carbonara so there's always bacon, there's always eggs and there's always creme fraiche. As to the rest of it, tonic water (always) to go with the gin, and a pot of yoghurt to go on my granola.

lornajk

Will we get to see you in the upcoming new series of Masterchef Australia? :-)

Sadly no, I won't be in Oz until February. But of course you can always watch me on the British version.

ruthie1thom

Hi John
How was your weekend at Bolton Food & Drinks festival? Did you try any of the food that was for sale? If so what was your favourite?
Ruth

Howdy Ruth, loved Bolton - it's always a good gig and there was loads of great food. I went to Jackie's van and ate her Puri Puffs, which are made from puffed up bread filled with a spicy mixture and pomegranate seeds and chili sauce. And I was given a pizza by somebody for my journey home, which was nice.

sophie56

What is your favourite childhood food memory - mine is my Grandma's shepherd's pie with home gown runner beans followed by apple crumble and custard.

Gidday Sophie, I don't have a single childhood favourite because there were loads of them, however, my nanna used to make this extraordinary pie out of sweet pumpkin and it was called a Grammar. Her pastry was delicious, the filling was full of cinnamon and sugar. As to savoury stuff, her roast chicken was pretty good, but her burnt toast with squashed tomatoes was delicious.

whenim64

John, I was fascinated by your trip to South America and the BBQ demonstrations of those big pieces of beef. Have you changed the way you cook any other kinds of meat since that trip?

PS do us all a favour and elbow Gregg! He's way past his use by date

Oh poor Gregg! (But I shall tell him). As to cooking over flame, I have definitely changed the way I now cook big hunks of meat - I do it a lot slower, I use coals and charcoal which is burnt right down, I've bought myself a new big Argentine BBQ, but the sad thing is there's not been enough sun to use it. Maybe this weekend? Glad you like the programme, I love doing it.

Spidergran5

What cheese is best for a sandwich? Tell me how I can make two slices of bread more interesting. Lunches are very dull these days.

I would have thought that any cheese was good in a sandwich. I reckon runny Brie or hard Cheddar or even those plastic slices seem to be OK. But maybe melt it. What about trying a whole week not eating bread and then being a little bit more adventurous with your lunch? If you buy those tortilla things and grate some cheese on them and put them in a frying pan over a bit or heat, they're really tasty. And as to your takeaway question, neither. Soz. Much prefer a proper burger!

Teetime

I would really like to see you with your own show (without Greg) any chance of that happening?

Well Teetime, just to say, there are a couple of shows out there with just me on Good Food channel you can catch up with John Torode's Australia and I have just come back from a mammoth journey touring Malaysia, which will be aired in January. But any time you want to mention to the BBC that you'd like to see me more often, please do.

grannyhubbard

Hello John! Big fan of the show.

One food related query:
What's your go-to comfort food dish?

One other question:
Your hair is now grey. But I'm sure it was dark when the series began, yes? What made you decide to embrace the grey? Does being on TV make you more image conscious?

Gidday, my comfort dish or dishes usually start with a roast chicken or spaghetti carbonara. They're both pretty quick and it's the sort of food I've always eaten.