Sous simple: Off-the-clock cooking
James Lowe, Head Chef at Lyle’s, Shoreditch
I move between London and Brighton during the week so tend to lean on a lot of store cupboard ingredients when cooking for myself at home, as fresher produce doesn’t last. My go-to would be Italian, simple pastas such as carbonara or cacio e pepe, or just a selection of a few beautiful ingredients if it’s a light lunch or dinner – anchovies, cheese, bread and some good olive oil.
Robert Chambers, Executive Chef at Luca, Clerkenwell
I like to spend my off-duty hours specifically cooking dishes that I don’t cook at the restaurant. This might be a big batch of curry, which tastes better the next day and allows my wife to have a few lunches ready in the fridge, but I also relish the opportunity to cook outside on my Gozney. I love to make Sfincione – a Sicilian type of pizza – topping it with really fresh tomato sauce, anchovies and capers and then once it’s cooked, tearing over some fresh mozzarella and some fresh basil.
Executive Chef Robert Chambers, photo courtesy of Luca
Clare Smyth, Chef-Patron at Core by Clare Smyth, Notting Hill
When I’m away from the kitchen I love to cook super simple – a good quality whole roast chicken and salad. Ideally I like to cook it beer-can style on a barbecue.
Mauro Colagreco, Executive Chef at Mauro Colagreco at Raffles London at The OWO, Whitehall (pictured in header photo)
I would say that the ideal pairing is often the simplest, but I love to be a bit daring, so my go-to salad in the summer is often a mix of super fresh tomatoes, fresh almonds, and white peaches with a simple dressing.
Jun Tanaka, Chef-Patron at The Ninth, Fitzrovia
I love cooking seafood on the barbecue – it’s one of my favourite meals. The smells and flavours remind me of being on holiday, which always makes me feel happy. I go to Steve Hatt, my local fishmonger, to buy a whole turbot or other fresh seafood, season it with salt and cook it on my Kamado Joe. I’ll serve this whole with a simple tomato salad and barbecued greens.
Chef-Patron Jun Tanaka, photo by Paul Winch-Furness
Adam Smith, Head Chef at Woven by Adam Smith, Berkshire
A staple in our house every week is a simple roast chicken. Depending on the season, we change what we have it with. When it’s warmer it will be quinoa salad with avocado and cashew nuts, and when it’s cold outside I would swap in roast potatoes and broccoli. If I was to order in a takeaway, I would mostly order sushi. There are a couple of local places around us which are great, and we use them a lot.
Tomás Gormley, Chef-Patron at Cardinal, EdinburghMy current day off go-to is a place called Pablo Eggsgobao in Goldenacre. It’s a convenient two-minute walk from my house and they basically sell one thing but do it amazingly. It’s a breakfast bao with Lorne sausage, fried egg, hash brown and sriracha. It’s probably extremely calorie dense, but absolutely delicious.
Chef-Patron Tomás Gormley, photo by Stephen Lister
Mark Birchall, Chef-Patron at Moor Hall, Aughton, West Lancashire
On my days off, I roast a couple of chickens, potatoes, carrots, cauliflower cheese, spring greens and gravy – it’s easy as anything and is something the whole family can eat together. Then, with the leftovers, I’ll make a Thai red curry for the following day.
Cynthia Shanmugalingam, Head Chef at Rambutan, Borough Market
What I really like when I get home late is a curry udon. I use these frozen udon from Koya, they’re so bouncy and tasty and they defrost in a few minutes. I chuck in leftover fridge curry, dashi if I’ve got some, extra coconut milk, and something fresh or green leaves if I’ve got it. It’s quick, filling and comforting. Sri Lankan chicken curry udon is my most regular dish, but special mention must go to my coconut milk fish-head sodhi and my fave, soft-boiled spicy egg curry.
This article was taken from the Autumn 2024 issue. Read all about it here...
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