I’m just back from my travels around Japan. And wow, what an incredible experience it was. I’m not going to deny that it was exhausting, but it was worth it! The memories that I have taken from the three hectic weeks are priceless (Tokyo, Hiroshima, Osaka, Kyoto, Kanazawa, Takayama… and the rest!). And of course, there was the food; what a feast it was for my taste buds! Before going, I spent a lot of time researching restaurants, booking those that I particularly wanted to visit, however, during the day, we went with the flow, and I soon realised that it’s very difficult to eat badly in Japan! (There were of course a few stand-out dishes – I will be updating my restaurant reviews soon with a list of my favourite spots!…)

Of course, too much of a good thing can spoil you. And on my return, I was yearning for the flavours of some European dishes (plus, I’ll be honest, I find it hard to recreate the wonderful flavours of Japanese dishes at home!). So, with that in mind, this month I’m sharing a wonderful, French-inspired roast chicken and a very sophisticated fish pie. Menu One is Dijon Roast Chicken. This classic recipe from Matthew Ryle’s cookbook ‘French Classics’ has a distinctly contemporary flavour. Rather than a thick gravy, it has a light sauce made from the resting juices, Dijon mustard and stock, which beautifully complements the delicate flavour of the chicken. Menu Two is my very favourite fish pie. Whilst recently scrolling through the pages of this website, I realised that I hadn’t shared this recipe for my ‘Ultimate Fish Pie’. It seems ridiculous now that I hadn’t, but I’d just presumed that I had! I’ve shared a couple of fish pies over the years, and they’re all delicious in their own way. However, if I were pushed to choose just one, this recipe would win for its elegant, creamy flavours; unlike a traditional fish pie, it’s not made with smoked fish, so it has a cleaner, fresher finish.  The recipe is from Gordon Ramsay’s cookbook ‘Kitchen Heaven’ and is worthy of one of his Michelin stars.

Menu One

Dijon Roast Chicken (Serves 4)

This classic recipe from Matthew Ryle’s cookbook ‘French Classics’ has a distinctly contemporary flavour. Rather than a thick gravy it has a light sauce made from the resting juices, Dijon mustard and stock, which beautifully complements the delicate flavour of the chicken. I like to serve it with ‘Concetta’s potatoes’ and a crisp salad dressed with a ‘Classic Vinaigrette’ (recipes below).

1 small chicken

60g Dijon mustard

80ml olive oil

Juice of 1 lemon (& reserved shells)

A few thyme sprigs

A few rosemary sprigs

1 garlic bulb, halved

For the garlic & herb butter:

75g butter, softened

1 garlic clove, finely grated

Finely grated zest of ½ a lemon

Leaves from 3 thyme sprigs

Sea salt flakes and black pepper

For the Jus:

300ml chicken stock

20ml olive oil

25g Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley leaves

1. First of all, make the butter. Mix the butter with the garlic, lemon zest, thyme leaves and seasoning. Then use your fingers or the back of a spatula to gently lift the chicken skin from the breast, starting from the neck cavity, to make a pocket for the herby butter. Take the butter and spread it evenly under the skin – work gently to avoid tearing the skin.
2. Whisk together the mustard, olive oil and lemon juice for the chicken. Rub this all over the chicken, then season with salt and pepper. Place the thyme, rosemary and half of one of the squeezed-out lemon shells in the cavity of the chicken. Place the halved garlic bulb and the remaining lemon half shell in a roasting tin, and sit the chicken on top of them.
3. Place in a preheated oven, 220’c fan, for 20 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 160’c fan and cook for a further 40 minutes.
4. Leave the chicken to rest in the tray for about 30 minutes, covered loosely with foil. Drain the excess fat from the juices, crush the garlic bulb and roasted lemon shell in the tray and add the stock. Bring to the boil, strain off the lemon shell and garlic bulb, then add the olive oil, Dijon mustard and chopped parsley, stir and simmer gently for a few minutes to make a light jus.
5. Carve and serve your roast chicken with the Dijon jus.

Concetta’s Potatoes (Serves 4)

I have named these after our Italian friend (and chef), Concetta, who gave me the recipe many years ago; they are simply sliced baked potatoes with garlic, rosemary and sage.

4 large potatoes – such as Maris Piper (roasting potatoes)

1 teaspoon dried rosemary

1 teaspoon dried sage

Sea salt and black pepper

2 cloves garlic, crushed

Olive oil

1. Peel and slice the potatoes, and parboil in boiling water for 4 minutes.
2. Place in a roasting tin, sprinkle over the rosemary, sage and garlic, season with salt and black pepper and drizzle over some olive oil – mix well.
3. Place in a preheated oven, 200’c fan, for 35-40mins until crispy and well browned.

Classic Vinaigrette

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

3 tablespoons olive oil

Sea salt and pepper

A salad of your choice

1. Simply put all the ingredients in a bowl and whisk together (or place in a jar with a lid and shake vigorously).

Menu Two

The Ultimate Fish Pie (Serves 4)

This is my very favourite fish pie! It has elegant, creamy flavours; it’s the type of fish pie you could easily serve at a dinner party, and indeed I have. I like to make it with a mix of cod, salmon and prawns, but you can use whatever mix that takes your fancy. The recipe is from Gordon Ramsay’s cookbook ‘Kitchen Heaven’ and is worthy of one of his Michelin stars. Rather than serving with just your bog standard peas I think this fish pie deserves a slightly more sophisticated pea dish – ‘Pea & Lettuce Fricassée’ (see recipe below).

800g fish, cut into bite-sized pieces (I like 300g cod/ 250g salmon/ 250g peeled, uncooked prawns)

½ a lemon

1 tablespoon fresh tarragon leaves, chopped

1 tablespoon fresh flat-parsley leaves, chopped

1 kg floury potatoes, such as Désirée or Maris Piper

2 tablespoons milk

15g butter

2 large egg yolks

Sea salt and black pepper

For the Fish Cream:

15g butter

2 shallots, peeled and finally chopped

125ml dry white wine

125ml Noilly Pratt vermouth

250g fish stock

250g double cream

Sea salt and black pepper

1. First of all, make the fish cream. Heat the butter in a wide saucepan and gently sweat the shallots until soft. Add the wine and vermouth and simmer until the liquid has reduced by half. Pour in the stock and reduce by half again. Finally, stir in the cream and continue to reduce until the sauce has the consistency of pouring cream. Season and strain through a fine sieve.
2. Season the fish and mix with the fish cream. Add a squeeze of lemon juice, the chopped tarragon and parsley, and gently mix. Pour into an earthenware dish.
3. Meanwhile, cook the potatoes in salted boiling water until tender, and mash with the milk and butter until smooth. Stir in the raw egg yolks. Then spoon the mash over the fish, or if you’re feeling fancy, you could pipe it!
4. Cook in a preheated oven, 180’c fan, for about 25 minutes until golden and bubbling; if you like, you could put it under the grill for 3-5 minutes at the end of cooking if you want a more golden brown, crisp finish.

Pea & Lettuce Fricassée (Serves 4)

Small knob of butter

500g podded peas, thawed if frozen

Few sprigs of thyme

Splash of water or chicken stock

3-4 iceberg lettuce leaves, shredded

Sea salt and black pepper

1. Melt the butter in a pan and tip in the peas with some seasoning. Add the thyme sprigs and a splash of water or chicken stock and braise the peas for 3-4 minutes until tender and the pan is almost dry.
2. Toss in the shredded lettuce and cook for another minute until the leaves have just wilted. Taste and adjust the seasoning.