Flavour Fest regulars such as local boys the Tanner Brothers, Master Chef of Great Britain Peter Gorton and French favourite Jacques Marchal will be joined by several festival first-timers, including Thom Hunt from Channel 4’s Three Hungry Boys, Indian chef Manju Malhi and 80’s pop star Paul Young.
From Friday 17 to Sunday 19 August, the chefs will be taking to the Castles Kitchens cookery theatre to demonstrate some mouth-watering dishes using fresh local produce from the 100 plus traders who will be turning the Piazza into a bustling continental-style market.
Thom Hunt from the Three Hungry Boys is an expert fisherman, forager and huntsman, friend of Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and River Cottage, and has starred in two hit television series on Channel 4.
Although this year will be his first time giving a demonstration at Flavour Fest, as a Plymouth native he’s a regular visitor and looking forward to his first appearance.
Thom Hunt said: “Growing up in Plymouth, I have always loved Flavour Fest and think it’s a great chance for our city to show off what it’s really good at – food and drink! The River Cottage ethos is all about fresh, local and seasonal food, which is something I love too. The chefs and I are really looking forward to being able to share this passion and ethos with everyone who visits the festival over the weekend. Over the three days, we’ll be cooking a variety of classic River Cottage dishes and handing out tasters, so do come and see us.”
Best known for his 80’s pop hits, Paul Young’s appearance at Flavour Fest may come as a bit of a surprise, but the singer has recently published a cookbook featuring recipes gathered during his time touring the world and is gaining a reputation as a talented cook having appeared on BBC1's Master Chef and Saturday Kitchen.
Paul will be joining Mark Sargeant from Plymouth’s Glass Blowing House on the stage on Saturday at midday.
Also new to Flavour Fest this year is Manju Malhi, Indian chef and regular on television shows such as Saturday Cooks, This Morning, Market Kitchen and Saturday Kitchen.
Speaking about giving her demonstrations at 1.30pm and 3.30pm on Saturday, Manju Malhi said: “I'm very much excited about cooking at Flavour Fest in Plymouth this year as it will be lots of fun to add a touch of spice to the proceedings. I'll be demonstrating how easy it is to jazz up food with a few basic spices and I'll be demonstrating how to make a quick Kashmiri Chicken Korma, Spiced Green Beans and Mumbai Potatoes. I like to make cooking a relaxed and stress free experience with accessible ingredients and easy methods to spice up your life.”
Flavour Fest is organised by Plymouth City Centre Company, and now in its ninth year has grown to become one of the biggest food and drink festivals in the South West, attracting more than 100,000 people to Plymouth over three days each year.
Clint Jones, Plymouth City Centre Manager added: “Looking at the cookery theatre line up for this year’s Flavour Fest, I really do think it’s the best we’ve had to date with so many talented local, national and international chefs confirmed. Festival goers will be able to pick up some top tips for cooking all different types of cuisine, and can go home and recreate what they’ve seen using the fantastic produce being exhibited in the market – a perfect weekend for any food lover!”
For the full line up of traders, travel information and the programme of demos and activities visit www.shopplymouth.co.uk or follow @flavourfestsw on Twitter for the latest updates.
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