From apple and Marmite to fresh crab: TV chefs on their late-night snack of choice
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Many of us find ourselves looking in the fridge at night, aware we shouldn’t have that extra bit of cheese of square of chocolate.
We often fail to resist the temptation, and we are not the only ones.
Ever wondered what chefs snack on when they get home late at night after a busy dinner service or finishing a long day filming a cookery show?
We asked them to tell us what they eat when they can’t be bothered to cook…
Poppy O’Toole
“I will do myself a little cheese selection. It’s fully dependent on what is available in the fridge at the time (because I get through cheese quite quickly),” says the 31-year-old chef and presenter.
“So, a little cheese board; have a little bit of cheddar, a little bit of smoked cheese, a bit of blue cheese, a little bit of chutney I love. Cheese is my Achilles heel. If there’s cheese anywhere, I will eat it. I love a crunchy cheddar, when it’s so mature that it’s got those crystals in and makes your mouth water. I just don’t think you can beat it.
“I love a toasty with tuna mayo, spaghetti hoops and cheese, something that I had when I was a teenager, and it just followed me for life.”
Poppy Cooks: The Actually Delicious Slow Cooker Cookbook by Poppy O’Toole (Bloomsbury £20) is available now.
Prue Leith
“What I do if I’m too lazy to cook, if I’m on my own and I can’t be bothered, I would eat yogurt straight out of the pot with layer of honey on it, and a handful of almonds,” says the 84-year-old TV chef and Great British Bake Off judge.
“Especially Greek, if I happen to have any. My husband makes very good yogurt, he makes it nice and thick. So we eat a lot of yogurt one way and another.”
Life’s Too Short To Stuff A Mushroom by Prue Leith (Carnival, £25) is available now.
Rick Stein
“If there’s any crab in the fridge, which I often do leave in the fridge, because I am lucky enough to have crab in the fridge, most of the time, I just reach for the crab and the mayo and a bit of sourdough bread,” says the 78-year-old TV chef.
Rick Stein’s Food Stories (BBC Books, £28) is available now.
Matt Tebbutt
“I always have Chinese crispy chilli sauce – oh my God, that is amazing on anything. For a late-night snack I would use miso, then you can just boil a kettle, spoonful of that, chuck in an egg, chuck in whatever vegetables you’ve got in your bottom drawer, if you’ve got stock that’d be great. Then I ladle over loads of that chilli oil because it’s just delicious,” says TV chef and Saturday Live presenter Matt Tebbutt, 51. “A bit like a ramen.”
“Even those salamis, or little Polish sausages, you can shred up some of those, chuck that in, chuck in a hard-boiled egg and any bits and pieces you’ve found, some noodles or some rice and yeah, you can have that on the table in about five minutes. But the key is that crispy chilli oil over it – delicious.”
Matt Tebbutt’s Pub Food by Matt Tebbutt (Quadrille, £26) is available now.
Kate Humble
“I’m afraid – and everyone will go, Oh, my God, that is disgusting – it would be apple and Marmite. I cut the apple, smear Marmite on each quarter and eat it. An old friend of my parents, when I was very little, told me about apple and Marmite. And I’ve always loved Marmite – it’s the best thing,” says the 56-year-old TV presenter and cook.
Home Made: Recipes From The Countryside by Kate Humble (Gaia, £26) is available now.
Melissa Hemsley
“I get a date, I put cheddar cheese inside – really, that’s it!” says the 39-year-old chef and food columnist. “Oh my God, divine.
“If I can be bothered to go hunting for some nuts in the cupboard, I’ll put a pecan in there. Or my favourite thing, if people are coming around and you want to look impressive, which we all do, you could stuff it with ricotta cheese, or goats’ cheese, feta cheese, and roast them. Be careful, because the dates go molten hot. You can put a bit of thyme on top, if you want to go fancy, bit of chilli if you like, roast it until it melts, bring it out, bit of honey, bit of chilli sauce. If you want to get really extra. And they’re amazing.”
Real Healthy by Melissa Hemsley (Ebury Press, £26) is available now.
