Just like the rest of us, Christmas is set to be a busy affair in Tom Aikens’ house – but with enough prep, we can all dish up a drama-free day. The chef tells Jeananne Craig his seasonal secrets
He’s a perfectionist chef with a chain of restaurants to his name, but in Tom Aikens’ kitchen at home, someone is else in charge – two little people, to be precise.
His daughters, Josephine, five, and three-year-old Violette, like to help Dad out with cooking – peeling, mixing, and “oh my God, making such a mess”.
This Christmas, Aikens is looking forward to some family festive baking.
“I’m sure they’re going to get their hands dirty with making mince pies and things like that,” says the 46-year-old. “It’s nice they’re at an age where they can get involved, and they really like it as well.”
The Norfolk-raised chef loves almost everything about Christmas with his brood – “all the food and unwrapping presents is so much nicer with little ones, and they understand about Father Christmas now” – but one thing he’s less looking forward to is hearing Let It Go, from Disney’s Frozen, on repeat over the holidays.
“It’s always about Frozen. It’s appalling,” he says with a sigh.
“Let It Go is sung every day. Every. Day… They’re probably going to bring out another one soon, so we’ll have it all over again.”
It’s been a busy year for Aikens, who at 26, became the youngest British chef to be awarded two Michelin stars.
Last month, he opened up a Tom’s Kitchen Deli in Dubai, and in December the chain (which has five sites across London, plus an international flagship in Istanbul), will open its first UK site outside the capital, in Birmingham.
Little wonder he’s looking forward to seeing friends and family, and “getting out of the chaos of London” this Christmas.
At home, he will probably cook goose, duck or ham – and turkey, with mulled wine (“I get through a fair bit of that”) and port on the drink’s menu.
To avoid a Christmas cooking meltdown, he recommends getting as much done in advance as possible, and preparing things like vegetables, chipolatas, bread sauce and cranberry sauce the day before.
“Even roast potatoes, you can get them done in the morning so you just reheat them, to make life a little easier,” he advises.
“I brine my turkey first and leave it out the night before, so it’s at room temperature and I know it’s going to cook evenly. Then when I get out of bed – I put it in the oven straight away and cook it really, really slowly, so when it comes to lunchtime, you’ve got a really nice moist turkey that’s not going to be dry and overcooked.”
He says he isn’t “regimented” about having turkey on the menu, however.
“As a chef, I don’t want to always do the same thing at Christmas, and it’s nice to do something different.
“But I will always have Christmas pudding,” Aikens adds. “That’s the one thing I won’t ever change.”
Here are three festive recipes from Tom’s Kitchen to try this Christmas…
:: TRUFFLED EGGS BENEDICT
(Serves 4)
White wine vinegar
8 eggs
4 English muffins
Unsalted butter
6 slices of Parma ham
Salt and pepper
For the Truffled Hollandaise sauce:
120ml white wine vinegar
2 round shallots, finely sliced
12 black peppercorns
1 sprig thyme
1 sprig of tarragon
350g unsalted butter, cut into cubes
6 egg yolks
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1tsp of truffle paste (available in Waitrose)
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
First make the hollandaise sauce. Put the vinegar, shallots, peppercorns and herbs in a pan, bring to the boil and continue to boil until reduced by about two-thirds. Leave to cool to room temperature, then strain into a bowl and set aside.
Meanwhile, clarify the butter: put the cubes in a pan over a gentle heat until melted. Skim the white foam off the surface, leaving only clear liquid. Set aside to cool until tepid, then carefully tip into a clean bowl, leaving any solid residue in the bottom of the pan.
Place a round metal bowl over a pan of gently simmering water and add the six egg yolks and the vinegar reduction. Whisk the mixture over the heat until it is a pale, fluffy mass – this will take eight to 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk vigorously while adding the clarified butter to make a thick creamy sauce. If the sauce gets too thick, add a little warm water. If it separates, beat a fresh egg yolk with a spoonful of water in a clean bowl, then whisk the separated sauce into that – it should magically form a smooth sauce again.
Adjust the flavour with a little lemon juice, truffle paste and salt and pepper to taste. Keep warm until needed. The best way to do this is to put the sauce into a bowl and stand it in a pot of warm water, about 40-50C. Cover the bowl with cling film so a skin doesn’t form.
Next, poach the eggs. Fill a large, shallow pan with water, add some white wine vinegar (about two to four tablespoons per litre of water) and bring to a simmer. The vinegar will help the eggs hold their shape.
Break the eight eggs into separate coffee cups or ramekins. When the water is simmering, take a spoon or spatula and stir the water so it swirls around in the pan like a vortex. Add the eggs, one by one, as quickly as you can so they cook at the same time. The swirling water keeps the eggs in a nice round shape, but you might have to move them around a little so they don’t stick to each other or to the bottom of the pan. Poach for three to four minutes, until the whites of the eggs are soft and the yolks are runny.
Meanwhile, deep fry two slices of Parma ham by deep frying it at 170C until crispy.
Once the eggs are cooked, use a slotted spoon to transfer them to a small plate lined with kitchen paper. They need to dry off or they will make the toasted muffins soggy.
To serve, slice each muffin in half, toast them under the grill and spread with butter. Arrange one slice of uncooked Parma ham on top and put the muffins back under the grill briefly to warm. Season the eggs with salt and pepper, carefully place one on each muffin half and ladle over the truffle hollandaise. Garnish with half a slice of the crispy fried Parma ham.
:: TOM AIKENS’ TURKEY RECIPE
1 x 8kg turkey
For the stuffing:
1kg sausage meat
12g chopped fresh sage
25g butter
120g onions, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Large pinch of dried mixed herbs
12g fresh thyme
6g fresh parsley, chopped
4 egg yolks
25g breadcrumbs
8g coarse sea salt
For the turkey, allow 25-30 minutes cooking time per kilo.
Remove the turkey from the fridge at least two hours beforehand, so it will cook instantly, instead of warming up for the first 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 200C.
For the stuffing, place a pan onto a medium heat then add the butter. Once it’s just melted, add the onions, garlic, thyme and 2g of salt.
Cook on a low heat until it starts to soften and caramelise, roughly 10-14 minutes. Then add the sage and take off the heat to cool. Then add the sausage meat and remaining ingredients.
Use this to stuff the turkey neck end. With floured hands, roll any remaining stuffing into balls (approximately 4cm in size), then chill in the fridge and cook when ready.
Place the turkey on a rack over a roasting tray and place in the oven. Cook on 200C for the first 30 minutes, then turn down to 170C for the required time.
Leave to rest for at least 20 minutes and serve with a selection of vegetables, such as roast honey parsnips and broccoli, with lashings of cranberry sauce.
:: MINCE PIES
(Makes a minimum of 24)
For the mincemeat:
325g cooking apples, peeled, cored and chopped
115g shredded suet
150g raisins
115g sultanas and currants
115g mixed candied peel
150g soft dark brown sugar
Zest and juice of 1 lemon and orange
30g almonds, nibbed
2tsp mixed spice
1tsp cinnamon
Large pinch fresh grated nutmeg
0.5g ground ginger
0.5g salt
4tbsp brandy
For the pastry:
270g all-purpose flour
1.5g salt
140g butter
110g caster or powdered sugar
2 egg yolks
1 whole egg
Icing sugar, to serve
To make the mincemeat: Mix all the ingredients together, except the brandy, in a bowl and leave in a cool place for 12 hours to marinate.
Place the mixture in a baking dish, cover with tin foil and bake for two-and-a-half to three hours at 140C/225F.
Leave to cool, stirring from time to time, and then stir in the brandy.
Spoon the cooled mixture into storage jars, cover with waxed discs and seal. This is then ready to use (however it’s best when left to mature for a month!).
For the pastry: Sieve the flour and salt, put into a stand mixer and place on a low to medium speed, then add the butter mix until crumb-like. Add the sugar then egg and yolks, it will slowly come together, then refrigerate for one hour.
Roll the dough out between two sheets of parchment to a 0.5cm thickness, then let it rest for 10 minutes. Cut out 48 pieces with a round cutter.
Make the mince pies in either small Yorkshire pudding moulds or tartlet cases. Lightly grease the moulds/cases then flour. Line with the pastry then add the mince pie mix. Place on the lid, crimp the edges, and bake at 180C/375F for about 10-15 minutes. Dust with icing sugar.
THREE OF THE BEST… Shop-bought mince pies
:: Taste the Difference Mini Ecclefechan & Mincemeat Tart Selection, £2, Sainsbury’s (www.sainsburys.co.uk)
These nine mini mince pie tarts are perfect for anyone not so keen on lots of pastry. Packed with fruit, nuts, maple and pecan mincemeat, and orange and cranberry mincemeat, they’re a hit for all the family.
:: Heston from Waitrose Spiced Shortcrust Mince Pies, £3, Waitrose (www.waitrose.com)
Heston does it again, elevating mince pies to a whole other level with his spiced tartlets, filled with mincemeat and zesty lemon curd with a crumbly topping. An absolute delight – but only four in the box!
:: 6 Luxury Mince Pies, £1.50, Iceland (groceries.iceland.co.uk)
At just 25p a pop, these humble mince pies toppled the mighty Harrods and Selfridges in taste tests again this year – and are our favourites by far. With the perfect ratio of crumbly pastry (not too moist, not too crisp) to boozy sweet and spicy mincemeat, there’s no acidic aftertaste. Get ’em before they’re gone!
