CHATTING to Ainsley Harriott is like catching up with an old friend. It’s like joining him for a relaxed brunch or a dinner with pals.
“Oh Em, hasn’t it been a long old summer?” he says, as we discuss the merits of old-school hand fans over air con.
“But it rained - finally!” he laughs, adding: “I’m loving it up here in Yorkshire. Every store I’ve been into, it’s ‘Hello love.’ You don’t get that in London!”
The popular TV chef is in Bradford tomorrow (Wednesday, August 19), surprising shoppers at Morrisons and sharing his infectious energy, recipe ideas and his passion for simple, affordable cooking.
Ainsley is keen to help families cook affordable meals
(Image: Exposure Photo Agency)
Ainsley will visit the Morrisons headquarters and Thornbury store as part of a five-day tour of Morrisons supermarkets in Yorkshire, Lancashire and Greater Manchester. As well as meeting shoppers and sharing recipe ideas, he’s surprising lucky customers with prizes.
The tour - part of the ‘Where’s Ainsley?’ campaign, giving shoppers chance to meet the chef and pick up quick and easy recipe inspiration - invites customers to sample Ainsley’s couscous range. With flavours including roasted vegetable, chilli, wild mushroom, and lemon, mint and parsley, they’re a tasty addition to a variety of dishes.
Shoppers have been invited to sample Ainsley's couscous range
(Image: Dee Graves)
“A lot of people haven’t tried couscous, or maybe think it’s a bit bland. I like to show the versatility of it,” says Ainsley. Couscous, he says, can add flavour to and thicken stews, tagines and sauces. Or you can stuff a butternut squash, pepper or tomato with couscous and roast. Or coat fish with it for a tasty, crispy dish.
“Or have couscous in a wrap with spiced halloumi...” he adds. “It’s lovely and versatile, it can be a side, a wrap, a salad, lovely with a bit of mint and coriander, and it brings so much more to a meal. That’s the beauty of it.”
One of the recipes on Ainsley’s website is Gochuchang Tofu, Smashed Cucumber and Couscous Bowl - “a sweet and spicy delight”. Crispy tofu smothered in Gochujang and honey sauce, served with Tomato & Chilli Couscous and a sesame and chilli cucumber salad. Perfect for an August al fresco dinner.
He’s enjoying sharing recipes with shoppers on the tour: “There’s nothing better than chatting about food, sharing a few recipe ideas and hopefully putting a smile on people’s faces. It’s what I’ve been doing for years, ever since the Anne and Nick and Ready Steady Cook days - connecting with people.
Ainsley has been surprising shoppers in Morrisons
"Come along, say hello, try our delicious couscous and who knows... you might even leave with a little surprise!
“We've got goodie bags, and one of the lovely things is surprising someone at every store with a £100 Morrisons voucher. That goes a long way towards a family food shop. I’ve been meeting lots of families, it’s great.”
With many families on a limited budget, Ainsley is keen to show how to make meals go that bit longer. “It’s not just about the food, it’s about the energy you’re using,” he says. “My advice is to cook ahead; you don’t necessarily need to freeze it but if you leave enough to put aside it becomes another meal.”
Has he embraced the air-fryer? “It’s very convenient, you just need to watch how much energy it’s using,” he says. “We live in a time of convenience, of delivery takeaways. Anything that gets people cooking, I’m all for it.”
One thing he still likes to do, in an age of home deliveries, is supermarket shopping: “I like to wander around and see what I’m getting. My daughter gets everything delivered, but it’s not for me.
'There's nothing better than chatting about food, sharing a few recipe ideas and hopefully putting a smile on people's faces,' says Ainsley
(Image: Dee Graves)
“You can look for bargains when you’re out shopping. People are often a bit scared when it comes to cooking things like fish, or duck, because they’ve only had it out for a meal. But when you’re shopping, why not go for something different and see where it takes you? On Ready Steady Cook people used to bring in chicken, because it’s all they cooked, so we’d try to slip something else in.”
He adds: “Even with recipe books, people tend to tuck a bit of paper into their ‘go-to’ pages. Only 10 per cent of recipes in cookbooks are used. I love it when family recipes are passed down - I still cook my mum’s red bean stew - but these days people go online for ideas, which is just another way of connecting. We share lots of recipes on the website.”
Alongside the tour, Ainsley Foods is donating £3,000 worth of food to local charities supported by Morrisons. "There's so much food waste around. It's great that Morrisons are distributing to food banks," says Ainsley.
Mike Benton, MD at Ainsley Foods Company said, “We're passionate about bringing people together through great food, and we're delighted to be supporting local communities alongside our Where’s Ainsley tour. By donating £3,000 worth of food in each region we visit, we hope to make a meaningful contribution to the fantastic food banks and community organisations making a difference every day.”
Awarded an MBE for services to broadcasting and the culinary arts, Ainsley Harriott is the master of fresh, accessible cuisine.
After training at Westminster College he embarked on a career in London’s top hotels and restaurants. In the early 1990s he became resident chef on BBC TV’s Good Morning With Anne And Nick, leading to Ready, Steady, Cook. His TV career took off, with shows including Can’t Cook Won’t Cook, Ainsley’s Mediterranean Cookbook and Ainsley’s Taste of Malta, as well as series in America, South Africa and Australia.
“I’ve been cooking since I was 17, for me food is about bringing love and comfort to the table,” he says. “I’ve got a granddaughter, and another on the way, and it warms my heart when we’re all round the table. Even the little dents in the table from over the years - I think ‘I remember when the kids did that’ and now my granddaughter is climbing on it.”
As well as visiting Morrisons stores this week, Ainsley went to Martin House Children’s Hospice to help prepare dinner for young people staying at the hospice and members of its care team. After a tour of the new Teenage Wing, completed as part of Martin House’s £21.9 million re-development project, he stepped into the kitchen.
Ainsley with kitchen staff at Martin House Children's Hospice in Boston Spa
(Image: Martin House)
“It was brilliant to see all the new facilities available to the young people they support,” he says. “I couldn’t resist slipping my apron on and helping out in the kitchen.
“The catering team do an amazing job feeding families and the care team, and I’ve been told just how much families appreciate the food they provide.”