Tom Kitchin on being inspired by Instagram and why he'll always stay in Scotland

He’s never hunted game but with the season in full swing, Tom Kitchen talks to Matt Nixon about his new book ‘Meat & Game’ and how grouse is as easy to cook as chicken

A sprinkle of salt is the difference between ‘a good meal or a bad meal’ (Marc Miller )

Training under Alain Ducasse, Pierre Koffmann, and Guy Savoy, what was the most important lesson you ever learned?

Wow. Goodness me. It’s really difficult because each one was at different stages of my career. But I think I learned survival skills for a chef, which sounds a bit crazy, but it’s a little bit like going into some kind of marine force or something. As an 18-year-old going into London from Scotland, going into three-star iconic Chelsea restaurants, I had to learn to survive and look after myself because it was pretty gruelling. So that’s what I really learned with Pierre Koffmann.

Who currently inspires you?

In the crazy world that we live in now, I’m always inspired by different chef’s Instagram posts. I love to see what all the different chefs from the UK are doing. I love to see what René Redzepi and Alain Ducasse are doing. But I also love to follow like random people in Mexico and Peru and South Africa, you know. I think Instagram is a real source of inspiration for now, because it gives me access to all the chefs.

You’re known for blending French cooking techniques with traditional Scottish ingredients but which cuisine do you ultimately prefer?

I mean I have a real love affair with France but I’ve got to say British food because that’s where I come from, and that’s the food I cook. More and more I’m enthused by the ingredients I have here in Britain, but also there’s no getting away from the foundations in French food.

How did it feel to earn your Michelin star aged 29 and be the youngest chef to gain the accolade?

It was a very humbling experience which really took me by surprise. It was a real statement, and an incredible achievement. But in a way it was a double-edged sword, because you’re just a young couple starting a business and the next thing you know you have a Michelin star and you have people coming with all these high expectations. And you have to meet those expectations, so it was suddenly a lot of pressure.

What was it like to open a restaurant with your wife and has her Swedish background inspired your cooking in any way?

Yeah, my wife’s Swedish background has massively inspired my cooking. Even more so in the last four or five years. We’ve managed to reinvest back into the restaurant and we have recreated and redesigned it. What she has done is just magical, she’s done a real mix of modern Scottish with Scandinavian values and I think it’s really beautiful. I’m really proud of her.

Why did you decide to dedicate a whole book to game meat?

So many people come to me every year and they say “I’ve just been given two pheasants”, or “I’ve got a hunch of anything in the freezer, what do I do with it?” And then you start to think about it. Take my mother for example, she’s got some pheasants and she will make a lovely pheasant casserole. After that there’s not so many recipes she can do. So what we tried to do is create the kind of go to book for meat and game. So when someone does give you some pheasant or you have got some lamb shoulder or something, then instead of going to one of these big bible-like books then you can go to Meat & Game and you can look at the recipes and find your inspiration there. But they should all be accessible as well for the good home cook.

‘Believe in yourself’: the chef urges home cooks to be ambitious (Marc Miller)

What's the greatest difference between cooking game as opposed to other meat?

People have got this theory in their heads that it is daunting to cook game. I mean, if you can cook chicken you can cook pheasant, you can cook partridge, you can cook anything like that. And it goes the same with a four-legged animal, you’ve just got to believe in yourself. What I’m trying to do is to get people to find that sense of achievement with cooking something. So if you have a dinner party and you do roast pheasant, you’re going to get a real sense of achievement. Not only that, your guests who have been with you will be like “Wow, that was quite something”. Game is just that little bit different.

Do you have a favourite game meat to cook, such as venison, pheasant, rabbit, or grouse?

Now is the grouse season. I love it. On 12 August I love getting the first grouse and cooking it. But also from a cheffy point of view I love to cook teal as well as woodcock, which is quite adventurous for some people. I appreciate that’s from a chef’s point of view, but it really is special.

Have you ever hunted game yourself?

No. I’ve never hunted or shot anything.

Is eating game more or less sustainable than beef or chicken?

I don’t know about fully sustainable, but I think it’s certainly accessible for people if it’s done in the right manner. There’s a lot of people arguing we shouldn’t be eating pheasant, we shouldn’t be hunting and doing that kind of stuff, but there’s another side to that argument. If you think about the grouse that lives in its natural habitat and how the chicken is reared ,that people eat day in day out, it makes you think a little bit.

In your new book you aim to make cooking game easy and accessible, why do you think people might see eating game as expensive and difficult?

I think there’s this kind of stigma with game, that it’s just for tweedy, red-trouser wearing people. Of course, it doesn’t need to be like that. When you eat food that is in season, it’s very affordable and very achievable. If you can get hold of pheasant and partridge, you’re not going to pay more than £3/4 for a bird. It’s totally cheaper than a good chicken.

What dish should someone who has never cooked game start off with first?

If you’ve never cooked game I think you should start with some pheasant or partridge. I would say partridge personally. There’s a recipe where I make like an oat stuffing, which goes into the cavity of the partridge. So when it’s roasting all the lovely juices of the partridge go into the oats. We serve it with figs as well and it’s really delicious.

How do you think your cooking style has changed since the start of your career?

It’s changed massively. And it’s changing every year. It’s kind of evolving a little bit, and becoming simpler and simpler. I’m just trying to source the best produce that I can source and really try to refine it. Sometimes less is more and I think chefs are guilty sometimes of putting too much on the plate. That’s the wonderful thing about food, as I’m the type of person that’s always pushing myself and always evolving. That’s what happens with my food as well.

As a celebrity chef, what's more stressful – being behind the hob or being behind a live camera?

I’m okay with the camera now. Certainly in the beginning it was very daunting going to do anything in front of the TV. But the day-in, day-out of running a restaurant can be very stressful, as no day is ever the same. Just when you think everything is great and you’ve got a great team then suddenly you lose two chefs and you are back to square one. I wish I could let go more, but I just love being in my restaurant.

Do you have a favourite dish on your menu?

Right now it’s the grouse, but that will change as the seasons change.

Do you have any plans to open a restaurant in London?

That’s a good question. I mean, we have had numerous wonderful offers to come to London. Of course that’s very tempting because London is London and it always will be. But then I really think about it, and my wife is really good at this as well because she makes me think, “What is it that I actually want in life?” And we have four children, we have our businesses, and do you know what? I don’t need to do London at this stage in my career. I take my children to school every day and pick them up afterwards, and I’m in my restaurant all the time and I enjoy it which I think is part of the reason that it’s successful. If you’re in London, if you go to London, then I feel you have to be in London. I don’t want to be in London every week.

Which upcoming chefs should people keep an eye out for?

Tom Brown is a really great up-and-coming chef. I really like his food. He works at the Outlaw’s restaurant he has in London, at the Capital hotel next to Harrods.

If you weren't a chef, what career path would you most likely follow?

I’m not sure really, but my other real passion is sport and football. I quickly realised I wasn’t going to make it as a footballer, but now it’s certainly something I really enjoy doing with my boys. Watching them play football and helping them train. I was reasonably good at all sports but I wasn’t exceptional. So maybe I’d be a games teacher or something like that.

How do you see services like Uber Eats and Deliveroo affecting the food industry?

To be honest I live in such a bubble I have no idea what they really do. I know they deliver restaurant food. I don’t want to criticise it because I know as a restaurateur how hard it is to keep things going all the time. So if restaurants are evolving and this is a way for them to improve their business and keep it going then why not? And if it means people are eating better food then great! But to be honest I kind of live in a real bubble with food and I don’t know so much about it.

Which kitchen utensil could you absolutely not go without?

Not having a sharp knife is unimaginable. My Japanese knives go with me everywhere. I have the same ones at home as I do in the restaurant.

What was your greatest culinary blunder?

I’ve had a few, but there’s one that really sticks in my mind. When I was a young apprentice chef at Glen Eagles. One day the chef showed me how to make the risotto, so the next day I went to make the risotto. And I seasoned the risotto with sugar instead of salt. I got properly roasted and I never made that mistake again. It was a real learning curve as a chef to always taste what you are doing. Yeah, that was a pretty black day.

What should every aspiring chef keep in their larder?

Good salt. I just don’t know how people can live without good salt. It just brings food to life incredibly. You know when you cook a steak or some chicken or some fish, just a sprinkle of a good salt is the difference between a good meal and a bad meal.

‘Tom Kitchin’s Meat & Game’ by Tom Kitchin, published by Absolute Press, is out now