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Knorr stock cube is secret to Marco's success
By Jonathan Prynn, Evening Standard 26.04.07He was the youngest chef - and the first Briton - to win three Michelin stars.
But in a claim that will dismay hardline foodies, Marco Pierre White reveals today that the unlikely secret of his success is the stock cube.
The new star of Hell's Kitchen also angrily debunks elaborate restaurant cooking and says most diners would be happier with a corned beef sandwich or a takeaway curry.
In an interview in this week's Caterer and Hotelkeeper magazine, White says: "Knorr is the best f***ing ingredient in the world, let's not kid ourselves. Knorr chicken stock cubes? Genius product. Every kitchen should have a packet. The problem is most people don't know how to use it."
White, 45, also praises ketchup ("it's a great sauce"), Coleman's mustard and Worcestershire sauce, which he says he has used to make "the most delicious sauce in the world to serve with beef".
It is all a far cry from the glittering heyday of the so-called "enfant terrible" of British cooking in the Eighties and Nineties.
Then, his string of top restaurants, including Harvey's, Restaurant Marco Pierre White at the Hyde Park Hotel and the Oak Room, set new standards and inspired the likes of protégés Gordon Ramsay and Heston Blumenthal.
In the past, stock cubes have been seen as an unforgivable cop-out by purists who say cooks should prepare their own home-made bouillon.
Renee Elliott, founder of the Planet Organic chain of food shops, recently described Knorr cubes as "just revolting".
But White, the forerunner of the current crop of TV chefs, makes it clear he has no respect for today's food fads, including the ubiquitous tasting menu.
In a side-swipe at Blumenthal's Fat Duck restaurant he says: "I don't want a f***ing tasting menu. You have one mouthful and then you are waiting for the next course.
"[I want a] starter, main course... if it's that good I'll come tomorrow and choose some other ones."
He also attacks the "snobbery" of today's top restaurants - many of which are owned by Ramsay, with whom he has had a spectacular falling out.
He says: "How many people walk into a Michelin-starred restaurant and don't feel comfortable? They can't take their tie or jacket off, can't speak too loudly. When I had my three stars I never had a dress code. Who am I to dictate how people should dress?
"And how many think they've got to say the food is delicious because of where they're sitting? If they are honest, they'd prefer to have a corned beef sandwich with some Branston's or get a takeaway curry."
Even organic does not escape White's wrath. He says: "I prefer to eat normal carrots cooked by someone who can cook than organic carrots by some f***er who can't cook. You talk about these baby carrots - well they've got no flavour. Give me a substantial-sized carrot."
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Reader views (4)
And I suppose this would have nothing to do with Knorr sponsoring his new show on ITV. Come on people wake up and know when you're being manipulated!
- John, Tufton, Pembrokeshire
The man is right on target! Those tiny peeled organic carrots are tasteless unless you add a pound of sugar and brown sugar to their glaze. And even then, they suck.
Give me a bunch of carrots right from the garden, steamed until only just cooked and seasoned with a generous dab of unsalted butter that makes 'em sensational and even a veggie that the kids go for. Even plain steamed spinach simmered in olive oil and a garlic clove can win over kids who hate vegetables.
As for fancy food in fancy restaurants, the whole snobbery scene makes me sick. Again the guy is right! Who wouldn't prefer hot roast beef on "weck" (or kimmelweck if you will) or a dandy pile of corned beef slices on mild rye, or some creamy smoothe potato salad, or a side of cabbage slaw with shaved carrots, top quality Spanish onion, all mixed in with a fine white wine vinegar/vegetable oil/slightly sweetened dressing. Or maybe a salmon croquet ladled over with a dainty portion of creamed fresh green peas.
It is time for a food revolution by sensible cooks in sensible kitchens.
And take it from me... that is what I am, and proud to be.
Hail Marco Pierre White, wherever he is!
- Lily , Town of Eggertsville, New York in the good old U.S.A.
I just heard this story on Radio 4 and had to look it up because of course the brand of stock cube was not mentioned (with it being the BBC). As a fairly recent convert to this brand of stock cube, over a certain other, shall we say, palindromic brand (which is only really good for crisping up a chicken)...I was happy to find out that Marco and I share our views on this subject! Having read the rest of this article, I find myself agreeing with virtually everything he says. Bravo! Take his advice folks, trust me on this!
- Andy Bullock, Nottingham, England
At last a 'foodie' who talks common sense. The snobbishness now associated with food is mindblowing and we've been brainwashed to a degree that people will pay vast amounts of money to be ripped off in the 'best' restaurants where their portions are miniscule and prices are ridiculous. Give me an ordinary restaurant any day over a Gordon Ramsay or a Heston Blumenthal one. The vast majority of people in this country exist on ordinary food and are much the better for it. 'Celebrity' chefs are proliferating at an alarming rate and the country isn't any better off for it. Bring back honest-to-goodness cooking and kick these celebrity chefs into touch.
- Paul Wilson, London, UK
