Having made its inauspicious debut in June 2022, Waitrose’s Dish podcast is – bafflingly – still pumping out episodes. Its latest (online now) begins with hosts Nick Grimshaw and Angela Hartnett prattling about dogs, foxes and other topics unrelated to food and drink. For nearly eight minutes. Feel free to skip them.
When guest Sue Perkins eventually rocks up – and the in-studio crew has stopped whooping – she tells the tale of winning the 2006 World’s Biggest Liar competition in Cumbria, becoming the first female recipient of the title.
Unlike the podcast’s hosts, Perkins is charismatic and witty. She enjoys cooking “everything”, she says. “The more bizarre the better.” That preference led her to once create an Indian banquet for six, including a biryani with gold leaf. “I was quite unwell at the end of it,” Perkins admits, before waxing lyrical about indulgent desserts. “Black forest gateau: nothing better in the universe.”
She’s less keen on goats cheese because “it tastes like melted bin liner”. Also off her menu is deep-fried tarantula, a dish she tried in Cambodia. The body section has “an ooze to it”, she warns.
At the midway point, the cooking finally begins. Hartnett serves a Malaysian prawn laksa, which sounds delightful. So does the wine pairing – an albariño “with lime blossom, ripe citrus and stone fruit flavours”.
Grimshaw’s frequent self-regarding anecdotes, on the other hand, are harsh on the ear. And the running gag about cream quickly sours. Yuck!
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