📅 See what you missed last month in the April 2025 Recipe Roundup
Scott Hallsworth
Beef fillet tataki with onion ponzu salsa and garlic
Chilli crab wonton bombs
Grilled hispi cabbage with dried miso and ponzu
Saturday Kitchen wine recommendation
Carriere Pradal Domaine de la Massole Rosé, France, 2024 : Majestic, From £12 ↘
As head chef at the acclaimed Nobu, Australian-born Scott Hallsworth has mastered the ins and outs of Japanese cuisine, which he now showcases in his fun, playful dishes at Freak Scene.
Sophie Wyburd
Pork and halloumi koftes with tzatziki and olive slaw
Saturday Kitchen wine recommendation
Pentire Paloma : Available Online/Waitrose, From £3 ↘
Pentire Paloma is a non-alcoholic canned cocktail inspired by the classic Paloma. It features a refreshing blend of distilled coastal botanicals combined with pink grapefruit, lime, agave, and soda water, creating a crisp, light, and healthy drink with only 60 calories per 200ml can. Designed for outdoor enjoyment, it offers a sophisticated, alcohol-free alternative with vibrant citrus and herbal notes, making it ideal for those seeking a flavorful, low-calorie beverage without alcohol. The product is vegan-friendly, free from gluten, and crafted with natural ingredients, reflecting Pentire’s commitment to quality and sustainability
Sophie is a freelance recipe writer, supper club host, podcaster and content creator, with a focus on simple comfort food. She appears regularly on Television and Radio programmes and her recipes are frequently featured in magazines and newspapers, in print and online. She also co-hosts two podcasts, “I’ll have what she’s having” and “A bit of a mouthful”.
See more of Sophie’s recipes:
Jordan Bailey
Chef Jordan Bailey has launched a new smash burger concept in Borough. Following years of working in Michelin-starred kitchens, Bailey is now bringing his skill, precision and obsession with flavour to his new venture, Heard.
Matt Tebbutt
Indian spiced chicken wings and bhel puri potato skins
Saturday Kitchen wine recommendation
Bonny Doon Le Cigare Orange, USA, 2023 : Tesco, From £13 ↘
Bonny Doon Le Cigare Orange 2023 is an orange wine from California’s Central Coast, crafted as a blend of Grenache Blanc, Grenache Gris, Grenache, Orange Muscat, and other varieties. It offers a lightly spiced and aromatic nose with notes of orange rind, dried mango, quince, and potpourri, followed by a tactile, crunchy palate with bright flavours of peach, apricot, kumquat, and citrus peel. The wine is medium-bodied, dry, and finishes with a pleasant bitterness and a slight tannic grip typical of orange wines, making it a versatile and food-friendly choice. It is vegan, has a screw cap closure, and is praised for its refreshing yet complex character that appeals to both red and white wine drinker.
Hazelnut, biscuit and ricotta cake with toffee sauce
Saturday Kitchen wine recommendation
Brown Brothers Orange Muscat & Flora, Australia, 2022 : Tesco, £8.75 ↘
Brown Brothers Orange Muscat & Flora 2022 from Victoria, Australia, is a sweet, late-harvest dessert wine blending about 80% Orange Muscat with 20% Flora. It presents a vibrant golden color and enticing aromas of orange blossom, lemon, honey, spice, musk, and ripe apricot. On the palate, it is fresh, tangy, and medium-bodied, with flavours of juicy grapiness, apricot, marmalade, and runny honey, balanced by lively acidity for a clean, zesty finish. Bottled at 9.5% ABV, this wine is well-suited to a range of desserts or can be enjoyed as a refreshing, fragrant treat on its own
SATURDAY KITCHEN RECIPE FAVOURITES
Flourless chocolate fondants with a caramel centre
Brownies two ways
Beef shin ragu with homemade pasta
SATURDAY KITCHEN
Saturday Kitchen is a BBC cookery show full of mouth-watering food, great chefs and celebrity guests. Viewers get to vote on which recipe will be prepared for the guest at the end of the episode. Also featured is a regular wine-tasting segment.
The programme has become a national institution and its enduring popularity shows how food has moved from “functional niche” to ‘mainstream lifestyle’. Its theme tune is now as much a signifier of a Saturday as a leisurely late breakfast, visiting the shops or Match of the Day.
Millions start the weekend by waking up to Saturday Kitchen and an assortment of chefs and celebrities with books or films to promote, with the show competing with the more traditional talk show formats as a number one choice for agents. Meanwhile, the Saturday Kitchen recipes and the memorable ‘food heaven and hell’ are now part of the national lexicon.
Saturday Kitchen History
2002–2003: Saturday Kitchen recipes pre-recorded with Greg Wallace
Ainsley Harriott hosted the pilot programme for Saturday Kitchen on 14 April 2001 but it was not until 26 January 2002 that the show was launched.
It was hosted by Gregg Wallace, then a relatively unknown presenter and it was broadcast as a BBC production for the Open University as more of an educational programme than entertainment.
The programme had a low budget and was pre-recorded with Greg being joined by a celebrity chef each week. It included archived content from the likes of Keith Floyd and Rick Stein to fill the show as it still does to this day.
After the first series, the second series went out live.
2003–2006: Saturday Kitchen recipes live with Antony Worrall Thompson
After the success of the first two series, the programme was relaunched with established celebrity chef Antony Worrall Thompson as the host and the format was adjusted in two ways.
It moved away from the educational remit and simple meals to more aspirational food. There was an increase in guest chefs, some with Michelin stars and the show now included celebrity guests.
The BBC archive was retained for the revamped format, with Antony Worrall Thompson and the guest chefs preparing dishes. The archive clips used between the live Saturday Kitchen recipes was to allow time to clean-up and reset the studio kitchen.
During the summer of 2004, the programme temporarily moved to BBC One and aired as Saturday Brunch, live from Antony Worrall Thompson’s home.
Subsequently, in January 2006, the show moved from BBC Two to BBC One on a three-month trial. There was controversy when this was made permanent because it moved children’s programming from its regular slot on the BBC for the first time since the 1970s.
Before the introduction of the Heaven and Hell feature of later series, the programme featured Antony and the guest chefs pitching a dish to be cooked, which the public voted on and a running total of wins were recorded by using fridge magnets.
2006–2016: Saturday Kitchen recipes live with James Martin
James Martin took over as host from 24 June 2006 when Antony Worrall Thompson left the BBC to present Saturday Cooks! On ITV.
During James Martin’s time, the audience increased from 1.2 million to around 2.5 million, peaking at 2.7 million on 9 January 2010 and made Saturday Kitchen a national institution.
On 23 February 2016, James announced that he would be leaving the show to concentrate on other commitments, and “to have a lie in” on a Saturday. His last show was on 26 March.
2016 – to date: Saturday Kitchen recipes with Matt Tebbutt
Presenters
Since April 2016, Saturday Kitchen has been hosted by a group of chefs on a rotational basis.
The show has been hosted by a diverse range of culinary figures since James’ departure, including Jason Atherton, Antonio Carluccio, Gennaro Contaldo, The Hairy Bikers, Ching-He Huang, Tom Kerridge, Lorraine Pascale, Glynn Purnell, Tony Singh, Rick Stein, and Cyrus Todiwala.
From November 2016, Saturday Kitchen featured a core group of five rotating hosts: Angela Hartnett, Michel Roux, Donal Skehan, Matt Tebbutt, and John Torode—each having hosted at least once since Martin’s departure.
In March 2017 Matt Tebbutt was finally announced as the main presenter for Saturday Kitchen. Matt presents and serves up Saturday Kitchen recipes every week along with the guest chefs.
Wine experts
Each week, a wine expert pairs wines to go with the Saturday Kitchen recipes.
Previously, the wine experts filmed on location at various supermarkets and wine shops around the UK. These were typically filmed earlier in the week, and edited in time for the show.
Since April 2017, rotating wine experts have joined the host, the guest chefs, and the celebrity guest in the studio.
The list of featured wine experts are Susie Barrie, Sandia Chang, Sam Caporn, Jane Parkinson, Peter Richards, Olly Smith and Helen McGinn.
Future (2017–2020)
As part of the tender for the production of the programme released in October 2016, it was confirmed that the show and Best Bites will remain on air until March 2020, airing 52 episodes and 50 episodes per year respectively. It also confirmed the show will remain live and continue to feature guest chefs and archive content but may see changes to the presenters.
In February 2017, the BBC announced that Cactus TV had been awarded the tender.
Features
Each show typically includes a host chef and two guest chefs, each cooking a Saturday Kitchen recipe in the studio.
They are joined by a celebrity guest, usually appearing on the show to promote a forthcoming or current project.
Each guest chefs dish is paired with a wine chosen by an expert. The latest wine experts are Olly Smith and Helen McGinn.
In between each studio dish, excerpts are shown from the BBC Archives. This gives them time to tidy up before the next section. The footage has most commonly come from Rick Stein and Keith Floyd, but also features James Martin, The Hairy Bikers, and Tom Kerridge, among many others.
Omelette Challenge
No longer a part of the current format each week, the guest chefs were challenged to cook a three-egg omelette, as quickly as possible.
The record-holder is Theo Randall with a time of 14.76 seconds, set on 2 May 2015. The achievement was recognised by Guinness World Records and Randall is officially the world’s fastest omelette maker.
Heaven or Hell
Each show concludes with the host and guest chefs cooking the celebrity guest a dish containing their favourite or least-favourite ingredients.
Which dish is cooked depends on an on-line public vote.
As with other Saturday Kitchen recipes, the Heaven-or-Hell selection is also wine-paired.
