(egg cracks)
(oil sizzles)
(upbeat music)
- Hello and welcome back to Sorted Food.
- Now today is a very special day,
because we are joined by Michelin trained chef
and TikTok star, Poppy O'Toole.
Are you ready for this chaos?
- I've never been more ready before in my life.
- Could we start inviting guests in just to have fun
and not do the judge-y bit?
(group laughs)
- Talking of judge-y bit,
this is how it's gonna work.
So today, our three normal home cooks are competing,
like they are for the whole year,
for badges.
Today it is the Twist Badge,
so you're each going to give your twist
on Poppy's favorite TikTok recipes.
So, Poppy, with twist in mind,
what is it you're gonna be looking for?
- I want something creative.
I want it to taste delicious,
and I also need it to just give me that kind of like,
"Ooh, I've never seen this before."
- So in which case,
which TikTok recipe are we doing first?
- Okay, to start off with,
we're going to do my viral trend,
the one that kick-started at all,
the 15 hour potato.
- Hallelujah!
(upbeat music)
- So what we need to do is
basically peel a ton of potatoes,
so we need them almost like a crisp.
So have a go with the knife,
and then we'll crack on with the mandolin,
I suppose.
- [Ben] 14 Hours into our 15 hour spud.
We've got them sliced.
- Can I?
Are you happy for me to?
- Yeah, I am, I am.
I think you'll be all right. - Oh, you're so brave.
- Not that one,
not that one.
- Hang on, hang on, hang on.
I spoke too soon.
(laughs)
- Not those ones.
These ones are great.
- Next we need the duck fat,
straight over.
Now we need a load of salt,
because there's no other flavor in this one.
This is also a bit of a boring bit.
It's basically one by one,
just layering them up on top of each other.
- And there's gonna be weight on it as well?
- Yeah, so once it comes out of the oven,
after three hours of cooking,
any kind of weight that you can get.
I use like tins or anything that's gonna be even weighted,
so it's really pushing down,
so all the fat solidifies together,
all the starch solidifies together,
and you just get this lump of deconstructed,
reconstructed, delicious potato.
Last layer straight on top.
You want this one to look a little bit prettier.
And then we're just gonna cover it with our parchment,
and that's it.
That's gonna go into the oven,
130 degrees for three hours.
So in true "Blue Peter" style,
I have made one at home.
- That's a commitment, yeah. - That's dedication.
- It's dedication also means
I don't have your slices in it.
(everyone laughing)
So I'm gonna trim it up.
- [Ben] Oh, look at that!
- Do you have a ruler, measuring tape,
anything that I can, you know, size this up with?
- I'm glad you asked.
(gasps)
- Oh my god, you're so prepared.
(upbeat music)
Okay, so it's going into hot oil at 180-190.
Hey, and it's in!
Okay and then we'll leave that until it's golden all over,
and crispy and fatty,
and just.
- [All] Oh!
- The confit 15-hour potatoes,
simple as it comes.
Don't think you could do much better,
even with a twist.
- Cheers!
- [Everyone] Cheers!
- Oh my!
- I don't know how you're gonna beat it.
Amazing.
- It could be every single good thing
about a potato,
like on 47 higher levels.
- Spectacular,
and it sets the bar rather high, Jay.
- What if, - Oh no.
- we turned your 15-hour confit potato
into 15-hour bacon tater tots.
- Your 15 hours start now!
- [Jamie] Three layers of potato,
one layer of bacon.
- [Poppy] Okay.
- Final layer.
- [Mike] Thank goodness.
- [Jamie] Because it's got the bacon in there,
- Yep.
- And I'm, you know, nervous about the layers
and the potato sticking to each other.
I'm going to cook it with weight on it
so that it's pressing it down
for the three hours - Yes.
that it's in the oven as well.
- [Jamie] It cuts well.
- Yes.
(gasps)
That looks sick.
I still don't think you can beat simplicity.
- You're huffing and puffing,
but just keeping it straight.
So far,
it's Poppy's recipe with bacon in the shape of cubes.
- [Barry] Yeah, you haven't reinvented the wheel.
- [Jamie] I'm going to add these into our deep fryer.
Four minutes until they're golden brown.
Oh, hello.
- [Poppy] They look really good.
(all oohing)
- It's now done. - Really.
Let's have a badge.
You can complain,
but if you had a plating badge,
I'd take that from you.
But you don't, so.
Bacon tater tots with spicy guacamole and chimichurri.
(applause)
- [Poppy] I think it looks good.
- [Ben] A round of applause.
- Let me get one of these towers.
I hate you,
I hate you!
It's really good!
(all laughing)
- I was hoping she was disgusted.
- I know!
- Sorry, I threw it in aggression,
but it was really,
I'm going to just finish that off actually.
(all laughing)
The sauces are lovely.
I don't think you need them
with it in any way, shape, or form,
so that's going to deduct some points of the twist.
- Excellent.
- Compliments for no reason.
Guys try it.
Honestly.
I'm really disappointed that it's so good.
- Cheers. - Cheers.
- Yeah, it's got bacon in it.
(laughs)
- It's great.
I think the slightly smaller pieces
gives you slightly more surface area
and slightly more crispy edges.
- It's good!
Well played!
- All right now.
(upbeat music)
- All right, Mike,
so Jamie did kinda set the bar fairly high actually.
- [Mike] Okay.
- Because even though the twist wasn't that innovative,
it was quite delicious.
This is the simplest recipe and it's just pesto eggs,
which was a massive trend,
and all I did was put it in a wrap,
and I've got 6 million views.
- This is a social media lesson for me.
- Just going to grab a couple of spoonfuls.
You just want enough in there to cook the eggs.
You have to do it with harissa.
Harissa eggs.
I don't know what your twist is going to be.
- Hold that thought! (laughs)
Hold it!
- [Poppy] Bit of pepper on there.
A touch of salt.
A little bit of salt.
Now I'm going to add some cherry tomatoes in there.
(laid back music)
- [Mike] So you got Parmesan and basil in there as well,
- [Poppy] Parmesan and basil in there as well.
- [Mike] And this is cream cheese?
- [Poppy] Take that over for a minute.
- Are we worried?
Go on, it's a really confident flip.
(laughs)
- How confident?
(applause)
Can you take my handle?
(all laughing)
Thanks.
- [Poppy] Delightful.
- [Mike] Naughty.
- [Poppy] And then.
- There you go.
- [Poppy] And that is the pesto egg trend.
- Cheers.
- Cheers. - Cheers.
- That is excellent. - What do you think?
- That is a hot delicious mess.
- It is a mess.
It is a proper mess.
- That is delicious, right?
Simply delicious.
- My favorite bit about that is the fact that,
because you cook the tomatoes,
they kind of ooze - Yeah, they get really warm.
and mix in with all the cream and stuff.
Oh right.
I've got my work cut out.
Okay, I'm making a harissa Shakshuka style-
- Yep.
- Lentil salad.
So I've taken inspiration from what you've done
and the technique and breakfast.
And I thought Shakshuka!
Then I though, well, actually,
this is such a great technique.
How would I eat this for dinner
in a really quick, easy, accessible way?
Right, so I got my harissa in there.
I've got
garlic,
cumin,
olive oil,
and then in with chickpeas.
- Chickpeas?
- No, lentils.
(laughs)
- What I like is the principle of
let's fry some eggs in an oily condiment,
pesto harissa,
and we know the internet loves wraps,
but what else does the internet love more?
Lentils! - Lentils.
- [Mike] Ebbers.
- I'm on your side.
I'm a big fan of a lentil!
- You're not.
You're being sarcastic,
but you're also being Ebbers at the same time.
So I've chopped some cherry tomatoes.
They're going into my lentil mixture
along with a load of herbs.
Got mint, parsley, stuff like that.
- [Ben] It's like a tabouleh,
stuff like that.
- Red wine vinegar going in.
- Lovely.
- You don't want that, do you?
- I wasn't going say anything.
I just thought I'd let you carry on.
- Fiber, fiber.
- Fiber?
It's going to come a whole lot though.
- [Mike] Right, okay.
Red wine vinegar going in.
Salt, pepper.
- All right.
- Can we get some lemon zest and lemon juice in there?
- [Poppy] I like how you cut the lemon first,
and then zested.
(laughs)
- [Ben] So would you want four eggs cracked in without
breaking a yolk?
- [Mike] Whoa, why are you telling me what I want, Ebbers?
- [Ben] In quick succession,
so they all cook evenly.
- [Mike] I want whatever we get.
(Poppy laughs)
They are just going to slide straight on.
So let's get a mound of this.
- [Poppy] Wow.
- [Mike] And the best thing about it,
you can't see a salad.
(claps, laughs)
With a bit of crumbled Feta over the top.
- And why are you putting Feta on there, chef?
- [Mike] Just because it adds a creamy saltiness.
- [Poppy] And then you're adding a yogurt as well?
- Yeah, and go some flaked almonds.
- So where Jamie just added bacon,
you're adding.
(laughs) - All the store cupboard.
- Sesame seeds and some greenery to finish.
- It does look good.
I still don't know what it is,
but I kind of like it.
- Me neither!
Is that not the essence of creativity
is when you look at it and go,
I don't know what that is.
I'll tell you why you don't know what that is,
because it's brand new.
This is a chef-shuka.
Look at that!
(laughs)
Spaffs, you disrespectful piece of (beep)!
(upbeat music)
- It's actually really good.
- It's actually delicious.
- [Poppy] The lentils are lovely.
- It's banging.
- The garlic is fierce.
- The only thing missing from this,
if you'd warmed and blistered your tomatoes as well.
- Good point actually.
- It's super tasty though. - It is really tasty.
It's all the flavors I love.
- It's definitely out there.
Like I would never have thought to put a lentil salad
with eggs.
- But if you want the TikTok points,
put it in a wrap.
I think that's what we're learning here.
- Different experience, isn't it?
It's not a salad anymore.
- You should've put it in a wrap!
- What's that?
It's not as good?
No, you're correct.
It's not.
(upbeat music)
- Okay, so pasta chips.
They are everywhere,
everywhere,
and I just jumped on the trend.
The simplistic way to do it,
just so you can have a little snack,
a little bowl of pasta chips,
or crisps,
or whatever you want to call it.
So we've got the pre cooked pasta.
So we've already boiled them off
til you want to go a little bit further than al dente,
because you want them to soft,
so that you can fry them.
- [Barry] That's creepy.
- I didn't mean to do that.
(laughs)
- [Barry] I don't like it.
- [Poppy] And then we're going to coat it in
some Parmesan and then we've got oregano
or Italian herbs,
whichever you have. - I like tang, gotcha.
Ooh! - There's a fan on.
A fan?
A little bit of pap.
- [Barry] Poppy, how did you become a chef?
What was your journey?
- I just love eating.
I absolutely love eating,
and I'm obsessed with it,
and I always have been obsessed with eating.
I just wanted any excuse to be in the kitchen,
'cause my mom, Nan,
is very like matriarchal cookers,
and they'd just be in the kitchen all day,
and I knew that was my way
to eat whilst they were cooking.
And then I was working in like pubs and stuff.
I was on front of house.
I was like, "Please let me go in the kitchen,"
and I was porter,
so I worked my way up through the pub.
And then I saw an apprenticeship,
a Michelin star place in Birmingham,
and I was there for like three and a half years.
And that's when I realized actually
it's not just like pub grub.
You can actually make like molecular things
and deep fried pasta.
(all laugh)
- [Barry] And you've got a book.
What's the vibe of the book?
- I kind of just took it as a bit of a learning tool,
so it's actually set out into 12 core recipes.
So the first chapter is
you learn how to make a tomato sauce,
and from that tomato sauce,
you get a staple dish,
a brunch dish,
a potato dish,
and a fancier dish.
So it's all using the same tomato sauce.
And that goes out throughout,
so it's like a white sauces,
merengues, confit garlic.
- Like building blocks?
- It's building blocks,
which you'll have to have a look at in the book,
which is out in September.
You can pre-order now on Amazon!
- We love a plug here! (clapping)
We love a plug here.
- Get the show going!
(laughs)
If Poppy's getting 11 million views,
6 million views,
on all these different videos,
maybe there's a way that we could get in on
some of this TikTok action.
- We've heard you, Jay.
We've actually gone and filmed a ton of TikTok videos
to try and piggyback off of some of Poppy's success.
You can go and watch those right now.
- So we're just going to get the excess oil off,
give them a little toss,
and then we'll get them into the serving plate.
I'm going to put a bit more Parmesan on.
Well, there you go!
This is just the most simplest form of the pasta chip,
but have a try!
- Cheesy chip?
- Yes, please.
If you mess about with this recipe,
you're only ruining it, right Poppy?
(chips crunching)
- That was good.
It's Moorish.
It's everything you want in a bar snack.
- What do we have here though?
We have fried pasta, right?
So I am making cheesecake.
- Pardon?
- I am making deep fried ravioli cheesecake.
- Can't wait for that.
No, it's actually,
yeah!
Yes. - Do it!
- [Barry] Cream cheese, strawberry jam,
confectioner's sugar, and corn flour.
Bit of lemon zest,
and a bit of basil and mint.
- [Poppy] Nice!
- Into the cheesecake mix.
Into a piping bag,
and then into the fridge to let it firm up a bit.
Now for the sauce on top, - Yes.
- Going for a pesto.
- [Poppy] Love that.
- I left the cheese out,
but otherwise,
the main components of a pesto.
Honey-soaked pine nuts, basil, and mint.
(upbeat music)
- I don't think that's a pesto in any way, shape, or form,
but I like it.
It's a green sauce.
And homemade pasta as well?
- Yep. - Wow.
- God, Spaffs, when did you make that?
- Wait, you made homemade pasta?
- I made homemade pasta and rolled it out myself earlier.
- Wow. - You did not.
- [Mike] Studio-made pasta not homemade pasta.
- Well I rolled it out myself.
I know there's footage of that.
I'm very nervous this bit.
(upbeat music)
- Come on.
Oh, okay.
That's it. - Want to check it out, mate.
- [Barry] I don't know.
(upbeat music)
These have to be obviously super air tight.
Otherwise they're going to burst and go everywhere.
- [Poppy] So the corn flour?
- [Barry] It's kind of not given much structure
at this point,
but it will thicken up and make it almost custard-y
when it cooks,
so if you think about back to Rav's cheat
of using corn flour or custard powder,
that's a nice cheat,
but it's mostly corn flour.
This is another nice little hack
for using corn flour to give you
almost a custard-y filling once it cooks.
(upbeat music)
Oh yes!
Look at that!
- I think we need some cubes on top as well.
I'm changing your recipe now.
- [Barry] Fine, we're a team here, aren't we?
- Yes. - You're in need of help.
- [Poppy] They look pretty good.
- [Barry] They now don't look like pasta at all.
So we'll go.
(upbeat music)
- Confident drizzle.
- Pine nuts.
Oh no, the fan!
There's the fan!
No, say it, say it.
Go over.
- [Poppy] Where?
- [Barry] I don't know.
There's fans everywhere.
I'm kind of happy with how they look.
- They look great.
I'm just intrigued to what the hell they actually are?
- Yeah, same.
Do you wanna try one?
- Yeah, I'm going to go for this beasty one in the middle.
- [Barry] Okay.
- [All] Cheers!
- [Poppy] I'm scared.
Okay.
- Interesting.
I mean, yeah, I know.
(Mike laughs)
- Now the corn flour's cooked,
it's kind of that set custard in the middle.
- Yeah, they're thick.
- That's why the corn flour's there.
Genius!
- It's definitely twisted.
- I mean as a standard dish,
it's absolutely amazing, mate.
- It's really nice.
I think we need more filling actually.
I think you could go harder with this,
because it was delicious,
the filling.
- I'm not sure, on its own,
the honey pine nut, mint, basil thing was there,
but mixed with fresh strawberries,
suddenly it's actually really quite interesting.
The good news is, Poppy,
you have all the control.
You've seen three of our normal home cooks each twist up
one of your favorite TikTok trends.
Who gets the badge?
Is it the bacon tater tots with chimichurri and spicy guac?
- [Poppy] That was good.
- [Ben] Is it the harissa eggs on top of the lentil salad?
Or is it the fried pasta dessert with herbs and strawberry?
- I think because it pushed the boundary the most,
and was nothing like what I had suggested,
it might actually be (music intensifying)
the lentil salad.
(cheering)
- Mike takes the badge
for the harissa fried lentils. - Yes!
- With a lentil salad!
- A lentil salad?
- [Poppy] Everything else was delicious, though.
Sorry guys.
- [Jamie] I can't believe bacon has finally let me down.
- It's about time. (laughs)
- Poppy, you've been a hero.
Thanks for coming down,
and fitting in so well as we bully our normal home cooks,
and now it's over to you guys.
Poppy is the TikTok food trend queen,
but did she make the right decision today?
Let us know.
And while you're downstairs,
we'll also put a link to
all of Poppy's excellent recipes over on TikTok.
- Now, despite losing,
I think it's fair to say we enjoyed ourselves today.
- [Poppy] Did you?
- Would you fancy another video?
- Yes, really!
- We were thinking,
seeing as TikTok's clearly your thing,
how would you like to partake in something
that's very definitely our thing?
- Did I hear someone say pass it on?
- Yes.
(all laughing)
- Great, that's all we need.
Confirmation right there.
(beep)
- You don't need both hands.
- No.
- You obviously can't use them very well.
(laughs)
- Not together anyway.
(laughs)