Caines Michael - Michael Caines At Home

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Epub ISBN 9781448149483

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Published by Preface 2013

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Copyright Michael Caines 2013

Michael Caines has asserted his right to be identified as the authors of this work under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988

First published in Great Britain in 2013 by Preface Publishing
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Contents

I was adopted into a large, loving family when I was six weeks old, with Pat and Peter, my Mum and Dad, 3 older sisters and 2 older brothers. I was the baby of the family, and loved having all my brothers and sisters to run about with. My mum was a brilliant cook and I remember as a child helping her baking and cooking in the kitchen. My father was a keen gardener, and my brothers and I would help him with the vegetables and fruit in the garden.

Eating and cooking were a celebration in our house, we celebrated what we had grown in the garden by making it into something really delicious and wholesome. I remember being called to the table to eat, together, as a family around the dining table. These are really special, formative memories for me, that, in hindsight make me realise that even then I knew that good food was meant to be shared with people you love.

My fathers passion in the garden and my mothers flair in the kitchen really gave me my first insight into what it meant to be a cook. Attention to the passing of the seasons is something I have grown up with and something which I dont take for granted.

I was a bit of an unruly child at school and I always thought I would join the Army I was very athletic and had a lot of energy. When it came to making our work experience choices at school, I took a fairly lazy option of working in a farm for a week. My friend, Jeremy, took work experience in a kitchen. I didnt know that cooking could be a career, that you could have a job as a chef! After that, I made a lucky decision and decided to go to catering college with Jeremy.

I nearly got kicked out of college in my first year, but I was given a stern talking to and in the second year, I really pulled my socks up and I learnt a lot. One of the main things that I learnt at that time was how to take criticism constructively. Before then I always thought that if someone was saying something about my food that they hated it. Leaving Exeter College in 1987, with the award for Student of the Year was a proud moment for me, but it was what happened next in my career that really turned me from a competent cook into a chef.

I knew that if I was serious about being a chef I had to move to London, and with the help of my tutor at college, I got a job working for Stephen Goodlad at the Grosvenor House Hotel on Londons Park Lane. I worked there for 18 months and I had the enormous good fortune to meet Raymond Blanc. When a job came up at Le Manoir au QuatSaisons, Stephen recommended me to Raymond.

Working with Raymond at Le Manoir was a revelation, he really pushed me to trust my instinct and my knowledge of seasonality and taught me not to think necessarily in things that were already established recipes, but to explore my palate and try various flavour combinations. Raymond had no blinkers, he had no pre-conceived ideas. After 3 years, and on Raymonds recommendation I went to work with Bernard Loiseau in Saulieu. Bernard was all about regional, seasonal food, the opposite of Le Manoir, which was very dedicated to the processes. After working with Bernard where I learned to cherish my ingredients, I went to work under Jol Robuchon in Paris. Joel is called The Watchmaker of Cooking. He is very precise and his food is perfect. But I knew that I wanted to go back to England to be closer to my family and further my career there, so after a year, I handed in my notice. The same week, Raymond Blanc telephoned me saying he had recommended me to be the Head Chef at Gidleigh Park. I sought the advice of both Joel Robuchon and Bernard Loiseau and both said it was time for me to be a head chef.

I returned to the UK in 1994 to take up a position at Gidleigh Park as Head Chef. It was definitely daunting, but with all I had learned under the superstar chefs I had worked with, I felt that it was a great opportunity. Paul Henderson was the owner of Gidleigh Park, and together, we put a lot of investment into the kitchen. Paul could see the vision I had to take Gidleigh Park even further as a culinary destination.

About two months into my new job, I was involved in a car accident and I lost my right arm. I went from new-kid-on-the-block to someone fighting for their life and career in a moment. I wanted to get back to work as quickly as possible. Luckily Paul had been a marine and knew someone who had lost his arm. Paul asked him if he thought I could continue as a chef. Yes, the ex-marine said. If he wants to enough.

I definitely wanted to. I had worked too long and too hard to give up on my dream and at that moment I made a decision to continue as a chef, to keep learning, to keep honing my skill and to keep sharing my food. I was back at work, full-time as head chef within 4 weeks. It was difficult at first, but over time I learned to be left handed. What my accident taught me is that if you believe in something enough, and you are willing to put in the effort, you can succeed.

When we got our second Michelin Star, about 4 years after my accident, it was amazing. It really felt like a testament to our achievement, not only mine, but the whole teams. But we cannot rest on our laurels. We have to continue to strive and to innovate. You can never stand still or the whole world will overtake you. Our constant striving and development has kept us our 2 stars for over 15 years. But the focus is always forward we want to be unique, but we always want to be relevant.

For some people, chefs can seem untouchable, like their food can never be matched, but I feel that amateur cooks are becoming more ambitious and more adventurous and I want to fuel their passion and prick their curiosity. We all start out cooking with ingredients and I wanted the ingredients to tell the story. We all know that having enough to eat is a luxury, but as people become more mindful of that we shop smarter and more local, throwing away less and paying more attention to what we do consume. This is so important for the future safety of our food.

My home is my table, my food and my family. I love to cook at home and I think that we should all take the time to do it after all, there is nothing more enjoyable than sitting with your loved ones and friends enjoying lovely wine and beautiful food.