Cooking on the radio waves

Many years ago, when I was working on a Greek ship as third engineer/oiler, I did a bit more than just oil engines and generators. I replaced the cook on a couple of occasions when he was incapacitated. Beside cooking on the waves, my C.V. should also read “cooking on the radio waves”.  

Before it became Radio Tees, the station was called Radio Cleveland. One of our famous local radio presenters, turned public speaker, Alan Wright called on me on two or three occasions to do a cookery demonstration live on radio. 

The only thing the station provided was an antique 4-ring electric cooker that took ages to heat up.
“The show starts just after the midday news, so feel free to arrive any time after 11 am.”
Being very particular about organisation, I chose a couple of recipes and then compiled the list of ingredients days in advance. Salt, check… Pepper, check… Coriander, pots and pans, check…
On the morning of the show, well before the chefs arrive for work, I raided one of our kitchens for a few more ingredients and utensils and headed for Middlesbrough.

I made my way from the underground car park, carrying three or four supermarket bags full of foodstuffs and clanging pots and pans along a few back alleys and up two flights of stairs to the station’s galley.
A reporter on his tea break enquired: “Are you today’s cookery spot?” 
The receptionist said: “I’ve been to your restaurant at Seaton.”
She showed me up to the galley and then left me to get on with the food preparation, reserving the finishing touches till the start of the programme.

Once, Kathryn Apanowicz was guest-presenting the dinnertime show. For those who have never heard of her, she started out in Grange Hill. She was also the partner of the late Countdown’s compere Richard Whiteley.I introduced myself and gave her a bit of information on our restaurants to use in the programme. I’m doing it for free, so I might as well plug my business. I told her that I loved Countdown and bragged that I had watched the television game show in Greek, Italian as well as the original French version. I doubt whether she was impressed. 

Immediately after the weather forecast, she gave me a short introduction and began asking about the food I was cooking that day. On the menu, I had chosen to prepare pan-fried fillets of sea bass with garlic and rosemary and our signature dish, lamb Tagine with couscous. 

Cooking on radio is about sounds just as cooking on TV is about colours and textures. Woosh, Crackle, Bang, Chop, Splash, Slurp, Mmm….

Kathryn, a seasoned cook herself, was very impressed with the Algerian flavours of cumin, coriander, garlic, etc.… She asked the right questions to share the recipes with the listeners. As the show drew to a close, a few other ravenous DJs came along to grab the last few morsels.

As soon as the food was demolished, I was left to tidy up, pack my pots and pans and say my goodbyes. Before I left the building, Kathryn made my day when she said she would try the dishes out on her darling Richard.