大象传媒

Making marmalade at home is a cool thing to do, up there with baking as a skill that gives you a certain pride in conversations. Unlike our grannies, we don't have to aim to supply the neighbourhood with dozens of jars or pad out the oranges as they did in the war years. We can use good ingredients, make just enough for ourselves and friends, and feel rightly pleased that this little act of self-sufficiency showcases our kitchen abilities rather well.

As with bread baking, we've found out a little more about the science that creates the 'jellied set' and keeps the peel tender rather than tough. This means that making marmalade well at home is much less problematic than it used to be. So we can banish runny unset syrups and leathery peel . Today's marmalade should be able to sit like jelly and glisten, packed with a rich bittersweet flavour all fairly effortlessly without hours of sugar boiling.

Picture by Dan Lepard

Seville oranges, the particular type of citrus fruit used in marmalade making, are rich in a natural substance known as . You may have seen it in bottles at the supermarket, often made from apples or sometimes lime skins. When pectin is combined with sugar and acid - like lemon juice - and boiled to 105C/220F, it forms a suspension that sets as it cools. Cook above that temperature and you might damage the pectin, take the temperature well below that and the pectin might not gel.

But first of all you have to release the pectin from the pips and peel, mainly the white bitter part of the fruit. The longer the pips and peel sit in water the more pectin will be released. The way that , a patron and judge at the annual , suggests is to cut the Seville oranges in half, squeeze all the juice out, then slice the peel thinly and cover it with the juice and extra water. Leave that for 24 hours before cooking, with the pips soaking separately. Others go for cooking the oranges whole first, then leave them to cool in the water for 24 hours, before removing the oranges and shredding the peel.

My recipe for medium-cut Seville orange marmalade explains how to get the proportions of oranges to liquid and sugar right. My mum would measure it to the eye and get it correct most times, but then she's a marmalade machine. If you're like me, only making it occasionally, then weighing and measuring is the best way.

I advise keeping the boiling time short. First it avoids damaging the pectin. Second, if you boil the sugar and peel for a long time you are more likely to harden the fibres and make the peel tough. But the other reason is when you boil sugar and an acid together for a long period you and this can affect the set. The acid of the lemon is essential for creating the pectin set, so if you add less the gel may not form and the flavour will be too sweet.

It's essential to have a big enough pan. When everything is in the pot, it should be filled halfway up, no more, so that when it boils up the mixture stays in the pan, and doesn't boil all over your hob and risk scalding your hands. Treat yourself to a large marmalade pot, often called a maslin pan, or cook the marmalade in smaller batches. Boiling hot marmalade will burn if it hits your skin, so better to be careful.

When it comes to testing the set, I've never had much luck with getting marmalade to set on a saucer in the fridge, or getting it to drip in sheets from the spoon. If you haven't got the mixture right to begin with no amount of continuous boiling will make it set. Though you could leave it to cool, add liquid pectin and bring it to the boil again. Tiptree make a tawny marmalade that is cooked twice, so you'd be in good company.

Once you've made marmalade once, you almost won't need a recipe. Afterwards, anything from marmalade sponge pudding with cardamom custard to a marmalade Martini will have that touch of pride mixed with it.

So tell me, have you made marmalade this year? And do you have any tips to share?

Dan Lepard is a food writer for and a baking expert.

As winter and 鈥樷�� tighten their icy grip on the Arctic, several families in the far north of Greenland have an unusual and pungent delicacy to look forward to. For centuries the people of one of the world's northernmost inhabited settlements have used an ingenious way of storing food ready for lean times. This traditional Inuit method is still very much in use today and this is what the Human Planet team went to (the most northerly native village in the world) to film. Watch John Hurt recite the recipe for rotten seabirds:

The dish on the menu is and at first sniff it divides the film crew 鈥� from those who were strangely curious to those who wanted to retch. Ikuo and his son showed us how kiviaq is made from fermented sea birds. The delicacy is created by first preparing a seal skin: all the meat is removed and only a thick layer of fat remains. The skin is then sewn into a bag shape, which is stuffed with 300-500 little auk birds. Once full and airtight, the skin is sewn up and seal fat is smeared over all over the join, which acts as a repellent to flies. The seal skin is then left under a pile of rocks to ferment for a minimum of three months to a maximum of 18 months.

As winter arrives and hunting for other game becomes difficult due to the darkness and unsafe ice, Ikuo and his family look forward to digging out the kiviaq and sharing it with their family and friends. They always eat it outside as the smell is so overpowering that it would linger inside the house for weeks. The seal fat helps to both preserve and tenderise the bird meat so it can be eaten raw and whole, bones and all. It was quite a sight to see the family holding bird鈥檚 legs in their teeth and stripping off the feathers before chowing down on large parts of the bird.听

Kiviaq is often a meal that is served at celebrations and as we filmed the family eating, the whole event felt festive. Once the cameras stopped rolling the crew were invited to join in the feast. I was slightly reticent, considering I don鈥檛 usually eat meat. However when you鈥檝e travelled this far to film someone preparing a highly regarded feast it seems rude not to join in.

The best part of the bird is said to be the heart which was given to our director Nic Brown. I opted for the smallest piece possible, a tiny bit of leg, which one of the women fed to me off her finger! I must say that this small tasting did not enamour me to the delicacy. It tasted like a cross between liquorice and the strongest cheese I鈥檝e ever had.

However, there is no doubt that the taste appeals to many Inuit families in the far north and more importantly, in the past, this resourceful method of preserving food saved many lives during tough times.

What do you think? We'd love to hear about the strangest meal you have ever eaten. Discover amazing human stories from around the world through television and radio clips from 大象传媒 programmes with the Human Planet Explorer.

Bethan Evans is part of the Human Planet Arctic Team.

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It's Burns Night on Tuesday and the perfect opportunity to cook some traditional Scottish recipes. The night is in honour of the poet Robert Burns and includes the reciting of Burns' poetry, with an ode to the offal-packed : "Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face, Great chieftain o' the puddin-race!" Many Scots admit having to swot up on the running order before a Burns Night supper, however if you can't remember all the key verses of the night, there's now an , launched last week.

Most people know that haggis is invariably on the menu for the event, served with 'neeps 'n' tatties' (mashed swede and potatoes) and (at least) a wee dram of whisky. You might wish to make your own haggis with this authentic recipe - but if you've been making it for years, tell us your family recipe. The Hairy Bikers like to serve haggis with clapshot ('neeps 'n' tatties') and a creamy whisky sauce. But if sheep鈥檚 liver, lungs and heart are not your thing - despite being such recession-proof ingredients - there are all kinds of vegetarian alternatives you can buy made with pulses and nuts; or you could .

As for the rest of the menu, start with Scotch broth, potato soup or cock-a-leekie soup and then wash it all down with a whisky cocktail and a bowl of cranachan or a slice of shortbread. If you've got any haggis left the next day, you could try this haggis-in-the-hole recipe.

So tell us, do you celebrate Burns Night? If so, are you making your own haggis or buying it in? Does anyone have a good version of vegetarian haggis to share?

Ramona Andrews is the host of the 大象传媒 Food Q&A blog and messageboard.

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The results are in. Europe鈥檚 most famous judge of culinary craft has broken its silence. We now know which restaurants will bear small stars beside their name in the

The to the Guide鈥檚 ratings has already started, in particular why some restaurants attained a star and why others didn鈥檛. What truly defines a one, two or three star venue still remains because of Michelin鈥檚 relatively ambiguous criteria. It continues to stir a mystique 鈥� so how does the rating affect the kitchen?

Gordon Ramsay's thirst for Michelin stars was revealed in the documentary series, Boiling Point

We鈥檙e often told that many chefs develop a parochial lifestyle in the obsessive pursuit of attaining Michelin stars. Perhaps the revered French Chef Bernard Loiseau, who , is proof.

A documentary last year by food writer William Sitwell investigated the Michelin Guide鈥檚 affect on chefs. Bernard Loiseau鈥檚 wife, Dominique, appeared in the programme to discuss her husband鈥檚 obsession with Michelin prior to his death. She explained movingly how and why the restaurant , despite the sad, sudden parting of its driver, the engine restarted.

Within the UK, Marcus Wareing had the to win the coveted third star, yet instead was awarded two stars. I spoke to him last week about the Guide to shed to light on why it鈥檚 spurred an emotional "roller-coaster" for the past 15 years.

鈥淭hey are an accolade of great history and substance; I think I鈥檝e around it, in a good way and a bad way.鈥� Yet he believes chefs are 鈥渟tarting to realise that there鈥檚 a lot more out there to achieve鈥�, paying homage to other awards and social networking鈥檚 grip on a restaurant鈥檚 fate. 鈥淎s you get a bit older you start to understand them and calm down.鈥� What do other chefs believe?

Francesco Mazzei, whose restaurant , was also tipped for a star, but missed out again. For him, 鈥渁 Michelin star is the best achievement a chef can ever gain. It helps the chef to become a perfectionist. But in terms of running a restaurant, it鈥檚 a different story. You have to make sure that the restaurant makes money, so you can pay your staff and it can have a long life.鈥�

Bryn Williams trained in several Michelin-starred kitchens before owning his own restaurant, . He was equally restrained on how stars affect his life. 鈥淵ou do see places get a Michelin star and then eight months later they're no longer with us because of that pressure in trying to gain a star. For me it鈥檚 all about the business.鈥�

Chefs don鈥檛 necessarily take a sanguine attitude to winning Michelin stars these days 鈥� activity on Twitter suggested the opposite. At the grass roots, William Sitwell told me that the majority of young chefs he meets at catering college still list a Michelin star and owning a restaurant as the aspiration.

Maybe Michelin stars are 鈥渘ot the be all and end all鈥�, as Marcus Wareing says. Incidentally, he likens fine dining to Formula 1 鈥� with the surroundings, levels of service and the running costs 鈥� and that being part of a 鈥渂eautifully-oiled machine鈥�, in the kitchen and front of house, is actually what drives him. But if the Michelin stars should ever disappear, then Dominique Loiseau is surely living proof that a bad review should never mean the end of the road.

Have you been following the ratings? What do Michelin stars mean to you?

Michael Kibblewhite works on the 大象传媒 Food website.

Any great restaurant is about more than the food 鈥� it has to have great front-of-house too. In my experience, a customer is more forgiving towards mediocre food than they are to slack service. One of the things that shocked me most in making Michel Roux鈥檚 Service was that good manners are becoming a thing of the past. Even a simple 鈥減lease鈥� or 鈥渢hank you鈥� seemed alien to some of our young candidates, and if you don鈥檛 have simple courtesy, it鈥檚 difficult to provide any level of service at all.

I鈥檓 sure it鈥檚 about respect, both for the people you are serving, but ultimately for yourself. If you have a stronger sense of self-worth, you鈥檒l provide service, not servitude, and that鈥檚 something that we鈥檝e had to work on with our trainees. If they learn to take pride and pleasure in serving, and are passionate about their career, they鈥檒l go far. It鈥檚 a tough industry, and without passion it will be very hard to . With it you can do almost anything.听

It takes a very special kind of person to work in front-of-house. A good waiter has to be so many things all at once; efficient and speedy, but also precise; attentive, but not overbearing; presentable, with excellent personal hygiene and posture; and, of greatest importance, you have to be able to communicate well. Being able to listen properly is a key communication skill. There鈥檚 nothing more frustrating for a diner than having to repeat their requests.

And it鈥檚 not good enough for a waiter simply to take an order and bring the food to the table. They should be knowledgeable about what they鈥檙e serving, know their menu inside out, and work as a team player with the kitchen. They need to be able to sell - with confidence - the full dining experience the restaurant has to offer.听

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In my opinion, it shouldn鈥檛 matter whether a customer is paying five pounds or five hundred - good service should be everywhere. The customer鈥檚 expectations remain the same and they should never be disappointed. You have to know what the customer wants before he even realises it himself. That takes time to learn, but of course a lot of it is instinctive, and the truly great waiters and have strong emotional intelligence as well as impeccable manners.

What is your experience of good or bad service? Is it good to refill a wine glass or is it just plain annoying? Why do you think Britain does so badly when it comes to service?

is chef at Le Gavroche restaurant and is the presenter of 大象传媒 Two's Michel Roux鈥檚 Service.

Many a passionate cook has written to me with stories of meringue woe, most commonly: 鈥淚 whisked the eggs and sugar to within a very inch of their lives and after a good twenty minutes the meringues looked like old bubbles disappearing on the surface of a bath. Lorraine, what have I done wrong?鈥�

There a few simple tricks to ensure you achieve a meringue so shiny and stiff, you will want to stick it on the shelf and frame it. From the , to , to Rick Stein to , there are some great tips out there, but this is my take on the mystery of meringue...

Always start with a large bowl - a well-whipped egg white can increase eight fold with the correct amount of whisking. Pop in four medium egg whites, or if you are using the pasteurised version which comes from supermarkets in a carton, add 150ml/5fl oz of this genius stuff. (Do bear in mind though that pasteurised egg whites will never increase so much in volume as our fresh friends.) Add the tinniest of lemon squeezes; a couple of droplets is all it needs. This will stop the egg whites from being over whisked.

A "stiff peak"

Next begin whisking the eggs. Now the brave amongst you will be doing this with a balloon whisk. While I do use the balloon whisk for many different things, whisking up egg white is not one of them. An electric whisk makes this job so much easier and a lot more fun. The whites will turn from a yellowy tinged transparent mixture to an opaque grey fluffy one. Keep whisking as the eggs begin to increase to twice their volume. This is called the soft peak stage. Stick a whisk in, get a bit of white on the end and then turn the whisk, upside down. The mixture will just flop off at best. Now take 220g/8oz of caster sugar and add about one-third of it to the mixture.

Whisk the mixture and watch the magic begin to happen... it will begin to double in size again. Keep whisking until the whites go a shiny brighter white. Stick the whisk(s) in again and then turn one upside down. The little bit on the end should be stiffer, but still a little floppy. Add another third of the sugar and whisk the egg whites again, and then repeat with the remaining sugar. The trick is to whisk up the egg whites and sugar well every time between each addition. If your mixture looks runny after you have added the first lot of sugar and whisked it up, don鈥檛 add any more sugar until the mixture begins to firm up.

You will know when you have a stiff peak when you can hold the bowl right over your head and the mixture stays in. Or, a less risky way of testing is, as you have done before, whisk in the mixture then听 turn it upside down. The peak should be stiff shiny and really, really white, like a silky vinyl white emulsion paint.

Watch the neighbours' curtains twitching enviously as you parade your stiff shiny meringue peak proudly around your kitchen! So now all you need to do is decide how to serve them. What鈥檚 your favourite meringue recipe? Are you a lover of lemon meringue pie, fruity pavlova or never-out-of-fashion Eton mess? And do you have any good tips for making meringue?

Lorraine Pascale is the presenter of the new 大象传媒 Two series Baking Made Easy.