10 Movie-Inspired Feasts

Main ingredients: Bacon, braising steak
Becky Thorn’s advice: ”If you are in a job you can’t stand or a country you’d rather leave, get a copy of your favourite cook book and cook you way from cover to cover. Alternatively, write a cook book of your own. It worked for Julia!”

Main ingredients: Chicken, chili peppers, tortilla, chocolate
Thorn’s advice: ”Very little chocolate is needed to make a difference to this dish. The result should barely taste of chocolate but the depth of flavour will be enhanced greatly. Buy really good-quality chocolate, it makes all the difference.”

Main ingredients: Lemons, garlic, leg of lamb
Thorn’s advice: ”If you want to make this for more than six people it would make more sense to buy another leg of lamb rather than simply a larger leg. This will keep the cooking time down, ensures the lamb is tender and might, if you are lucky, give you leftovers for the following day.”

Main ingredients: Flour, sour cream for the outside, butter, mashed potato, and cottage cheese for the filling
Thorn’s advice: ”Pierogi are even better reheated. Melt a little butter in a pan and fry for a moment or two on each side until the filling is heated through and the dumpling becomes crisp and golden. Crispy bacon, fried mushrooms and slow-cooked fried onions are delicious scattered over the final dish.”

Main ingredients: Shallots, white wine, saffron threads, double cream
Thorn’s advice: ”Fresh scallops are always best but if that just isn’t possible, then frozen are always a good alternative.”

Main ingredients: Flour, cornmeal, full fat milk, honey
Thorn’s advice: ”Cornbread is the ideal solution to sopping up the meat juices or any chicken gravy left over. However, it is also a fantastic but very filling snack on its own.”

Main ingredients: Ready-made puff pastry, quails, fois gras (optional)
Thorn’s advice: ”You can buy excellent packs of puff pastry from the supermarket, although buy the one made with all-butter. Whether you buy the ready-rolled or the block to roll yourself, it doesn’t matter. Personally if you are going to the effort of boning a quail you can bloody well summon up the enthusiasm to roll out some pastry!”

Main ingredients: Smoked bacon, lean ground beef, lean ground pork
Thorn’s advice: ”Serve with mash, green beans and a fresh tomato sauce (ketchup if you must) or if it is too colourful then try a meatloaf sandwich. To make a simple fresh tomato sauce, warm passata with some olive oil and a handful of freshly chopped parsley. Tasty enough to bring the colour to your cheeks — although Jennifer had other methods in the movie, I know. Just ask Skip!”

Main ingredients: Smoked bacon, a rolled haunch of venison
Thorn’s advice: ”If you don’t fancy Twinkies and mustard [like the guys on this deer hunt did] then try this roast venison instead.”

Main ingredients: Raw prawns, butter, risotto, white wine, scallops
Thorn’s advice: ”It is essential that the stock is hot and close at hand when you make risotto. The risotto needs to be stirred well too and this can be tiring. Family members are often a source of free labour for this task, a glass of something cold and a Italian may ease the pain.”