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The Hairy Bikers’ Cookbook

Doubtless you would have watched these lads on UK TV. If you are a lover of good food you would have watched them; if you are a lover of nasty, noisy bikey things you would have watched them; and if you are an armchair traveller you would have followed their hilarious trips with thoughts of “Wish I could go” and “Glad it’s not me”. Dave Myers and Si King are a combination of Innocents Abroad, Meals on Wheels, and Armand and Michaela Denis (OK, that might be going too far back.)

These chunky chaps are not chefs by trade nor are they professional TV presenters. It’s extraordinary that they have such natural stage (boat, field, shed, and dune) presence. Their programmes have been witty, charming, fascinating, with mouth-watering food and funny hats. But who are they?

Dave Myers is a lad from Barrow-in-Furness in the North of England. His work history has been broad-based and surprising. He worked as a furnaceman in a steelworks (remember those?) to finance his masters degree in fine arts. He joined the BBC as a make-up artist (it's all make-up really, he is a 20-year old redhead) specialising in prosthetics (those bits you stick on). He has worked on TV series such as The Life and Loves of a She Devil as well as feature films.

Simon (Si) King is the blond one with a winning way with the folks they meet on the road. Hailing from Newcastle, he has earned his living as a first assistant director and locations manager for both TV and film, and recently worked on the Harry Potter films. These guys have known each other since working on a Catherine Cookson drama and have had many a biking trip together.

Food should be fun. If you are one of my regular readers you will already know that I have little time for over-earnest types in the food industry who take themselves too seriously. It’s a joy to find a book that is packed with great food but also offers a lot of laughs. The travel element of the book is an amazing ramble which has provided lots of comic situations. Part of the book reads like a bikers’ adventure but it’s no worse for that. It helps to put the cooking into context... and what cooking!

The Hairy Bikers’ Cookbook is a surprisingly good cookbook. The word Biker comes before Cook in the title because I guess The Hairy Cooks’ Bike Book doesn’t roll quite so well off the tongue, and conjures visions of a chef in whites tinkering with a soon-to-be-throbbing Harley. It is more about food than transport and the bike bits are more informative and amusing than technical. The food ranges from traditional (well, traditional for wherever the lads were) to innovative. You know that if a dish can be made in fairly basic and foreign conditions then it will be easy to make in the safety of your own home.

A diverse collection of countries is traversed in this volume, covering different cuisines and degrees of personal danger. The Isle of Man probably holds more risk for a biker than Portugal, Namibia, Transylvania, Turkey, Vietnam or Mexico. Lots of lovely traveloguey description for each location, and then a nice bit of cooking.

A good example of Hairy Biker style is Hunkar Begendi (Sultan’s Delight) with Turkeyshire Pudding and Piyaz Pilaf. The aforementioned pudding is in fact a Yorkshire pudding with the addition of cumin and allspice. That might not be one for the Northern purist, but it works well with the rich lamb dish, rice and aubergine sauce.

If you have a few friends over then you might consider Bobotie... for 20! This is a traditional Namibian and South African meatloaf with a curry-custard topping. This might sound strange but it is probably the most flavourful and moist meatloaf you will ever taste.

Chicken Paprikas (pronounced papricaaash) by the Hairy Bikers is one of the few recipes for this dish that seems authentic. So many will advise you to add a tablespoon of anonymous paprika. This recipe, however, says that a tablespoon of sweet paprika, a tablespoon of hot paprika and a tablespoon of smoked paprika should give a good result. This dish is a winner and takes little time and less skill to prepare to perfection.

The Hairy Bikers’ Cookbook is a joy and I look forward to reading more. Both Si and Dave are as warm and comforting as their cooking. Long may they ride the range... or camping stove.

Cookbook Review: The Hairy Bikers’ Cookbook
Authors: Dave Myers, Si King
Published by: Michael Joseph
Price: £20.00
ISBN 978-0-718-14908-6