What's cooking in Durham?
For the majority of students, sensible eating isn't always an option. If it isn't a lack of money, it's a lack of time or enthusiasm in the kitchen that often leads us to opt for a microwave meal, or, for the really skint, a packet of crisps and a pot noodle.
And, no, a daily 2am take-away doesn't count as 'eating well' either. For Lorna Prasad, manager and head cook of the Durham-based charity business HandsOn Cookery, eating well isn't about how much you eat; it's about what you eat. She told me "students need regular meals that consist of healthy, natural ingredients, not the processed stuff they regularly consume. It's so easy to make a decent, tasty meal and I can show students how to do it."
She certainly showed me. When Lorna invited me to give her cookery workshop a go, it sounded pretty inviting. Although I'd like to think I can cook, a bowl of pasta with mushrooms bunged in isn't exactly the workings of a culinary master.
The invitation promised me "transport from Durham, cooking skills and a selection of delicious dishes to eat." The dishes for my lesson were based on a 'pasta' theme: vegetable bake, lasagne and plums baked in orange and cinnamon.
Thinking about my dreadful pasta history, and the sheer tastiness of what was on offer, I found myself eagerly making my way up North Road last Thursday night.
At the pick-up point, outside Blockbuster, seven Durham students were waiting with Lorna's friendly assistant Mike.
Among the seven there were a couple of familiar faces. Kathryn Barnes, a second year English student and Joe England, a third year History student, were from my college. They had been the only two students to attend the cookery class last week. Kathryn told me it had been 'mince' night. "We made three simple dishes out of a packet of mince: Spaghetti Bolognese, homemade burgers and a cottage pie. They were really yummy; I couldn't wait to come back this week. I want to attend all the sessions for the rest of the term."
Last week, Joe wasn't quite so successful. After the cookery class he decided to go to Klute, where he proceeded to leave his cottage pie in the VIP room. It was rather surprising to see Mr England at the class in the first place, especially after Palatinate revealed his exclusive 'eating out' society in last issue's Diary.
After a bit of probing he admitted "yes, I did eat out about five times a week last year, but it was too expensive. I have even taken flyers away for my friends!"
After an interesting journey we arrived at Lorna's cookery workshop. At present the class is held in Sherburn Community Centre, about a mile out from Tesco, but Lorna has obtained planning permission for a building in Crossgate, which she hopes will further encourage students to come and learn.
We start by sitting down for a relaxing glass of wine. This is how a session always begins. Lorna likes everybody to get comfortable, while she demonstrates how to chop fruit and vegetables effectively. I know how to finely chop an onion without the mess and the tears, which was worth the lesson in itself.
After putting the very low maintenance plums into the oven, we get down to cooking the pasta bake and lasagne. Although we made both of the main dishes at the same time, it's very easy to multi-task with a bit of teamwork.
We bung all of our ingredients for the bake into one big pot before getting down to the lasagne.
Although this was the trickiest of the three, Lorna uses a few sneaky tips which make the process fun, easy and, most importantly, very cheap. "When it comes to cooking, students should use the basic of the basic," she told me. "I use ingredients that are easy to get hold of so that students can recreate the dishes and I also use supermarket brands rather than expensive names. If you're going to buy a tin of tomatoes, buy the cheapest tin. If you cook it well, it won't make any difference!"
Lorna demonstrated this by making some garlic bread. This required a hunk of baguette and some plain butter mixed with a garlic clove. "It'll cost you about 15p," she told me. "Much cheaper and a lot tastier than buying one that costs £1.50 from a supermarket."
I was relieved to find that there was very little weighing and counting involved. It was usually a case of a casual handful of this and a pinch of that, rather than a neurotic measurement of every single ingredient. This gave us all the chance to socialise as we created our Italian masterpieces. It was the perfect balance to be able to learn some top advice whilst chatting to fellow students, glass of wine in hand. Luckily, we also managed to salvage a little red wine for the mince.
Talking to fellow chef Helen McAree, a 2nd year Theology student from Cuth's, I learn that she is a vegetarian. Despite this restriction, joining the class hasn't been a problem for her or Lorna: "I'm really impressed that Lorna caters for everybody. I'm still getting the expert knowledge of food and cookery, just with a vegetable lasagne instead!"
Lorna stresses that she is happy to work with many different requirements. "I'm very flexible with it all; vegetarians, diabetics, you name it. I've never had a vegan come along, but if I did I'd do my best to cater for them too."
"I'll also work with all abilities, from students who don't know how to peel a carrot, to students who want to learn advanced cookery."
In addition to this, the programme is very flexible as well. You can go to just one of the cookery sessions or you can go to all of them. If you're strapped for cash, have a pesky essay to write or you don't fancy what's on the menu that week, it's no problem.
Mind you, with the food on offer, it might be hard to resist. The next few weeks will see a 'Home Baking' session on the 17th November, and a 'Grand Finale Christmas Dinner' evening on the 8th December. The next session, on the 10th November is titled 'How to make a Cheap Meal with Batter' and will include learning to make Toad in the Hole, savoury pancakes, and banana and toffee pancakes.
After a couple of hours of cooking, some bubbling pots came out of the oven and we all sat down for what Joe called "the best bit of the evening." At the end of every session everybody sits down and eats some of the fruits of their labour with yet another well-earned glass of wine. I'd like to say we were all chattering non-stop, but a pasta bake and garlic bread got in the way of that.
At the end of the night I left with my own smart folder of recipes, some vital cooking knowledge and a goody bag of food. Lorna told us it would make a great meal for the forthcoming day, but I have to admit that I devoured a good portion of my lasagne after Klute that very night; well, at least I didn't let it go to waste by leaving it in Klute.
After a lively and interesting cooking experience, more than the food proved moreish. I shall definitely be going back for a second helping from Lorna.
Victoria Raimes
Palatinate 31st October 2005
MEN AT WORK
Despite the success of celebrity chefs like Jamie Oliver and Gordon Ramsey, the motto for many men is still "can't cook won't cook" But that could soon change, thanks to a new kind of cookery class. The Sunday Sun sent Robert Wetherall to test it out.
My sister has always resented me. That might not be the most conventional way of starting a cookery review, but stick with me.
I have one sister who is five years older and when I was born my mum had to spend a week in hospital while my sibling stayed home with my dad.
To this day, she insists all she had to eat for a week was jam sandwiches because my dad couldn't cook... although his skills have evolved since then.
The younger generation, including myself, are also able to chop, dice, sizzle and sauté to a decent degree. But if you are more like my dad used to be, you should attend Lorna Prasad's men-only cookery class.
The 39-year-old founded the HandsOn Cookery Workshop charity two years ago to pass on basic cooking skills to unemployed and homeless people.
Now she is turning her charitable thoughts to men who can't distinguish a courgette from a cucumber.
Lorna said: "I have always wanted to teach a men-only cookery class. I first got the idea about 15 years ago when I was living in London, but it has taken me until now to set it up. "Had I still been living down there, it might have been a little bit easier as some of the feedback here has been negative. There have been some men I've spoken to who have said 'I have got a wife and when she is not here there's the microwave. Why do I need to cook?'"
Well, the answer to that is simple. If you attend one of Lorna's Saturday-morning cookery courses, you will taste some of the finest food you'll ever experience ... and have the satisfaction of having made it yourself.
Lorna breaks everything down into simple, easy-to-follow steps and explains the basic principles, so you can adapt your new skills to different dishes.
I joined five men with varying degrees of culinary expertise one morning in the Sherburn Community Centre, just outside Durham City.
Two and a half hours later we sat down to carrot soup, chicken in sundried tomato and tarragon sauce, with boiled potatoes and steamed broccoli. There was a choice of tiramisu or treacle tart for dessert. And it was easy. I left with some excellent fayre, new skills and a recipe book to try out other dishes in the future.
If you are a man interested in learning to cook or in improving your current culinary skills, give Lorna a call on 0773 9384959 or visit www.handsoncookery.org
This review appeared in The Sunday Sun; text and photograph reproduced with permission.