The Recipe

In this episode, Theo is joined by the legendary Gennaro Contaldo, one of the great champions of authentic Italian cooking and a true ambassador for the flavours of the Amalfi Coast. From his humble beginnings fishing for squid in the Mediterranean and foraging wild mushrooms on the mountains above his village to shaping how Britain fell in love with real Italian food, Gennaro's journey is a testament to the power of passion, heritage, and cooking with heart. As Jamie Oliver's mentor and the man who taught a generation of chefs what Italian food truly means, Gennaro has spent decades proving that simple ingredients cooked with love are all you need to create something extraordinary.

Gennaro prepares his beloved Totani e Patate, squid with potatoes, a traditional celebratory dish from the Amalfi Coast that beautifully captures the essence of mare e monte, sea and mountain. Using fresh squid sealed in olive oil alongside golden waxy potatoes fried until crisp, sweet cherry tomatoes, garlic, fresh red chilli, and generous handfuls of flat leaf parsley, finished with a splash of white wine and a drizzle of quality olive oil, this humble one pan wonder is comfort food at its finest. Simple, accessible, and bursting with flavour, this recipe perfectly encapsulates Gennaro's cooking philosophy of celebrating the incredible ingredients from land and sea whilst staying true to the traditions of his coastal village.

Throughout the episode, Gennaro shares his remarkable journey from being born just 30 metres above the sea in the Amalfi Coast to arriving in London in 1969 as a young Italian alien armed with nothing but a love for real food and a deep frustration at the state of Italian cooking in Britain. He discusses the shock of discovering spaghetti carbonara made with cream and pre-boiled pasta, working in fish and chip shops frying in whale oil, the importance of foraging wild herbs and mushrooms on the mountains of his childhood, and why catching squid at night with a hand line taught him patience and respect for ingredients. Gennaro also opens up about meeting Antonio Carluccio and transforming the Neal Street Restaurant into a beacon of authentic Italian cuisine, discovering a young Jamie Oliver who would turn up at three in the morning desperate to learn how to make proper pasta, and why teaching the next generation to cook with soul and simplicity remains his greatest passion. From his mission to preserve regional Italian recipes in his new book Gennaro's Hidden Italy to relaunching Jamie's Italian restaurants this April, Gennaro's love for Italian food and his absolute refusal to compromise on authenticity shines through every word.

You can find Gennaro's full Totani e Patate recipe on the Filippo Berio website at www.filippoberio.co.uk/theo, and be sure to check out his new book Gennaro's Hidden Italy for more authentic regional Italian recipes that celebrate the stories and traditions behind every dish.

The Recipe podcast is hosted by Theo Randall, Chef Patron at the Theo Randall Cucina Italiana. In each episode we meet a special guest who loves food, and they'll tell us all about their favourite recipe as we celebrate the stories behind the dishes that define us.

Please do subscribe, follow, and share the podcast wherever you listen so you never miss an episode; and for more delicious stories and inspiring dishes.

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The Recipe with Theo Randall is a Listen To This Production for Filippo Berio.

In this episode, Theo is joined by the brilliant John Gregory-Smith, a chef, best-selling author, and prolific content creator whose cooking is all about big flavour and food that brings people together. From launching his own spice company to traveling the world in search of the best dishes, John has built a career making global cooking accessible for the home cook. Whether he is filming three new recipes a week on his phone or researching his next cookbook, John’s journey is a testament to the power of "feeding the beast" of social media while staying rooted in authentic, bold flavours .

John prepares his beloved Butter Chicken Tray-Bake, a clever, "stripped-back" twist on the North Indian Punjabi classic he first learned in Amritsar. Using chicken thighs poached in a rich sauce of ginger, garlic, Kashmiri chili, and garam masala, and finished with cream, butter, and the all-important "takeaway vibe" of scrunched fenugreek leaves, this dish beautifully encapsulates John’s cooking philosophy of maximum flavour with minimum effort. It is a recipe designed to be easy enough for a Wednesday night but delicious enough to serve to guests on the weekend .

Throughout the episode, John shares his remarkable journey from his early days in London, where his sister’s drunken encounter in a bar led to a job at Gordon Ramsay’s Royal Hospital Road, to the "nightmare" logistics of running his own spice brand during a recession . He discusses the "Q-Mafia" traditions of his large, close-knit family and their legendary Sunday night curries, explaining how being the shortest and youngest cousin originally motivated him to start cooking so he could get to the food first . He also opens up about "fleeing his problems" to travel across Asia and the Middle East, a trip fuelled by a "complete lie" about book research that eventually became his very first publication .

John also explores his obsession with "hanging out with old ladies" to learn intuitive, traditional recipes in places like Azerbaijan and Lebanon, contrasting these deep culinary dives with the reality of writing a tray-bake book in a high-pressure three-month sprint . From shocking Theo with his refusal to salt his pasta water to admitting his love for watching Below Deck when he’s too tired to cook, John offers a refreshingly honest look at the life of a modern food creator .

You can find John’s full Butter Chicken Tray-Bake recipe on the Filippo Berio website at www.filippoberio.co.uk/theo, and be sure to check out his latest book, The Greatest Tray-Bake Cookbook Ever, for more inspiring, easy dinners.

The Recipe podcast is hosted by Theo Randall, Chef Patron at the Theo Randall Cucina Italiana. In each episode we meet a special guest who loves food, and they'll tell us all about their favourite recipe as we celebrate the stories behind the dishes that define us.

Please do subscribe, follow, and share the podcast wherever you listen so you never miss an episode; and for more delicious stories and inspiring dishes.

Follow The Recipe with Theo Randall: /therecipe.podcast (https://www.instagram.com/therecipe.podcast/)

Follow Filippo Berio: /filippoberio_uk (https://www.instagram.com/filippoberio_uk/)

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The Recipe with Theo Randall is a Listen To This Production for Filippo Berio.

In this episode, Theo is joined by the brilliant Kerth Gumbs, Chef de Cuisine at Fenchurch in the Sky Garden and one of the most exciting voices in modern Caribbean cuisine. From his humble beginnings in Anguilla watching his mother Daphine cater weddings and funerals to mastering French technique under legends like Joël Robuchon and Tom Aikens, Kerth’s journey is a testament to the power of heritage, discipline, and cooking with purpose. After representing the UK at the World Championships in track and field, studying at Le Cordon Bleu, and working his way through Michelin kitchens across London and Singapore with Jason Atherton, Kerth is now championing bold Caribbean flavours whilst honouring the traditions of his island home.

Kerth prepares his beloved Jerk Steam Sea Bream with Escovitch Vegetables and Coconut Dumplings, a deeply personal Easter dish that beautifully encapsulates his cooking philosophy. Using whole sea bream seasoned with aromatic jerk paste, garlic salt, and sazon complete, sweet julienned peppers and onions sautéed with thyme and finished with Chardonnay vinegar for that classic escovitch tang, and fluffy coconut dumplings made with coconut milk powder for richness and body. Steamed en papillote with knobs of butter to sweeten and round the spices, this is humble Caribbean home cooking elevated with French technique, celebrating the incredible seafood and bold flavours of the islands whilst remaining accessible, affordable, and deeply comforting.

Throughout the episode, Kerth shares his remarkable journey from chasing wild goats in the Anguillan bush to fund his travels to becoming captain of his island's track team and earning a scholarship to train in Jamaica, why his mother's ability to cook rice and peas to perfection in massive Dutch pots remains a skill he's never mastered, and how his coach suspended his athletic scholarship for six months which ultimately led him to cooking. He discusses the importance of learning to count from one to one hundred in French to secure his job at L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon, why working double the hours for free meant gaining double the knowledge, the brutal but transformative years in Michelin kitchens where his diploma meant nothing until he earned his stripes, and why managing yourself is just as important as managing others. Kerth also opens up about his mission to give back to Anguilla through mentorship at the island's first hotel Malliouhana, why Johnny cakes with barbecue is his death row meal, and how being relentless and making yourself an asset to yourself has shaped everything he does.

You can find Kerth’s full Jerk Steam Sea Bream recipe on the Filippo Berio website at www.filippoberio.co.uk/theo, and be sure to visit Fenchurch at the Sky Garden to experience his modern Caribbean cuisine for yourself.

The Recipe podcast is hosted by Theo Randall, Chef Patron at the Theo Randall Cucina Italiana. In each episode we meet a special guest who loves food, and they'll tell us all about their favourite recipe as we celebrate the stories behind the dishes that define us.

Please do subscribe, follow, and share the podcast wherever you listen so you never miss an episode; and for more delicious stories and inspiring dishes.

Follow The Recipe with Theo Randall: /therecipe.podcast (https://www.instagram.com/therecipe.podcast/)

Follow Filippo Berio: /filippoberio_uk (https://www.instagram.com/filippoberio_uk/)

Follow Theo Randall: /theo.randall (https://www.instagram.com/theo.randall/)

The Recipe with Theo Randall is a Listen To This Production for Filippo Berio.

In this episode, Theo is joined by Meera Sodha, best-selling author, Guardian columnist, and one of the most influential voices in modern plant-based cooking. With four acclaimed cookbooks to her name and a weekly Guardian column that has transformed the way Britain thinks about vegetables, Meera's journey from growing up as the only Indian family in a Lincolnshire village to becoming a celebrated food writer is a testament to the power of heritage, resilience, and cooking with purpose. From her early entrepreneurial ventures including the ahead-of-its-time dating site Fancy an Indian to working at Innocent Drinks and eventually finding her calling in food writing, Meera represents a new generation of cooks who celebrate tradition whilst embracing creativity and global influences.

Meera prepares her beloved Malaysian Dal Curry, a deeply personal dish that helped her reconnect with cooking after months away from the kitchen during a difficult period in her life. Using red lentils, aromatic lemongrass, fragrant curry leaves, warming spices including cumin and coriander, creamy coconut milk, sweet carrots, and a finishing touch of tangy tamarind paste, this comforting dal is inspired by a memorable meal she shared with her husband in Singapore. This recipe beautifully encapsulates Meera's cooking philosophy - food that brings pleasure, comfort, and connection, rooted in tradition but open to experimentation and the joy of cooking what you truly love to eat.

Throughout the episode, Meera shares her remarkable journey from watching her mother cook in their family kitchen to collecting recipes that became her first book, the significance of the wooden spoon her mother gifted her on her 30th birthday, and why tasting ingredients before, during, and after cooking remains the best advice she's ever received. Meera also opens up about her breakdown and how this simple dal helped her find her way back to the kitchen, the influence of her Ugandan heritage and Swahili words in her family's cooking, and why financial security through education was so important to her immigrant parents.

You can find Meera's full Malaysian Dal Curry recipe on the Filippo Berio website at www.filippoberio.co.uk/theo, and be sure to check out her cookbooks including her latest, Dinner, for more inspiring plant-based recipes that celebrate pleasure and comfort.

The Recipe podcast is hosted by Theo Randall, Chef Patron at the Theo Randall Cucina Italiana. In each episode we meet a special guest who loves food, and they'll tell us all about their favourite recipe as we celebrate the stories behind the dishes that define us.

Please do subscribe, follow, and share the podcast wherever you listen so you never miss an episode; and for more delicious stories and inspiring dishes.

Follow The Recipe with Theo Randall: /therecipe.podcast (https://www.instagram.com/therecipe.podcast/)

Follow Filippo Berio: /filippoberio_uk (https://www.instagram.com/filippoberio_uk/)

Follow Theo Randall: /theo.randall (https://www.instagram.com/theo.randall/)

The Recipe with Theo Randall is a Listen To This Production for Filippo Berio.

In this episode, Theo is joined by the brilliant Jack Stein, chef director of the Rick Stein Group and a passionate advocate for sustainable seafood. Growing up in Padstow surrounded by fishing boats, fresh crab, and his father's legendary seafood restaurant, Jack's journey has taken him from the kitchens of Michel Bras in France to building a thriving restaurant empire across Cornwall whilst championing British fish and sustainable fishing practices. With deep roots in Cornwall's fishing community and a commitment to preserving culinary traditions, Jack represents the next generation of the Stein legacy.

Jack prepares his beloved Cornish Crab Linguine, his mum Jill's favourite dish and a modern twist on a classic Italian recipe. Using sweet Cornish crab meat from local fishermen in Padstow, a simple base of shallots, garlic, tomatoes, lemon juice, and quality olive oil, with a clever addition of gochujang for warmth and depth, and squid fish sauce for that umami punch reminiscent of ancient Roman garum. This dish beautifully encapsulates Jack's cooking philosophy - simple, ingredient-led food that respects tradition whilst embracing global influences and celebrates the incredible seafood landed on Cornwall's shores every day.

You can find Jack's full Cornish Crab Linguine recipe on the Filippo Berio website at www.filippoberio.co.uk/theo, and be sure to visit one of the Rick Stein restaurants to experience their commitment to sustainable British seafood.

The Recipe podcast is hosted by Theo Randall, Chef Patron at the Theo Randall Cucina Italiana. In each episode we meet a special guest who loves food, and they'll tell us all about their favourite recipe as we celebrate the stories behind the dishes that define us.

Please do subscribe, follow, and share the podcast wherever you listen so you never miss an episode; and for more delicious stories and inspiring dishes.

Follow The Recipe with Theo Randall: /therecipe.podcast (https://www.instagram.com/therecipe.podcast/)

Follow Filippo Berio: /filippoberio_uk (https://www.instagram.com/filippoberio_uk/)

Follow Theo Randall: /theo.randall (https://www.instagram.com/theo.randall/)

The Recipe with Theo Randall is a Listen To This Production for Filippo Berio.