EPISODE EIGHT OF TWELVE, RTÉ ONE, NOVEMBER 11th, 7.30pm
Rachel has travels to Galway city, and stops off at the waters edge in Kilcolgan where brothers Diarmuid and Michéal Kelly are collecting oysters in the bay. Rachel lends a hand and sees champion oyster shucker Micheal in action. She gets to do a taste test to compare the native and rock oysters, before cooking a pasta dish with the rock oysters on a nearby sea wall.
Then she heads to an untouched woodland near to the cultural retreat Cnoc Suain, and meets award-winning chef Enda McEvoy. They find wood sorrel and woodruff – both of which Enda uses in his food at Galway restaurant Loam. Rachel and Enda head up to Cnoc Suain and cook together – Rachel makes a main course of red mullet with wood sorrel and spinach, whilst Enda makes a starter of woodruff and asparagus.
As the weather gets windier, Rachel heads to the port to meet the Claddagh Boatmen, and they offer to take her on a trip on one of their magnificent Galway Hookers – Rachel even gets a go at the helm!
Series Overview
Ireland’s gourmet goddess Rachel Allen is back with a new show that sees her travel along the southern and western coast in search of the best local produce.
In this new series Rachel takes to the road visiting the south and west coasts, hunting down the very best of the abundant local produce; foraging and, at times, battling wind and rain. Rachel cooks as she goes, for her crew and participants, usually outside in the elements and subject to the vagaries of the Irish weather. Taken away from the relative comforts of the kitchen, Rachel’s Coastal Cooking plays to her natural curiosity and sense of fun while showcasing some of the best of Ireland’s produce and the people behind it.
This food and travelogue series marks a real departure for Rachel, as she challenges herself to explore landscape, culture, social and culinary history in a way she has never tried before. The series also sees Rachel immersed in local communities, meeting incredible characters and exploring a mix of traditional and contemporary approaches to food production, from a state of the art Abalone farm to foraging for Woodruff in ancient woodland.