TasWeekend: Ainsley Harriott to create a stir at Salamanca Market

One of the UK’s best known celebrity chefs is filming at Salamanca Market this weekend. And the TV presenter, author and travel enthusiast says he’s thrilled to be visiting Tassie for the first time.

Celebrity chef Ainsley Harriott is filming in Hobart this weekend. And the TV presenter, author and travel enthusiast says he’s thrilled to be visiting Tasmania for the first time.

The UK superstar, who has been a chef for 45 years, has spent the past few weeks touring Australia, visiting several markets and cooking with fresh local produce as part of SBS TV series Ainsley’s Market Menu, which airs later this year.

Hobart’s iconic Salamanca Market couldn’t be ignored.

“I’m so excited about it,’’ he says of his first visit to Tasmania.

“Someone said to me the other day ‘the food will give you a kiss, it’s so bright and lovely’. And I thought ‘what a wonderful way to describe it’.’’

Harriott says there’s something special about going to markets and talking to growers and learning more about where food comes from. “Going to a market and actually talking to someone — talking to growers, people who are passionate about produce and getting to know the community … there’s a lightness to it, a spirit attached to it which I really like’’.

As part of the series, Harriott sets up a stall at each market, then shops at nearby stalls, buying local produce. He then returns to his stall to work his magic, cooking up a delicious feast to share with onlookers.

“It’s living on the seat of your pants a little bit,’’ he says of the format, which is reminiscent of his early TV days when he hosted UK series Ready Steady Cook. “I’m seeing quite a lot of Australia that I’ve never seen before. And I don’t know what I’m going to find. I turn up at the market, I walk around and pick up some produce and I turn a couple of grills on. So far it has turned out OK. It’s a little bit nerve-racking for me, but as far as TV programs are concerned there’s a bit of freshness about it.’’

UK celebrity chef Ainsley Harriott is visiting Salamanca Market to film part of his SBS TV series Ainsley’s Market Menu, which airs later this year.

Harriott, who turned 62 on Thursday — the day he arrived in Tasmania — has been a passionate cook his whole life.

He’s a talented singer and comedian, having performed as part of 1980s musical comedy duo Calypso Twins, with a hit record in the early 1990s, World Party. He appeared as an extra in Hale and Pace and played the part of a GELF chief in sci-fi comedy series Red Dwarf, as well as narrating a stage production of The Rocky Horror Show.

“I started cooking when I was 17,’’ Harriott says. “Well before any of the acting jobs came along.’’

He says performing was a fun way to subsidise his income as a young chef but cooking has always been his passion. Harriott has hosted TV shows including Can’t Cook, Won’t Cook and Ainsley’s Caribbean Kitchen, has his own range of meals in supermarkets and has sold more than two million cookbooks.

“I often say in books: ‘it’s only a meal, don’t worry too much’,’’ he says, adding that people should “start small” and build up to more difficult recipes as their skills and confidence levels grow. Which is one of the reasons he’s excited about Ainsley’s Market Menu.

“It’s real people, real time, real food and a real result,’’ he says. “People can nod with you as you’re cooking as they can see it happen and see it come together.’’

See Ainsley Harriott at Salamanca Market on Saturday. He’ll be shopping and cooking in the morning, serving his food to the masses at midday.