Former royal chef shares the surprising food rule the royals follow at Sunday roasts
The long-standing argument over what makes up a proper roast dinner might just have been resolved by the Royal Family.(Image: ©Francis Dias/Newspix International)
The long-standing argument over what makes up a proper roast dinner might just have been resolved by the royal family.
Everyone’s got their own opinion on a Sunday roast – whether you should serve mashed spuds with roasties, which veg to include, and how many Yorkshire puddings belong on the plate. But Darren McGrady, who worked as a Royal chef for 15 years, has disclosed their preferences in a chat with Heart Bingo Online.
According to McGrady, the royals keep things straightforward and favour “the traditional bits”. There are no elaborate flourishes or efforts to jazz up the meal when it comes to the royal roast, and they certainly do have both mashed and roast potatoes.
McGrady explained: “They would just have normal food. You would think the Queen would have Yorkshire pudding with foie gras in there, but that never happened. The Queen could have anything she wanted, but for her to be able to tell the guests around the table that the carrots were grown in the gardens meant more to her.”
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The sole distinction between the royal roast and that of the typical Brit is that theirs is “cooked to perfection”. For example, the chef describes how the mashed potatoes contained no lumps or bits of skin, with the ideal amount of butter and cream – meticulous attention to detail was always crucial for him, reports the Mirror.
(Image: Angela Weiss via Getty Images)
Like countless Britons, the royals are partial to a generous Yorkshire pudding. The chef disclosed: “The Yorkshires were so big we had to take the oven door off to get them out.”
They would always opt to serve them alongside beef, though significantly they would never match Yorkshire pudding with different meats on their roast.
When it came to vegetables, they would invariably be presented with a delightful selection, all drawn from whatever was in season on the estate. For example, if the carrots were ready for picking, they would appear on the menu, whilst the applesauce was made using apples from Highgrove.
Yet, another divisive component that regularly appears in the classic roast dinner debate is which condiments go well with your meal. For the Royals, there are multiple factors to this; according to the chef, they prefer horseradish.
He reveals: “When it came to roast beef, they would have horseradish, as it’s the natural pairing with it. But they would have horseradish cream. It’s lighter, it’s creamer and it’s not as strong. “.
The essential method for accomplishing this sophisticated flavour involves whipping cream and blending the horseradish into it. Typically, the kitchen staff would use a ratio of 2:1, meaning two parts horseradish and one part whipped cream, to make it lighter.