Cooking Game

From roast pheasant to grouse sausage rolls and partridge stuffed with oats, orange and juniper, chef Tom Kitchin talks cooking with game – and, believe it or not, it’s easier than you may think.

- Sophie McCarrick

Tom Kitchin’s first-class training working in some of Europe’s leading kitchens under Pierre Koffmann and Alain Ducasse – to mention a few – has resulted in a sincere passion for innovative, local and seasonal cooking which has become synonymous with his “From Nature to Plate” ethos that runs through the core of his restaurant, The Kitchin in Edinburgh.

The award-winning restaurant which Scottish-born Tom started with his wife and business partner Michaela in 2006 has held a Michelin star for 11 years, receiving it only six months after opening. This made Tom Kitchin Scotland’s youngest Michelin starred chef proprietor at just 29.

Tom’s popularity and love of using the very best ingredients from the Scottish larder has proven a hit with diners who travel from near and far to visit the restaurant. The Kitchin, as well as his award-winning gastro pub, The Scran & Scallie, have both been acknowledged as some of the best places to dine in Britain.

Tom is a well-known face on British television, appearing as a guest presenter on BBC’s The One Show as well as having appeared numerous times on Saturday Kitchen Live, as a mentor on The Chef’s Protégé and as guest judge on MasterChef at the Chef’s Table.

Having launched his third cookbook this year – Tom Kitchin’s Meat & Game – following the popular ‘From Nature to Plate’ and ‘Kitchin Suppers’, we caught up with Tom to hear more about his love for cooking with game…

Looking at your background, how did you become a chef – was a career in culinary something you’d always wanted?