Kitchen Quiz Episode 14 Clare Coghill
Clare Coghill is the woman behind the inspirational Café Cùil and the author of the much celebrated Café Cùil Cookbook.
Café Cùil faces the sea just outside stunning Carbost in Skye. In this idyllic setting, award-winning chef Clare celebrates Highland produce, reimagines traditional Scottish dishes and puts a Hebridean twist on some global ones.
The Café Cùil story began when Clare entered the Channel 4 series, My Kitchen Rules with an old friend in 2017. When they won, she started thinking that cooking might not be just a thing she did for fun, and in 2019 she opened the first Café Cùil in Hackney. It quickly became a hotspot for brunch lovers around London, until the covid lockdown forced a move home to Skye.
As a chef Clare likes to show just how easy it can be to cook delicious dishes without taking things too seriously, using many of the ingredients we have on our doorstep, whether you’re in Skye or Dalston.
We caught up with Clare and asked her a few questions for our Kitchen Quiz about some of the things that inspire her and make her tick while cooking.
1. Was there a cookbook that really inspired you?
Jess Elliot‘s ‘Midweek Recipes’ has to be one of my favourite cookbooks that I often leaf through! I love her simple approach to cooking and her writing style that makes you feel as if she’s having a conversation directly with you. The book has been beautifully curated with all the photography done herself. She’s on her third book now and is a total inspiration!
2. What is your favourite item in your kitchen that you simply couldn’t do without?
I have a real fondness for my zester. I probably use it every day to zest lemons, limes, ginger – you name it! I realised my old zester was actually meant to be for foot pedicures. Luckily I bought a new one that was intended for zesting fruit.
3. Do you have a favourite song, type of music or podcast you like to cook to?
Depends on the mood! If we have friends over for dinner, I’ll stick on our wedding playlist ‘Talisker Bae’ on Spotify, and if I’m on my own, I might stick on an episode of Somebody Feed Phil or Stanley Tucci’s Italy for a bit of inspiration.
4. If you could cook anywhere in the world in any location then where would you choose?
It was my absolute dream to cook in New York City, and I am thrilled to have been able to do it twice! I would love to learn new cooking skills in Japan or Vietnam, something about learning new cuisines really excites me.
5. If you had to give one single piece of advice about cooking to someone then what would that be?
TASTE, TASTE and TASTE. So often I’ll have friends tell me that they can never get their meals to taste ‘good’. By tasting as you go you can adapt the recipe and flavours of the dish and make it tastier. For example, a bit of extra salt, butter or herbs can go a long way! Don’t take cooking too seriously!
Thank you Clare for sharing with us all x
