She is known as the no-nonsense celebrity chef who gives sensible advice on improving staple dishes.
But Delia Smith showed her taste for the adventurous this week by adding a deep-fried jam sandwich to the menu of one of her restaurants – after trying it in a fish and chip shop.
The “sensational” £5 sandwich is made by spreading two slices of white bread with Tiptree’s strawberry jam, before being deep fried and dusted with caster sugar. The menu says it “may sound unlikely but has to be tasted to be believed”.
The result of the battered sandwich is simple, she said: “Think doughnut, only better.”
She first tried it on a visit to Eric’s Fish & Chips in Holt, Norfolk, and was so impressed she brought it to Yellows bar and grill at Norwich City, the football club where she and her husband are joint majority shareholders.
The recipe comes from chef-owner Eric Snaith, who originally imagined the pudding while thinking about scouts having sandwiches over a campfire. “We’ve been serving it for about five years now,” he told the Daily Telegraph. “We’re always trying to dream up interesting new desserts, and we were interested in the idea that the scouts have always fried jam sandwiches over the fire.”
“Our customers, just like us, love it,” says Smith of the dish, who emailed Snaith earlier this year to ask to serve it after making several return visits to his restaurants. Smith’s restaurant serves the dish alongside other options like “dipping doughnuts” and “baked cookie dough”. The menu credits the creator of the pudding, which is called “Eric’s deep-fried jam sandwich.”
First meeting Delia two years ago, Snaith remembered that the chef “raved about the jam sandwich, but I assumed she was just being kind. It’s never been a huge seller for us, but when people try it, they do love it.” Smith herself admitted that she had initially been “sceptical” about the dish, but was quickly won over.
As an act of appreciation for his cooking, Smith invited Snaith, “a lifelong Norwich City fan”, to watch a match from the directors box at Carrow Road. “I mentioned that I’d love to collaborate on a dish at Yellows,” said Snaith.
It is not the first time Delia has taught the world about the simpler culinary pleasures. In the 1990s, she taught viewers how to boil eggs and make toast – resulting in a 10% rise in egg sales in Britain.
“The Delia effect”, as it came to be known, resulted in ingredients and utensils selling out overnight in the aftermath of her programmes or release of her cookery books. About 21.5m copies of her bestselling books have been sold, with the chef’s popularity high ever since she first began writing a cookery column for the Mirror in 1969.
In the 1970s, she taught viewers how to cook – and eat – spaghetti. Of the TV series Delia Smith’s Cookery Course, she said: “Don’t worry if you’ve got a couple of little strands hanging down because Italians always eat spaghetti with their napkins tucked into their chins.”
She is regarded as TV’s first superstar chef, although one of her first forays into show business was baking the cake that appears on the cover of the Rolling Stones’ 1969 album Let It Bleed.
after newsletter promotion
Smith and Snaith’s deep-fried jam sandwich
1 Start with sliced white bread. Over this, spread a layer of good-quality strawberry jam.
2 Butter the outside of the sandwich, and remove crusts.
3 Pinch the sandwich closed, delicately, like you’re sealing ravioli.
4 Let it chill, then cover the sandwich in batter. Keep in the freezer until you’re ready to fry.
5 Place the sandwich in a deep-fat fryer, giving each side a minute and a half. It should turn golden and puff up.
6 Rest for a few moments, then roll in caster sugar while it is still warm.
If you’re looking to impress, Snaith suggests that on special occasions you could use fruit compote instead of jam.
