A Taste of Nottinghamshire with Matt Tebbutt

Food has a way of capturing memories and bringing people together — and nowhere celebrates that better than Nottinghamshire’s Festival of Food & Drink taking place on 19 & 20 September in Thoresby Park. As we gear up for another year of flavour‑packed fun, we caught up with professional chef, TV presenter and all-round food enthusiast, Matt Tebbutt, to talk all things food and get a taste of Nottinghamshire!

Food has a wonderful way of bringing people together. What's your earliest food memory, and why has it stayed with you?

We used to take the caravan to northern France when I was a kid, we used to take my Nan and we always had a great time. I remember really well the bowls of steaming, garlicky mussels and seafood restaurants lined up along the seafronts and harbours. My first memory of cooking is making toad in the hole with my Nan.

Robin Hood has invited you to a feast in Sherwood Forest. What's on the menu? 

If it’s with the Merry Men then hopefully there’ll be lots to drink. Haunches of venison cooked over fire, rabbit stew, wild mushrooms and foraged leaves. Is there any water running through the forest? Maybe freshwater fish or eels.. a smoked eel starter would be great. Served with some of Friar Tucks home-made pickles. Stewed apples for pudding.  

Nottinghamshire is famous for Bramley apples, Stilton cheese, fantastic local ales and award winning wine from the regions vineyards. Russle us up a dinner using some local ingredients – what's on the plate? 

Hmmm ok … Stilton Tart with pears and walnuts, Steak and Ale pie with jersey mash and Bramley apple crumble with homemade custard. 

You've got £30 and an hour to explore the Festival of Food & Drink. What's the first thing you're buying?

I’d head over to check the range of street food, grab some lunch, so many flavours and always like to see the range and brilliant companies.  Then I am off for some retail therapy, a few bits to take home for the family, maybe a treat to eat on the way home too. Something sweet, and something savoury!  

Be honest, what's in Matt Tebbutt's fridge that would surprise us? 

Crab sticks .. my guilty pleasure, don’t think they’ve got any crab in them and I don’t want to know how they’re made. Also I don’t think the pink colour is entirely natural …

What's the one food trend you'd happily leave behind? 

Foams and smears and swooshes… anything you need tweezers for to plate.. in fact let’s just chuck tasting menus out in general. 

We're lucky to have so many brilliant independent food and drink producers here in Nottinghamshire. Why are festivals like this so important?

To showcase what we have to offer in our regions.. there’s always an amazing local cheese or cider or rare-breed meat pretty much wherever you go in the UK. And local farmers and producers work so hard to bring their produce from field to fork. We should celebrate them more!

Finally, if someone is visiting Nottinghamshire for the first time, what's the one local food or drink they absolutely have to try before they leave? 

I mean it’s got to be Stilton hasn’t it? Famous around the world, even the French think it’s the best cheese ever (I hope I didn’t make that up).. maybe best blue cheese! And it’s so versatile because of its great flavour.. in a soup, in a tart, in a sauce for steak .. crumbles in a salad.. or just a big chunk with oatcakes and stewed apple.

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The Festival of Food and Drink takes place at Thoresby Park from Saturday 19 - Sunday 20 September. Ticket prices range from £12 to £32.