Meet the Judges: Tom Hunt

As Nom Nom Nom 2012 approaches, we wanted to get to know our international judging panel and learn a little bit more about their projects and passions. Today we meet Tom Hunt, self acclaimed eco-chef and co-founder of Forgotten Feast, working on projects throughout the UK to revive our cooking heritage and help reduce food waste. 

What impact do you think social networks and bloggers have had on the world of cooking?

Social media brings people together, connects like minds and inspires others. This forum is the perfect breeding ground for aspiring chefs. Bloggers are at the heart of this movement and are so generous with their knowledge.

What will you be looking for in the contestants during Nom Nom Nom?

Delicious yummy plates of food that take me to their country of origin. I want to feel the passion that’s gone into the cooking. I will also be looking for an environmentally conscious choice of ingredients.

What advice would you give to the entrants of Nom Nom Nom?
To me the quality of an ingredient is imperative to the final dish, so make sure you pick wisely. I know there is a limited budget but that does not make any excuse for the use of poor ingredients.

How important are fair-trade, local sourced and organic products to you and your work?

Very! All my restaurants menus focus on seasonal local ingredients and we would not use a product that was not fair-trade.

What exciting project are you working on right now?
I’m writing a book called ‘Forgotten Feast’. The book focuses on cooking simple high quality food on a budget and how we can be resourceful with our ingredients so that we minimise our waste.

Can you tell us about a memorable disaster in the kitchen?

I was catering for a wedding and we decided to be clever by cooking the potatoes in a hungi, a type of underground earth oven. We put the potatoes in confident that they would come out delicious and soft. To our despair when we dug them up they were completely raw! Thankfully we had plenty of food to go around.

If you could host the ultimate dinner party who would you invite?

My best friends

Which ingredient can you not live without (pantry goods excluded)?

Cleo my Sourdough. I adore her, she makes the best bread ever. So I’m giving her to other aspiring bakers and home cooks so they can enjoy too.

What is your best cooking tip?
Keep tasting the food, season well and taste, taste, taste.

Which person/place/memory inspires your cooking?

I love travelling and I’m inspired by world food. More specifically street food is a huge inspiration to me.  Fast simple and fresh.

Which cooking achievement are you most proud of?

Feed the 5000 an event organised by Tristram Stuart in Trafalgar square last year. We fed more than 5000 people with food that was going to be wasted unnecessarily. I was doing cookery demonstrations and dishing out ribollita soup which I learnt how to cook at River Cafe.

For Tom’s blog and news go to www.tomsfeast.com.