New BBC2 Series: The Very Hungry Frenchman

Raymond Blanc arrived in Britain in 1972 as a 22 year old unemployed French waiter, with only a shaky grasp of English.

Ten years later he was a chef with two Michelin stars.

While he has been successful in his adopted home, he has never forgotten his first love; the food and wine of France.

Now Raymond is  going back to five of his favourite regions so that he can re-connect with the wonderful food and people that have inspired him... farmers in Burgundy, chefs in Lyon, winemakers in Alsace, good friends in Provence and cheese makers in Franche-Comté.

In each place he will take over a restaurant for one night only and cook a feast inspired by his journey...

...he will be serving a menu that features his versions of each region’s most famous dishes.

Learning from the master in his homeland will be two lucky young  chefs, Katie-Beth and Kush.

Despite 30 years at the top in the UK, for Raymond this will be the very first time he has cooked professionally in France. It’s a daunting, nerve racking and exciting task... but one suited perfectly to Raymond Blanc: The Very Hungry Frenchman.

Recipes from the series will be published on Raymond's website following the broadcast of each episode:

Episode One: Franche-Comté

http://raymondblanc.com/Very-Hungry-Frenchman-Recipes-Franche-Comté

Episode Two: Burgundy:

http://raymondblanc.com/Very-Hungry-Frenchman-Recipes-Burgundy

Raymond Blanc's book, Kitchen Secrets, featuring recipes from Kitchen Secrets Series 1 & 2 and many more, was published by Bloomsbury on 14 February and is available to buy online from Amazon, from Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons, Brasserie Blanc, Maison Blanc, and from online and retail bookstores.

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