Q&A with Newstead Priory’s Head Chef Marina Kent

 

1. What do you love about being a chef?

 I like making people happy so cooking is a nice way to achieve this.

2. If you weren't a chef what would you want to be?

When I was young I always wanted to be a jockey but that was never going to happen!

3. What is your favourite thing to cook?

There are so many but I really enjoy doing puddings. Also I love cooking Christmas dinner for the family but by the time we get to the pudding someone else has to take over!

 

 4. Do you have a particular chef you look to for inspiration or admire?

The Roux brothers, Michel Roux and Marcus Wearing.

5. Were you brought up around passionate cooks? Did it influence the way you cook?

My grandmother was a wonderful baker; I can still smell the mouth watering aromas as I watched her making bread and scones. She would give me a scone still hot from the oven, butter melting down the sides, simply delicious! When I left school I worked as a nanny for a few years and the lady of the house opened my eyes to classic French cooking, I didn’t realise at the time but she had a big influence on me. Also my sister Caroline, who was a chef in the royal navy, helped me a lot with her knowledge of catering for large numbers for special occasions.

 

6. What advice would you give to new starters to the industry?

Don’t expect it to be easy! Get lots of practical experience by working weekends and holidays in restaurants, then you will either get the adrenalin going or not as the case may be.

7. What has been your biggest culinary challenge to date?

It wasn’t exactly a culinary challenge as such but we were doing a wedding at the height of a very hot summer and the main attraction on the food side was an ice sculpture with lots of lobsters, crabs and langoustines etc. Getting that timed right without the ice sculpture melting was certainly challenging!

 

8. What is your favourite meal?

One that someone else has cooked for me!

 

For further information about Newstead Priory please phone (01652) 653283 or visit www.newsteadpriory.co.uk. You can also find ‘Newstead Priory Weddings Lincolnshire’ on Facebook.