This was a program I was involved in how to fish with the May fly in Galway the west of Ireland
The May Fly © Kevin Thornton
May Fly© Kevin Thornton
The crew Having a laugh at me on a tipical Irish May day weather ©Kevin Thornton
My self and Fred the guy who cooked the Brown Trout in the Independant©Kevin Thornton
The Burnt Brown Trout in the Independant????© Kevin Thornton
Placing the May Fly on the Rod © Kevin Thornton
Marinated Cod on the Antartica © Kevin Thornton
I am looking for old cook books to set set up a Liberary in Lalibela Ethiopia they can be dropped off in Thornton's Restaurant
128 Saint Stephens Green
Dublin 2
Lalibela is one of the most beautiful places in the world. It is in the north of Ethiopia, 2,500 metres high. It is full of churches hewn out of the rock and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is a very important part of the life of many Ethiopians who go during Easter or Christmas to visit the churches and pray at the different shrines.
But in spite of its beauty and importance, it is not very well known outside Ethiopia. Connect Ethiopia is working on a project to promote Lalibela as a tourist destination and to ensure that the experience of visitors is better and more comfortable. If we can double the number of bed-nights spent there by westerners, we can increase the amount of money spent, knowing that this money will circulate in the town.
I have been there twice already and have been really impressed by the people I have met who work in the hotel business. The chefs in particular are very talented and determined to learn and to improve their professional skill.
Connect Ethiopia does not offer money. We bring experienced professionals from the Irish tourism industry who work with the staff and owners of the restaurants, hotels and tourist attractions.
I will be travelling to Lalibela at the end of April, to plan and prepare for a bigger group who will visit in November. This is year two of a three year project and we are making real progress.
We don’t give money as part of any of our projects, everything is done by volunteers and it is all about raising standards and enabling people to make a better living. But it is expensive in terms of air fares and accommodation, which is why I am asking for your support so that my colleagues and I can continue what we have started.
Would you be prepared to make a small donation to Connect Ethiopia to help cover the cost of the next stage of this project?
Please send any funding you can to
Connect Ethiopia
Ethiopian Business Links Ltd
Sort Code 93-10-12
Account Number 09115-058
Could you make sure to give your own name and mention Lalibela, so that we can track the payment.
Otherwise you could make out a cheque payable to Connect Ethiopia and give it to me, or send it to
Connect Ethiopia
c/o Philip Lee Slrs
7/8 Wilton Place
Dublin 2 (but please mention Lalibela)
This is a very worthwhile, cost-effective venture and your support goes a long way.
Thank you very much
Teaching in the local College Lalibel Ethiopia © Kevin Thornton
Clean Chefs Lalibela Ethiopia @ Kevin Thornton
Cooking School Lalibela Ethiopia April 2011
I had a few bottles of wine with some really good friends the other day, they were all very different and ranged from Chateau La Lagune 1976, Jean- Louis Chave Hermitage 1986,Chateau d'Armailhac 2003 and Olymp Markus Stager 2009. iot was really intresting, we started with the Olymp 2009 from Switzerland, it was a bit cold and as i was finishing off ther dinner it was getting up to room tempature didnt think too much of at first but as it opened up it just got better and better so we decided to leave it for awhile and whent straight to the Hermitage 1986 and it was really good and was beating the Olymp we were having it with Vennison and Chocolate Sauce,next then was Chateau La Lagune 1976, which had seeing its best days and was on way down hill, then the Chateau d'Armailhac 2003 which was really good and still had plenty of life in it but for all of us it was the Olymp 2009 from Switzerland was with out dought the best it really got better and better.
Wine Cork© Kevin Thornton
Wine Cork from the 1976 © Kevin Thornton
Broken Cork © Kevin Thornton
Then there were 4 © Kevin Thornton
I have spent 5 years working on this and now its real I have just completed my first Eireyu Export to Singapore and it was by no means easy several times i felt like quitting but because there was so much obsticals along the way it just made me more determent as I believe where there is a will there is a way.And I am so happy that i suceeded it just means that the world is our oyster we just have to believe in your self.
Anyway the Eyreyu Beef is being enjoyed in The restaurant that is Thornton's Restaurant and the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Singapore. So here is a simple method from land to plate.
WiYoung Wild garlic © Kevin Thornton
WWood Sorrel © Kevin Thornton
WWood Sorrel on Moss © Kevin Thornton
Fiddle Head © Kevin Thornton
Woods © Kevin Thornton
Wood Sorrel Flower © Kevin Thornton
Messaging the Beast © Kevin Thornton
27 month old Eireyu in the Making © Kevin Thornton
Eireyu © Kevin Thornton
Sirloin of Eireuy © Kevin Thornton
Potatoe with Grates Horseraddish and Dried Flat leaf parsley © Kevin Thornton
940BC Bog Oak with Wood land Herbs and Horseraddish served with Ereyu © Kevin Thornton
Bof oak with poitin © Kevin Thornton
It's wild garlic time of year - so forests to be visited daily - what a nice chore!!
Last nights Spring Moon © Kevin Thornton
Common Blue Violet
Viola papilionacea ©Kevin Thornton
Common Blue Violet
Viola papilionacea© Kevin Thornton
New season Wild Garlic © Kevin Thornton
Bloodroot © Kevin Thornton
Saw ??? © Kevin Thornton
Green Wood sorrel © Kevin Thornton
Wild Garlic © Kevin Thornton
Wild Garlic Kevin Thornton
Wild Primrose © Kevin Thornton
Lost Hat © Kevin Thornton
Sunset © Kevin Thornton
The Irish Times - Saturday, March 17, 2012
CHIPGATE: Would you be daring enough to ask a Michelin-starred chef for chips? KEVIN THORNTON , who will serve them in his restaurant – “on polite request” – reveals how to cook the perfect chip
A FEW WEEKS AGO I took a taxi from Dublin airport to town. I noticed the taxi driver eyeing me a good few times in his rear view mirror and for a few minutes I wondered if I looked unusually suspicious, or if I had suddenly grown a second nose or something. Stopped at a traffic light he turned around to get an even better look at me and suddenly had a eureka moment: “ah Jaysus I have it – you’re the chip fella!” I had to laugh – I’ve been cooking for more than 30 years and am probably best known for the “chipgate” episode of some years back. [Thornton got into an altercation with customer who ordered them, off-menu, then sent them back.]
It wasn’t remotely funny to me at the time, of course, and I felt slighted at having to justify my high standards in relation to my work, though I can laugh at it now, and it certainly did me no harm at all in terms of publicity.
At Thornton’s we make chips (on “polite” request) using a stainless steel electric fryer. If you don’t have a fryer at home you can use a wide, base-heavy saucepan. Always ensure you only less than half fill your pan with oil.
Probably the most important element in successful chip making is choosing the right type of potato. With so many varieties available it’s difficult to know which to opt for. We use Maris Pipers in the restaurant, though my partner, Muriel, who according to some of our son Conor’s friends “makes the best chips ever,” swears by Roosters. In my opinion, you can’t go far wrong using either.
At the restaurant we use a little pectinex and water to soak our spuds in before cooking them. We cook the chips three times and the end result is a crisp, golden exterior and a fluffy interior. You can obviously omit pectin at home.
Kevin Thornton’s perfect chips (restaurant-style)
500g Maris Piper potatoes, peeled
500g water
15g Pectinex (from health food shops)
10g sea salt
3 litres sunflower oil
Cut the peeled potatoes into 7cm batons by 1.5cm thick. Rinse the chips under cold running water to remove surface starch. Place the potatoes in a large bowl, cover with cold water and the pectin. Allow to soak for one hour in a fridge.
Remove the potato from the liquid. Mix 500ml of water and the salt together and stir to dissolve the salt. Place the potatoes in a vacuum bag with the water mix and seal it. Steam at 100 degrees for 17 minutes. Remove the bag from the steamer and allow it to cool in iced water. When it is cool, drain the chips and remove all surface liquid from them by drying with a linen cloth.
Blanch at 160 degrees in sunflower oil for three minutes, then remove and allow them to cool. Heat the oil to 195 degrees and cook the chips until golden brown (about three minutes). Remove and drain on linen or kitchen paper. The reason for adding the salt earlier in the process is that the flavour will penetrated the inside of the chip, whereas if salt is not added till the end of cooking, it just stays on the surface.
Thornton’s home-cooked chips
500g Rooster potatoes
Sea salt flakes
Sunflower oil
Wash and peel the potatoes. Cut them into 7cm by 1.5cm pieces. Place in cold running water for five minutes. Strain and dry each chip individually using a clean dry tea towel or kitchen paper.
Heat the sunflower oil to 195 degrees. Place the chips into the fryer and cook until golden brown.Remove the chips and place in a linen cloth and sprinkle with a little salt and serve.
Kevin Thornton at his Dublin restaurant. PHOTOGRAPH: ALAN BETSON