Tom’s Daley bread
Tom Daley talks to Kate Whiting about why food needs to be satisfying Technique – Spatchcocking a chicken
When you picture Tom Daley, he’s probably in pair of Speedos or a Team GB tracksuit – not an apron. But the Olympic diver is showing off his culinary skills in a new healthy eating cookbook, Tom’s Daily Plan.
“One of the things people don’t necessarily know about me is I enjoy cooking. I’ve always been a lover of food – if I’m not diving or sleeping, I’m eating,” says the 22-year-old, laughing.
“I live my life for the next meal. I’m one of those people who thinks, ‘I’ve just finished lunch, OK what’s for dinner?’ – because athletes are always hungry.
“In my case, food is fuel,” adds the Plymouth-born athlete, “so I have to make sure I’m eating the right things to get the best out of myself every day.”
Along with simple workouts and fitness tips, the book is stuffed full of mouthwatering recipes that are healthy but actually hearty too, including his mum Debbie’s Sunday Lunch and Sausage Casserole, and Californiaborn fiance Dustin Lance Black’s Scotch Eggs.
Daley’s lifelong love of food started with baking sessions at his nan and granddad’s.
“I remember me and my brothers all there with the bowl, arguing over who got to lick the spoon! As I got older, I wanted to take more of a role in the kitchen, so my grandma taught me how to cook vegetable soups and the broccoli pasta bake that’s in the book. That’s one of the first things I learnt to make.” He’s had cooking lessons at Ashburton Cookery School in Devon, and likes to unwind in the kitchen after a day’s training by cooking for his Oscar-winning screenwriter fiance Black, at the flat they share near London’s Borough Market. Daley, who won bronze medals at London 2012 and in Rio last summer, and trains for up to five hours a day, admits he has sweet tooth, but gets around it by steering clear of “the sugar train”.
“As soon as you get on it in the mornings, if you have a sugary cereal or breakfast, then by about 11 o’clock, you think, ‘Oh I need something else to get a bit of sugar’, and once you’ve had that, you want more and more and more.”
There are still plenty of sweet treats in the book, just with less sugar than regular versions, including his Notso-naughty Brownies, made with dried prunes and dates and blueberries.
“The recipes aren’t just a boiled piece of chicken and steamed broccoli, it’s things that people would actually want to eat and not feel they’re cheating themselves out of a nice meal.”
Spatchcocking a bird ensures even cooking in less time than cooking it in the usual way. It creates a greater surface area for marinades to soak in and a bigger area to crisp up. 1 With good kitchen scissors, snip off the wing tips and leg knuckles at the joint. 2 Turn the chicken breast-down and, starting at the parson’s nose (the arrowhead-shaped tailend), cut along the backbone to the neck on one side. Repeat down the other side, then remove the backbone. 3 Turn the chicken over and, with the heel of your hand, press down firmly on the centre. You’ll hear the wishbone snap and the chicken will flatten out. 4 If you need to, point the thighs inwards (so the chicken is doing a Charleston), then roast at 200°C/180°C fan/gas 6 for about 45 minutes or until the juices run clear when you pierce the thickest part of the thigh with a skewer.