Book review: Tom Kerridge's Proper Pub Food - hearty everyday recipes

I've never been to the type of English pub where the most dependable food served is a packet of pork scratchings. Many of those drinking establishments have been rebranded as gastro-pubs, where the food is just as important as what's in the glass.

That type of food - hearty and fairly easy to make, out of ingredients that aren't esoteric or expensive - is what many of us like to cook at home for everyday meals.

Because Proper Pub Food is written for a British audience, we might have trouble finding a few of the ingredients author Tom Kerridge calls for (I've often wondered why it's so hard to get skate wing in Hong Kong). The book has recipes for some "typical" British dishes, such as fish and chips, but others have been re-imagined: Scotch eggs, for example, are made with salt cod and soft cooked quail's egg

In addition to the British influences, Kerridge uses Mediterranean, Asian and European accents in his dishes. Recipes include flaked skate with dandelion leaves, charred lemon and anchovies; crispy pig's cheeks and deep fried shallots with taramasalata and flat breads; turnip and horseradish soup with crispy beef; blowtorched mackerel with buckwheat blini and pickled beetroot; pickled quail's eggs with curried onion sauce; flash-fried sirloin steak with mustard seed dressing; lemon posset with fennel biscotti; and chocolate and coffee mousse.