Dorset, Somerset &amp; Bristol

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="2249" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/Copy-of-The-Three-Horseshoes-Margot-Henderson-2-Credit_-Steve-Joyce.jpg" alt="Portrait of chef Margot Henderson " class="wp-image-84279" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/Copy-of-The-Three-Horseshoes-Margot-Henderson-2-Credit_-Steve-Joyce.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/Copy-of-The-Three-Horseshoes-Margot-Henderson-2-Credit_-Steve-Joyce-534x800.jpg 534w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/Copy-of-The-Three-Horseshoes-Margot-Henderson-2-Credit_-Steve-Joyce-667x1000.jpg 667w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/Copy-of-The-Three-Horseshoes-Margot-Henderson-2-Credit_-Steve-Joyce-267x400.jpg 267w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/Copy-of-The-Three-Horseshoes-Margot-Henderson-2-Credit_-Steve-Joyce-768x1151.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/Copy-of-The-Three-Horseshoes-Margot-Henderson-2-Credit_-Steve-Joyce-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/Copy-of-The-Three-Horseshoes-Margot-Henderson-2-Credit_-Steve-Joyce-1366x2048.jpg 1366w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/Copy-of-The-Three-Horseshoes-Margot-Henderson-2-Credit_-Steve-Joyce-350x525.jpg 350w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /><figcaption>Photo Steve Joyce</figcaption></figure>



The lauded Kiwi-born chef and cookery writer Margot Henderson brings her culinary chops (Rochelle Canteen in Shoreditch, The Eagle in Farringdon, The French House in Soho) to Somerset, with the newly launched <a href="https://thethreehorseshoesbatcombe.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Three Horseshoes</a> in Batcombe (just outside Bruton), a 17th century pub with rooms and an unpretentious field-to-fork, nose-to-tail menu. 



What was your first ever job in the kitchen?



My first ever kitchen job was when I was around 12 at The French Café in Lower Hutt, New Zealand. I washed dishes in a very busy café. There were no dishwashers, so it was all done by hand. I loved the hard work and earning money, it was a great feeling of independence and achievement. After leaving school, I worked at Buxtons Tea Shop in Wellington. I found the job terrifying as I was preparing the starters – which I often got wrong – and this meant I was yelled at a lot. Nevertheless, I had the bug, and went on to fall in love with cooking at Java, where I moved from Kitchen Porter to Starter Chef, and began to learn how to cook in a professional way.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="750" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/threehorseshoes-21.jpg" alt="The Three Horseshoes, Batcombe, Somerset , Margot Henderson" class="wp-image-84430" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/threehorseshoes-21.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/threehorseshoes-21-800x600.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/threehorseshoes-21-400x300.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/threehorseshoes-21-768x576.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/threehorseshoes-21-700x525.jpg 700w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /><figcaption>The Three Horseshoes</figcaption></figure>



Your career highlight&#8230; so far?



Rochelle Canteen is my ongoing highlight – I love Melanie and my restaurant. The ongoing ups and downs working on the menus makes the experience as splendid now as it was when I started. Perhaps the biggest highlight was receiving a GQ Special Editor&#8217;s Award and OBE – that felt very giddy.



Can you sum up your food philosophy?



Seasonal, great quality produce cooked with love and care. Our menu changes with the seasons, and we like to let the ingredients speak for themselves – nose to tail.



Any famous guests you’d care to name? 



Kiera Knightly, Nick Cave, James Righton, Sarah Lucas and Peter Doig.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1499" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6105.jpg" alt="A dish of cooked leeks, The Three Horseshoes, Margot Henderson" class="wp-image-84435" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6105.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6105-534x800.jpg 534w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6105-667x1000.jpg 667w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6105-267x400.jpg 267w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6105-768x1151.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6105-350x525.jpg 350w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



What’s been your biggest mistake at work? 



I suppose it would be allowing my greatest joy, my children, interrupting my career as a chef. I also tend to lack confidence, and experience a bit of imposter syndrome now and again.



You’re tired, starving and impatient: what do you cook for dinner?



Tomato pasta. It’s the best way to have pasta – tins of tomatoes and parmesan, they are staples in our home.



What would you cook to impress a date or a mate?



The first dish I ever cooked for my husband, Fergus, was a salt cod and potato bake. Simple, sticky and delicious – the potato and salt cod become a luxurious mix. Safe to say Fergus was impressed!



Your favourite local markets and suppliers? 



The Portuguese shop on South Lambeth Road has a great room where you can buy fantastic salt cod,beans and chocolate milks. The Oval farmers market is quite good – great meat, vegetables and fantastic dairy. Borough Market Monday and Tuesday is a real joy, so much fantastic cheese and produce from Italy and France. Near us in Stockwell, we have a lot of fantastic Asian shops selling wonderful ingredients from Asia. Broadway market is fantastic, we get some of our fish from Fin and Flounder. They have wonderful fresh fish.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1499" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6445.jpg" alt="Dish of meat, The Three Horseshoes" class="wp-image-84433" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6445.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6445-534x800.jpg 534w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6445-667x1000.jpg 667w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6445-267x400.jpg 267w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6445-768x1151.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6445-350x525.jpg 350w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



Favourite cookbook?



Nose to Tail by Fergus Henderson and Roast Chicken by Simon Hopkinson.



Is there a kitchen gadget that you would not be without?



A mandoline. I’m very partial to slicing on a mandoline, particularly the plastic ones you get in Chinatown.



What mistakes do inexperienced chefs tend to make?



Forgetting to keep it simple – they try too hard and end up having too much going on!



How can we be more sustainable in the kitchen?



Stop frying and giving up chips.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1499" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6365.jpg" alt="Plaice and vegetables, The Three Horseshoes" class="wp-image-84434" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6365.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6365-534x800.jpg 534w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6365-667x1000.jpg 667w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6365-267x400.jpg 267w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6365-768x1151.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/margot_henderson6365-350x525.jpg 350w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



Essential – and most overrated – ingredient?



Olive oil! I love olive oil, but I probably overuse it. Also truffle oil – there are some good ones out there, but when it’s bad – it’s bad.



Can you share your best ever cooking tip?



Patience. Whatever you do, don’t undercook your chicken.



What three dishes should every home cook master?



Mince, tomato pasta and roast chicken (and then the stock, and then a risotto with that stock).



<a href="https://thethreehorseshoesbatcombe.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Three Horseshoes</a>, Batcombe, Somerset BA4 6HE. <a href="tel:01749326147">01749 326147</a>. Monday to Sunday 12pm – 11pm.

What’s cooking? Margot Henderson of The Three Horseshoes in Batcombe

You may also like