Staffordshire Foods

The Hairy Bikers have been roaming around Britain filming their latest show, 'The Hairy Bikers Food Tour of Britain', since October 2008.

Dave Myers and Simon King were visiting Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent to film the last show of the series, all about cooking in the County.

BBC Radio Stoke's Alice Gregr caught up with them on their travels:-

Oatcakes

They couldn't, of course, make a show about local cuisine without sampling an oatcake, so they popped in for a snack at the Hole-in-the-Wall oatcake shop on Waterloo Street in Hanley.

"We were in Newcastle Under Lyme when we heard about this place. The people there were so friendly, such a good craic," said Simon.

"We asked people to sum up Staffordshire in a plate of food, and they all said 'oatcake'! Then the second breath was 'You've got to go to the hole-in-the-wall oatcake shop' so here we are."

Marmite

The duo also made a visit to the London Road Bakehouse, in Stoke, to sample the fresh bread cooked in a traditional coal oven, and also sat in a cafe in Newcastle chomping on toast and marmite.

"Marmite's another great Staffordshire invention - a by-product of the brewing process," says Simon. "The cafe was a little treasure. The woman who runs it used to work in Michelin starred restaurant, so if you get your salad there it is a little bit nicer. Some good stuff round here!"

Who are the Hairy Bikers?

The hairy bikers are Si King and Dave Myers - and are as well know for their massive motorbikes, and big beards as their skills in the kitchen.

Both men used to work in TV and film production before starting a career in front of the camera.

The duo's TV shows are a mixture of cookery and travelogue, in a Keith Floyd style, gathering ingredients as they go and trying out their culinary skills in a number of different locations.

Whilst here, Si and Dave cooked oatcakes the traditional way in Lichfield. They also faced the challenge of a cook-off against top chef Matt Davies from The Moathouse at Acton Trussell, where they cooked local produce from Acton Trussell farmer Keith Stevens. They also visited Alec Mercer's free-range chickens at Barton under Needwood. And they even tried Tamworth pork!
See the link to the recipes in the top right-hand corner of this page.