KEEPING IT REAL: RICHARD BERTNIET INTERVIEW

Renowned baker Richard Bertinet launched The Bertinet Kitchen Cookery School in Bath in 2005.

Richard Bertinet has campaigned for ‘real bread’ since arriving in England from Brittany in the late 1980s, and was named BBC Food Champion of the Year in 2010.

As Sourdough September wrapped up, our Founder James Day discovered more about Richard’s passion for a genuine loaf, and what motivates him to teach and share his 30 years of experience to inspire others.

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‘Keeping it Real’ with Richard Bertinet

Catching up with Richard Bertinet at his Cookery School, as he finishes teaching a class, he is right on time, fully composed, and dusted with flour! We would expect no less from the much-respected industry professional and TV favourite.

As ‘Sourdough September’ slipped into October, Richard explained what ‘real bread’ means to him; not just the headline grabbing sourdough variety, but all bread made with minimal quality artisan ingredients, genuine care and skill.

“My problem is that sourdough has become a fashion item. I support bread made properly. Sourdough is fantastic, but it’s not all about sourdough. It goes back to the purest way of baking. To make your own bread is fantastic. Sourdough is fantastic but not the only type of good bread… I could talk for hours about bread,” he says in his strong French accent with a mischievous laugh.

Bread has been Richard’s life since he worked at his local Breton bakery in France at the age of 14.

The world-class French baker, who is now proud to call England his home, admits to feeling ‘a bit flustered’ after two weeks without a day off. He was at Bath Festival the previous week, and has demonstrations in Dartmouth and at Rick Stein’s Padstow Food festival coming up very soon.
Though clearly busy, he doesn’t appear in the least bit phased about spending time with us to talk about his favourite subjects, bread and teaching. He is as passionate, focused and astute as you’d hope from an award-winning baker and inspirational teacher who is also held in extremely high regard amongst his peers.

Richard’s route to England was one of coincidences. He was working a ski season in Meribel in France, met a girl and followed her to the New Forest. It didn’t work out but he decided to remain in Hampshire.
His first job in the UK was in the kitchen of luxury country house hotel Chewton Glen. The chef who went on to replace him was legendary television chef James Martin.

James Martin is also a fellow cookery school teacher, during regular guest Masterclasses at his ICSA Accredited ‘Kitchen Cookery School‘, at Chewton Glen, where both Richard and James met all those years ago! James is also rumoured to be appearing at Richard’s Bertinet Kitchen Cookery School next year! Read our Exclusive James Martin Interview here

Since those days, the pair’s paths have crossed many times. They are close friends with a huge respect for each other’s culinary talents. {Richard recently appeared on James Martin’s ITV Saturday Morning show on 7 October}. As close friends, with plenty in common and lots to chat about, it promises to be an entertaining and informative watch.

“We don’t rehearse. We just cook and chat with no pressure. It feels live. We have a trust and respect for each other and are free to do what we want to,” he says.

Richard has worked as head chef in top restaurants, inspired by culinary greats such as the aforementioned Jean-Christophe Novelli and Raymond Blanc.
However, bread remains his first love. His first book, ‘Dough’, published in 2005, which inspired cooks and chefs across the world, was an unexpected (at least to him) huge success, winning prestigious awards such as the Julia Child Award for Best Cookbook of the Year. It has since been translated into 12 languages, and has sold several hundred thousand copies in more than 16 countries. It is, he says, one of his proudest achievements after his children.
“Dough was not written for awards,” he says. “Breadmaking was being done in a different way to how I learnt, and I wanted to share my experience.”

Since arriving in Britain, Richard was struck by the difference in attitude to bread between France and England.
“In France, visiting the local bakery is part of your life, not just for the weekend.”

“When I first came to England and saw sliced white loaves in the supermarket, the difference to what I called bread in my childhood was marked, it almost felt alien. My ambition was to produce a good sliced sourdough loaf.”

“In my book Dough I wrote about cheap bread that contains around 14 ingredients, whereas real bread needs just three or four. Yet, both are called bread. If you can’t spell the ingredients, don’t put them in your stomach!”

Dough is described as ‘The essential , practical (and award-winning) guide to achieving bakery-standard bread in your very own home kitchen.’ BUY YOUR SIGNED COPY HERE

The Bertinet Kitchen Cookery School

Richard is well aware of real life as well as real bread, especially in the current economic climate.
“If you’ve got five kids to feed, it’s sometimes down to necessity, and convenience. I’m all for real food, but if you’re literally on the breadline, then you’re not going to choose a £4.50 artisan sourdough loaf over a supermarket discounted sliced loaf which will last you a week.”
“Good bread should not just be for people who can afford it. It’s such a humble food. During the pandemic everybody wanted flour and yeast, bread is part of our basic human instincts.”

Richard’s main focus these days is teaching in his Bath cookery school, The Bertinet Kitchen, as well as at events. He loves to inspire everyone from up-and-coming cooks to world-renowned chefs. He is revered by many Michelin-starred chefs, and is proud to teach their brigades and share recipes and friendships with chefs who he respects. He opened his school nearly 20 years ago in 2005 after a UK search to find the right venue.

Teach What You Know

“We looked at north, south, east and west before settling on Bath. Bath is right at the centre and already a massive tourist attraction, so everything fitted the box. We did a recce and found stables in the middle of Bath and the rest is history. It’s quirky and has a lot of history, there’s something very special and magical about the place. I am now proud to call the city home, and the cookery school feels like an extension to my home, like cooking for friends in my own kitchen.”

Richard has learnt a lot over two decades of teaching and has found his unique style of teaching through experience. He remembers his first bread-making class didn’t feel comfortable at the beginning.

“I remember clearly I was guest teaching at a cookery school in London, there were 12 separate stations, everyone looked scared. I love telling people about bread, and this was not the way I wanted it to be. I told them to put their tables together so that we could start having fun, talking, and laughing, so we did. After that, my ambition was to open my own cookery school to help spread my passion for proper, honest bread.”

Richard’s top teaching tip is to ‘only teach what you know’.

“I don’t try to teach everything. I wouldn’t teach Japanese food, for example. I’d bring in the best chef who can teach and explain the food culture.” Richard often invites guest chefs to his cookery school, alongside some of his more famous chef friends such as Michelin-starred Lisa Goodwin-Allen who will be visiting from fellow ICSA accredited cookery school Northcote next month. He hopes his friend James Martin will appear in a guest slot next year.

“It’s impossible to teach everything. You’ve got to work with what you know. You need consistency, love and focus, and to be able to offer that spark that you have inside.” Above all, Richard wants everyone to learn techniques they will use at home, to understand, and to have a good time.
“The buzz I get when I see that someone’s got it. That’s what makes me thrive. I love to inspire others. We must not make cooking and learning elitist, it should be fun and accessible for all.”

If Richard ever retires, which seems unlikely, he says he’d spend his days walking the dog and going fishing as often as he can. Though, as soon as he’s said this, he’s back to the topic of bread and wanting to learn more!

“I’d like to go around the world and learn from different bakers. Bread is a precious thing, which is so fundamental to our daily life.”

But for now, The Bertinet Kitchen cookery school is booked up well into next year and he shows no signs of losing enthusiasm for his craft and for inspiring others.

“Teaching is an amazing thing to do. Every time I teach, I hope I give a little of myself to take away, a bit like my sourdough ferment!”

The Bertinet Kitchen Cookery School is accredited by ICSA, The Independent Cookery Schools Association, as a ‘Centre of Excellence’ for their exceptional, consistent teaching standards and facilities, and unique cookery experiences.