We dissect what London’s much-loved dishes are made from.
Lard: not the most glamorous of ingredients. It’s somewhat surprising, then, that Flor’s rendered-fat-laden pastry has become its star dish. The Borough Market restaurant, an offshoot of Michelin-starred Lyle’s, champions British produce and dishes, hence its resurrection this age-old sweet treat, lard and all. ‘The idea was to take a British classic, something a bit forgotten, and refresh it,’ says Flor’s head baker Helen Evans. She explains how her team gave an old fave a glow-up.
The currants
‘We brew a strong tea, lots of it – like, ten litres of the stuff – and then throw in loads of currants. They sit in that tea for a week or two, then we add them to the dough.’
The lard
‘The lard comes from Warren’s Butchers in Cornwall. We beat it with brown sugar. We actually want that animal-fat flavour to it – it’s very different, and very moreish!’
The flour
‘Most croissants in London will be 100 percent white flour, but we put wholegrain in too. We also add einkorn, an ancient grain that we mill on site, as well as Welsh wheat.’
The dough
‘Traditionally, these would have been made with something denser. We wanted to make them a bit lighter and fresher, so we use a flaky croissant dough instead.’
The glaze
‘The buns are baked in muffin tins. Then, once out of the oven, they go straight into a mace caramel. We cook it until it goes quite dark, which creates a really rich colour.’
Flor, 1 Bedale St. £4.
