On Wednesday 22nd January, Ben Kyd, Elizabeth Fraser, Hu Yuqian and Gabriella Howarth (all Upper Sixth), went down to St Margaret’s to attend a ‘Catering for yourself at Uni’ forum. Here, they can learn a few recipes that will be handy when they attend university, and other occasions in the future. Read Gabriella’s account below:

“Mr Devine, easily comparable to Gordon Ramsey regarding his cooking prowess, managed to skilfully produce eight meals in a matter of 50 minutes, with an affordable student budget (all meals less than £3!). The idea of this visit was to keep us away from the ‘easy’ fast food options, as there are more fast food businesses opening up than ever around towns, cities and university campuses.

We were taught the importance of the almighty wok, with the combination of Asian ingredients such as soy sauce and sweet chilli, then learned the ease of making a stir fry, pasta bowl and the ‘sticky chilli salmon’. Conversely, I believe all four of us could agree that a classic pancetta and cheese omelette was the best use of eggs we had ever tasted. Who knew eggs could be so irresistible! Cooking healthily isn’t hard, but perhaps it’s the washing up which puts people off? However, the most equipment used was two pans for one meal, the pasta carbonara. That fateful Wednesday, we learnt that cooking for oneself is not only less expensive than eating out, but it is also better for the environment as there is less packaging left over and often much less energy used in the process. A huge thank you must go to Mr Devine and his colleagues for cooking the School meals so well every day.”