Katherine Ryan reveals £5 M&S item she always has in her fridge

Welcome back to What’s Cooking, Metro’s food series, where we find out exactly what’s going on behind the scenes in the nation’s kitchens.

This week, we’re at home with comedian Katherine Ryan, who you might recognise from her hit Netflix series, The Duchess.

Or perhaps you’ve seen her face in a Buckwud Maple Syrup advert? The 42-year-old is truly living the Canadian dream, having just been unveiled as the new face of the iconic brand.

The mum-of-four let us snoop through her cupboards, shared some of her most controversial British food opinions, and revealed the £5 M&S item that’s always in her fridge.

And if you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to get food poisoning in front of Rod Stewart, we’ve got the answer…

First, tell us a secret… what’s your ultimate guilty pleasure food?

I don’t like to think of food as a guilty pleasure, as I just eat what I eat, but I do have a chocolate cupboard that I keep secret from my small children.

When you’re four and two, you can’t have access to chocolate whenever you want, as you’ll eat it all the time and never go to sleep. 

I go over to the cupboard and sneakily have a little bit of Cadbury Marvellous Creations, or some Fruit and Nut.

Do you have any hot takes about British cuisine?

I’m a guest in this country, and I feel very lucky to be here, but I have to admit that I hate ketchup.

Brits also get quite upset that I don’t really like bread, Yorkshire Puddings, or pies.

I come from a gluten-free home as my dad and my sister are quite severely coeliac, so growing up, we never had things like bread or pastry.

It doesn’t make me sick, but I don’t like it, so I’ve removed that whole family of food from my diet. I have burgers and hot dogs without buns… you’d be surprised how much you can eat without bread.

Ok, talk to us about maple syrup. What’s the best way to cook with it?

Sorry to be the most Canadian person, but I’m very passionate about maple syrup. My preference is the Buckwud Intense, and I love to put it in my coffee.

It’s also great in sweet things like banana bread, and you can add it to savoury stuff to really elevate your dishes. 

My husband and I make sweet and spicy Korean chicken with syrup. I also use it in marinades for lamb and halloumi, and of course, there’s always maple bacon. 

What’s the worst experience you’ve ever had with food?

I once got food poisoning at quite a nice place in London from a salad, and I’ve never been so sick in my life – I was sick in front of Rod Stewart and Tom Hiddleston.

I was presenting at an awards show, and I thought I’d be ok to go on stage because usually when I’m not feeling well on tour, the adrenaline kicks in, and it’s fine, but this was such a violent illness that I was running through the hotel to find a bathroom.

I was sick like 20 times, and I didn’t even know that could happen from salad, but I looked it up, and commercial lettuce is actually really dangerous. It’s because it’s raw; there’s no cooking step to eliminate harmful bacteria.

So my PSA is to always be very careful with lettuce. 

Name one item that’s always in your store cupboard…

I think it’s good to always have an array of vinegars like red wine vinaigrette and rice vinegar, as they’re so versatile and delicious.

And here’s a little parenting hack: you can also use them to make ‘potions’. We give our kids little containers of vinegar and some baking soda, and when they mix them, it ‘explodes’.

And something you have in the fridge at all times?

I don’t love bread, but I do love a breaded chicken strip, so we always have the M&S Made Without chicken goujons (£5) in the fridge.

I’ll toss some of those in a concoction of maple syrup and Frank’s Red Hot Sauce and put them in the oven for like 10 minutes, and it’s so good.

They’re a little bit naughty, but they’ve got some protein in there. When you’re in a hurry, they hit the spot every time.

What about the freezer?

Breast milk and sweet potato fries.

Is there anything you really splurge on at the supermarket?

I think meat should be very expensive. That’s my hot take in an economic crisis. I feel bad for saying it, but I don’t think people need to be eating meat every day of the week; it should be more of a luxury.

When I see chicken that’s like £3 for a whole chicken, it makes me really sad, because that was someone’s life. I wish we had a greater respect for it.

Where do you love to eat in London?

My favourite restaurant was La Bodega Negra, but it closed recently. My husband and I love tacos, and we were out one night and didn’t know where to go and randomly picked that place. It became our go-to for like two years; we didn’t go anywhere else. 

Now we go to Madera at the Treehouse Hotel in Marylebone, and they do modern, organic Mexican food. It’s really nice, but be careful if you go there too early, because they have a weird breakfast menu.

I also really love Pret. I love that you can just get a boiled egg and spinach there if you’re gluten-free. Starbucks? Forget it, there’s nothing for you.

And finally… what’s been cooking lately?

My husband does a lot of cooking, and he surprises me with food all the time, so I’m very lucky. I’ll get back from tour at midnight, and there will be a Philly cheese steak waiting for me, and it’s my favourite thing he makes.

It’s just onions, peppers, steak, and cheese, and I’ll have it either on its own or with rice and put some hot sauce on it. 

I would like to do more cooking, though. When you have small children, someone always has someone in their hands, and I think it’s a privilege to get to go be in the kitchen by yourself, open a bottle of wine, and cook something.

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