Foodies festival has announced its exciting line-up of new culinary features and top chefs to give a taste of what to expect at this summer's festival in Inverleith Park Edinburgh 5th to 7th August.
Aga Rangemaster Chefs Theatre
L-R: Adam Handling, Jacqueline O'Donnell and Stuart Muir
Scotland's culinary elite will showcase their skills and share insight into this year's food trends while answering questions from the audience. Chefs confirmed include (more TBA):
• Jacqueline O'Donnell - The Sisters & Great British Menu Regional Champion
• Stuart Muir - DINE
• Paul Wedgwood - Wedgwood's
• Neil Forbes - Cafe St Honore
• Brian Grigor - The Balmoral
• Colin Fleming - The Printing Press
• Gordon Craig - The Field
• James Chapman - Scran & Scallie
• Stuart Ralston - Aizle
• Adam Handling - Caxton & MasterChef:The Professionals
• Edward Murray - Gardiners Cottage
• Gillian, Nichola & Linsey - Three Sisters Bake
• Tony Rodd - MasterChef Finalist 2015
• Kaori Simpson - Harajuku Kitchen
• Kim Kaewkraikhot – Chaophraya
Feel Good and Superfoods
Visitors can enjoy a new 'Feel Good Foods' theme at Foodies Festival this summer, with healthy living chefs and food writers joining the line-up to cook with superfoods including kefir, lucuma, freekeh, kelp and banana flour, and sirt rich foods such as blueberries, kale, celery, buckwheat, turmeric, chilli and red onion.
Festival-goers can also discover the advantages of eating ‘Feel Good Foods’ such as cheese (a source of phenylethylamie - the love drug) and dark chocolate and seaweed (both sources of serotonin - the happy drug) as experts promote their nutritional and emotional benefits with energy, happiness and calm boosting recipes available to take home.
Street Food Avenue
With flavours from all corners of the world available on the Street Food Avenue, hunger will be banished and taste buds tingled with the huge array of cuisines on offer. Japanese, Thai, Malaysian, Argentinian, Turkish, Indian, Korean, Mexican, French and African are just some of the flavours to feast on this summer, and celebrity chef Aldo Zilli will be serving Italian Burritos as part of his new street food offering.
There’s a special focus on Brazilian street food this year to celebrate the Olympic host’s cuisine, including traditional Brazilian BBQ and Rio’s favourite dish Feijoada made from black beans, salted pork, trimmings, smoked sausage and jerk beef, which is cooked in a traditional clay pot.
Brazil’s national cocktail Caipirinha, a mix of lime, sugar and Cachaça (made from sugarcane juice with an ABV of 48 per cent), and Brazilian coffees will be available.
Drinks Theatre
Champagne enthusiasts can relax in the Drinks Theatre with 'The Fascinating Story of Champagne Canard-Duchêne and Pinot Noir' masterclasses presented by writer Brian Elliot or learn how to match wine with seasonal ingredients with TV wine expert Charles Metcalfe.
Tutorials in craft beer are also available with beer critic Melissa Cole, and for those who enjoy whisky, R&B Distillers host whisky tastings - perfect for both whisky novices and connoisseurs.
Artisan Producers Market
A glittering array of Great Taste Award winners are available to shop and sample from this year, each being hailed as a producer of ‘Exquisite, Outstanding and Simply Delicious’ food and drink – a fantastic opportunity for visitors to meet artisan producers from the local area and across the country, learn their story and stock up on award winning produce. With over 120 stalls to peruse at each festival, selling everything from Seaweed Seasoning to Champagne Infused Fudge, visitors will be spoilt for choice for what to eat at the festival and take home to enjoy.
Cake, Bake & Tasting Theatre and Vintage Tea Room
Baking extraordinaire Charlotte White and master chocolatier Fiona Sciolti host the Cake & Bake Theatre, working their baking wizardry to inspire visitors to reach for their whips and spatulas at home and create show-stopping cakes and delicious summer bakes. A neighbouring Chocolate, Cake and Bake Village sells freshly baked breads, sponges, tarts, jellies and trifles to enjoy with a bubble tea or fresh juice.
Afternoon tea can be enjoyed in the beautifully decorated Vintage Tea Room, where teas, handmade cakes and scones with clotted cream and jam are served on china from a tea trolley by vintage styled tea ladies and gentlemen, and vintage music for ambience.
Into the Jungle
Festival goers can munch their way into the depths of the jungle this summer with a trip to the Vietnamese Street Food stand, where those with a taste for the exotic can indulge in insects, including grasshoppers, caterpillars, mealworms, beetles, scorpions, locus and ants. These tasty critters will also be sold in powder and flour form – a high source of protein - to bake, season and cook with. For those brave enough, there’s a daily Bush Tucker Trial on the Challenge Stage, where visitors compete against one another by eating jungle insects, from small ants to large juicy grubs, with the contestant eating the biggest and the most being crowned champion.
Childrens Cookery School
The Olympic theme continues into the Childrens Cookery School, where little foodies can decorate
their very own gold medal with coloured icing, glitter and edible ribbon. Pizza and cupcake making classes also allow kids to explore their taste buds and learn basic cookery skills to practice at home.
Chilli-Eating Challenge
The famous Chilli-Eating Challenge continues in 2016, inviting fans of spice to beat an eye- watering 16 million scoville record set by Shahina Waseem last year. Participants start at the low end of the chilli spectrum by eating bell peppers, but things quickly get a lot hotter with Habanero, Scotch and Carolina Reaper (world's hottest chilli) chillies being added to the menu. Those still standing are then inflicted to pure chilli extract, increasing in strength, until a winner is crowned.
Foodie Festival first day at Birmingham's Cannon Hill Park.
New Deco Noir VIP Tent
This year's 1920s themed Deco Noir VIP tent offers those looking to relax in style at Foodies Festival a decadently decorated VIP Tent sponsored by Simpson & Marwick Property. VIPs can enjoy a red carpet reception with a welcome glass of bubbly and goody bag, and take advantage of priority entry to food and drink masterclasses between relaxing in the VIP Tent with private Mirror Bar, live jazz music and refreshments throughout the day.
Live Music and Pop-Up Bars
After a day of feasting and fun, visitors can relax and soak in the atmosphere with live music from award-winning local bands at the Unsigned Music Awards Stage and a glass of bubbly or refreshing cocktail from the Giant Pimm's Teapot or double-decker BarBus with spectacular views of Edinburgh Castle.
