Sam's Cookalong Diary Cookalong Live diary - minute by minute

Date Published:

18/01/2008

See how our guinea pig Sam Jordison managed his Cookalong, blogging live on the night, with some of your live comments from Facebook

The fun continues! We'd love to hear your (ahem) feedback on one of the biggest and most exciting food events the nation has ever seen.

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Let us know how it all panned out for you. The Facebook event is still open for you to share your triumphs, disasters and funny stories from the night.

Post your pics

And don't forget to post the best pics of the night on our Flickr group, so we can see what you've been up to.

The Cookalong - Minute by minute

8:35pm

So how are the potatoes going to work? Are they going to cook on time? I'm going to make sure that the oven's nice and hot...

8:36pm

Did everyone manage to get all the ingredients? Hope there aren't any sirloin steak shortage horror stories... Good week to be a butcher, I guess...

8.45pm

Tracy Burnett Wilson: "Glad to see so many pre-preparing! I felt I was cheating! I want to watch as well as cook. It's something we have a lot anyway but want to do it exactly as GR says as I am not always too hot on cooking steak! SO excited, the bubbles are flowing come on Gordon! x"

8:56pm

I'm going to be running a swear count on here... Us vs Gordon R... I've already unleashed a good few naughty words while dripping sea water on my socks... Gordon's called Chris Moyle's "a numpty"... Does that count?

8:57pm

Oven's on! Last few adverts.... everyone ready? It occurs to me that this is one of the few programmes where we'll all be really grateful for the ad break... at least from the perspective of catching up.

8:59pm

One crap to Gordon! Even before the programme's begun! And a "who the beep are you"? That's two for Gordon, two for me...

9pm

Another f***! sweet. What was that chicken reference about?! heh.

9:01pm

One f*** to Janet Street Porter Fast! Yikes Tray in... better stop typing!

9.03pm

Kenny Lowe: "Yeah I'm dashing now! Potatoes chopped though whew."

9:04pm

What's going on? Poatoes out already? S**t! My water isn't even boiling...

9:05pm

Where's the olive oil going? ugh olives????

Becky Donaldson: "I did mine earlier and am eating the pudding whilst watching - it was well tasty!!! now he will tell me where I went wrong!"

9:06pm

A real naked chef! Shocking!

Philip Wessell: "MINGE!!!!!"

9:07pm

Bit much salt went in there...herbs... yikes

9.08pm

Philip Wessell: "olive oil... chopped toms... black olives... oh s**t, he talks too quickly!"

9:09pm

What's going on? Potatoes out already? S**t! My water isn't even boiling...

9:11pm

okay potatoes out... Scallops! argh!

9.14pm

Philip Wessell: "Come on Sam! you can keep up I'm sure!!! You can't be any slower than JSP!"

Kenny Lowe:"I have never moved so fast in the kitchen! Just plated up the starter though, whew!"

Philip Wessell: "GAME OVER!"

9:16pm

My scallops aren't ready... back on the oven... THEY"RE ON FIRE! I'm not sure that's supposed to happen!

9:18pm

ooooohhhhh.,... those babies taste good. ... Kitchen's looking like a bombsite already, however...

9:19pm

I'm feeling a bit more relaxed now... at least I can eat quickly... No! It's back already.
Cookalong map is looking good!

9:21pm

S**t! My tea pot's just bought it... fallen! knocked it off in the hurry to put my kettle on...

9:22pm

Scallops were great, huh? Mine were a bit salty, but I'm figuring that's more my fault than GR's... my hand did kind of slip...

Matthew de Abaitua: "What about the drinks, Gordon? I've got a nice bottle of petit Chablis here."

9:23pm

I'm saving up a nice chateau neuf du pape for the steak course... Back on it! Bain marie!

9:24pm

Gah@! kettle hasn't boiled yet!!! Can't find the chocolate!

9:26pm

Chocolate was under my rocket... Sounds like an Elton John song... Oh god. That's so wrong...

9.27pm

Matthew de Abaitua: "Did he specify enormous marble dildo?"

9:28pm

Steaks aren't in! Are the potatoes going to be ready?

9:29pm

My other cooks are revolting! They're refusing to put the steaks on!

Kenny Lowe: "I HAVE LOST MY OVEN GLOVES!"

9:30pm

My friend's just texted to tell me to give up and go to the pub.... No way! I've missed the vinaigrette!

9:33pm

My idea of a swear count has completely gone out of the window.... I can't keep up

9:34pm

I've done the salad... steaks are in... still have doubts about the chips... Cream????!!?!?!?! not yet~?

9.36pm

Matthew de Abaitua: "He didn't give the fat a frazzle on the steaks."

9:38pm

Er, how much icing sugar in the cream? I've just thrown mine in.... it was much easier when I was training... more time...

Matthew de Abaitua: "I am going to talk like Gordon more often around the home. Steaks. Done. Bedtime. Done. Beer. Opened. Feet. Up. Head - laughed off."

Kenny Lowe: "I've been swigging from the bottle as I went, I missed him saying to turn the steaks so have a tiny bit of burning on one side booooo. I think my potatoes are due to come out right now, so I'm taking 'em out. Still whipping cream as well!"

9:37pm

steaks done! I'm going to hit the wine now...

9:39pm

"He didn't give the fat a frazzle on the steaks." what?

My chips don't look like his.. they need much longer!

9:40pm

My guests have whipped well! Cream is looking great!

"I've been swigging from the bottle as I went"... obviously, I can't condone that Kenny, but I know where you're coming from... I'm sweating like, er, can't write that... I'm sweating a lot.

9:41pm

I'm not mixing my salad. Sod it...

9:42pm

What's going on with the pudding... I'm slightly lost... and I've forgotten to freeze my crunchie... ooopsss

Kenny Lowe: "Well, three small swigs so far, just to emphasise my rushing around to my guests;) Tucking into the steaks now, I think I might make it, if I can stop panting!"

9:43pm

Steaks on the plates...

9:44pm

Steaks are looking great... potatoes still not done...

9.45pm

Kenny Lowe: "Oh good god I have forgotten to take ANY photos!"

9:46pm

Looks like I'm having spuds for pudding... oh well,,, the steak is good enough by itself...

9:47pm

I'm enjoying the salad too... I take back all my cusses of the other day...

9.48pm

Kenny Lowe: "I'm worried my chocolate is going to be... too melted or something, maybe start to burn a little"

9:50pm

I think it's going to be okay Kenny... hang on in... don't think you can over-melt chocolate... can you??

9:51pm

I'm really sweating now... steaks have just made it worse... am starting to feel jealous of that naked webcam girl... don't think my guests would thank me for going commando at this stage, however...

Kenny Lowe: "I have no idea! Fingers crossed I guess, I had to add some more water to the pan because the 2cm I had in had all evaporated."

9:52pm

I asked, and they said no. The clothes stay on. sigh.

9:53pm

Kenny, you can probably take it off the gas and leave it sitting over the water - chocolate has a really low melting point...

My friend Rol says: "this is delicious, man..." can't argue with that...

9:55pm

Chris Moyles just called someone a fat Delia Smith! Rude man!

More whisking!

Ugh... can smell my chips cooking now...

Who needs chips? Carbs...

9:56pm

Banging the Crunchie was fun! Got some in my wine, mind...

9:57pm

Agreed Becky... bashing honeycomb is fantastic fun

9:58pm

Mousse has curdled... why do these things happen to me?

Potatoes still aren't done.. do professional chefs bend the rules of physics?? Why have mine taken 30 minutes longer?

9:59pm

Mousse is in the fridge Natasha? Is that wise?

Kenny Lowe: "MY mousse is just in its bowls, I took my last bite of steak so that's finished, I think I might make it, though the honeycomb might be not quite fine enough, I didn't want to be too violent! I even had time to get a wine glass out.

There is no way I am washing all these dishes, the guests can earn their keep!

10:00pm

I'm starting to get worried about the washing up now... I might plead exhaustion...

10:01pm

My mousse looks a bit vommy, to be honest... should have hit the Crunchie harder... it looks nothing like gordon's... not even Chris Moyles'

"Keep f***ing cooking" anything you say Gordon...

That was fun no?

10:03pm

I can't believe that was a whole hour... felt like five minutes to me... fantastic... guess I'll just wait for the mousse and tuck into the wine... what a great event...

10.08pm

Kenny Lowe: "I lost a layer of clothing halfway through and have all windows in the kitchen and living room open and it's still roasting in here, no wonder so many chefs go sterile from the heat!"

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