Menuwatch – The Plough Inn

Former Maze executive chef James Durrant has left London and opened the Plough Inn pub in Hampshire. Katherine Alano reports

Since leaving Gordon Ramsay Holdings in 2010, James Durrant, Jason Atherton's former executive chef at Maze in London, has been off the culinary radar. But in April, he opened the Plough Inn, an 18th century pub in the village of Longparish in the Test Valley, Hampshire.

"The pub is in a beautiful location and has a lot of charm about it, and although it needed a bit of work, we saw it had potential," recalls Durrant, a former Acorn winner, who was awarded two AA rosettes within just three months of opening the Plough Inn.

"For me it felt more like a viable business that I was going to succeed in," he explains. "Restaurants outside London are places where people go to for an occasion. A pub is where people go regularly - whether that's for a bite to eat or just a beer."

The pub can seat 48 customers inside as well as another 40 on the decking outside. The menu reflects the rural setting, offering simple, hearty, unpretentious dishes, cooked well.

cheeky chutney

Open seven days a week, for lunch, diners can expect dishes such as mature cheddar and "cheeky chutney" (£5.50), open smoked ham hock sandwich with grain mustard (£7) or for something more substantial, there is a ploughman's lunch (£11) with a choice of four of the 20 British and European cheeses from the cheese trolley.

Off the à la carte menu, a popular starter (which is also offered as a main course) is the oak-smoked trout with avocado, horseradish, Jersey royals, brown shrimp and caper dressing (£8). Other starters include white onion soup, apple, smoked ham hock, mustard (£6) and Cornish fish soup, aïoli, croutons, Lyburn Gold (£7.50).

Durrant's version of "surf and turf" (£16) is one of the more popular main courses and also a personal favourite with the chef, who says the dish is unusual but tasty.

"The pig's cheeks are soaked in brine for 12 hours, and then together with roasted onions, carrots and cloves they are caramelised with honey from local producer Becky's Beezzzs," says Durrant.

The cheeks are then cooked for two to four hours and served with pickled cabbage, little jacket potato skins with cheese and chives, grilled prawns and smoked mash. The mash is created by boiling potatoes and roasting them in old roasting tins with a wire tray and wood chips.

"We couldn't afford a fancy smoker or anything like that," adds Durrant. "But it works really well and gives the potatoes a really light smoky flavour."

Other main courses include spring pea risotto with Old Winchester cheese (£13.50) and whole grilled lemon sole with capers, raisins, brown shrimps and parsley (£14.50).

favourite desserts

Desserts, meanwhile, feature lemon posset with summer berries, lemonade granite and Garibaldi biscuits (£5.50); and a hot chocolate fondant served with salted caramel ice-cream (£6).

The pub also offers staple Sunday lunch favourites such as roast pork loin with apple sauce and grain mustard gravy (£13); or roast rib of Hampshire beef with Yorkshire pudding (£13.50).

The Plough Inn may be a world away from the Michelin-starred kitchens that Durrant has been used to, but for him it is the perfect opportunity to offer his guests a little bit more than the usual pub fare in what he hopes to be a more relaxed environment.

"Even though we have been awarded two rosettes, I am not here to chase accolades," says Durrant. "I am here to offer something great to our customers. I want a full pub with lots of happy people drinking lots of beer and enjoying good food, and then going home and telling people how great it is," he adds.

The Plough Inn
Longparish, Andover, Hampshire SP11 6PB
01264 720358
www.theploughinn.info

Sample dishes from the menu

Starters
Heritage tomatoes, English mozzarella, basil pistou £7
Chicken liver and foie gras parfait, spiced apple chutney, brioche £8.50
Cornish sardines on toast, crispy bacon, olive purée, sardine vinaigrette £7.50

Main courses
Pan-fried bream, crushed violet new potato, baby squid, samphire, squid vinaigrette £15
Haddock, Ringwood Best batter, triple-cooked chips, mushy peas £11.50
Braised shoulder of lamb, onion purée, red onions, salt marsh mutton shepherd's pie £17

Desserts
Rhubarb sundae £5
Strawberries and cream £5
Selection of four/eight British and European cheeses £8.50/£15