Welcome back to What’s Cooking, Metro’s food series, taking a peek inside the nation’s kitchens.
This week we’re at home with rapper Professor Green, who rose to fame in the early 2010s with hits such as I Need You Tonight and Just Be Good to Green.
As well as being passionate about music, Pro Green (real name Stephen Manderson) is a major foodie and even launched his own fast food venture earlier this year.
Proper Good Fast Food has just made its London debut, with a new location in Soho that’s serving up dishes you certainly won’t find at Maccies or Burger King.
If you’ve been wondering how the 42-year-old ended up with a restaurant and what he eats at home, we’ve got the answers…
First, tell us a secret. What’s the most unhinged thing you like to eat?
Bear with me on this one… ice cream and Yorkshire puddings. It’s like a working-class profiterole.
I eat this whenever I’ve made too many Yorkshires and just use some good vanilla ice cream. I reckon it would also work with some miso caramel drizzled on top.
What dish instantly reminds you of your childhood?
Roast dinners. I was brought up by my Nan in quite a typical working-class environment where there wasn’t much education around food, and there also wasn’t much money, so everything was quite beige, apart from our Sunday roast. I’ve always loved roasts, especially beef, and to this day it’s my favourite meal.
Name one item you always have in your fridge…
Candy Kittens, specifically the sour ones.
Before I met the mother of my son, I’d never seen someone put a jellied sweet in the fridge. I thought it was mental, but it actually makes them more enjoyable.
If you think about Coca-Cola, the temperature directly correlates to how enjoyable it is, because of the amount of sugar, and it’s the same with the sweets; being cold makes them even chewier, although it does leave you at the mercy of eating more than you would otherwise…
What’s one thing you keep in your store cupboard?
Pickles. My son and I love anything pickled, and we can just sit there and eat them straight from the jar. I also love pickles on a burger, but I’ll pair them with just about anything.
And in the freezer?
Ice packs for my man parts. I’ve got special sauna pants that have compartments for these ice pack disks (which are always kept sterile). I sauna really regularly, almost every day, and apparently these pants keep your swimmers healthy, because heat can cause damage.
As for food, you’ll always find some frozen bolognese in there. When I have time, I like to batch cook it, and I use a recipe by Gizzi Erskine – it’s the best.
Is there anything you can’t resist splurging on at the supermarket?
The thing I spend the most on is meat. I’ve spent a lot of money on beef from Turner & George and pistachio mortadella from Eataly. There’s also a Norwegian company I like called SKANDL, which sells £24 sirloin from cattle raised on a diet of grass and chocolate. It’s ridiculous, but it tastes incredible.
What’s one thing you prefer to get the cheaper, own-brand version of?
I’ve been buying tins of own-brand sardines from Asda – they’re 75p.
Have you been into a deli lately? They’re gentrifying sardines. A sardine is a f***ing sardine; as long as it’s responsibly sourced, that’s all I care about. We don’t need to be spending £7 on a tin of sardines and oil because it’s got good branding.
How did you end up with a fast food business?
It all started with a chance meeting the February before last. I’d just finished in the studio with two friends of mine and went out for some food in the West End. Nobody wanted to eat the same thing, so we went to Arcade food hall as there are different options. Then in walks Eddie Dua, from Hero Brands, the masterminds behind GDK, and we got talking. We said we should do something together, and it turned out they’d just taken over a salad chain, which needed a rebrand.
The next day he called me, and we had this idea for a business called Pro Greens, which was the first iteration, and then we later decided to shake up the game a bit and landed on PG Fast Food. We wanted to challenge people’s idea of what fast food could be, and it’s proper good, wholesome food, disguised as fast food
If I go to Proper Good, what should I order?
It depends on what you’re in the mood for and when you visit, but I’ve got a thing for the Ice Grapes on the menu, and there’s a dish called Unicorn, which is Ice Grapes topped with white chocolate sauce, rainbow drops, and boba. It’s so, so fun.
Where else do you love to eat in London?
One of my favourites is Roe in Canary Wharf; every dish there is just so flavoursome and thoughtful. And I love the roasts at Blacklock – their white chocolate cheesecake is so indulgent.
Finally, what’s been cooking lately?
I wouldn’t call it cooking, but I try to keep a Daylesford Thai chicken or beef bone broth in the freezer, or their minestrone. After a long day, they’re lifesavers and probably the only things that stop me from ordering something rubbish after 10pm.
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