TV Dinners

Episode 6 (3x6)

: 11, 1998

Hugh heads into the Welsh countryside and explores the secrets of a truly perfectly balanced meal. Hilary Waterhouse is a Welsh countrywoman born and bred. She strongly believes in living off the land wherever possible and loves to go out shooting rabbits, pigeon and other game - "It's an honest way of collecting your food," she says. Last year she and her husband had a fire which could have caused colossal damage if not for the help of her farming neighbours. She intends to cook them a thank you meal using meat she has hunted and butchered herself. Brought up in Halifax, West Yorkshire, Shaila Parthasarathi took the food and culture of her Indian background for granted. Now, as a busy career woman, she's rediscovered the ancient science of Ayurveda, the all-embracing Indian philosophy which teaches that the secret of health and happiness is found in the harmonisation of mind, body and spirit. The occasion is the Indian rice eating ceremony known as Bhaat which celebrates a baby's progression from milk to solid food. The star of the show is Shaila's four-month-old nephew Alex and whilst he is tucking in to a meal of ground rice mixed with expressed milk, the rest of the family enjoy a stunning array of fish and vegetable dishes.