Top cookery judge gives a taste of his own palate

“There are highlights within every series. Times when you taste something and it brings you into absolute raptures. And you hope that continues all the way through,” he says.

At the moment, the Aussie chef is up to his neck in amateurs competing for the coveted Masterchef Of The Year title. “Starting a new series, you have the most extraordinary sense of expectation,” says Torode.

“We’re in the throws of discovering the best amateur cooks in the country and there’s nothing more brilliant than that.” And of course, he and co-presenter Greg Wallace aren’t at all picky...

“They have a gift,” says Torode emphatically about what makes a winner. “In the same way some people are able to play an instrument with what seems like no effort at all, great cooks have a palate, their senses are alive.

“It’s not just about how things look and taste, but how they feel, their texture, their smell and how they cook. It’s almost like they’ve got an extra sense and can harness it to make something extraordinary.”

Masterchef winners have come from far and wide – a reflection of how high-quality cooking has infiltrated every corner of the British Isles.

“You can go wherever you like and you’ll find these extraordinary places that are fantastic. And it’s lucky there are so many people wanting to be chefs, because growth in the restaurant business across the country is so great now.”

Here are three recipes from John Torode’s restaurant, Smiths of Smithfield.

SALT & PEPPER SQUID, ROAST CHILLI, GARLIC & CORIANDER

Serves 2

500g (cleaned weight) medium-sized squid, scored, 5 cloves garlic, a good handful of coriander, 10 white peppercorns, 20g sea salt, 100g plain flour, 1 litre vegetable oil

For the chilli dressing: 2 limes – juiced, 3 dried chillies (roasted and deseeded), 50g palm sugar, 125ml fish sauce

In a pestle and mortar, pound the roasted dried chilli and then add the palm sugar. Pound again adding the lime juice and fish sauce. Mix well and place to one side.

Preheat the oven to 160C/gas mark 4. Preheat one litre of vegetable oil in a wok or a deep fryer if you have one. Pound the peppercorns and sea salt together in the pestle and mortar and then add flour, set to one side.

Peel half the garlic and pound with the remaining whole cloves. The cloves should split open and the flesh and skin should come together. Throw the pounded garlic into the preheated oil, lower the heat to a bubble and leave to cook for a good five minutes, stirring every so often. The garlic will float to the top and be crisp. With a strainer remove the garlic and drain well on kitchen roll.

Place the wok back over a high heat, when the oil starts to shimmer, it’s ready to cook in. Toss the squid in seasoned flour so that it’s coated well. Drop a quarter of the squid in the oil and fry in batches for about four to five minutes. The squid should curl and go crisp. Remove from the oil and place on a preheated tray in the oven until the remainder is cooked.

Place the garlic with the picked coriander in a large bowl, add the cooked squid, toss well and serve on individual plates with the dressing around the outside.

SLOW ROAST BELLY OF PORK, GREEN SAUCE & MASH

Serves 6

2kg piece of belly pork, bone in, rind on, 1tsp salt, 4 cloves garlic, 2tsp paprika, 30ml vegetable oil, juice of 1 lemon. For the mash: 1kg Maris Piper potatoes, 250g butter, 150ml double cream, salt and pepper. For the green sauce: handful of flat parsley, handful of basil, 2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed, 1 boiled egg, Handful fresh white breadcrumbs, 1tbsp white vinegar, 1tbsp capers, 50ml olive oil, Pinch of salt

The day before eating, score the skin of the pork with a very sharp knife in a criss-cross fashion at 1cm intervals. In a mixing bowl combine all the remaining ingredients. Rub the pork with the marinade and leave for 12-24 hours.

On the day of eating, preheat the oven to 150C/gas mark 2. Lay the pork in a roasting tin and pour over the remaining marinade, adding half a cup of water to the bottom of the tray. Cover with foil and cook in the oven for three hours.

Remove the foil and increase the temperature of the oven to 180C/gas mark 4. Cook for a further 40 minutes until the skin is crisp. Remove from the oven and leave to rest for 30 mins. While it’s resting, peel the potatoes, bring to the boil and simmer for 15-20 mins. Place the parsley, basil and garlic in a food processor and blending to a paste. Then add the remaining ingredients and pulse for 30 seconds so it’s not a paste, but a roughly chopped mix. Drain and mash the potatoes. Melt the butter and cream in a saucepan on a low heat, and fold into the potato, before seasoning.

Remove the bones from the pork (they should easily pull away from the flesh) and trim the edges to keep for a snack later. Cut the pork into six pieces and return to the oven for 10 minutes to heat through again. Serve on the mash with the green sauce spooned over.

LITTLE POTS OF CHOCOLATE

Serves 4

285ml single cream, 200g quality cooking chocolate (70 per cent cocoa solids), 2 large egg yolks, 3tbsp brandy, 20g butter

In a thick-bottomed pan, heat the cream until nearly boiling. Remove and set aside for one minute before snapping in your chocolate.

Stir in until melted and smooth.

Once melted, beat in your egg yolks and brandy and stir until smooth. Allow to cool slightly before stirring in the butter until the mixture is smooth.

Pour into individual serving pots.

* Celebrity Masterchef is on BBC One each weekday

* London Restaurant Festival takes place from October 3-17 (www.londonrestaurantfestival.com)