Masterchef star John Torode says he hates potato mashers so he threw one belonging to his wife Lisa Faulkner – and prefers to use his grandmother’s method

Masterchef star John Torode says he hates potato mashers so he threw one belonging to his wife Lisa Faulkner - and prefers to use his grandmother's method

As a lifestyle expert with decades of culinary experience under my apron, I must confess that I have learned a thing or two about kitchen tools and their significance – some more than others, it seems. John Torode’s disdain for the humble potato masher, as revealed at the Cheltenham Literary Festival, is a lesson in personal preference that we can all learn from.


John Torode threw out wife Lisa Faulkner‘s heirloom potato masher because it is the one kitchen utensil he ‘cannot bear’ to stand.

Discussing their latest cookbook at the Cheltenham Literary Festival, the duo playfully bantered about a Masterchef judge’s notable distaste for the simple potato masher.

John and Lisa, the duo who co-host ITV’s cooking show John and Lisa’s Weekend Kitchen, started dating after they grew close friends when Lisa competed on Masterchef as a participant.

In a more relaxed phrasing, John expressed his dislike by saying: “I really can’t stand using potato mashers, yet I ended up getting one for my wife not too long ago.

Masterchef star John Torode says he hates potato mashers so he threw one belonging to his wife Lisa Faulkner - and prefers to use his grandmother's method

Masterchef star John Torode says he hates potato mashers so he threw one belonging to his wife Lisa Faulkner - and prefers to use his grandmother's method
Masterchef star John Torode says he hates potato mashers so he threw one belonging to his wife Lisa Faulkner - and prefers to use his grandmother's method

 Lisa quipped: ‘Yes, I was allowed a potato masher.’ To which John exclaimed ‘Allowed?’

Lisa later disclosed that the potato masher, a trusty tool passed down from her grandma and endured through time, ended up being discarded by John during their move-in.

At Cheltenham, she shared with the audience: “When our family combined our kitchens, there were two potato mashers – one of them belonged to my grandmother. Unfortunately, it was discarded when someone said, ‘You don’t need that.’

Immediately, John asserted that he hadn’t discarded the item; instead, it was located downstairs. In response, Lisa stated that she hadn’t noticed it anywhere.

John shared that he dislikes using the kitchen gadget for mashing potatoes as his grandmother always showed him how to do it with a simple fork.

‘I still use a fork. It’s really the best mashed potato.’

Certain mashed potato tools can be quite firm, forcing starch out and resulting in a dense rather than fluffy texture for the mashed potatoes.

It appears that the potato masher isn’t the sole kitchen item causing disagreement between them; it extends to air fryers as well, as their opinions on these appliances differ.

In a chat with John, I couldn’t help but let slip my undisguised enthusiasm: “You won’t believe it, but I’m dying to get my hands on an air fryer! I’ve never had the chance to use one yet, and unfortunately, I don’t own one as of now.

‘Apparently, we don’t need an air fryer.’

John replied: ‘We haven’t got the space darling.’

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2024-10-12 03:56

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