Bear Grylls lived on rations-style food when he was growing up – because his mother was a “terrible cook”.
Although he was born in 1974, the adventurer and TV personality had the diet of a post-war child.
He told BBC Good Food magazine: “My mum was wonderful, but she was a terrible cook. She made British food seem like post-World War Two rations.
“It wasn’t quite as bad as Spam, but she would leave a pan of Brussels sprouts stewing for a whole afternoon.”
It was while fishing with his father that the youngster was able to enjoy a good meal.
“I used to go fishing with my dad a lot,” he recalled. “With freshly caught trout, we’d put a knife straight down the spine, flip it over, go under the skin and then pan-fry it. Beautiful.
“Then we would get a load of tomatoes, blend them, add some olive oil and serve that over the fish. It was amazing.”
The May issue of BBC Good Food is out now.
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