by Thinus Ferreira
A third season of the cooking travelogue series, Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted, has started on National Geographic (DStv 181 / StarSat 220) on Wednesdays at 21:00 with the chef and traveller visiting countries and places ranging from Portugal, Croatia and Mexico to Texas, Maine, Puerto
Rico and Iceland.
"During these unprecedented times, Uncharted provides an exciting escape
to explore the world safely from home, and inspiration to try new flavours and
cooking techniques from the food experts I meet along my journey," said Gordon
Ramsay in a statement.
"The world is a massive place, full of diversity and history, and we
are just starting to dig into the boldest flavours the planet has to offer."
Viewers will see Gordon Ramsay herd cattle on horseback with the
help of a helicopter and hunts for venomous rattlesnake in the backcountry of
Texas.
He also braves giant waves for fresh barnacles that cling to the
rocky Portuguese coastline and struggles to keep up with a team of lobster
fisherwomen off the coast of Maine's choppy waters. He also fights for oxygen while
freediving for local molluscs in Croatia and rappels down a treacherous
waterfall and kayaks through raging rapids deep in America's Smoky Mountains.
In the show produced by Studio Ramsay with Gordon Ramsay, Lisa Edwards, Jon Kroll and Tom Willis as executive producers, Gordon Ramsay once again partakes in culinary customs and learn more about various delicacies
and fresh flavours unique to each region.
Every ingredient harvested in Gordon Ramsay: Unchartered serves as the inspiration for a new dish with the people who inspires him to create a recipe from scratch
intended to represent the heart of that culture.
Every episode concludes with
Ramsay challenging himself during a final big cookout with a local food legend
by his side, as they prepare a meal together for the locals he met during his
journey.
Here are the episode synopses:
Texas
Gordon Ramsay
journeys to the wilds of south-central Texas and meets some tough, gritty
characters to learn what it means to be from the Lone Star State.
He herds
cattle with the help of a helicopter, hunts for venomous rattlesnake in the
backcountry and goes on a night hunt for invasive and ferocious feral hogs. He joins up with the James
Beard Award-winning chef Justin Yu and a group of locals.
Portugal
Gordon Ramsay
explores the rugged landscape of Portugal, where the simple way of life is
evident in the country's incredible cuisine.
Gordon chases black pigs across a
farm to feed them, braves giant pounding waves for barnacles that cling to the
rocky coastline and the open seas to fish for iconic sardines. He tries to beat local chef, Kiko
Martins, in an epic feast for the mayor of Nazaré.
Maine
Gordon Ramsay
learns why Maine in the United States is called the lobster capital of the world. Along the rugged coastline, he struggles to keep up with a team of lobster
fisherwomen, dives for clams, harvests oysters, forages in freezing waters and
tests his lumberjack skills.
Can he earn the status of a tough Mainer as he
tests his culinary skills against local legend chef Melissa Kelly, a two-time
James Beard award-winner?
Croatia
Gordon Ramsay
travels to the untouched peninsula of Istria, Croatia, for ingredients that
rival the best of Italy in world-class quality. He free
dives for local molluscs, risks his pride fishing for rare cuttlefish and
chases after goats for cheese and donkeys for milk.
He learns the secrets to
finding exquisite truffles and making exceptional olive oil before testing his
newly found skills against local chef David Skoko.
Puerto Rico
Gordon Ramsay
explores the enchanted island of Puerto Rico, from the bright blue sea to the
lush mountains of the interior. Along the way, he learns about Hurricane
Maria’s recent devastating toll on the island and how food shortages have
prompted locals to push for food independence.
On this adventure, Gordon
goes spearfishing, takes a helicopter ride to an organic coffee plantation, and
rappels down a waterfall for delicious river prawns. Throughout his journey, he
is hosted by laid back surfer-chef José Enrique, who turns up the gas at the
final cook.
Iceland
Gordon Ramsay
heads to the land of fire and ice during the Icelandic summer to learn secret
cooking techniques utilising the volcanic landscape.
He fishes in a glacial
river for wild salmon and cooks bread in geothermally heated soil before
heading north to the sparsely populated Westfjords. After sampling fermented
shark and diving for scallops in the freezing fjords, he joins Iceland's first
Michelin-rated chef, Ragnar Eiríksson, for a feast in a rainstorm.
Smoky Mountains
Gordon Ramsay is
pushed to his limits in America's Smoky Mountains. In his quest to unearth the
region's culinary secrets, Gordon must rappel down a treacherous waterfall,
kayak through raging rapids, and trek deep into the forest, attempting to find
the most delicious ingredients in this magnificent mountain range.
His culinary
rival at the big cook is chef William Dissen, named one of America's "Most
Sustainable Chefs", who knows these mountains, rivers and forests like the back
of his hand.
Mexico
Gordon Ramsay discovers the culinary secrets of the country's legendary
Oaxaca region, where mole reigns supreme.
In addition to learning to make the
storied chocolate- and chili-infused sauce, Gordon must rappel down a cliff in
search of delicious butter worms, harvest the honey sacs from burrowing ants
and fend off angry wasps in search of their coveted larva.
In his effort to
measure up to acclaimed Mexico City chef Gabriela Cámara, he also engages in
the punishing physical process of harvesting agave plants to make mescal.
