Welcome to What’s Cooking, Metro’s food series where we find out exactly what’s going on behind the scenes in the nation’s kitchens.
Last time, we kicked off the series by snooping through Jamie Oliver’s kitchen to uncover the ‘filthy’ food secrets he’s been hiding.
This week we’re rifling through Charlotte Crocker’s kitchen in West Sussex. The 47-year-old mum-of-two spent 12 years working as cabin crew on long-haul flights for the likes of British Airways, Thomas Cook, Astraeus and Caledonian Airways.
During that time, she travelled everywhere from Barbados to Dallas, but recently she’s been working in aviation much closer to home, training up new cabin crew recruits with a real focus on mental health and wellbeing in the industry.
If you’ve ever wondered which foods you should avoid eating on a plane and why the meals are so salty, we’ve got the answers. We’ll also be finding out what Charlotte tucks into when she’s got her feet firmly planted on the ground, including a favourite food pairing that’s bound to raise a few eyebrows…
Before we invade your kitchen, we want the inside scoop. What did your time as a flight attendant teach you about plane food?
It’s very difficult to have healthy food at 35,000 feet and there are several reasons for this. The first is that our bodies are functioning differently at that altitude, so our tastes change and the food becomes bland, so we end up having to put lots of salt and seasoning on the meals to make it taste better.
If you’re in economy, the frozen meals are not the greatest quality and that’s because of the budget – if you want really cheap flights, you’re not going to be able to have the type of food that you get in first-class, which is of a much higher standard.
It’s also really hard to produce decent food when you don’t have a decent kitchen at 35,000 feet and this is true no matter where you’re sitting. The galley in first-class is lovely but the ovens aren’t actually any different to the ones down the back of the plane.
Is there anything you’d never eat on a plane?
Personally, I don’t drink alcohol on planes as it’s very dehydrating. I also try to stay away from anything fizzy as well as food that’s too salty or spicy because it causes bloating and nobody wants to be unwell on a plane.
I think it’s unlikely you’ll get food poisoning on a flight, it’s more a case of using common sense when it comes to what you’re eating. Cabin crew are trying their best, but it gets very busy in the galley during catering, sometimes lids get dropped and salad doesn’t always get washed.
So for that reason, I’d avoid any food (fruit and salad in particular) that isn’t served in a sealed packet.
What’s the best meal to have on a flight?
I used to eat the crew food and polish off whatever passengers didn’t want, because it was cheaper and easier, but I soon realised this wasn’t doing me any good. There’s too much fat and salt in the meals and snacks – I would end up feeling absolutely horrendous.
I had to reprogram myself and start taking my own food on flights. It’s a complete pain to have to do meal prep, but it makes such a difference and I recommend giving it a try as it’s so much better for you.
You have to be careful and check what you’re allowed to take through the airport and on your specific flight, but I usually opt for things like packet soups, tea bags, oatcakes and instant porridge pots.
I’ve also taken salads on 12-hour flights in a refrigerated lunch box and eaten it at around the six-hour mark. You should be fine with anything that doesn’t have too much liquid in it and won’t make you ill if it’s out of the fridge for a while.
When you’re not up in the clouds, what’s your go-to dinner after work?
The M25 commute from Heathrow can take a while, so I take food with me to work and eat it in the car at the end of the day. This usually includes a gluten-free bagel, some ham, a pot of mayo, carrot sticks and raw broccoli.
When I get home I have a chamomile tea and go to bed.
We want to know a secret. What’s your ultimate guilty pleasure food?
I love scrambled eggs and cheddar cheese on top of a toasted hot cross bun – with lots of butter and fresh parsley too. It was a craving I had when I was pregnant with my second child and it’s still something I enjoy eating now, almost 15 years later – it’s so nice.
Tell us about a storecupboard item you can’t live without…
There’s always a big glass jar filled with walnuts and raisins in the cupboard and I just dip my hand in whenever I’m going by and snack on those. My kids do the same thing too, which is interesting as it’s a fairly healthy snack for two teenage boys.
And is there something that always has to be in your fridge?
Oat milk – even if the rest of the fridge was empty, there would be oat milk in there. I use it in everything from hot chocolate to porridge, scrambled eggs and lattes.
What about the freezer, what food do you keep in there at all times?
Emergency fish fingers for the kids, for those moments when you’ve run out of time and energy! Most of our frozen stuff comes from Tesco, as it’s a lot cheaper than anywhere else near us and the quality is good.
Name one ingredient you’ll always be willing to splurge on?
Japanese matcha powder. I’m completely addicted to it, so much so that I once paid $9 for a matcha latte at a Starbucks in LA. I still can’t get over the price.
It is cheaper to make it yourself at home, but I always try to get good quality matcha from an actual supplier. It has to be food-grade as I don’t want to risk buying ‘fake’ matcha – there’s a lot of that being sold online.
Alternatively, which kitchen staple isn’t worth splashing the cash on?
There’s no point spending money on ready meals. You can usually cook the same dish for less money and it tastes better too.
Finally… what’s been cooking in your kitchen lately?
Everyone eats different things in my family, but as the weather has been nice, we’ve all been out in the garden so there’s been sausages and steaks on the BBQ with loads of sides, plus a big jug full of freshly squeezed orange juice with lots of ice.
Want to take part in What’s Cooking and let Metro raid your kitchen at home? Email courtney.pochin@metro.co.uk
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Get in touch by emailing MetroLifestyleTeam@Metro.co.uk.
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