A simple wooden house south of Montreal is home to an anonymous chef who has chosen to go back-to-the-land using the latest technologies to make it happen.

The one-and-a-half-storey, made from eastern white pine posts and beams held together with pegs rather than nails, sits near the bank of a marshy river near the Chateauguay Valley, surrounded by stands of oak, elm and maple and handmade shelters for a winter’s supply of logs.

These are examples of old-fashioned skills, joined to the 21st century in the form of a massive solar panel near the front door, and a windmill that can pump 400 watts of power into the house.

That, together with the wattage from the solar panels, comprise the 1,600 watts held in the eight batteries in the home, enough to light the interior for more than three weeks, says the homeowner. He uses this energy for lighting and to power the pump that brings water from a nearby well.

This homeowner, of Mohawk lineage, is one of a handful of Quebecers who are experimenting with living off the grid: no gas or hydroelectric lines.

He still has a way to go, he admits, using a gas barbecue to cook and powering his stove and fridge with propane. And he will fire up the generator to power the washer and dryer, or when his 11-year-old twin sons visit, so they can watch TV.

But he prefers to be self-sufficient, collecting white ash from his property and chopping logs that are then air-dried in his open-sided woodshed and finally moved to the closed winter shed near the house.

“I need to get this wood very dry to use in the Pyromass stove in the house,” he says.

The house was built nearly four years ago by Hamlet Heavy Timberwork (www.heavytimberwork.com) in Rigaud, Que., a company that specializes in timber frame houses.

“We used different native hardwoods for the knee braces, which are naturally curved and will stabilize the frame,” says Hamlet Heavy co-owner Daniel Addey-Jibb. “We used cherry, ash and oak in this construction, and the base is white pine.”

Hamlet installed the pegged timber frame with mortise and tenon joints, as well as the walls and roof and the outside siding, which is vertical boards and batten. They insulated the house with cellulose, which is recycled newsprint treated with a natural preservative that keeps rodents out and is a fire retardant, and also installed Quebec-made cherrywood windows and doors for the homeowner.

“It’s very well-insulated,” says Addey-Jibb, “an R-28—and an R-40 roof—compared to the standard R-16 to 20.”

“I was tired of being in debt with all these monthly bills,” says the homeowner. “I wanted, for my own health, to move every day.”

So he spends a lot of time keeping himself and his house running, following the sunlight by turning his solar panels, chopping wood, feeding his stove, and putting the finishing touches on the home’s interior.

With its peaked roof and cathedral ceiling rising from the main floor to the bedroom loft spaces on either end of the house, the house is an open plan with a central fireplace and chimney, designed to keep the heat moving throughout.

“Flooring is solid wood, as is timber framing and interior walls,” says Addey-Jibb. “He wanted non-toxic materials, to be super insulated and to live as simply as possible.”

Inside, the focal point is a wood-burning masonry heater made by artisan Marcus Flynn of Pyromasse in Montreal. Crafted of recycled clay brick (the bricks from a 19th-century city building) in the Finnish style, known as a contra-flow heater with upper chamber oven, it burns hot and quickly and will absorb and radiate heat for eight to 12 hours, the homeowner says.

“The thermal charge will be slowly dissipated up to three days,” Flynn says.

From one fire per day using about 14 kilograms of wood, he says, the heater will be hot 24 hours a day, even without flame or active fire in the system. The sunken hearth surrounding the fireplace is surrounded by slate tiles, which also form the floor of the cosy hearth.

The homeowner has paid for this connection to the natural world. But, even though he has given up his hectic life of a chef for a more deliberate, home-based activity of an artisan, and despite the $50,000 for the frame of the house and $20,000 for state-of-the-art windows, he is now debt-free.

A new British TV series takes the idea of the camper van tour of Britain and adds a new lemon twist – two chefs on a fish-cooking tour of Britain.

Young’s Seafood is funding the new prime time series about fish and how to cook it on one of Britain’s digital TV channels.

“Mitch and Matt’s Big Fish” is planned to TX on the UKTV Food channel and features Mitchell Tonks, British fishmonger and restaurateur. Tonks, founder of Fishworks restaurant chain, will partner rugby player and ‘Masterchef’ winner, Matt Dawson. The pair travel the country in a beaten up camper van on a fish fuelled roadtrip – enjoying all kinds of seafood and finding out more about responsible fishing

As a break from the banter of two lads on a roadtrip, the programme will see the pair immerse themselves in the landscape, seascape and people that make up Britain’s fishing communities.

The Fat Duck restaurant has won yet another prestigious award to keep its three Michelin stars company on Heston’s mantlepiece. But this time it is a staff member, not the super chef himself, who has merited the prize.

The restaurant’s head sommelier, Isa Bal was named Best Sommelier in Europe by l’Association de la Sommellerie International (ASI)

The annual competition, which took place in Bulgaria last month, saw entrants from 30 countries going nose to nose for the title.

The competitors were judged on three main skills: decanting technique, ability to indentify wine varieties and vintages, and flair for recommending a suitable wine to different dishes.

With Bal – and his conk – safely back in Bray, plonk remains firmly off the menu and nobody will sniff at the wine list. Another triumph for Heston and co. Now, which wine complements fat duck..?

Gordon Ramsay – he of the restaurant empire, Tourettes-like compulsion for obscenities, and fiery television personality – is becoming so ubiquitous that even on the other side of the world they have seen enough of him…for the moment at least.

Australia’s national newspaper, The Australian, has hinted that the country’s foodies may need a break from the potty-mouthed chef once his upcoming promotional tour is over. The star’s no-nonsense macho attitude on ‘The F Word’ has divided opinion Down Under, ensuring the celebrity chef is barely out of the papers. To heighten the hype, later this month Ramsay will fly over for Sydney Good Food and Wine Show. The visit will tie in with the publication of recipe book number ten, entitled ‘Gordon Ramsay’s Healthy Appetite’, which was inspired by ‘The F Word’.

Due to the – perhaps self-created – Ramsay-mania, The Australian asked: ‘is there a teeny-weeny possibility that Gordon Ramsay, he of the 12 Michelin stars and motor-driven mouth, is becoming overexposed?’

Luckily for Gordon, the proof was in the pudding, and the undisputable quality of recipes in his new book meant the article ended on a positive note.

The paper admitted his dishes are ‘delicious-looking…tasty and achieveable’ while being low fat.

‘Call Ramsay what you like (and by all means include an expletive)’, the article continued, ‘but this man has his food down pat’.

Once his self-promotion is over, Gordon will no doubt receive a warm Antipodean welcome when he returns to Oz. Knowing Gordon, welcome or not, he probably couldn’t give a…

Delia Smith has come to the defence of her latest controversial book and TV series, calling its detractors ignorant.

This week, having bided her time during the media storm, she told Guardian bloggers, “I think a lot of people who criticised me did so out of ignorance of what I was doing.”

She added: “That kind of criticism can be tomorrow’s fish-and-chip paper.”

‘How to Cheat at Cooking’ caused a stir when it hit our screens in February. The concept was a reworking of her 1971 cookery book of the same title for a modern audience.

The high priestess of celebrity chefs targeted viewers who like to cook but are pressed for time. She encouraged them to use branded convenience foods such as Aunt Bessie’s frozen mash as short-cut ingredients in traditional dishes like shepherd’s pie.

But critics slammed the show as little more than product placement, and rolled their eyes as she recommended fast food not fresh, non-organic canned mince and over-packaged processed potatoes.

Delia did however admit that she values informed criticism. In an article debating the importance of critics, she praised the Sunday Times’ AA Gill and the London Evening Standard’s Fay Maschler. Shrewd as ever, she highlighted the similarity between chefs and reviewers, saying, ‘critics are important but you have to choose the ones who have taste’. How apt.

Read Delia’s full comment at: http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/organgrinder/2008/06/question_of_the_week_do_critic.html

Over twenty celebrity chefs took part in an Observer Food Monthly survey, published yesterday, to discover which supermarket staples they would be lost without.

Among the brands listed by top chefs including Raymond Blanc, John Torode, Tom Conran, and Anthony Worral Thompson, there were a few shocking confessions.

Adam Byatt, a chef at Thyme, said he could not live without McVitie’s digestive biscuits. Rose Gray, co-owner of the River Café, chose Gentleman’s Relish, which she eats spread on rye toast. Tom Aitkens, founder of posh fish and chip shop Tom’s Place, plumped for Green and Black’s cocoa powder, while Torode stayed true to his roots and declared a weakness for Vegemite.

Popular choices included Maldon sea salt, which was picked by Jamie Oliver, Rowley Leigh and Sally Clarke. Olive oil in all its incarnations cropped up regularly, closely followed by balsamic vinegar. Even sickly sweet Nutella made the list.

Condiments like brown sauce, mayonnaise, Lea and Perrins, mustard, horseradish and Heinz ketchup were also revealed as an essential part of our chefs’ larders, including that of one Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. He, of course, favours the organic version. Both Angela Hartnett and Gordon Ramsay save time using tinned tomatoes.

The piece was not just an exercise in shameless celebrity endorsement. Although Jamie managed to cram in a Sainsbury’s product or two, Ramsay refrained from trying to convince us he used gin to liven up dishes.

But by allowing readers to rummage around the store cupboards of their culinary idols, OFM showed how simple tips using affordable products can enrich our dishes and edge us closer to the greatness of these masters of cuisine.

So next time you add pickle to your cheese on toast, or put ketchup on your chips, remember that you are following in the footsteps of the masters.

OFM’s full list (http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/food/)

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall
Heinz Organic Tomato Ketchup
Tracklements strong English mustard
The Seed Company cold-pressed rapeseed oil
Fish 4 Ever sustainable tinned fish
Clipper organic and fairtrade teas

Clare Smyth, Chef, Restaurant Gordon Ramsay
Heinz Tomato Ketchup
Waitrose Modena balsamic vinegar

Jamie Oliver
Maldon sea salt
Belazu balsamic vinegar
Sainsbury’s Fattoria Selvapiana extra virgin olive oil
De Cecco dried pasta
Ortiz anchovy fillets in olive oil

Gordon Ramsay
Napolina tinned tomatoes
Goats’ cheese

Angela Hartnett, Chef
Rosebud Preserves onion marmalade
Maldon sea salt
Tracklements strong horseradish and cream
Bovril
Hellmann’s mayonnaise
Green & Black’s Dark 70% chocolate
De Cecco pasta
Napolina tinned tomatoes
Parmesan

Thomasina Miers, TV chef and co-owner, Wahaca, London
Karimix tamarind chutney
South Devon Chilli Farm’s hot apple chilli jelly
Aspall’s organic Cyder vinegar
Sabores Aztecas’ Mole Rojo sauce
Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce
Tabasco
Colman’s mustard

Adam Byatt, Chef, Trinity, London
Forum chardonnay vinegar
Hanayuki Panko breadcrumbs
Pommery moutarde de Meaux
McVitie’s digestive biscuits

Raymond Blanc, Chef, Le Manoir Quat’ Saisons, Oxfordshire
Laverstoke Park Hebridean lamb
Valley Smoke House smoked salmon
Hill Farm extra-virgin cold-pressed rapeseed oil
Waterperry Gardens apple juices
Rhug Organic Farm whole chicken

Giorgio Locatelli, Chef-owner, Locanda Locatelli, London
Manni olive oil
Cheeses from Gastronomica

Rose Gray, Chef-owner, the River Café, London
Natoora smoked pancetta
Olive oil
Gentleman’s Relish

Tom Aikens, Chef, Tom’s Kitchen, Tom’s Place, London
Duchy Originals wholegrain mustard with honey
Waitrose balsamic vinegar of Modena
Green & Black’s cocoa powder
Doves Farm Malthouse bread flour

Sam and Eddie Hart, Owners, Fino and Barafina, London
Joselito jamón
Hildalgo La Gitana Manzanilla
Urbina Crianza Rioja
Chorizo Picante

Allegra McEvedy, Head chef, Leon, London
Vinaigre de Jerez, AR Valdespino sherry vinegar
Mrs Elswood Haimisha pickles
El Rey de la Vera smoked paprika
Tesco prunes in juice
Suree Tom Yum paste

Michael Caines, Chef, Gidleigh Park, Devon
Tracklements beer mustard
Merchant Gourmet Sunblush tomatoes
Waitrose Fairtrade Swiss dark chocolate

Antony Worrall Thompson, TV chef
Geo Watkins anchovy sauce
Anila’s chilli pickle
Belazu rose harissa

Rowley Leigh, Chef owner, Le Café Anglais, London
Maldon sea salt
Cook’s Ingredients anchovy paste
Bread

Tom Conran, Restaurateur
Bragg organic raw apple cider vinegar
Wilkin & Sons Tiptree brown sauce
L’Himal salt

Claude Bosi, Chef, Hibiscus, London
Organic Smokehouse smoked olive oil
Bacheldre Watermill flours

Stuart Gillies, Chef, Boxwood Cafe, London
Oysters
Burford Brown eggs

Giancarlo and Kate Caldesi, Chefs/owners, Caldesi, London
De Cecco pasta
Nutella hazelnut spread

John Torode, Owner, Smiths of Smithfield, London
Vegemite
Guinness
Squid Brand fish sauce
Mrs Elswood sweet and sour pickles

Pierre Koffman, Guest chef, Mark’s Club, London
Maille walnut vinegar
Poilâne bread
Papillon Roquefort

Sally Clarke, Chef-owner, Clarke’s, London
Grey Poupon mustard
Maldon sea salt
Alziari olive oil