Photo: Mark Fosh / Wikimedia Commons

French chef Raymond Blanc, OBE, took on Jamie Oliver in a celebrity cook-off at this year’s Chelsea Flower Show preview on Monday. Spatulas wielded, the chefs battled to produce the tastiest food for passersby at the show’s pre-opening event. All of the veggies used in the cook-off were grown in the Royal Chelsea Hospital vegetable garden, which will be on display, alongside a host of other treats for the avid gardener, from 25-29 May 2010.

Tickets sold out

The Chelsea Flower Show, put on by the Royal Horticultural Society, is the world’s most famous garden show, held over five days every year. People travel from all over the world to see new plants being released, beautiful established gardens, and themed displays. If you’re looking for a ticket, though, you’ll be disappointed, as they sell out well in advance. But, there’s always next year.

Blanc’s al fresco kitchen better than his own

Despite his broken leg, Raymond Blanc did a fantastic job of keeping the crowds pleased with an Al Fresco Smallbone kitchen. He used the ‘Oak and Silver’ designer kitchen by Smallbone, with a built-in steamer, to prepare dishes he referred to as ‘garden to plate’, including summer fruit gratin and asparagus with lemon sabayon sauce. Blanc commented that the kitchen he used at the preview to the show was better than his own at home. He said his kitchen at home, while being expensive and beautiful, is ‘useless’.

Rustic Jamie

Photo: Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain

While Raymond Blanc had access to the best kitchen equipment, Jamie Oliver made do with just a wood-fired oven, preparing a range of rustic pizzas with his flair for Italian food. Oliver prepared and served his pizzas in the Children’s Society Garden, which had a splash pool for the kiddies, amidst a festive atmosphere.

Ben Fogle, Helen Mirren and Jerry Hall were among the celebrities spotted at the show.

Tags: Chelsea Flower Show, Flower Show, jamie oliver