Fans in a frenzy as Nigella goes bananas over buttered toast

Finger-licking Domestic Goddess Nigella Lawson is brewing up a storm in a teacup with her brand new TV series, Cook, Eat, Repeat, which coincides with the release of her latest cookbook of the same name.

Surprisingly, the controversy has nothing to do with the pandemic or politics, but rather something as simple as a trio of everyday ingredients, namely bananas, butter and liquorice. 

The bananas came first. In the inaugural episode of the show, Lawson used them in a pudding with chocolate and tahini. Admittedly a bit of an unusual (though clever) combination, it wasn't this recipe that caused a stir, but rather one using the fruit's leftover peels.

Rather than bin them, the waste-not-want-not chef casually tossed them into a cauliflower curry, extolling the virtues of said skins for adding texture to the spicy dish.

Some of Lawson's fans on social media thought the move was “bonkers”:

Acknowledging such comments, the celeb chef tweeted: “I hope I didn’t traumatise you too much with the banana skins (I promise you the curry is divine)."

She later shared a post from a “sceptical” fan, who tried the dish and declared it to be delicious, saying, “You see?”

Next it was the Domestic Goddess's “two-stage buttering approach” to toast that caused an uproar.

According to Lawson, the best way to enjoy buttered toast is to generously spread the toast with unsalted butter as soon as it pops out the toaster and allow this to melt into the bread. This will “give it a fabulous, crumpety bite”, she says. Next you slather on a second layer of butter before adding a sprinkling of sea salt flakes.

The internet was divided over whether this segment of the show was genius or just plain ridiculous: should a celeb chef devote time to demonstrating something as basic as buttering toast?

While some thought her lavish use of “double butter” was wasteful, others couldn't wait to try it. Here's a taste of the mixed reactions on Twitter:

Now Lawson has yet again whipped the internet into a frenzy with her use of liquorice — she has a penchant for the tongue-curling salty variety.

In a recent episode of Cook, Eat, Repeat, she made a gorgeous Basque cheesecake - subtle and creamy on the inside, with a dark, almost burnt top (it’s meant to be like that). She then made a rather scary-looking liquorice sauce and, in her own inimitable style, poured a puddle of it over the bake.

Talk about chalk and cheesecake, the lady certainly knows how to get people talking – and buying her cookbook.

• 'Cook, Eat, Repeat' is currently only airing abroad. However, the accompanying book of the same name is available locally.

• Additional reporting by Toni Jaye Singer.