Former Miss Guyana Offers To Teach Jamie To Make Jerk Sauce

Aletha Shepherd, co-founder of hot sauce company Rodie's, supports the chef but called his recipes a mess

                                                 BEAUTY QUEEN TO BUSINESSWOMAN: Aletha Shepherd (third from right)

A FORMER Caribbean beauty queen has offered to teach Jamie Oliver how to make proper jerk sauces in the aftermath of the row over his new rice product.

Aletha Shepherd, the co-founder of Rodie’s, a brand of hot sauces that launched at this year’s Notting Hill Carnival, said: “Jamie’s alright, it’s just his recipes that are a mess and I’d be happy to show him how to make a proper Caribbean sauce full of fresh healthy ingredients.”

The beauty queen turned businesswoman staged a mini demo in support of the celebrity chef who has come under fire for releasing a new convenience food called “jerk rice”.

Shepherd also suggested that chef Levi Roots, who taught Oliver how to cook jerk chicken, was in need of educating as well. She said: “Maybe Levi Roots could come along too – have you seen some of the stuff he puts in his bottled sauces?”

AUTHENTIC: Many of Rodie's recipes have been inspired by those handed down through Shepherd's family

The former Miss Guyana (2010) has launched Rodie’s with a small range of “off-the-shelf” craft Caribbean hot sauces, made only from healthy, natural ingredients with powerful flavours.

Shepherd said: “We want to bottle the happiness and health of the Caribbean and bring some real zap to peoples’ plates.”

Both Shepherd and her fellow co-founder Jonathan Gittos want to provide a better alternative to what they describe as the sickly, industrial sauces that crowd the shelves of our supermarkets.

A lot of Rodie’s recipes will be based on those handed down through generations of Shepherd’s family, with her Auntie Enid being the culinary inspiration behind several products.

They’re also going one stage further with a “Saville Row” Secret Sauce Club, which will produce custom-made, exotic Caribbean products. These sauces will feature ingredients not available in the UK.

These “secret sauces” will be available by subscription, with 10% of profits invested in conservation and education projects in Guyana, and other countries that Rodie’s sources its ingredients from.

You can find out more about Rodie's by visiting www.rodies.co.