Running The Queen's kitchens at Buckingham Palace is a military operation, with so many rules, banned foods and different tastes to cater to. Former royal chef Darren McGrady lifted the lid on another foodie secret in his new YouTube video on Wednesday, revealing why the Queen has so many chefs.
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While answering a fan question during a Q&A, Darren, who worked at Buckingham Palace for 11 years followed by Kensington Palace for four, revealed Her Majesty has an army of 20 chefs – and because they travel everywhere she goes, there needs to be plenty of them on hand.
He said: "When I was there, the Queen had 20 chefs at Buckingham Palace - and she needed them.
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"They travelled all around the world with her, to Sandringham, Windsor, Balmoral, Holyrood Palace, the Royal Yacht Britannia wherever it was in the world then. She needed all of those chefs!"
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Elsewhere during the video chat, Darren – who also cooked for the late Princess Diana and her sons Prince William and Prince Harry when they were children – revealed what type of knife he always uses during his cooking.
"I use Mercer knives, I love the steel and the handle", he said. Could it be a leftover habit from his time with the royal family?
Darren McGrady revealed why the Queen has so many chefs
Darren previously discussed his experience of cooking for the Queen, revealing he would present the monarch with a red leather-bound book daily, full of recipes written in French for her to choose from.
He told HELLO!: "We prepared the menus three days ahead so we could get the food in. The chefs would pick the menus and she would put a line through the ones she didn't want."
The Buckingham Palace chefs prepare menus three days in advance
Why French? It's well known that Her Majesty is fluent in French and she has surprised fans with her effortless pronunciation on many occasions.
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However, the tradition has actually been in place since the Norman conquests of the 11th Century when French became the official language of the court.
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