Before we get cooking

Tacho Rapado means “a pot scraped clean”, a nod to my bald head and what I love to see at the end of a meal. It seemed like a good place to start.

Many of the recipes I make start with an idea I find online or something I’ve learnt from someone. I try it, swap an ingredient or two, adjust the quantities and often just go by eye. Sometimes I’m trying to get a result I like better; other times, I just want to see what happens if I do things differently.

The trouble was, most of those changes stayed in my head. I’d save the recipe I’d found, when I remembered to save it at all, but the version I actually made rarely got written down.

Meanwhile, friends and family would ask how I’d made something they’d tasted or seen me cook. And explaining a recipe you’ve made by eye, with a few rough measurements and substitutions along the way and no notes to refer to, isn’t always easy.

Tacho Rapado grew out of those two needs: to organise the recipes I try, adapt and enjoy, and to have somewhere to share them with anyone who asks or would like to give them a go. Along the way, I also want to share what I enjoy cooking and eating, and what I learn as I go.

Running and sport are a huge part of my life, and so are cooking and good food. For a long time, I’ve wanted to make more room for my love of cooking and eating well. This website is a first step in that direction.

Here you’ll find ideas for any meal, dishes to share and desserts to enjoy any day of the week, using ingredients you can find wherever you are and alternatives where they make sense. These notes will be a place for my experiments, discoveries and the little details that don’t always fit into a recipe.

I hope you find something here that makes you want to get cooking and gives you the confidence to experiment. Follow the recipe or put your own spin on it. And if you make a change you like or think improves the recipe, tell me about it. I’d like to learn from you too.

Too good to keep to yourself!

Ricardo Fusco