Darren McGrady was personal chef to Queen Elizabeth II, Diana, Princess of Wales and Princes’ William and Harry for 15 years – and has spoken about his royal role
Prince William and Prince Harry enjoyed eating surprisingly normal childhood meals including household classics, their family’s former chef said.
Darren McGrady, personal cook to Queen Elizabeth II, Diana and Princes William and Harry for 15 years, and has since shared an incredible insight into the young Princes’ palettes – and they are surprisingly ordinary.
Darren previously told PEOPLE Magazine: “I remember holding the boys as babies, when the Princess was eating cereal in the kitchen, thinking, ‘Wow, here I am, literally holding the crown jewels’.”
The professional went on to reveal that the young Princes would enjoy “traditional, English food” and that their favourites included meals such as cottage pie and peas, poached chicken and rice and fish cakes.
“They may be royal children but they still have children’s palates,” the chef added. “[They had] everything a normal British child would have. The only difference is that they had a chef cooking it for them.”
In a previous interview with HELLO!, Darren further revealed that William and Harry loved to eat dishes that contained bananas, which was a favourite fruit. He said: “They liked comfort food dishes. They loved banana flan, anything with banana really, banana ice cream. They loved things like mixed grills, burgers, pizza, spaghetti and meatballs, chicken and cream chicken sauce…”
William’s love of traditional food is something that he and his wife Kate have passed on to their own children, George, Charlotte, and Louis. Kate does a lot of cooking with her brood and in 2019, she told TV presenter Mary Berry: “We grow our own vegetables, we’ve got carrots, beans… beetroot’s a massive favourite, Louis absolutely loves beetroot.” She also revealed that Charlotte “obviously loves her Charlotte potatoes”.
Matthew Kleiner-Mann, chief executive of the Ivy Learning Trust, also said Kate and her children also like to make cheesy pasta together. He said: “One stirs the flour, one puts the milk and butter in. She was telling us how much her children love cooking and how they cook for her.”
