by Aude Camus
Ottolenghi … you may have heard this name recently or maybe seen it somewhere on social media or in a magazine. You may even have a friend who swears she/he has rediscovered the pleasures of cooking with Ottolenghi’s recipes. The “Ottolenghi Effect”, as publishers call it, has for sure swept the word. But who’s Yotam Ottolenghi?
An Israeli-English chef, he co-owns six restaurants and delis in London and is the author of several bestselling cookbooks including his latest one SIMPLE released in 2018. A fun fact: chef Ottolenghi is the world’s most famous vegetarian cookbook author without actually being vegetarian himself. What publishers call the “Ottolenghi Effect” is the ability of the chef to export his name in countries where people won’t actually get to taste his food directly at his restaurants (since he only owns venues in London), sell thousands of cookbooks and has people experience a “feel-good” experience when using his recipes. If the Ottolenghi name has definitely been buzzing in the past few years, the chef isn’t actually a newbie on the dining scene and opened his first restaurant, together with his partner Sami Tamimi, back in 2002, serving up a variety of Middle Eastern flavourful (and mostly vegetarian) dishes. Ottolenghi is often credited for having lead the Middle Eastern food trend, first in the UK and then all around the world with people as far from London as the Australians being absolutely obsessed with the chefs and its cookbooks (the chef even appeared as a guest chef in two seasons of Masterchef Australia).
Ottolenghi … you may have heard this name recently or maybe seen it somewhere on social media or in a magazine. You may even have a friend who swears she/he has rediscovered the pleasures of cooking with Ottolenghi’s recipes. The “Ottolenghi Effect”, as publishers call it, has for sure swept the word. But who’s Yotam Ottolenghi?
An Israeli-English chef, he co-owns six restaurants and delis in London and is the author of several bestselling cookbooks including his latest one SIMPLE released in 2018. A fun fact: chef Ottolenghi is the world’s most famous vegetarian cookbook author without actually being vegetarian himself. What publishers call the “Ottolenghi Effect” is the ability of the chef to export his name in countries where people won’t actually get to taste his food directly at his restaurants (since he only owns venues in London), sell thousands of cookbooks and has people experience a “feel-good” experience when using his recipes. If the Ottolenghi name has definitely been buzzing in the past few years, the chef isn’t actually a newbie on the dining scene and opened his first restaurant, together with his partner Sami Tamimi, back in 2002, serving up a variety of Middle Eastern flavourful (and mostly vegetarian) dishes. Ottolenghi is often credited for having lead the Middle Eastern food trend, first in the UK and then all around the world with people as far from London as the Australians being absolutely obsessed with the chefs and its cookbooks (the chef even appeared as a guest chef in two seasons of Masterchef Australia).
Cherry on the cake: if some culinary celebrities are made famous because of their, let’s say flamboyant, personalities, Yotam Ottolenghi is always described as a pleasant, humble and considerate person. Just like the food he is cooking; his personality says generosity and love. And that’s maybe why the Ottolenghi Effect seems here to stay.
Wanna give a go to some of chef’s easy feel-good recipes? We’ve rounded up three easy and yummy Ottolenghi’s recipes for you to bring some Mediterranean flavours to your HK kitchen.
Sweet potato mash with herbs and lime salsa
Wanna give a go to some of chef’s easy feel-good recipes? We’ve rounded up three easy and yummy Ottolenghi’s recipes for you to bring some Mediterranean flavours to your HK kitchen.
Sweet potato mash with herbs and lime salsa
Photo credit: The Guardian
Ingredients (serves 2 to 4 people):
1 kg of sweet potatoes
5 tablespoons of olive oil
Chopped basil (approx. 5g)
Chopped coriander (approx. 5g)
½ garlic clove, peeled and crushed
2 limes
Salt
Pepper
Heat the oven to 200° C
Cut your sweet potatoes in half (lengthways) but do not remove the skin, season the potatoes halves with 2 tables spoons of olive oil, salt and pepper and place them cut side down on a baking tray.
Roast for 30 minutes, until the sweet potatoes are very soft.
Leave the potatoes to cool down until cool enough to handle and take the skin off (or scoop out the flesh with a spoon)
For the salsa, mix three tablespoons of olive oil with the chopped basil, chopped coriander, peeled and crushed garlic and 1 tablespoon of lime juice and 2 tablespoons of finely grated lime zest in a bowl. Add some salt.
Mash the sweet potatoes until smooth, spread on a serving dish and drizzle with salsa.
Stuffed zucchinis with pine nuts salsa
1 kg of sweet potatoes
5 tablespoons of olive oil
Chopped basil (approx. 5g)
Chopped coriander (approx. 5g)
½ garlic clove, peeled and crushed
2 limes
Salt
Pepper
Heat the oven to 200° C
Cut your sweet potatoes in half (lengthways) but do not remove the skin, season the potatoes halves with 2 tables spoons of olive oil, salt and pepper and place them cut side down on a baking tray.
Roast for 30 minutes, until the sweet potatoes are very soft.
Leave the potatoes to cool down until cool enough to handle and take the skin off (or scoop out the flesh with a spoon)
For the salsa, mix three tablespoons of olive oil with the chopped basil, chopped coriander, peeled and crushed garlic and 1 tablespoon of lime juice and 2 tablespoons of finely grated lime zest in a bowl. Add some salt.
Mash the sweet potatoes until smooth, spread on a serving dish and drizzle with salsa.
Stuffed zucchinis with pine nuts salsa
Ingredients (serves 2-4 people):
2 courgettes, cut in half (lengthways)
½ garlic clove, peeled and crushed
1 large egg
40g of pecorino (or parmesan), finely grated
40g of fresh sourdough breadcrumbs
100g of cherry tomatoes
1 lemon
4 tablespoons of finely chopped oregano leaves
35g of pine nuts
3 tablespoons of olive oil
Salt
Pepper
Heat the oven to 220° C
Scoop out the zucchini flesh with a small spoon but leaving around 1cm of flesh all around the sides so the zucchini hold their shape
Put the scooped zucchini flesh in a clean dish towel and squeeze out as much liquid as possible
Put the remaining flesh into a bowl and mix with the garlic, the beaten egg, the pecorino cheese, the breadcrumbs and a pinch of salt. Cut the cherry tomatoes in 2 or 4, crush with your hands and stir into the zucchini mixture.
In another bowl, mix 2 tablespoons of lemon zest, the oregano and the pine nuts. Stir half of this into the zucchini mixture and save the rest for later.
Arrange the hollowed zucchini cut side up on an oven tray, drizzle a tablespoon of olive oil and season with salt then spoon the zucchini mixture into the hollows
Bake for 15 mins, the filling should be golden-brown
While the zucchinis are baking, use the remaining half of your pine nuts and oregano mixture to make the salsa. Add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and two tablespoons of olive oil. Drizzle over the zucchinis once they are cooked and have cooled down a little bit.
Burnt Eggplant and Yogurt Dip
Ingredients:
1 eggplant
Greek Yogurt
2 tablespoons of olive oil
3 tablespoons of lemon juice
1 tablespoon of chopped parsley
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
Salt
Pepper
Pomegranate seeds for garnish
Heat the oven to 200° C
With a knife, score the eggplant in a few places and place in the oven, on a baking sheet for about an hour. Turn the eggplant every 20 minutes and continue to cook even if it burst and break.
Leave it to cool down and when cool enough to handle, scoop out the flesh and discard skin.
Put the flesh in a colander and allow to drain for as long as possible to get rid of as much water as possible.
Mix the eggplant pulp in a bowl together with the yogurt, garlic, the lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. Stir and let marinate at room temperature for at least an hour.
When ready to serve, add the parsley, garnish with pomegranate seeds and a drizzle of olive oil.
For more recipes, you can visit ottolenghi.co.uk
2 courgettes, cut in half (lengthways)
½ garlic clove, peeled and crushed
1 large egg
40g of pecorino (or parmesan), finely grated
40g of fresh sourdough breadcrumbs
100g of cherry tomatoes
1 lemon
4 tablespoons of finely chopped oregano leaves
35g of pine nuts
3 tablespoons of olive oil
Salt
Pepper
Heat the oven to 220° C
Scoop out the zucchini flesh with a small spoon but leaving around 1cm of flesh all around the sides so the zucchini hold their shape
Put the scooped zucchini flesh in a clean dish towel and squeeze out as much liquid as possible
Put the remaining flesh into a bowl and mix with the garlic, the beaten egg, the pecorino cheese, the breadcrumbs and a pinch of salt. Cut the cherry tomatoes in 2 or 4, crush with your hands and stir into the zucchini mixture.
In another bowl, mix 2 tablespoons of lemon zest, the oregano and the pine nuts. Stir half of this into the zucchini mixture and save the rest for later.
Arrange the hollowed zucchini cut side up on an oven tray, drizzle a tablespoon of olive oil and season with salt then spoon the zucchini mixture into the hollows
Bake for 15 mins, the filling should be golden-brown
While the zucchinis are baking, use the remaining half of your pine nuts and oregano mixture to make the salsa. Add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and two tablespoons of olive oil. Drizzle over the zucchinis once they are cooked and have cooled down a little bit.
Burnt Eggplant and Yogurt Dip
Ingredients:
1 eggplant
Greek Yogurt
2 tablespoons of olive oil
3 tablespoons of lemon juice
1 tablespoon of chopped parsley
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
Salt
Pepper
Pomegranate seeds for garnish
Heat the oven to 200° C
With a knife, score the eggplant in a few places and place in the oven, on a baking sheet for about an hour. Turn the eggplant every 20 minutes and continue to cook even if it burst and break.
Leave it to cool down and when cool enough to handle, scoop out the flesh and discard skin.
Put the flesh in a colander and allow to drain for as long as possible to get rid of as much water as possible.
Mix the eggplant pulp in a bowl together with the yogurt, garlic, the lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. Stir and let marinate at room temperature for at least an hour.
When ready to serve, add the parsley, garnish with pomegranate seeds and a drizzle of olive oil.
For more recipes, you can visit ottolenghi.co.uk
