100 new easy recipes that will make you fall in love with the hand of the successful chef Ottolenghi: "If I could only eat vegetables, I would eat aubergines"

Supposedly a journalist should never tell his interviewee that he is his most absolute fan. And less, tell it to those who are about to read the interview. But me, look, I'm going to break that rule for once. Here and now I declare myself a devoted admirer of

and his

His is, among others,

(ed. Salamandra), without a doubt the

from which I have copied the most, my

Because all their recipes, without exception, work wonders. And also because to those of us who have never been virtuous in the kitchen, he has given us a boost of self-esteem and a sovereign open-mindedness thanks to his way of formulating recipes and his lack of prejudice when it comes to mixing spices from all latitudes. So when I found out that he was publishing a new cookbook, 'Sabores', I was instantly excited and asked the publisher for an interview.

The book was written by the British-Israeli chef together with

a young chef who started working in places like Italy, Mexico and Brazil until she met Ottolenghi and started working with him, first at the

restaurant

in London and later in

, the laboratory where the dishes that the chef offers in his restaurants come from and published in his books and columns for '

or the

'Sabores' is the first book that she signs as a co-author, and where she has poured much of her wisdom, which has led some media to baptize her as the new queen of fusion. Ottolenghi is overjoyed with happiness at the result of this hand-made book that closes a particular journey: that of vegetables.

'Flavors' is the book that closes your trilogy on vegetables, after 'The vegetarian gourmet' and 'Exuberance'. What has this long journey you have made with vegetables contributed to you as a cook? It has given me so much! It has made me more creative and experimental on the one hand but, at the same time, more respectful and contained on the other. Does that contradiction make sense? When I started writing veggie-only recipes, I honestly thought I'd run out of ideas pretty soon. I couldn't imagine then that being 'limited' to vegetables (the first column I had was vegetarian) would allow and encourage me to be so creative. It has never ceased to amaze me how versatile vegetables can be, depending on how you cook them, what you combine them with, or their inherent flavor. I love this versatility,at the same time that I always want a carrot to look and taste like a carrot; That's what I mean by wanting to be respectful and content as well as creative and experimental. 100 recipes. From the moment you start to imagine it until it is embodied in the book, is there a long trial-error process or does everything you imagine usually come out the first time? Not at all. Each cookbook is, in itself, a veritable journey that lasts many (many!) Months. Each book that I have done starts with a clear mission (which in this case was three: the book that was going to complete the trilogy of only vegetables). But throughout that journey, the recipes reveal a story that the book tells, regardless of what your initial objective was. And then each recipe is a journey in itself. Ixta Belfrage, the co-author,was the main guide here. Together with our colleagues at Test Kitchen and armed with her box of secret ingredients (Mexican chilies! Limes! Chili paste!), Ixta has developed recipes that went through two or three (or more) repetitions before they were finally approved. . Very few things come out the first time: 'Flavors' is a book that truly sets a milestone on what can be done with vegetables. If the recipes had come out the first time, I think we would all have thought we could take them to an even higher level. Why are raw vegetables still so scary? In Spain, for example, there are some like broccoli or zucchini, or your beloved cauliflower! that are almost always eaten cooked ... Poor broccoli! It's easy to fall for it, I know:People may think that cooking vegetables is equivalent to boiling or overcooking them. But the point is that if a vegetable can be eaten raw, it most likely needs very little cooking to bring it to fruition. One of my favorite ways to

for example, is to

briefly

the

before

in a

With very little cooking (so they are still crisp) they retain a lovely look and interesting texture with their burnt stems. Is there a trick that always works? A general rule of thumb, for anyone who is' scared 'by raw vegetables is' less is more'. A quick mix of olive oil and seasonings and a skillet or a quick roast, and you've likely got something delicious to eat. A splash of lemon (or lime, in the case of Ixta!) Is always great before serving, as are some freshly chopped herbs. What are the main prejudices that you propose to discard regarding vegetables? boring or something you must eat out of obligation. I know most people get through this once they leave childhood behind,but it still baffles me that vegetables are presented as something kids 'should' eat rather than something they should want to eat. For skeptical adults I would propose to discard the assumption that their diet will be very limited if they put vegetables in the center. They will find out the opposite is true! What is the most unfairly misunderstood vegetable? Lots of whites! Rutabagas, turnips! They have such an unsexy reputation! If you could only eat veggies for a whole week, which one would you stick with?What is the most unfairly misunderstood vegetable? Lots of whites! Rutabagas, turnips! They have such an unsexy reputation! If you could only eat veggies for a whole week, which one would you stick with?What is the most unfairly misunderstood vegetable? Lots of whites! Rutabagas, turnips! They have such an unsexy reputation! If you could only eat veggies for a whole week, which one would you stick with?

They are so versatile! I would char them whole to remove the pulp from the

with which I sprinkle all my salads; the cut dicing and

for my

[a mixture of spices]

; I'd cut them into

and

to serve with a charred chili sauce; I would roast them

which are then stuffed and cooked with dal [dried legumes that do not require soaking before cooking, in Indian cuisine]. And those are just 'Flavors' recipes! The possibilities just never end (ask me next week, and I'd obviously pick something completely different!) What's your favorite recipe from the book? Because you sure have some ... I'd say

but it's going to sound like you're obsessed with eggplants! I will then go for the dish that I cook the most:

So simple and easy; so good. We are talking about a classic, I know, but it works! [It is the chef's most famous pasta recipe, and has been published countless times in the international press]. Tell me that many recipes in the book use sumac, because I bought it for you! [many of Ottolenghi's recipes include this spice, easy to find online, for example on Amazon]. In any case, what is your favorite spice for its versatility, the one that should never be missing in a kitchen? I certainly love sumac, for all its acid touch (and its bold color) but, actually, my spice rack is quite good assortment. I can't go long without cumin - seeded and ground - and ground cardamom is wonderful too. It's so different, so warm. Vegetables, for reasons we all know,They have lost a lot of flavor in the last few decades. Should we understand once and for all that paying more for a very good tomato is a true investment in our well-being? Paying more for a very good tomato is a true investment in many things: the land that grows it, the people who care for it . It is also a very good way to get great flavor. Eating seasonally is an excellent starting point to start enjoying vegetables, because that is how you get to the essence, how they should be. Tomatoes in summer, zucchini in fall, cavolo nero [a cousin of cabbage and kale] in winter, and so on. However, out of season, canned tomatoes are a pantry staple. So it's not just a world of traditional tomatoes on the one hand and no tomatoes on the other.Should we understand once and for all that paying more for a very good tomato is a true investment in our well-being? Paying more for a very good tomato is a true investment in many things: the land that grows it, the people who care for it . It is also a very good way to get great flavor. Eating seasonally is an excellent starting point to start enjoying vegetables, because that is how you get to the essence, how they should be. Tomatoes in summer, zucchini in fall, cavolo nero [a cousin of cabbage and kale] in winter, and so on. However, out of season, canned tomatoes are a pantry staple. So it's not just a world of traditional tomatoes on the one hand and no tomatoes on the other.Should we understand once and for all that paying more for a very good tomato is a true investment in our well-being? Paying more for a very good tomato is a true investment in many things: the land that grows it, the people who care for it . It is also a very good way to get great flavor. Eating seasonally is an excellent starting point to start enjoying vegetables, because that is how you get to the essence, how they should be. Tomatoes in summer, zucchini in fall, cavolo nero [a cousin of cabbage and kale] in winter, and so on. However, out of season, canned tomatoes are a pantry staple. So it's not just a world of traditional tomatoes on the one hand and no tomatoes on the other.the people who take care of it. It is also a very good way to get great flavor. Eating seasonally is an excellent starting point to start enjoying vegetables, because that is how you get to the essence, how they should be. Tomatoes in summer, zucchini in fall, cavolo nero [a cousin of cabbage and kale] in winter, and so on. However, out of season, canned tomatoes are a pantry staple. So it's not just a world of traditional tomatoes on the one hand and no tomatoes on the other.the people who take care of it. It is also a very good way to get great flavor. Eating seasonally is an excellent starting point to start enjoying vegetables, because that is how you get to the essence, how they should be. Tomatoes in summer, zucchini in fall, cavolo nero [a cousin of cabbage and kale] in winter, and so on. However, out of season, canned tomatoes are a pantry staple. So it's not just a world of traditional tomatoes on the one hand and no tomatoes on the other.In the off-season, canned tomatoes are a pantry staple. So it's not just a world of traditional tomatoes on the one hand and no tomatoes on the other.In the off-season, canned tomatoes are a pantry staple. So it's not just a world of traditional tomatoes on the one hand and no tomatoes on the other.

We also asked

about what it was like to work with Ottolenghi on this book, the first of his career.

Has this first editorial experience been satisfactory? What would you highlight? With this book we wanted to bring a new set of ingredients to the table. Ingredients that Ottolenghi customers may be less familiar with, such as

etc. Of

course, not forgetting the classic ingredients of Ottolenghi as

the

or

(although it is true that at some point during the process of writing the book We realized we had no recipes tahini or za'atar!). The challenge was to create recipes that used these ingredients in new and exciting ways. The recipes of

and

are great examples of how we solved the challenge. Did you have a disagreement with a recipe?

Working with Yotam on this book has been a very positive experience.

Fortunately, we have very similar tastes, so we never had any disagreements!

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

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