Yotam Ottolenghi
Yotam Ottolenghi
Yotam Ottolenghi Yotam Assaf Ottolenghiis an Israeli-born British chef, recipe writer and restaurant owner...
NationalityIsraeli
ProfessionChef
Date of Birth14 December 1968
CountryIsrael
brown cultivated lead rice valuable varied
I now understand how varied the world of cultivated rice is; that rice can play the lead or be a sidekick; that brown rice is as valuable as white; and that short-grain rice is the bee's knees.
bland loads soak
Forget mung beans' reputation as healthy yet bland - used right, they soak up loads of flavour.
enhancing gently mainly mushroom soothing
Barley and mushroom is a soothing combination. It's mainly a textural thing, with the barley both gently breaking and enhancing the mushroomy gloopiness.
accused ingredient truth
I've been accused of having very long ingredient lists, and I guess there's some truth in that.
cheese good image people
People don't know how good cauliflower is, because they always have this image of cauliflower cheese - awful, sticky, creamy and rich.
admittedly main raw
Raw fish suppers admittedly require a little planning, not least in the acquisition of the main ingredient.
busiest home
Even in the busiest kitchen, there's always a point at the end of the day when you go home.
knowledge naturally
The teaching thing, the one where I have to impart my knowledge, is probably what comes the least naturally to me because I'm an absorber of things.
bowl meals plain rice served southern stuff
Buttermilk's palate-cleansing tartness is one reason it's used a lot in southern India, where meals often end with a small bowl of the stuff served with plain rice and pickles.
case either religion time
There used to be a time - it isn't so much the case now - that vegetarianism was some kind of religion, and either you belong or you don't belong.
enjoy
I enjoy meat, but I can do without it.
dad few food
My dad makes food with very few delicate flavours.
favourite
My all-time favourite classic use of ricotta is in gnudi: fluffy, cheesy dumplings of almost ethereal, feathery lightness.
absorb cooked love rarely rice similarly split
I rarely cook traditional risotto, but I love other grains cooked similarly - barley, spelt or split wheat. I find they have more character than rice and absorb other flavours more wholeheartedly.