I'm a big fan of Jamie Oliver's recipes. The man himself I find fairly irritating, but that is by the by. Every recipe I have made of his has been a delicious success, always clearly explained, with impressive results.
The recipes in his last title, 30 Minute Meals, tended to take me a good hour, so I was hopeful this '15 minute' sequel would put me nearer the thirty minute mark. And by George I was right, and it offers more than just speed. Flicking through this colourful book, with clear illustrations of every dish, fills you quickly with meal inspiration and makes you hungry to get going. The recipes are well explained and could certainly be picked up easily by an amateur cook and will likely turn out something that will impress all your friends.
One of the standout recipes I've tried so far has to be the 'Ultimate Pork Tacos with Spicy Black Beans and Avocado Salad'. I'm a tex-mex nut and so these flavours all naturally sing to me, but this really is something special, and so so easy. The pork is flavoured simply with paprika and fennel seeds and the contrast of this comforting flavour with the sharp apple and lime in the salad is heavenly. In fact the salad deserves a whole blog post of its own it's so good.
Last night I made his tasty 'Sausage Gnocchi with Warm Kale and Bean Salad', which was incredibly simple to make and you could certainly serve at a dinner party. He finishes the dish with a drizzle of fat-free yoghurt, which is just a stroke of genius as an alternative to cheese, giving the same creamy consistency without any of the fat. Although it was nice to do something a little different with the greens in this warm 'salad', it wasn't anything special and I probably wouldn't bother with it again.
His 'Thai Chicken Laksa' was absolutely delicious with such vibrant colours. A little tip - if you're planning on freezing portions do so without the rice noodles, as they will keep soaking up the juices and dissolve into little bits (I may have learned this the awkward way...).
My boyfriend and I cooked up his 'Gorgeous Greek Chicken with Herby Vegetable Cous Cous and Tzatziki' and were left a little underwhelmed by our efforts. The couscous didn't have as much flavour as we would have wanted and also wasn't all that hot so it was more of a salad. We also thought it would be funny to time ourselves, and despite there being 2 of us, if we had eaten at the 15 minute mark we would of had to chow down on a whole load of raw chicken. Yum.
Jamie's recipes may be delicious, but they don't come cheap. It's not just that he uses expensive ingredients that the average skinty wouldn't have hanging around their cupboards ('a splash of cider vinegar', 'a glug of cianti'), it's that he also uses so many ingredients. After a quick tally, I found the average recipe has a whopping 19! This will probably be fine for a seasoned cook who can easily spot the necessary flavourings from the ones that won't be missed, but these long lists would be off-putting to someone new to cooking.
A slight difficulty I find with these recipes is that he doesn't always include the cooking times for each step. Now I realise this is because you are supposed to be doing this all in 15 minutes, so if timed correctly by the time you have finished chopping ingredient X, ingredient Y should be cooked through. However by the time Chef Me has peeled and chopped a bag of carrots, faffed around trying to find pans and chatted to my housemate, ingredient Y may have burned... So it can be slightly stressful getting everything ready at the same time.
But even if there are a few misses in all the hits, they're still all really interesting recipes and a step outside of most quick-cooking comfort zones. He's obviously taken real time to think about what families would want for dinner and has been realistic with the skill level of home cooks so there's nothing too fancy that you wouldn't bother with.
Recipe Ideas: *****
Easy to find Ingredients: *****
Easy to follow: ****
Photography: *****
Skint friendly: ***
Overall: A massive thumbs up
The recipe I'm highlighting is his 'Ricotta Fritters with Tomato Sauce and Courgette Salad'. I chose it as it's a really interesting vegetarian main so far away from the normal stuff veggies are always lumbered with at dinner parties. The ricotta fritters have a gorgeous creamy texture and the courgette and mint salad has a lemony zing that contrasts amazingly with the mellow tomato sauce. Enjoy!
Et Voila! A tasty and impressive vegetarian dream.
SG x
Last night I made his tasty 'Sausage Gnocchi with Warm Kale and Bean Salad', which was incredibly simple to make and you could certainly serve at a dinner party. He finishes the dish with a drizzle of fat-free yoghurt, which is just a stroke of genius as an alternative to cheese, giving the same creamy consistency without any of the fat. Although it was nice to do something a little different with the greens in this warm 'salad', it wasn't anything special and I probably wouldn't bother with it again.
His 'Thai Chicken Laksa' was absolutely delicious with such vibrant colours. A little tip - if you're planning on freezing portions do so without the rice noodles, as they will keep soaking up the juices and dissolve into little bits (I may have learned this the awkward way...).
My boyfriend and I cooked up his 'Gorgeous Greek Chicken with Herby Vegetable Cous Cous and Tzatziki' and were left a little underwhelmed by our efforts. The couscous didn't have as much flavour as we would have wanted and also wasn't all that hot so it was more of a salad. We also thought it would be funny to time ourselves, and despite there being 2 of us, if we had eaten at the 15 minute mark we would of had to chow down on a whole load of raw chicken. Yum.
Jamie's recipes may be delicious, but they don't come cheap. It's not just that he uses expensive ingredients that the average skinty wouldn't have hanging around their cupboards ('a splash of cider vinegar', 'a glug of cianti'), it's that he also uses so many ingredients. After a quick tally, I found the average recipe has a whopping 19! This will probably be fine for a seasoned cook who can easily spot the necessary flavourings from the ones that won't be missed, but these long lists would be off-putting to someone new to cooking.
It's a shame, because this really is a great book and, truthfully, every single meal I've made from it has been amazing. So with a bit of a Skint Gourmet makeover, I've adapted them slightly so they wont break the bank, advising what I think can be chucked and what the key ingredients you must stick to are.
But even if there are a few misses in all the hits, they're still all really interesting recipes and a step outside of most quick-cooking comfort zones. He's obviously taken real time to think about what families would want for dinner and has been realistic with the skill level of home cooks so there's nothing too fancy that you wouldn't bother with.
Recipe Ideas: *****
Easy to find Ingredients: *****
Easy to follow: ****
Photography: *****
Skint friendly: ***
Overall: A massive thumbs up
The recipe I'm highlighting is his 'Ricotta Fritters with Tomato Sauce and Courgette Salad'. I chose it as it's a really interesting vegetarian main so far away from the normal stuff veggies are always lumbered with at dinner parties. The ricotta fritters have a gorgeous creamy texture and the courgette and mint salad has a lemony zing that contrasts amazingly with the mellow tomato sauce. Enjoy!
Ricotta Fritters with Tomato Sauce and Courgette Salad
Ingredients out - Kettle boiled - Large frying pan on medium heat - Large casserole on a low heat - Food processor out with grater attachment
Put the porcini into a mug and cover with boiling water. Crack the egg into a mixing bowl, add the ricotta, finely grate in 1/4 of the nutmeg, the lemon zest and parmesan, add the flour, then beat beat together. Put 1 tablespoon of olive oil into the frying pan, then use a tablespoon to poon in 8 large dollops of the mixture, turning carefully when nice and golden.
Put the anchovies (if using) and 1 tablespoon of olive oil into the casserole pan, crumble in the died chilli, and squash in the unpeeled garlic through the garlic crusher. Finely chop and add the porcini with half their soaking water and the passata, season with salt and pepper and bring to the boil. squash and add the olives, dicarding the stones. Pick and reserve a few basil leaves, then chop the rest and add to the sauce.
Grate the courgette in the processor (you could use a box grater here) and top into a bowl with a pinch of salt and pepper, the juice of the zested lemon an the extra virgin olive oil. Finely chop and add the chilli and the top leafy half of the mint, then toss together.
Place the fritters on top of the sauce, then scatter over the reserved basil leaves, drizzle with balsamic and serve with lemon wedges.
Et Voila! A tasty and impressive vegetarian dream.
SG x
