Yotam Ottolenghi's 'Flavour' - Lambs' Ears and Honey

Echoing the familiar characteristics of his past hugely successful cookbooks, Yotam Ottolenghi’s ‘Flavour’ makes vegetables even more interesting and is a welcome new addition to his impressive repertoire.

Yotam Ottolenghi is immensely popular in the UK, and just as idolised here in Australia, where fans are welcoming his new book, ‘Flavour’ (Penguin Random House, $55 RRP) with very open arms.

This is the third instalment in Yotam’s ‘Plenty’ series, and once again celebrates the limitless flavour potential of vegetables, looking at what makes them distinct, and exploring ways to intensify their inherent taste characteristics. Using 20 essential accompanying ingredients, the book divides into three sections – process, pairing, and produce – to reveal how to maximise the impact of the individual vegetable flavours, and throws in a few flavour bombs to really make your dishes pop.

Unlike ‘Simple’, this is something of a return to the Ottolenghi of old, with some dishes requiring several processes, and more than a handful of ingredients but, as ever, the payoff is absolutely on the plate and the palate. The Ultimate Traybake Ragù combines unlikely partners like miso, rose harissa and porcini mushrooms to create a umami-rich vegetarian dish that will convert even the staunchest of meat-eaters, and treats like his kimchi and gruyere rice fritters give left-over rice a delicious new life.

There are 100 vegetable recipes in Yotam Ottolenghi’s ‘Flavour’, with 45 of them strictly vegan and another 17 that can be easily ‘veganised’. No one will go hungry when you share this food with loved ones of any dietary persuasion, and the dishes will keep you going through a steamy summer, to chilly winter nights when comfort food is in high demand.

With the pressure on all of us to lessen our carbon footprint and reduce our red meat intake, Yotam Ottolenghi’s ‘Flavour’ will add a significant tool to our belts as we all work towards a more plant-based diet.

The blurb on the back of Yotam Ottolenghi’s ‘Flavour’ promises “low-effort, high-impact dishes that pack a punch” and this Iceberg Lettuce Wedges with Smoky Aubergine Cream recipe does exactly what it says on the box -it’s amazing!

You can buy Yotam Ottolenghi’s ‘Flavour’ from good bookstores, or online at Booktopia. (If purchased via the link on this page, I will receive a small percentage of the cost.)
Lambs’ Ears received a review copy of this cookbook.