Jamie's choice
EAT&DR|NK
5' I"
Having sampled JAMIE OLIVER’s latest cookbook, Barry Shelby is glad of the former Naked Chef’s food ecology message.
recent survey identil'icd .lamie ()liver as the one
person to whom younger people listen and trust. lividence ol
his success with l’il'tecn. the London restaurant built around young apparent no-hopers. confirms the ()liver el‘l‘cct. So why is the guy shilling l‘or Sainsbury‘s'.’ The kids may be all right. but too often their diet is crap. ()liver should be taking less-lilthy' lucre from government and promoting good lood and home cooking to the population at the e\pensive ol' tax-pay'ers' not bloody |.ord Sainsbury.
\Vllile ()liy‘c‘l"s most dedicated liollowing may be the under-2| set. his demographics surely now include parents starting families. too. given that he and his beloved .lools have a couple ol their own sprogs: l’oppy' Honey and Daisy Boo. if you must know (the late l’aula Yates would surely have approved l.
His latest. .lumic's Dinners. trailing an upcoming (‘hannel 4 series with presumably the same name. has a slightly misleading title. There are recipes for everything from pasta to sandwiches. as well as the successt'ul and almost tail-sale one-tray meals that ()liver has helped to popularise. The lavishly illustrated. .‘wlll-page tome is pitched by the publishers as not only ot‘l’ering Ill) new recipes but a 'lil'c choice' as well. That's a bit rich. But the point is this: ()liver wants Us to take the food we eat more serioLIsly. (iarbage in. garbage out. to borrow the old computer saw.
.-\ key early chapter. the ‘liamily
'l‘rec‘. olil‘et‘s a set ol recipes liol' ingredients that then can be used in a variety ol~ subsequent ways. So. l‘or example. he ol‘l'ers a slow cooked shoulder ol' lamb and then three variations on what to do with the meat (or perhaps the lel'tovcrsl. This is. intentionally or not. a lesson in more sustainable living. l’aying a
bit more for a nice hel'ty bit ol‘
locally reared lamb perhaps from l’entland's Mrs Hamilton's Organic and Using it tor l‘our meals: that's more than Highland economics. ‘(iood—quality loud and produce and yes. this may involve organics is always considered to be middle— class or rich peoplch l'ood.‘ ()liver writes. ‘\\'rong.‘ Indeed. he hints that it is all rather culturally oriented
rather than class based. lle recalls his pre—nuptial days when a good. healthy (and potentially expensive) meal at a restaurant was eschewed by mates in layour of a trip to the club. where more cash was dropped in the end.
It‘s not necessarily about how much one spends. but on what. It‘s about choices. .\'ow coming lrom a New Labour l‘lunky' (or indeed a well—meaning l'ood hack) this message falls as flat as a punctured soul'lle. But il‘ ()liver were otit there delivering it on a weekly basis. many people would listen and perhaps take the lessons on board.
Jamie’s Dinners, published by Penguin, is out now. 000
TASTY FISH BAKE
A snippet from Oliver's book This particular fish bake was brought to my attention recently by one of my students. It‘s essentially some slow- cooked ‘jammified‘ sweet onions and fennel, layered with lovely, flaky fish, crunchy potatoes and breadcrumbs with a little cream and cheese, and baked in the oven. The dish makes wonderful use of trout (as I’ve used here), sardines, salmon or mackerel — any fish really, but oily ones are great to use, especially for kids. Try to get hold of the freshest fish you can, and ask your fishmonger to prepare it and get rid of the bones for you.
Serves 4
4009/1402 potatoes, scrubbed and finely sliced
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 clove of garlic, peeled and chopped
1 onion, peeled and sliced
1 bulb of fennel, trimmed and sliced
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
4 medium or 8 small fillets of trout, pinboned
285ml single cream
2 handfuls of freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for sprinkling
2 anchovy fillets
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 handfuls of fresh breadcrumbs
2 lemons, halved
0 Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/gas 6. First of all, parboil the sliced potatoes in salted boiling water for a few minutes until softened and then drain in a colander. Place a 2OCm/8 inch casserole-type pan on a low heat, and add the oil, garlic, onion, fennel and fennel seeds. Cook slowly for 10 minutes with the lid on, stirring every so often.
0 Take the pan off the heat. Lay your trout fillets skin-side up over the onion and fennel. Mix together your cream, Parmesan and anchovies, season with salt and black pepper, and pour over the fish. Toss the potato slices in olive oil, salt and pepper and layer these over the top. Place in the oven for 20 minutes, sprinkling with the breadcrumbs and grated Parmesan 5 minutes before the end. Serve with lemon halves, a green salad and cold beers.
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