I have to admit, the new Ottolenghi flavor I was pleasantly surprised by the cookbook I received a review copy of. It focuses, of course, on developing big flavors in each dish, but some of those flavors deviate a little from what we’ve come to expect from Ottolenghi recipes. It’s especially fun to see more chilies being used with inspiration from Mexican cuisine. This book builds A lot And Much more by continuing the vegetarian theme, and all recipes can easily be made vegan if desired. The goal here was to differentiate each vegetable using cooking techniques and pairing ingredients to maximize flavor potential. There are three sections focused on Process, Pairing, and Produce, and all three are filled with exciting dishes that I want to try. An example is the white bean mash with garlic aioli. At first glance, this looks like a fun take on kidney bean hummus topped with aioli, whole kidney beans, herbs, and oil. But reading the recipe reveals that the aioli is a non-traditional version, made with cooked and softened garlic, cooked kidney beans, Dijon, anchovies if you like, and lemon juice. I’m already making plans for some cooked cannellini beans I’ve been storing in the freezer. Another is the Lime Coconut Potato Gratin, which looks like a typical potato gratin but is completely vegan with coconut cream and flavored with lime, chilli, ginger and spring onions. Vegetables take on an intense flavor from slow frying in some cases and smoky char from grilling in other cases. A whole roasted celery root is sliced into steaks and topped with Café de Paris sauce. Aubergine is charred for a herb-heavy soup that looks gorgeous. And, Smoked Cascabel Oil sounds like something I want to drizzle on everything. There really are too many things I want to mention all, but tofu meatball korma, olive oil flatbread with three garlic butter and udon noodles with fried tofu and orange nam jim are at the top of my list. I immediately had to try the stuffed aubergine in curry and coconut dal and it didn’t disappoint. And before that, I made the Radish Cucumber Salad with Chipotle Peanuts.
For this salad, you’ll start by making the spiced peanuts, and I highly recommend making more than the recommended amount. They make a great snack and quickly disappear while the rest of the ingredients are processed. A dried chipotle was ground into a powder in a spice grinder. A portion of this was combined with peanuts, cayenne pepper, maple syrup, salt, lime juice, and olive oil in a skillet, where the mixture was cooked, stirring, until the peanuts were coated. The mixture was then transferred to a baking sheet and allowed to cool before being broken into pieces. For the salad, sliced cucumber, daikon, and coriander leaves were tossed with a dressing of minced garlic, jalapeno, cumin, lime zest, lime juice, olive oil, and salt and pepper. The salad was served on a platter with spiced peanuts.
This salad was big in texture and flavor. I had cucumber, purple daikon, and jalapeno from local farms to use here. The freshness of the veggies and the tangy kick of the dressing and peanuts made for a great combination. It reminded me of a Thai salad I’d made before that also brought together cucumber, chili peppers, and peanuts, but here the smoked chipotle and jalapenos took a new direction. I can’t wait to try all the other new directions found in dishes throughout the book.
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