Extracted from Ottolenghi Simple Too by Yotam Ottolenghi and Verena Lochmuller
(Ebury Press, 30).
All photography by Jonathan Lovekin.
Three Delicious Dinner Ideas from Ottolenghi SIMPLE TOO
Don't miss these simply delicious recipes from Yotam Ottolenghi and Verena Lochmuller's new book
An extension of award-winning cook book Ottolenghi SIMPLE, Yotam Ottolenghi and Verena Lochmuller's new book Ottolenghi SIMPLE TOO is the perfect companion for a life of slow and easy home cooking, inviting you into the kitchen with a promise that even the simplest of meals can be full of flavour and joy.
Chaya’s Saffron Yoghurt Hake
This makes a colourful impact placed in the middle of a dinner party table, thanks to the saffron. Thank you, saffron! Thanks also to our test kitchen colleague Chaya, who developed this dish. It’s got Chaya written all over it: generous, sunny and loved by all. Take a moment to slice the lemons as thinly as you can: the aim is for them to almost melt on top of the fish. Serve with the spiced roast potatoes, or any potatoes.
Serves
4–6
Prep time:
20 minutes
Cook time:
15 minutes
Ingredients
- 3/4 tsp saffron strands
- 2 sides of hake or cod, skin on (1.2kg)
- 360g Greek yoghurt
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 lemon, very thinly sliced (1–2mm thick)
- 15g thyme sprigs
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds, lightly crushed
- 100ml olive oil
- Fine sea salt and black pepper
Method
Preheat the oven to 240C fan.
Add the saffron to a small frying pan on a low heat for one minute to warm up slightly. Take off the heat, add three tablespoons of water and set aside to bloom for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, place the fish, skin side down, in a large baking tray and sprinkle over one teaspoon of salt and a good grind of pepper.
Mix the saffron and liquid with the yoghurt, garlic and a half teaspoon of salt. Reserve a quarter of the mixture for later and use a spoon to generously cover the fish with the rest. Arrange half the lemon slices on top of the fish, with the rest nestled around the fish on the tray. Scatter over the thyme and cumin, followed by a good grind of pepper. Drizzle over the olive oil and bake for 12 minutes, until some of the lemon slices and thyme are slightly charred and the fish is tender and flakes easily when pressed.
Serve with the reserved yoghurt on the side.
Chicken Meatballs with Pistachios and Spinach
These Iranian-inspired meatballs don’t sit quietly on the plate. They’re super bright with plenty of herbs and pistachios, and lightly sweetened with dried fruit. The food processor does much of the work for you and the result is a whole meal in itself, served in a shallow bowl, with some flatbreads if you like.
Serves
4–6
Prep time:
15 minutes
Cook time:
30 minutes
Ingredients
- 100g pistachio kernels
- 8–10 spring onions, roughly chopped (125g)
- 50g coriander, roughly chopped
- 20g dill, roughly chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 2 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 25g panko breadcrumbs
- 1 egg
- 400g chicken or turkey mince
- 105ml olive oil
- 200g baby spinach leaves, roughly chopped
- 650ml chicken stock
- 100g orzo
- 75g dried sour cherries (or cranberries), roughly chopped
- 2 tsp cherry molasses (or pomegranate molasses)
- lemon wedges, to serve
- Fine sea salt and black pepper
Method
Combine the first seven ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and blitz until finely chopped. Transfer 175g of the mixture to a small bowl and set aside. Keep the remainder in the food processor and add the breadcrumbs, egg, mince, three-quarter teaspoon of salt and plenty of pepper. Blitz to combine, then shape into 14 meatballs.
Put two tablespoons of oil into a large sauté pan on a medium high heat. Add the meatballs and brown on all sides, about five minutes. Remove to a plate.
Add the remaining 75ml of oil to the pan along with the reserved blitzed mixture and the spinach. Cook for about three minutes, stirring until wilted, then add the stock, orzo, sour cherries, molasses and three-quarter teaspoon of salt. Bring to a simmer, add the meatballs and reduce the heat to medium-low. Cook for 10 minutes, covered, until the meatballs and orzo are cooked through. Leave to stand, covered, for five to 10 minutes, until the orzo has plumped up and thickened the sauce. Serve with a squeeze of lemon.
Make ahead: The whole dish can be made the day before, ready to warm through before serving.
Roast Chicken and Cabbage with Soy Butter
There are many ways to make cabbage delicious but it’s hard to improve on butter. The result of adding nearly half a pack to the baking tray is the equivalent of liquid gold. Embrace it! Embrace, too, the spatchcocking of the chicken. You can either ask your butcher to do it for you or look online for tips. It takes less than five minutes and the time is more than made up for by how quickly and evenly the chicken then roasts. Serve this with plenty of steamed rice.
Serves
4
Prep time:
15 minutes
Cook time:
45 minutes
Ingredients
- 2 hispi cabbages, quartered (1kg)
- 2 heads of garlic, top 1cm removed
- 2 bunches of spring onions, cut into thirds (160g)
- 325ml chicken stock
- 70g ginger, peeled and cut into matchsticks
- 1 whole chicken, spatchcocked (1.7kg)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 100g unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- Fine sea salt and white pepper
Method
Preheat the oven to 220C fan.
Put the cabbage, garlic, spring onions, stock and ginger in a high-sided roasting tray. Season the chicken all over with one teaspoon of salt and one and a half teaspoons of white pepper and sit it on top of the cabbage. Drizzle the chicken with the oil and roast for 30 minutes.
Remove the chicken from the oven and stir the butter and soy sauce into the tray juices until melted, then use the mixture to baste the cabbage. Return to the oven for another 15 minutes, until the chicken is golden and cooked through and the cabbage is tender and caramelised.
Squeeze out the garlic cloves, mix into the sauce and serve.
