5 stars
Michael Joseph, £26
Never scared to court controversy, Jamie’s been in the news for his views on cooking and poverty. This has distracted attention from what he’s really good at: motivating unskilled cooks with thrilling recipes. The latest recipe book from his enormous team builds on the huge success of his recent good-meal-in-a-rush volumes – but eclipses them. Gone are the overpriced packets of supermarket herbs, plus the unrealistic timelines. In its place are recipes made with leftovers and store-cupboard essentials that are simple to make, but very appetising to both read about and eat.
I started with the pappa alle zucchine, a soup-like stew that takes advantage of the seasonal glut of courgettes and hoarded stale bread. The result had a remarkable depth of flavour and appealing texture. Next, sag aloo, which cost pence in spinach and potato ingredients, yet tasted sensational.
The book is filled with such dishes that look appealing and are not too intimidating to attempt. As there are cut-price book offers on it, you can indeed save with Jamie.
Guy Dimond, Time Out London Issue 2244 September 10-16, 2013
Buy this book
