Yotam Ottolenghi

“It's hard to beat the rough texture of steel-cut oats, with their slight resistance against the teeth.”

“If the British Isles had an official vegetable, it would have to be the potato.”

“As is always the way with pancakes, the first hotcake to come out of the pan will probably be a bit misshapen. Just scoff it, and carry on with the rest.”

“You don't need a machine to make pasta: a rolling pin and a fast hand can create a smooth, if thick, sheet.”

“The unlikely combination of potatoes and pasta does appear in some Italian recipes.”

“Chermoula is a potent North African spice paste that is ideal for smearing on your favourite vegetables for roasting.”

“There are many reasons I feel at home in the U.K., but if I were asked to pinpoint the moment I knew I'd arrived, it might well be when I realised the British shared my love of fritters.”

“If I must choose between healthy and tasty, I go for the second: having only one life to waste, it might as well be a pleasurable one.”

“On some subconscious level, I've been prejudiced against turnips, parsnips, swedes and other roots. Do they taste of much? Are they really special? How wrong I was.”

“Apart from its famous healing properties, manuka has a strong, woody flavour.”

“I used to have a very unmediated experience of food but, because of the recipe testing, I've lost that now. I can't switch it off even when I'm on holiday.”

“I can't stand recipes that don't have background.”

“Most of my recipes start life in the domestic kitchen, and even those that start out in the restaurant kitchen have to go through the domestic kitchen.”

“After all these years of cooking and writing recipes, I am still amazed every time I notice how even the minutest of variation in technique can make a spectacular difference.”

“I tend to mean what I say: in life, generally; in recipes, certainly.”

“Recipes can be incredibly vague where chillies are concerned.”

“Date syrup is a natural sweetener that has wonderful richness and treacly depth; I drizzle it over semolina porridge.”

“A well-made salad must have a certain uniformity; it should make perfect sense for those ingredients to share a bowl.”

“The taste of any simple tomato-based salad is dependent on the quality of the tomatoes.”

“Leeks are normally given the job of flavouring other things, such as stocks and soups, but I find their creaminess and sweet, oniony flavour very satisfying.”