Ottolenghi FLAVOUR

Have you noticed how negative reviews invariably get more helpful votes than positive ones. When I checked out the reviews for this much-awaited and celebrated book by Ottolenghi, the first one that popped up was by somebody from the UK who called it 'disappointing' but had 193 helpful votes. There were no reviews on Amazon India and I decided to go with my gut feel about this book and the fact that except for his book NOPI, Yotam Ottolenghi has yet to disappoint me. And boy, am I glad that I bought it. I think it has to be one of his best books. Apart from bringing in his usual Middle Eastern touches, he has cleverly used Indian spices and techniques, such as tempering with curry leaves and mustard seeds etc to add another layer of flavour to many dishes. I tried his Potato Gratin last night - the addition of coconut cream was masterful and added such a depth of flavour to an otherwise ordinary western dish. His hummus uses ginger in addition to garlic, not only as part of the paste but also as a fried aromatic along with onions, cinammon and red chillies to add on top. His sweet potato and yogurt and lime mash recipe is clever and now a family favourite. I could go on and on. At the end of the book, his menu suggestions for everyday cooking and feasts are very useful. In this book, all recipes, except for three or four, have accompanying pictures. His section on 'Flavour bombs' is particularly useful - there are 23 different marinades, sauces, condiments, pickles, nuts and sprinkles that you can make that can lift the flavour profile of any meal. What doesn't work is the layout which is segregated into processes (charring, browning etc), pairing (sweetness, salt etc) and produce (mushrooms, alliums etc). There are some pages wasted on explaining what each of these items means. Maybe this is needed for newbie chefs but experienced cooks might become impatient with it. I recommend this book without hesitation for any cook who loves to try new flavour combinations. This is mostly a positive review and I bet I don't get many helpful votes if any at all.

New unusual flavors and fab review of cooking methods ... only for serious home cook's who want to raise their game.

One of the best books with the best recipes..just blindly go for it

Loved how vegetables are given pride of place in delicious recipes. A beautiful cook book. Definitely worth the splurge to make restaurant quality dishes at home.

My first Ottolenghi book though I have tried plenty of their recipes before. This one is for the advanced and experimental cook and somebody with a larder full of things already. Recipes are necessarily not complicated but require ingredients which are uncommon sometimes in India (cascabel chillies and barberry!) and advanced planning. That said, many recipes utilise the Indian tempering (bhuna, phoron) technique and its exciting to use it with unfamiliar dishes. Buy it only if you have a deep interest in cooking and trying out new dishes.