Notes about Recipes in this book

• Sweet cherry tomato and sausage bake

  • Jane on October 25, 2019

    This was a very quick and easy supper. Well, quick in the prep - it does take almost an hour in the oven. My sausages didn't brown well, I'm not sure why. They were cooked through but looked rather anemic. I would have left it longer in the oven if I hadn't been starving hungry. Tasted good though. The tomatoes threw off a lot of liquid but that was fine with the mashed potatoes I served it with (along with green beans).

  • Cheri on August 07, 2013

    This was easy and good. Needs to bake for at least an hour. Used fresh turkey Italian sausages, mixed cherry tomatoes. Crusty bread a must with this dish.

  • jannybee on January 08, 2012

    One of my top ten recipes! Fresh, easy and full of flavor. The tomatos taste better than candy! Sometimes I make it without the sausage as a side dish and add a little cooked pasta - absolutely wonderful. Love this recipe!

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    What a recipe. Super easy, super tasty and packed full of flavour. I have shared this recipe with loads of friends. It's just brilliant. Very little effort for huge tasty results. I used only 1.25kg cherry tomatoes and allowed 2 sausages per person. Best thing I've cooked in a long time !! Cheers Jamie !

  • saladdays on August 17, 2012

    One of the best sausage recipes ever ! The tomato sauce produced is very intense and full of flavour and makes very good use of one of the best summer ingredients - home grown cherry tomatoes ! We served it with buttery new potatoes and green beans. This recipe will most definitely be added to the favourites list.

  • Rutabaga on April 28, 2018

    I agree with the other reviews - this is delicious. It's also very easy to make, and involved little clean up. The roasting time is fairly long, however; mine was in the oven for just over an hour. I served it directly from the oven without thickening the sauce. The juices were wonderful spooned over bread along with the tomatoes. It's also an easy recipe to scale up or down in size. Definitely one to make again.

  • ithyt on October 06, 2015

    12.13 Super simple and scrummy - one of our fav sausage dinner recipes - turns even bland recipes into something tasty.

  • lou_weez on July 04, 2021

    Easy and delicious. I did make a few changes...I cooked 250g of tubetti pasta and added it to the pan at the 45 minute mark, along with 2 balls of burrata. It resulted in a beautiful creamy pasta that accompanied our sausages.

  • averythingcooks on September 01, 2021

    Another upvote for this dish made all the better with your own tomatoes. I had mostly smaller grape tomatoes and was worried a bit about the cook time required for the sausages so I used an idea from another Jamie Oliver recipe. I quickly browned my sausages, then cut them in 1/2 and then "hasselbacked" them. These went onto the layer of tomatoes with some onion & shallot chunks that needed using up and a sprig of rosemary. I sprinkled the finished pan with fresh basil & feta and served it beside wedges of grilled bread. Lovely.

  • TLouise on January 11, 2021

    Delishous recipe. I could only fit 1.5kg of tomatoes in my pan but it still worked fine. My sausages were perfect and the tomato sauce was just amazing.

• Crispy and sticky chicken thighs with squashed new potatoes and tomatoes

  • Cheri on October 09, 2011

    Yum! We really liked this. Used only 8 thighs and had plenty leftover - after serving 3 adults (and one dog). Didn't change anything about the recipe and served with arugula as recommended. This is a great dish for this time of year, as variety of cherry tomatoes and new potatoes are fresh and good right now in the northwest.

  • lauranyc1 on January 15, 2010

    Tasty recipe, very easy to put together.

  • sgovier on August 12, 2011

    I love this recipe, it's so adaptable. Virtually any variation is as delicious as the last. Leftovers are still tasty.

  • sarahcooks on August 20, 2012

    Very tasty, and open to so many potential variations. It's really important not to crowd the pan. You will probably have to use two if you don't halve the recipe.

  • PatriciaScarpin on August 22, 2012

    I have made this several times, it's delicious and a hit with the picky husband. :)

  • eliza on May 17, 2016

    Very easy and good. It's important to salt the potatoes well. I don't bother peeling the tomatoes.

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    A good recipe with plenty of left-overs for lunch the next day.

  • saladdays on March 27, 2012

    This is an easy and very tasty recipe. As the potatoes are precooked I was able to use some left over from the day before, 4 thighs are plenty for two. I thought that 40 minutes oven cooking seemed too long as the thighs that are cut into strips had already had 10 minutes in a pan, so timed it for 20 minutes and then left them for 5 minutes in the turned off oven while I prepared a green salad and that was plenty long enough. I used chervil instead of oregano as I had just dug up a large plant from the veg garden to make way for spring planting !

  • Rutabaga on September 14, 2020

    This came together well even though I used boneless skinless chicken thigh meat. The tomatoes are especially delicious, although unfortunately my children don't like cooked tomatoes, so weren't big fans, although they ate the chicken and potatoes.

  • jenniwa on June 23, 2016

    Salt potatoes well. Also I used half as many chicken thighs (3lbs with bones).

  • lou_weez on July 15, 2021

    Tasty and delicious. I used chicken thigh fillets, didn't bother peeling the tomatoes and par-boiled the potatoes. Next time I would add some red capsicum and maybe some cauliflower.

  • averythingcooks on July 07, 2021

    I used 6 smallish boneless, skinless chicken thighs for a 1/2 recipe. But I did not peel my grape tomatoes and I did not fully cook the potatoes (before a 40 minute bake!) - I simply parboiled them quickly just to get them started. I used more fresh herbs - parsley in with the oregano at the start and basil (& feta) to finish each bowl. I also added sweet onion, broccoli & unpeeled garlic cloves to the pan. We really enjoyed this but it did seem to be very "step laden" compared to many other equally good chicken tray bakes I make.

  • Skamper on November 21, 2021

    This was a solid weeknight dinner. I made a half batch using skinless, boneless thighs, and a combination of small white potatoes and small russets cut in half. I completely forgot to smash the potatoes. I did peel the tomatoes and not sure I would bother next time.

• Fresh tagliatelle with sprouting broccoli and oozy cheese sauce

  • jzanger on April 01, 2012

    This is a great recipe, I suspect even if you've never used your crank pasta machine you'll manage to make a delicious meal. I made a 4 egg / 400 g amount of pasta and it was almost twice as much as three people could eat. That's okay, more for later! I used all semolina for the dough, and then switched to AP flour for dusting. I also used kale along with some broccoli in place of the purple sprouting broccoli called for in the recipe. If you've never made pasta before and want a bit of a peptalk, I suggest searching youtube for the 'eggs' episode of the "Jamie at Home" show. I'll definitely make this again.

  • melissabazley on September 09, 2011

    A delicious recipe that could be adapted to all sorts of vegies for the cream sauce. It's so tasty and easy you could add...mushrooms or asparagus with peas and salmon or roasted pumpkin.etc. A good recipe to make over and over again :)

  • Rutabaga on September 16, 2014

    First: This cheesy sauce and broccoli combination is genius, and I love how Jamie instructs you to melt the cheeses in a bowl while bringing the pasta water to a boil, then cook the broccoli and pasta simultaneously, finally stirring the cooked broccoli and pasta directly into the bowl of cheese sauce. I used Gruyere in place of fontina. Perfect! Unfortunately, the U.S. edition has an error in the ingredients. The recipe calls for 4 eggs and two cups of flour. However, in the forward, Jamie estimates you should use "1 egg to 1 cup flour per person". Hmm. I didn't have much more than two cups white flour, so followed the recipe even though the dough was disconcertingly sticky. To keep it from tuning to total mush as I ran it through the pasta roller, I ended up using a lot of additional whole wheat pastry flour. Fortunately, it came out OK, but I will make sure I have four cups of flour on hand next time.

  • Rutabaga on April 08, 2015

    I made this again, this time with truffle cheese (nice!) and sprouting kale and cabbage in place of the sprouting broccoli. I used duck eggs, and still found that about one cup flour per egg was needed, despite the larger size of the duck eggs. This makes a massive amount of pasta, probably enough to serve six to eight people.

• Grilled lamb kofta kebabs with pistachios and spicy salad wrap

  • jzanger on August 29, 2018

    I've been making these for years. Usually I make it with ground lamb by combining everything except the lamb in a food processor then mixing in the ground meat by pulsing it a half dozen times. My handful of pistachios is more like a double handful, and into the mix I also add a roughly chopped garlic clove and a sliced shallot as well as a little olive oil. I've found that even when I eyeball the spices it tastes great. If you can possibly cook them on a grill do it.

  • mirage on June 26, 2010

    Must make Tzatziki to go with!

  • melissabazley on September 09, 2011

    I loved this recipe. Could also make them with beef. I made some hummous to go with it and it was superb. Great summer BBQ food.

  • Rutabaga on April 01, 2014

    The whole family really enjoyed these kebabs. I used ground turkey and cooked them under the broiler, which worked great. They would lend themselves well to any yogurt, hummus, or tahini topping. I even made fresh flour tortillas to go with them, making the dish extra delicious.

  • FoodyFocus1 on April 25, 2021

    This tastes great but I found that it needed something to bind it together as it wanted to fall apart on the barbeque. I may try with a higher fat content minced lamb next time, or just add an egg.

• Pan-roasted venison with creamy baked potato and celeriac

  • jzanger on December 11, 2010

    This is a rating for the creamy potato and celeriac. I'm not one to use heavy cream for weeknight dinners, but this recipe was WELL worth it. Despite it being both incredibly satisfying and simple, I give credit to the Cooking Channel's website for providing the correct instructions and ingredients. I recommend searching for it on their website and comparing to your book. The potatoes/celeriac are to be cut into pieces just under 1 inch, not the measurement given in the book. Also, no added butter goes into the sauce, despite its confusing placement at the top of the recipe. One more thing is the parmesan cheese. According to the episode on tv, we're to add half to the sauce, then sprinkle the other half on top (and finish with some fresh if you want). The book instructs you to add half of it, then the other half, then half again. Also, I believe the FRESH sage is key to its subtle aroma. Despite the clear lack of editing, this is a great dish.

• Superb squash soup with the best Parmesan croutons

  • jzanger on March 06, 2011

    We made this soup last night with (part of) a blue hubbard, and it is absolutely fantastic. And this comes from a household with a well-honed favorite squash soup recipe. Use the best winter squash you can find. I highly recommend this!

  • mharriman on February 02, 2021

    Very very good. Husband especially loved this soup. I made half a recipe using 2 1/4 pounds of butternut squash that I cut into chunks. I didn’t have fresh sage so I put in some dried to fragrance the olive oil. I did have fresh rosemary and that added a lovely flavor and aroma bouquet to the other ingredients. The Parmesan cheese crouton was easy to make, too.

• Roast carrot and avocado salad with orange and lemon dressing

  • jzanger on July 16, 2014

    I've made this twice now, though only the roasted carrots. I found that I liked only 1 tsp of cumin and about 4 garlic cloves. I also added a few coriander seeds and substituted fresh Serrano for the dried chilies. I really liked the white balsamic I used, though I'm sure the vinegars called for would be great too.

  • sarahcooks on February 06, 2012

    This salad has such a great flavor and is satisfying as dinner. It has so many layers of flavor and texture, I would have been very happy to be served it in a restaurant. I left off the sour cream, it really didn't need it.

  • eliza on September 25, 2016

    This was a fantastic, tasty salad. My changes; I used lime instead of lemon, and omitted the greens and sour cream. I also prepared the carrots and dressing up to the oven step the night before. I found the dressing on the baked carrots to be almost enough and didn't really use the extra citrus juice that much. Also, mine was a little bitter. Next time I will omit the citrus from the bake and just use some fresh orange or lime juice at the end.

  • melissabazley on September 11, 2011

    This is such a delicious salad. Can serve it as entree sized portions or put it on the table with mains. I serve it as a meal on it's own. I also added 2 tablespoons toasted hazelnuts for added texture & protein. I didn't think it needed the sour cream...it's great as it is. I LOVED the different coloured carrots - orange, purple & yellow. So pretty. EXCELLENT. Great for any vegetarians :)

  • Rutabaga on December 15, 2014

    This same recipe appears in the March 2013 edition of Food & Wine magazine, although the book version, true to Jamie's style, is less specific with some of the measurements and ingredients. You can definitely make this salad your own and still have great results. It's a salad full of rich flavors, and makes for a substantial side dish or light meal; you just need to plan for enough time to cook the carrots (a little over half an hour total). You can improvise with any number of greens, and I enjoy adding pumpkin seeds.

  • lou_weez on July 06, 2021

    This was delicious! I served it for lunch and it was enough to satisfy everyone. I didn't bother with the cress and just added extra lettuce leaves. It is amazing without sour cream but if you're a fan of the stuff you would probably want to add it.

  • Rachaelm on September 10, 2017

    Nice but I don't think I would make it again. For me it wasn't worth the effort.

• Wild mushroom and venison stroganoff for two lucky people

  • Breadcrumbs on March 18, 2012

    p. 292 – I used bison instead of venison but it turned out wonderfully tender and worked really well in this dish. This wasn’t like stroganoffs we’ve had in the past in that the sauce was quite thick. JO suggests serving this over rice and while we typically serve stroganoff over noodles, we took Jamie’s advice with no regrets, since this sauce wasn’t as loose as those we’ve had in the past and, I don’t think it would have worked as well w noodles. We especially enjoyed the sweetness and subtle tang the gherkins brought to the final dish. The bison and mushrooms made a very hearty and satisfying meal when mixed w the sour cream. If I were to change anything for the next time around, I might add a spritz of fresh lemon juice to the final dish as we didn’t notice the zest having any particular impact and I do think the brightness of the lemon would have been a nice counter to all the richness. This was a great, rib-sticking meal for a freezing cold stormy night!

• Steak, Guinness and cheese pie with a puff pastry lid

  • Breadcrumbs on March 18, 2012

    p.342 - I actually made this a year ago but forgot to post! Gosh this was good - really, really good! Oh, and the house smelled amazing! Now this isn’t a dish you can whip up after a day at work, nope not at all. JO has you braise it for a couple of hours so this dish needs time. I worked from home today just to accommodate this pie! I have to say I was skeptical when I read the meat wasn’t floured, I couldn’t imagine making a steak pie without doing this. That said, I thought I’d put our fate in JO’s hands and went w his idea. What emerges from the oven is a fabulously aromatic, rich and truly scrumptious bit of steak pie heaven. The flavours were well balanced and I was especially surprised by the deep, rich flavours in the sauce given that the only liquids added were Guinness and water. Hat’s off to JO and the Irish, this was a huge hit.

  • sarahcooks on April 18, 2011

    The best pie I've ever made! You can taste the beer but it is not at all overpowering, and the meat was meltingly tender. I used sirloin tip roast. I'll be making this again and again.

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    What a superb pie !! So delicious and tasty. If feeling lazy, just use packaged puff pastry. I also added more mushrooms (as I love them) A great winter dish...or anytime really !!

  • Lillibet on October 15, 2011

    Really rich and flavourful. The PERFECT pie!

  • averythingcooks on January 30, 2021

    What a nice cold weather dinner! I only had 1.5 lbs of stewing beef on hand and so added some chopped parsnips with the aromatics & then later in the braise, some chunks of skin-on red potatoes. Once again, JO does NOT begin with a patient browning of the meat but I went ahead with his method and the result was a really delicious stew with super tender beef. I don't usually use puff pastry for a double crust but it certainly worked here. A very good aged cheddar went in & we were questioning whether we could really taste it or not. Lastly, I stirred in frozen peas & chopped roasted red peppers before proceeding with the pastry and the result was a pie that will definitely be repeated.

  • anya_sf on March 18, 2021

    I don't own this book, so followed online recipes (several can be found) plus JO's video. Note that the recipe linked here has a few errors vs. JO's video (which I assume matches the book): 1 kg beef, not 1 lb; water instead of beef stock (and not very much); no peas; 2 Tbsp flour; baking temp 375 F. I did use 8 oz cremini mushrooms. In a pyrex baking dish, the pastry took 55 minutes to brown and the bottom got soggy, but the sides and top were nice and crisp. The stew tasted fantastic and I'd buy Guinness just to make this again, next time maybe just as a stew over mash, with peas stirred in.

• Eggy breakfast crumpets

  • Breadcrumbs on March 23, 2011

    p.30 - A wonderfully appetizing photo in this book tempted me into making this super-quick, easy and delicious dish. Jamie serves these alongside bacon however I took a pass on the meat this morning as we felt the crumpets would be adequate. Prep couldn’t be simpler. Olive oil is heated in a non-stick pan and eggs are whisked w S&P and fresh chopped chilli. I used one Thai bird chilli for 4 large eggs. Crumpets are coated in egg mixture and allowed to really soak it up into their crevices then they are placed into a hot pan and cooked on both sides until nicely golden. I served them w some sliced fresh tomato and sprinkle of sea salt. They were crispy on the outside and so tender on the inside. The chilli was a fabulous addition. I’ll definitely make these again. They’d be great to serve to overnight guests as they’re a little different or, would make a terrific breakfast for dinner too.

  • KIGirl on September 03, 2014

    I tried this with English muffins instead of the crumpets... Can't say that I was a big fan... But not sure I like French toast either !! 5/10

• Roasted white fish and leeks

  • mirage on June 26, 2010

    I thought this was good but Scott declared it "delicious"

  • kategilbo on June 08, 2011

    I used asparagus as I couldn't get baby leeks, and pancetta instead of normal bacon. Was declared a success by all!

  • saladdays on March 04, 2012

    An easy and tasty way of cooking fish, I used cod fillets but make sure it doesn't dry out.

• Best barbecued pork and homemade barbecue sauce

  • mirage on June 26, 2010

    Very good, but also make bbq sauce to go with.

• Potato and chorizo omelette with a kinda parsley salad

  • wester on September 25, 2016

    Good weekday fare. Subbed cauliflower for the potato to lower the carb content. I thought the shallot was a bit overpowering - next time decrease the amount.

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    It was good. We fried the shallots with the chorizo and added the parsley to the egg mixture. Once it was cooked, we squeezed the lemon juice over the top...only 1/2 a lemon though !

  • averythingcooks on April 06, 2023

    I also took this idea & modified it. I fried the steamed potatoes with red onion, red pepper & the chorizo before adding the eggs & some cubed cheddar. Underdone eggs are a phobia of mine so to be sure I used Dorie Greenspan's timing (2 minutes on stove, 8 at 350 & a quick run under the broiler). We loved the spicy chorizo with the eggs & I liked the shallot/parsley garnish (T, not as much). An idea worth repeating.

• Barbecue-steamed fennel

  • wester on October 30, 2017

    Nice but not spectacular.

  • ithyt on October 06, 2015

    10.13 Alright - would be good served as quick, easy bbq side.

• Crunchy raw zucchini ribbons with grilled mackerel

  • wester on May 12, 2017

    I only made the zucchini, which I quite liked but everyone else thought was weird.

• Summer tomato pasta

  • sarahcooks on July 31, 2012

    This came together amazingly quickly and is such a great use of my garden. I'll definitely be making this frequently in the summer.

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    So tasty, quick and easy. A favourite summer dish.

  • ithyt on October 06, 2015

    2.14 Scrummy - used Black Raspberry Vinaigrette.

• Humble home-cooked beans

  • sarahcooks on February 07, 2012

    Used home grown beans for this and served it on really good bread. It was delicious. Don't be afraid to use lots of garlic!

  • inflytur on February 11, 2021

    A very simple recipe for cooking dried beans but it is far superior to any I've tried so far, particularly if you are cooking up a big batch to include in other recipes.

• Roasted carrots and beets with the juiciest pork chops

  • sarahcooks on August 25, 2013

    This is really three recipes. A simpler meal would be just the pork and one of the roasted vegetables, but doing them all made for a very delicious meal. My husband thought he hates beets, but he thought they were really great like this!

  • ithyt on October 06, 2015

    9.13 My chops were too dry - poss try again.

• Quick sausage meatballs with a tomato and basil sauce, spaghetti and sweet raw peas

  • sarahcooks on July 15, 2011

    This is really quick and easy, but it can take longer than you think for the sausage to cook through. It's also a lot of pots to keep an eye on at once, but that's the price you pay for bringing dinner together quickly! I love the pop and sweetness of the fresh peas in this. There aren't that many recipes I make over and over again, but this is one of them!

  • melissabazley on September 11, 2011

    I used 500g sausages...I also used frozen peas instead of fresh peas and it was great. I broke the sausages into meat-ball sized chunks. I took them out of the pan and drained the sausages on kitchen paper, then wiped out the pan and used the cleaned "sausage" pan to make the tomato sauce. That way there is less washing up !!! A fantastic and tasty recipe. We make it regularly :)

• Rhubarb and custard kinda soufflé

  • sarahcooks on June 16, 2011

    Good, but more work than it sounded like. I needed three extra ramekins - Jamie's must be bigger than mine.

• Beautiful zucchini / courgette carbonara

  • Vanessa on May 22, 2011

    One of our family faves. Even teen-aged boys like it, and its a good way to get through some of the overload of summer zucchini. Also good with other veggies added (fava beans go especially well).

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    Good, hearty pasta. Flavour needs tweaking a bit...not bad, and very quick to make

  • Melanie on September 28, 2013

    So yum - creamy and full of flavour. The zucchini takes on the flavour of the pancetta while in the pan. I used thin slices of pancetta and shaved the zucchini with a vegetable peeler before chopping roughly. Thyme isn't necessary.

  • JennyR on February 05, 2014

    No squash in the UK recipe.

  • Rutabaga on July 17, 2019

    This makes a nice simple dinner, and was a more palatable way for my eight-year-old to eat zucchini (he initially complained about its presence, but then ate it all). Oddly, the recipe says to add oil to the pan when cooking the bacon, but bacon has plenty of fat of its own. I just used the bacon fat, which gave the zucchini great flavor.

  • Summerlandsky on July 04, 2015

    An absolute household staple. One of the first things I make when zucchini starts coming on in the garden. My only gripe is the nature of the sauce makes for poor leftovers.

  • jenniwa on June 23, 2016

    Same amount of pasta and pancetta. Twice as much zucchini. Think there should be even more zucchini.

  • ithyt on October 06, 2015

    2.14 Scrummy - great use of zucchini.

  • JJ2018 on May 17, 2022

    Amazed the kids actually ate this - a quick and easy carbonara.

• Asian squash salad with crispy duck

  • DKennedy on October 30, 2014

    I have made this many times and it is a family favorite.

• Calzone

  • eliza on June 05, 2016

    I used Mr Oliver's pizza dough for the calzones and baked 16 minutes at 450 degrees. (The instructions say to put the oven on at full power but don't give a temperature). I changed the filling to suit what I had on hand and they turned out well. It's important to have some flour on the bottoms of the calzone before baking so they don't stick.

  • Rutabaga on February 06, 2018

    These are good calzones. I varied the filling a little; I had only half the amount of mushrooms (cremini) called for, but added some chopped reconstituted dried porcini, used only eight ounces of spinach, included extra tomato sauce, and aded turkey pepperoni. The filling was flavorful and well-balanced, but I found it only made two large calzone, which only used up half of the dough. Since Oliver's pizza dough recipe appears on the very next page, and the calzone recipe called for one batch of dough, I found this rather odd. But oh, well - this means I have leftover dough for another use! I baked the calzones on my baking steel at 550 F, and they were quite black on the bottom after a scant ten minutes in the oven. Fortunately, after scraping them lightly, they were fine, but in the future it might be better to bake them on a pre-heated baking pan.

• Incredible smashed peas and fava beans on toast

  • eliza on July 05, 2017

    This was fantastic! I did make some changes, using peas from my garden and no broad beans. I also subbed the pecorino with a strong cheddar and used lime juice because that's what I had. The acid at the end really did bring it all together as Jamie says. The paste tasted amazing and would be good on practically anything; fish would be wonderful I think. I made it by hand, but I would try in the food processor if I did a larger amount. Can't wait to make this again!

  • melissabazley on September 11, 2011

    SO healthy and very delicious. I would use grated parmesan next time I make it instead of pecorino, the pecorino was a bit too strong for me. Otherwise, a great recipe. Lots of fun bashing the fresh peas and beans up too, very satisfying :)

  • FJT on October 12, 2014

    Despite doing just about everything that Jamie advises against (using frozen peas, a food processor and subbing parmesan for the pecorino ) this was delicious. Looking forward to being able to make it next year with fresh ingredients!

  • etcjm on July 13, 2018

    Really good. Added crispy bacon on top. Definitely worth double podding the beans. Used parmesan because that's what we had. Definitely do when beans are available. Feels super healthy too!

• Cheat's pappardelle with slow-braised leeks and crispy porcini pangrattato

  • eliza on December 04, 2016

    I only made the leeks in this recipe, and had it on toast. This was absolutely delicious! The leeks are cooked in oil and butter with thyme, garlic, and pancetta. I had some smoked bacon so I used that in place of the pancetta. Since my bacon was quite thick, I did have to fry it briefly at the end. A wonderful way to eat leeks, and I can imagine lots of ways to use them. Looking forward to making the entire dish, and I'm sure it will be excellent.

• Whole roasted cricket ball squash

  • eliza on January 17, 2018

    I made this with my last 2 honey nut squashes (mini butternut) from the garden. It was straightforward to make and took about an hour from start to finish. The only other changes I made were to use my own roasted tomatoes for the sundried tomatoes, and to sprinkle the goat cheese on top. This is a very nice and tasty dish, it is quite filling, and would be a good choice for a vegetarian supper.

  • ithyt on October 06, 2015

    2.14 Scrummy - but green squash a bit dry.

• Cheeky chilli-pepper chutney

  • jannybee on January 08, 2012

    Very vesatile and flavorful chutney. I have used it with roast pork, on sandwiches and love it on pizza. It has become an unusual yet tasty addition to many things. I've been having fun thinking of new ways to use it.

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    Great relish...add bit more salt for richer flavour. Fantastic used in Welsh Rarebit recipe. Also great with sandwiches, meat dishes, especially good with chicken schnitzel...YUM

• Tomato cilantro salsa with grilled tuna

  • melissabazley on February 16, 2012

    A brilliant fresh, light, healthy dish. I added a bit of olive oil to the salsa, I also used about half the tomatoes (500g instead of 1kg) and it was plenty. Really love all the fresh herbs too. I put the salsa with fresh cooked salmon...to die for. A brilliant, quick, tasty dish for those warm summer nights.

• The mothership tomato salad

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    oh my goodness...YUM. This is excellent. So tasty. Packed full of flavour and it's so good for you too. Also great with pasta, for bruschetta or just as a salad on it's own. Highly recommend.

• Grilled mushroom risotto

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    Good basic risotto base. Cooking the mushrooms separately is great and produces a stronger mushroom flavour. Too much lemon juice. I only used 1/2 amount and it was still strong. I like more mushrooms than recipe suggests and I like them stirred through the risotto as well

• Hot smoked salmon with an amazing chilli salsa

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    I didn't bother to smoke the salmon (I don't have a back yard & didn't want to stink the house out) We cooked salmon by frying it and finishing it in the oven. Totally love salmon!! The salsa was great too...I used 1 lebanese cucumber, instead of the 1/2 suggested in the recipe. A great quick, healthy, tasty recipe.

• Pizza Margherita… and so much more!

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    A great pizza topping. Excellent pasta sauce as well

• Pizza dough

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    This is my go-to pizza dough. Whenever we have pizza...this is it. I only make 1/2 the amount and it makes 2 thick crust pizzas perfectly or 3 thin crusts. I had to add an extra 60g of flour to the dough as it was very sloppy without the addition.

  • pants99 on July 07, 2014

    Have used this recipe for years and never failed. It freezes very well in balls wrapped in cling film. I have hand-kneaded and used my KitchenAid with a dough hook.

  • Rutabaga on February 06, 2018

    This is a good basic dough, although for pizza I prefer to use one of Ken Forkish's recipes from The Elements of Pizza. But for the calzone recipe in this book, and for something you can easily throw together and put in the refrigerator before work, this is ideal.

• The quickest tomato sauce

  • melissabazley on September 11, 2011

    Super yum and tasty...don't really need to strain the chunky bits out. Great flavour. Makes enough for 6 pizzas, I just make 1/3 of the recipe for 2.

  • Rutabaga on February 06, 2018

    Perfect - for pizza sauce, this is really all you need. To make it even faster, you can used good quality crushed tomatoes.

  • averythingcooks on May 06, 2023

    Needing a quick marinara this am, I came here. I don't really have a "coarse strainer" and I did want some texture so I ran it through the food mill on the coarsest blade and then let it cook down a bit more to thicken. I love the generous amount of basil & garlic and I will make this one again.

• Creamy rice pudding with the quickest strawberry jam

  • melissabazley on October 28, 2011

    Delicious rice pudding recipe, so easy. Love the vanilla bean in it....mmmmm. I added 4 tablespoons of golden caster sugar for a bit of extra sweetness as I had it with rhubarb and strawberry compote. I haven't tried the quick jam yet...next time. I suspect I would only need the 2 tablespoons of sugar in the rice when eaten with the jam. A good comfort dessert on a cold night

• Indian carrot salad

  • melissabazley on September 20, 2011

    I used minced beef instead of lamb as I'm not keen on lamb. The carrots took forever to get wafer thin without a mandolin...I used a "speed peeler", but it wasn't so speedy.

  • Melanie on September 28, 2013

    Very nice. I followed the recipe but the quantities of coriander and mint that are required are so small that there is not much point unless you have some around. Served with pita bread crisped up in the oven. I thought that the dressing was amazing.

  • Rutabaga on May 20, 2014

    The mix of flavors in this dish was delicious; I found it to be a creative use of carrots and ground meat (I used ground turkey). I used plenty of cilantro and mint, which added some bright, fresh notes to the salad, contrasting nicely with the warm spices in the meat. Toasting the sesame seeds to a deep nutty brown also added great flavor. Since I didn't have much garam masala on hand, I used Madras curry powder, and left out the cumin seeds as I didn't have whole cumin. Slicing carrots wafer thin by hand can be a bit time consuming, but is something that could be done in advance. My three-year-old happily ate the meat on its own along with some plain carrot slices, as the dressing was a little much for his palate. Update: I have determined the best way to eat this salad is to mix the carrot salad and meat together in a bowl. You can even throw in some additional greens, and the carrots do well the next day when softened from marinating in the dressing.

  • jenniwa on May 30, 2016

    Serve with a dollop of yogurt, makes a huge difference. - TK

• Speedy rhubarb fool

  • melissabazley on September 09, 2011

    I love the rhubarb compote and the delicious zesty orange yoghurt. The Puff pastry triangles were nice, but I will try it with something else next time. I had the yoghurt and rhubarb with Jamie's homemade toasted muesli and it was superb...a party on my taste-buds

• Rhubarb and sticky ginger crumble

  • melissabazley on July 31, 2011

    This is a totally delish recipe. I put 1 granny smith apple in with the rhubarb and also a sprinkle of cinnamon (my hubbie love cinnamon). Next time I make it I will also add a handful of hazelnuts to the crumble mix. A great winter warmer

  • Melanie on May 10, 2013

    I had about half the required amount of rhubarb so I added granny smith apples to the mix. I also increased the amount of crumble (1.5 x recipe quantity). Delicious!

  • Charlotte_vandenberg on May 15, 2017

    Made this with only rhubarb. Very easy recipe and taste was okay, crumble with oats was good, but did not taste the ginger. I'm going to add more next time.

• Incredible baked cauliflower and broccoli cannelloni

  • melissabazley on September 09, 2011

    This recipe is great, only I have decided that I REALLY HATE anchovies and that was all I could taste !! I will leave them out next time and enjoy this dish SO much more !!

  • Kirstin_the_Kiwi on July 23, 2017

    prep time >= 1 hour

• Tray-baked meringue with pears, cream, toasted hazelnuts and chocolate sauce

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    WOW, this is a super rich, decadent pav. I think you could poach your own pears if you had the time. For something a bit tart to cut through the sweetness, I'd use mixed berries instead of the pears. Love the addition of stem ginger. Adds great, subtle flavour. I made it with only 1 layer of topping as 2 layers of was just too much...a great special treat.

  • sharifah on August 29, 2012

    This has now become my favourite dinner party dessert. Everyone who gets served this will definitely go "WOW"!! And the flavours do not disappoint. But, as melissabazley says, there is a LOT of topping ingredients so that by the time you layer it all on, its way too much.

• Creamy asparagus soup with a poached egg on toast

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    Added a bit of cream to smooth up the texture.

• Crispy and delicious asparagus and potato tart

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    Totally delicious tart. Simple and very tasty. I also added a tbsp of mustard to the egg mix. Yummmmm

  • Rutabaga on April 20, 2014

    I don't feel I can accurately rate this recipe, as I made a few changes. I didn't have Lancashire cheese, so substituted goat cheese because I had it on hand and figured the flavor would be a good fit. More significantly, I was out of eggs, so left them out completely and added some extra whole milk to the potato/cheese/cream mix to make it a little more spreadable. While the potato mix tasted good, it was, as Jamie might say, a bit "stodgy" on the tart, and the phyllo dough underneath didn't crispy up well. Next time, I'll be sure use the eggs as written.

  • jenniwa on May 30, 2016

    Use a strong cheese as the flavor can disappear. TK

• Welsh rarebit with attitude

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    delicious, quick and easy food for a cold Saturday night curled up on the couch with a good movie. Brilliant "pub grub"

  • etcjm on September 08, 2018

    Substantial and tasty. I used red onion marmalade instead of the chilli jam. On the list as a good lunch. Might be brave enough to douse in the Worcestershire sauce next time.

• Orchard Eve's pudding with whiskey Jersey cream

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    The fruit for this is brilliant. I used apples, white nectarines, cherries & plums when I made it during summer. SOOOOOO delicious. I now use this stewed fruit for making crumbles and cobblers. It's magnificent.

• Butternut squash muffins with a frosty top

  • melissabazley on September 17, 2011

    An excellent recipe, although they are more cupcakes than muffins. I peeled the skin from the butternut squash & grated it before putting it in the food processor. I added 1/2 teaspoon of ground cloves as well. I would add the walnuts, chopped, after processing all other ingredients together. I used 330g brown sugar instead of the 350g. I used a citrus cream cheese frosting -30g softened butter, 70g softened cream cheese, zest of 1 lemon, 240g icing sugar, squeeze lemon juice - mix until smooth. Will definitely make these again. They'd be great for Thanksgiving treats.

  • ithyt on October 06, 2015

    5.14 Muffins great - icing average - maybe use other readers idea. :)

  • lou_weez on October 29, 2017

    My kids love these and I made them today for Halloween. I tried the frosting for the first time, as well, and it is very runny, I wouldn't bother with it again, plus I needed to add more icing sugar to make it taste nice.

• Italian ham and spinach tart

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    A fantastic tart. The amount of filling needed 2 tart bases...I didn't have the same sized dish as recipe said. I used 2 23x30cm trays. I needed 1 quantity of the pastry. The pastry is fantastic and I will be using it for lots of savoury tarts and pies in the future. I would recommend adding the sun-dried tomatoes. An easy recipe to convert to vegetarian as well.

  • Rutabaga on December 13, 2018

    This is a great tart, despite the fact that I goofed on the pastry recipe and only included about half the butter. Because of that, I think I didn't roll out the crust as thin as it should have been, and I ended up using the entire batch of savory pastry. The tart filled about two-thirds of a half-sheet pan. Oddly, the kids didn't like it, but maybe that was just the spinach and onions.

• Blackberry and apple pie

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    an incredibly delish pie. Could play around with the filling with all kinds of fruits and berry combinations. Fantastic winter dessert

  • Melanie on September 28, 2013

    Delicious pie, would make again. I used frozen blackberries.

• Old-fashioned sweet shortcrust pastry

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    one of the best short crust pastries ever...great flavour additions. A favourite and well used pastry in my house.

  • Melanie on September 28, 2013

    A very good shortcrust pastry, it tasted delicious.

• The best savory shortcrust pastry

  • melissabazley on April 22, 2011

    A fantastic pastry with many flavour options. I use this as my basic pastry, it's brilliant.

  • Rutabaga on December 13, 2018

    I can't yet rate this recipe yet, as I mistakenly used only 7 tablespoons of butter in the dough rather than seven ounces! I'm not sure how, but I didn't catch that mistake until I was rolling out the dough to make Oliver's ham and spinach tart. Using less butter meant I needed to add a lot more milk, which was hard to fully incorporate into the dough without over-mixing. Fortunately, it still worked, but I am sure it would bake (and taste) better when made correctly.

• Spicy pork and chilli-pepper goulash

  • FJT on April 30, 2022

    Quite a nice goulash. I cut down the cooking time by pressure cooking the pork (along with some of the aromatics) on high for 45 minutes while I made the sauce. I added the shredded pork to the sauce along with some of its cooking liquid (reduced and de-fatted) and cooked for a further 30 minutes. Took about an hour and a half in total.

  • averythingcooks on February 08, 2023

    I used 2" cubes of boneless pork shoulder (rather than one large chunk) so the oven time was a little faster but regardless...this was delicious. I used Fresnos for the heat and estimated the amount as I never know what he means by "red chilies" (and I'm not alone based on a recent forum discussion)...for example, my homegrown cayennes would blow your head off if used in the amounts he suggests :)

  • mjes on September 11, 2021

    This is an excellent goulash with roasted peppers, bell peppers and tomatoes to add color and chillies to add a bit of bite. It is served over rice rather than noodles. I liked it very much.

• Crispy asparagus soldiers with soft-boiled eggs

  • Melanie on September 28, 2013

    Fantastic breakfast, although I agree with Jamie that you could eat it at any time. I used one bunch of asparagus and some thin slices of pancetta. If you need to use olive oil only use a tiny dash as the fat in the pancetta will be rendered off anyway. Cook the eggs in simmering water for 4-5 minutes.

• Incredible roasted shoulder of lamb with smashed veg and greens

  • Melanie on March 02, 2014

    Great lamb recipe - tender and falling off the bone. Add lots of rosemary while in the oven. I serve this with roast vegetables and keep the leftover lamb for lunches. Mum has made the accompanying sauce once but I don't think it's anything special.

  • Summerlandsky on April 03, 2019

    My favorite way to cook lamb - fall off the bone tender. I also quarter an onion and slice a lemon and put on top and bottom for roasting. I'm not a fan of mint, so I leave it and vinegar out of gravy. Save some of your potato water and mix with flour to make a slurry to thicken - finish with a pat of butter off heat. The mashed veggies are great and even my hubby who hates cooked carrots will inhale them. I usually serve with roasted asparagus and not the greens.

  • jhallen on February 26, 2021

    I made this because I had some rutabaga to use and it came out well. I substituted halibut for the lamb and it worked well (obviously different cook time). The caper sauce worked well with the mashed veg and balanced the sweetness of the carrots in the mash.

• Proper chicken Caesar salad

  • LouiseAllana on August 24, 2012

    I found this Caesar salad quite different to what I am used to and very tasty, although perhaps a little too salty overall. The dressing was so intense that we only used half of it. The croutons were the best part.

  • ithyt on October 06, 2015

    1.14 Too rich for me - I found the croutons cooked in chicken fat a bit much- use Chelsea's recipe.

• Best barbecued chicken and homemade barbecue sauce

  • mharriman on July 01, 2021

    Husband and I loved this barbecue sauce! It’s so good I could be persuaded to never buy a store bought bottle again. We especially loved the infusion of orange zest and juice into the mix. I made half a recipe of the sauce for two large bone-in chicken breasts. After baking, I used the leftover sauce marinade, mixed it in with the pan juices, and poured it over the baked-on sauce to add flavor. I followed the Temperature directions for baking, but only baked for 50 minutes- uncovered for First 25 minutes and with foil final 25 minutes. A thunderstorm cancelled finishing on the grill. Chicken was juicy and tender. Another Jamie Oliver winner.

• White asparagus with smashed mint and lemon butter

  • Rutabaga on May 18, 2015

    I used green asparagus (white is unfortunately hard to come by here), and shortened the simmer time to about five minutes - just perfect for plump green spears. The mint and lemon butter was tangy and fresh, the perfect match for any asparagus. My four-year-old loved it so much, he ate six whole spears, and that really says all you need to know right there.

• Grilled asparagus with olive oil, lemon and Parmesan

  • Rutabaga on April 04, 2015

    This hardly counts as a recipe, it's so basic, but it is a great way to eat asparagus. I broiled mine about ten minutes instead of dry grilling them, so tossed the spears with olive ail, salt, and pepper before they cooked, then squeezed the lemon juice and sprinkled the parmesan shaving over them.

  • Charlotte_vandenberg on April 26, 2017

    Agree with previous review, but very delicious and easy. Don't use too course sea salt!

• English onion soup with sage and Cheddar

  • Rutabaga on September 23, 2015

    This is a good soup to prepare in advance, then finish with the cheesy bread topping just prior to serving. It's basically a variation on French onion soup, with cheddar and sage in the supporting role. I used sunflower rye bread. This hearty bread, when paired with extra sharp cheddar and a bowl of soup loaded with onions, made a satisfying dinner just on its own.

  • averythingcooks on April 03, 2022

    I came here to try the large variety of onions & sage in an onion soup. The headnote includes a needed mass for the prepped onions which really is much more helpful than the #'s of each kind in the ingredient list. The problem came when it asked for just beef broth - I knew that the broth on hand would be disappointing, so I took an idea from a soup I've made before (Half Baked Harvest) & used a 50:50 mix of dark beer & broth. Now I had a lovely, rich flavoured soup that I will happily eat without the cheesy toasts on top (my ultimate test for any onion soup). Lastly, my plan had always been to add some leftover short rib meat and the result was a really hearty soup served for dinner - this time with fancy grilled cheese.

  • CBrecht on June 23, 2017

    This soup is good, but it ends up quite sweet. We added some vinegar at the end to balance out the sweetness.

• Amazing herb salad on a tomato bruschetta

  • Rutabaga on May 12, 2014

    This is a great idea for using up a mishmash of different herbs. It worked well with hothouse cherry tomatoes, but would likely taste even better with fresh summer tomatoes. The individual parts of the bruschetta - toast, tomatoes, and herb salad - could easily be packed separately to bring on a picnic lunch.

• Roasted peppers with chillies and tomatoes

  • Rutabaga on February 05, 2018

    This dish really came together nicely. I was a little skeptical about topping toast with what is essentially a vegetable-forward stuffed pepper, but the peppers were perfectly tender and easy to eat. The bread soaked up all the juices wonderfully. I used winter grocery store produce, which wasn't bad, but made with local veg in late summer, I'm sure it would be fantastic. Over the peppers, I laid a slice of good quality turkey bacon, which crisped up in the oven and was a good contrast with the veg. While simple to make, the peppers have to bake for almost an hour, so plan accordingly.

• Winter crunch salad with a mind-blowing sauce

  • Rutabaga on December 30, 2018

    The sauce was delicious and unusual, and although I didn't include the full amount of anchovies, but included a little oil from the anchovy jar for extra flavor. It was far more sauce than we needed, however. I would probably cut the recipe in half next time unless I was serving a very large crowd. The sauce reheats well, so it's fine to make in advance.

  • ithyt on October 06, 2015

    8.13 I halved quantities and cut back on anchovies. Quite different & tricky to describe - very unusual and tasty.

• Pizza quattro gusti

  • KIGirl on September 03, 2014

    Have only tried the spicy salami/jalapeño combo - on a whole pizza 5/10

• English hot-pot of amazing summer greens and flaked ham

  • jenniwa on May 29, 2016

    Used smoked ham shanks since it was the closest I could find.

• Creamy rhubarb and vodka cocktail

  • jenniwa on June 23, 2016

    Add the orange juice sparingly, it can curdle the cream.

• Strawberry salad with speck and halloumi

  • jenniwa on May 30, 2016

    Tear the speck up into smaller pieces, don't drape full slices over as the picture shows, hard to cut and eat. - TK

• Potato salad with smoked salmon and horseradish crème fraîche

  • jenniwa on June 23, 2016

    Simple, but you may end up using every dish in the kitchen.

• Strawberry martini

  • jenniwa on June 23, 2016

    May need wild strawberries. Tasted like a gin martini when I used regular strawberries.

• Italian bread and cabbage soup with sage butter

  • jenniwa on May 30, 2016

    I think the anchovies overpower everything, so leave them out and add a dash of fish sauce. Keeps the complexity without being overly fishy. - TK

• Sweet pear and apple salad with bitter endive and a creamy blue cheese dressing

  • Charlotte_vandenberg on October 16, 2017

    Very tasty combination of sweet, bitter and sour. Delicious and easy.

• Steamed asparagus with French vinaigrette

  • ithyt on October 06, 2015

    5.13 Yum, quick easy - poss use vinaigrette for other foods.

• The best winter veg coleslaw

  • ithyt on October 06, 2015

    7.13 Huge quantities - great flavours.

  • averythingcooks on December 16, 2021

    I scaled this back by eyeballing veg for 2. I used most of the veg he lists with a few subs for personal preference & for beets I used a big spoonful of a shredded beet chutney. I think I over estimated the lemon juice early on in the dressing because my finished product needed some tweeking (eg a good shot of honey) to offset a very big hit of lemon which worked well. The result was a very tasty veg laden coleslaw for 2.

• Pan-fried partridge with a delicate pearl barley, pea and lettuce stew

  • lou_weez on June 25, 2019

    This is a delicious, hearty meal. The sweet peas against the salty bacon was so good. I used chicken thigh fillets instead of partridge.

• Cheese and onion salad with creamy herb dressing

  • averythingcooks on September 02, 2022

    I used shallots & very small red onions from the garden, a mix of romaine & green leaf lettuce and I thinned some Greek yogurt with a little buttermilk in place of the creme fraiche. I also gave the creamy dressing a shot of honey to tame a bit of the sharpness. With the blue cheese & the pickled alliums, this was a perfect side for steaks, One thing I don't understand....the "creamy herb dressing" doesn't have any herbs in it...unless you count his (optional) instruction to sprinkle chive flowers over everything at the end. I will make this one again for sure.

• My favorite hot and sour rhubarb and crispy pork with noodles

  • toxiedriver on May 26, 2020

    The sauce is a bit on the sour side, chilli gets lost. Also quite fatty sauce after the braising with the pieces of pork belly. I scooped off as much of the melted fat as possible, but still... Probably will improve on a next try, but not nice enough to spend the effort - lots of other good pork belly recipes around!

  • Cvtbird on March 19, 2021

    This takes about 2 to 2.5 hour in total. 15 mins prep, 1.5 hours in oven and 30 mins frying pork and reducing sauce. Very delicious.

• Spicy fava bean fritters with lemon minted yogurt

  • GC62 on November 04, 2023

    This is basically a falafel variant, but a very good one.

• Boston Globe by T. Susan Chang

  "Oliver's pace may be dizzying, but his joie de vivre is contagious. So it's hard to hold it against him when, as is bound to happen, his boisterous recipes show signs of some overly speedy testing. "

  Full review