Master of Middle Eastern cuisine
Internationally renowned Israeli chef, restaurateur and author Yotam Ottolenghi joins popular reality cooking show MasterChef Australia as a guest judge on Sunday. Phoebe Roth met him while he was in Melbourne earlier this year.
Internationally renowned Israeli chef, restaurateur and author Yotam Ottolenghi joins popular reality cooking show MasterChef Australia as a guest judge on Sunday. Phoebe Roth met him while he was in Melbourne earlier this year.
“ASK him if he’d like to come to Shabbat dinner,” my mother said to me, half seriously, as I left the house to interview Yotam Ottolenghi. I hadn’t intended to ask him, but as it happens, he mentioned he was going to friends for dinner that Shabbat. He comes from a non-traditional Jewish family, but is unquestionably familiar with the concept.
My mother was admittedly relieved. “Can you imagine the pressure? I would have had to take the day off work to prepare!”
Ordinarily I’d be averse to the idea of having a celebrity of any description at our Shabbat table – let alone one who cooks some of the world’s best food – but by the end of our chat I could tell Ottolenghi would be a welcome addition.
Humble, down-to-earth and friendly, Ottolenghi is clearly passionate about food. He grew up in Jerusalem, which had “a really vibrant street food scene”, he recalled. The food he ate at home was influenced by his parents’ heritage in different parts of Europe – his mother is from German ancestry and his father is Italian.
“I always loved to eat,” he said. “I think it had to do with the fact that I was exposed to a lot of different types of food.”
Cooking, however, came much later. The 48-year-old started as a pastry chef in the late 1990s, and went on to open a number of delis around London.
Today he boasts a handful of sought-after restaurants and delis in London, where he lives with his partner Karl Allen and their two young sons.
Interestingly, his business partner in his restaurant ventures, Sami Tamimi, is Palestinian. Ottolenghi served in the IDF, but he said there is never any tension between them, even during times of conflict.
“We feel similarly about the politics of the region. Also we feel removed in a sense, blessedly removed from the events. So, no, we don’t have any arguments. We’re on the same page really,” he said.
Beyond his restaurants, Ottolenghi has hosted three highly- acclaimed television series, and has written a number of popular cookbooks. His latest book, Sweet, is due to be released in Australia in September.
“I started my way in the world of food as a pastry chef. I love baking and I’ve got a sweet tooth … I always finish every dinner with a piece of chocolate or something,” he said.
“So this book has been waiting to happen. I think we’ve created something quite special. Because although it will have things that would look familiar to everybody, it will have little twists.
“It’s got a lot of the feeling of the Middle East, but it will feel like a proper cake book, and we’ve really been enjoying writing it.”
Indeed, many people say that Ottolenghi has transformed how we cook, eat and view Middle Eastern food.
“For all sorts of geopolitical reasons, the food of the Middle East has not been explored thoroughly over time,” he explained.
But nowadays, it is exploding. Ottolenghi believes part of the reason for this is the way the cuisine lends itself so well to vegetables, legumes and the like. Although not a vegetarian, he feels very strongly about cooking vegetables.
“The trouble is that vegetables seem less exciting to many than meat or fish, but I think the only reason is because they take a little bit more work,” he said.
“If you’re a meat eater, then it’s quite difficult for someone to accept that vegetables could be quite as good, but actually they could be even better. It’s just about the treatment and how serious you are about it, and what you do with it.”
Ottolenghi was in Australia earlier this year to film a week of MasterChef Australia episodes as a guest judge alongside Matt Preston, Gary Mehigan and George Calombaris, which screen from Sunday, June 4 when 15 contestants have to create a delicious dish using one or more of Ottolenghi’s favourite ingredients.
During the week contestants face a variety of challenges under the watchful eye of Ottolenghi.
“I think MasterChef has aims that are beyond the competition and beyond entertainment,” said Ottolenghi.
“I think the contestants are treated with great respect and the judges and the whole ethos of the show is about teaching and nurturing them. A lot of cookery shows tend not to do that.”
Ottolenghi and the contestants take part in a masterclass that is featured in his final episode on June 8.
Ottolenghi has experienced the culinary capitals of the world, yet is quick to praise the calibre of food on offer on our shores, and notes that it is constantly evolving.
“One of the reasons why I’m here is because I love the food scene,” he said.
“I think in a sense there is a similarity between Australia and Israel. Because they are both young countries with a lot of immigrants where the cuisines of the immigrants have really amalgamated into something new and fresh and creative.”
He has plans to travel to new places and discover foods that he hasn’t yet experienced.
Asked where he gets his inspiration, Ottolenghi said simply: “I guess every meal is an inspiration. When I travel I get inspired, when I read a book I get inspired, when I see a food blog I get inspired.
“Even sometimes just a flavour combination, when someone gives me a bite of something. I go like ‘oh, that’s interesting.’ That sometimes can trigger a dish.”
But what really makes him tick as a chef, what he loves about cooking, is at its very core – feeding people.
“I think one of the most gratifying experiences, one of the most uniformly appreciated human phenomena is feeding people. And I think we all have the desire to feed people, because it’s the ultimate act of human giving,” Ottolenghi said.
“It sounds quite big, but actually if you break it down to a lot of small things, it actually means entertaining, having people over, looking for a smile, for a gesture. It’s just a very gratifying and satisfying experience.”
MasterChef Australia screens on Network 10 from Sundays to Thursdays at 7.30pm.
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