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Jamie grew up in one of the first true British “gastropubs”, which his Mum and Dad still run today. For him, the heart and soul of real British cooking is food that puts a smile on your face. And that’s what he wants to share in the new book: the essence of British food, done properly.
Over the years, British food culture has embraced flavours and influences from all the people who came and made Great Britain their home. The food reflects an open-minded culture as well as the country’s beauty. There are over 100 of Jamie’s favourite recipes: some are indisputable classics, some are his versions of the classics, some should be classics but just haven’t been made famous yet and others he’s made up from the great bounty of British produce.
Wherever you’re from, if you love food this book will offer you a little taste of happiness.
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Jamie Oliver started cooking at his parents' pub, the Cricketers, at the age of eight, and has gone on to work with some of the world's top chefs. He founded Fifteen restaurant in London and the associated charity, Fifteen Foundation, which trains disadvantaged young people to become chefs. There are now Fifteen restaurants in Cornwall, Amsterdam and Melbourne. Jamie has also launched a chain of high street restaurants in the UK called Jamie's Italian. Jamie writes for publications in the UK and around the world, including his own Jamie Magazine.
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Some predictable things made it into this book: Bubble and Squeak, scones. But some very unpredictable things did too: Yemeni lamb recipes from Wales, scallops with black pudding, roast veg vindaloo. And rabbit bolognese...
If you were expecting very familiar comfort food, old-fashioned bangers and mash and a ultimate shepherds pie recipe, you may be disappointed. Because rather than dishing up a book stuffed with traditional favourites, Jamie Oliver does his utmost to provide a new twist on our current, actual, national cuisine. Combine our love of spag bol with a new interest in foraging, and that rabbit bolognese is the logical outcome
(There are some reoccurring recipes as other reviewers have noted. The one-pan fry-up is the first in the book!)
BREAKFASTS includes bubble and squeak, homemade yoghurt, yemeni pancakes, kedgeree and delicious Glasgow potato scones (really delicious). The kedgeree recipe in particular departs from others I've used with a fresh spice mix rather than just garam masala, very nice.
SOUPS including tomato, spring veg (with gin!), mushroom, ham and pea, minted courgette, mulligatawny
SALADS - some really nice things here, though hardly traditional! Apple and watercress with blue cheese dressing, heritage tomato salad with dill, a shredded rainbow salad that's essentially coleslaw (UK? hmm...) salmon salad, and a Caribbean-inspired pork and rice salad
PUB GRUB tiny yorkshire puddings with smoked trout in, scotch eggs, scampi bites (with very sweet nostalgic commentary by Jamie about growing up in the pub) ploughmans, toad in the hole, and, errr, cheese fondue!
NEW BRITISH CLASSICS empire roast chicken (combining roast chicken and curry - I haven't tried this yet...), that Yemeni lamb, Jerk-dressed pork
AFTERNOON TEA including a tea loaf with Earl Grey in it, a romantic Victoria sponge with some orange zest and rosewater, a sour Cranberry bakewell, some mini Eccles cakes...
SEASIDE Oysters, skate and peas, potted shrimp, mussels, fishcakes etc. The fishcakes have a strip of streaky bacon round the outside - might be too experimental for this household...
PIES AND PUDDINGS A Shepherd's pie but made with veal (with a note about why we should use more of that meat), Cornish pasties, a surprisingly elaborate steak and kidney recipe...
SUNDAY LUNCH Always one of JO's strong points, there's a fantastic-looking forerib recipe with a brilliant serving/carving suggestion, a brill roast goose (that looks familiar from the Xmas programmes), lamb shanks slow cooked in Guinness, a wonderful looking pork belly with scrumpy, a big bacon joint with pease pudding...
WILD FOOD pheasant with fennel bake, honey-roasted rabbit, rabbit bolognese....
VEGETABLES Champ, red cabbage, about fourteen ways with asparagus, leeks with a crunchy topping, four different mashed potato recipes
PUDS Summer Pudding with elderflower, two quite bonkers trifles, a rice pudding with rhubarb, honeycomb with chocolate sauce (definitely seen that one before), crumble with flapjack topping, arctic roll! Now we're talking...
I actually think the book is rather beautiful - photography is even better than ever, and I love the fact that serving suggestions for the roasts are included as i am rubbish at knowing how to carve and this is a lifesaver. But the fonts!! that's my only complaint! An introduction entirely in capital letters, sigh.
Anyway, one more good review, but I hope listing some of the recipes gives a chance to virtually browse the book.Read more ›
My Nan loves Jamie Oliver. She says he's like the grandson she always wanted; that does sting a little as I'm washing out her commode but I'm not bitter. She won't eat anythng that's not been hand prepared from one of Jamie's latest volumes and I can tell you that artichokes and fresh basil aren't a staple at the Greenock convenience store. Thankfully he trots these books out like billy-o, 30 minute meals, food revolution, ministry of food just this year so it keeps from getting samey (they do all seem to involve roughly rubbing and stuffing herbs into raw meat with your bare hands though). I'm sure there will be a TV series along anytime now to make sure this sells plenty for Christmas... little scamp. Nan wouldnt wait that long, I had to camp outside Watersones on Wednesday night to get the first copy. I'm praying for Jamie's Pot Noodles next year.
....the reason for 'Jamie's Great Britain: over 130 Reasons to Love Our Food', is revealed on the dust-jacket flap (copied here in full, as it is not on the Amazon product detail (at the time of writing)):
'This book is really special to me. It has been a long time coming, but sometimes it takes years of looking at other countries to realise how wonderful your own actually is. I grew up in one of the first true British gastropubs, which my Mum and Dad still run today. For me, the heart and soul of real British cooking is food that makes you happy and puts a smile on your face. And that's what I want to share with you: the real essence of British food, done properly. Over the years, our food culture has embraced loads of different flavours and influences from all the people who have settled here and made this country their home. I hope the food in this book reflects the open-mindedness of our culture as well as the beauty of Great Britain. There are over 130 of my favourite recipes here, some are indisputable classics, some are my versions of the classics, some should be classics but just haven't been made famous yet and others I've made up by picking from the great bounty of regional produce. Writing this book has been a real labour of love, and whether you're from Brighton, Brisbane or Berlin, if you love food, I think it will offer you a little taste of happiness.'
And Jamie, with his Sunday Roast......smiles at you from the picture on the dust-jacket. The naked book is simply blue with white block titling, 'JAMIE'S GREAT BRITAIN' on the spine, only.
Measuring in around 19.5 cm x 25 cm and some 4 cm deep, this is a well-produced, weighty tome, written the typically 'JO' way. In between the covers are 407 matt pages, split over main chapters:
sandwiched between an intro and a concise index which is usefully enhanced with a 'V' for vegetarian and in a bold font for the illustrated dishes. Jamie's 'thanks page' is present, as always.
A colourful double-page spread opens each chapter with an illustration on one page and Jamie's intro on the other, then it is straight into the recipes, starting with 'one-pan breakfast'. The blurb and recipe for this one is in a mix of pastel colours which is faintly irritating and, initially, my heart sank.... but a quick flick through reveals that these are in the minority, fortunately. The accompanying photo looks satisfying enough (if this is your scene), and is complete with teapot, cup of tea and a bottle of HP sauce which pops up later on too, (although, 'Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce' gets a double-page spread ahead of the inevitable recipe for, 'a sarnie', in the shape of a 'Worcestershire Beef' one, which, surprisingly, uses brisket!) Turning over to 'Bubble & Squeak', the recipe is easier on the eye with the main text in black on a white page and this sets the format for the majority.
Each recipe opens with the main capitalised title and accompaniments (if applicable). Typical JO banter comes along next, followed by the number of servings and the list(s) of ingredients and the method. Tips and variations are included where applicable, sometimes in the form of a PS tip at the bottom of the recipe. Childhood memories recalled and informative little snippets, generally regional, are dotted throughout the book. The colourful publication is interspersed with a good number of photographs, including some of the dishes and ingredients, along with on-location shots and Jamie & family, from 'Lord' David Loftus.
'There is nothing like a delicious warming soup when the seasons start to turn'.
No truer words have been spoken, in my opinion, and Jamie's 'My Scotch Broth' from pages 54 & 55, uses 2 x 350g lamb shanks and serves 8. Jamie uses the 'falling-off-the-bone lamb', as an accompaniment called 'Pulled Lamb on Grilled Toasts', giving an overall satisfying crunch and making a deceptively hearty meal to say the least! Lately, I have really got into cooking with shanks and was happy to also find 'Guinness Lamb Shanks', on pages 264 & 265, served with 'Sticky Dark Gravy & Fresh Mint Dressing' and this recipe is very hard to beat on flavour.
'Shredded Rainbow Salad', from pages 84 & 85, lives up to the opening note of 'being one of the nicest & quickest salads you could ever make'. It uses beetroot, red cabbage, carrots, cabbage, pears, parsley or mint and shelled walnuts.
'Shepherd's Pie', from pages 238 & 239 'pays homage to our long-suffering dairy farmers' (hence the extended recipe title of 'Vs Milkman's Pie') and the Jamie 'tweak', is using veal in this tasty recipe. Arguably, there is the odd recipe that you might not expect to find in this book, but Jamie justifies its inclusion in his own way, e.g. 'Yemeni Pancakes' as he 'was introduced to the style of pancake by the ladies of the Yemeni community in Cardiff's Tiger Bay, where they have been made for over 200 years now....'
Similarly, 'Roasted Veg Vindaloo' is in because of Jamie's work with the Goan community in Leeds, where he learned that 'vindaloo, a curry famous all over the UK, is actually from Goa but has European roots. That part of India was, for many hundreds of years, actually under Portuguese control. It was the Portuguese who introduced vinegar to Goa and put the 'vin' (vinegar) in vindaloo ('loo' was the garlic).....'
A small taste of the other recipes contained within:
* Bubble & Squeak * Glasgow Potato Scones * Breakfast Crumpies * Light & Spicy Kedgeree * Fresh Tomato Soup with Little Cheddar Soldiers * Minted Courgette Soup * Mighty Mulligatawny * Chestnut Pumpkin Soup * Crunchy Allotment Salad * Warm Crispy Duck Salad * Heavenly Salmon Salad * Granny Smith's Pork & Rice Salad * Epic Roast Chicken Salad * Baby Yorkshire Puds with Creamy Smoked Trout and Horseradish P�té * My Prawn Cocktail * Wee Scotch Eggs * Breaded Scampi Bites * Toad-in-the-hole * Happy Fish Pie * Pale Ale Fondue * Easy Pork Scratchings * Sizzling Lamb Lollipops * Easy Essex Haggis * Jerk-dressed Bristol Pork * My Nan's St Clement's Cake * Earl Grey Tea Loaf * Queen Victoria Sponge * Rainbow Jam Tarts * Charming Eccles Cakes * Crumbliest Scones * Wonderful Welsh Cakes * Leigh-on-Sea Sole with Crispy Black Pudding & Creamy Clapshot * 3-Ways with Fresh Oysters * Lincolnshire Poacher Pie * Early Autumn Cornish Pasties * Steak & Kidney Pud * Hearty Oxtail Stew * Incredible Roast Goose * Welsh Surf & Turf * Pease pudding * Seared Venison Loin * Honey-Roasted Lemon Rabbit with Offal Skewers * Flying Steak Sandwich * Tasty Shredded Brussels * Irish Champ * 4-Ways with Asparagus * 4-Ways with Mashed Potato * Perfect Poached Pears * Chocolate Orange Steamed Pud * Retro Arctic Roll * Citrus Cheesecake Possets * Ecclefechan Butter Tart, with a Dollop of Whisky & a Ginger Cream * Flapjack Crumble * Chocolate Pudding Bombe * The Best Piccalilli * Sunday Lunch Sauces * Homemade Mayonnaise
Not forgetting.....a tribute, or two, to royalty in the form of 'Kate & Will's Wedding Pie', from pages 232 & 233 and... ....to celebrate June 2012:
'ER's Diamond Jubilee Chicken', on pages 146 & 147!
Jamie's Great Britain was published to coincide with the TV programme of the same name and there are, currently, some of the recipes and 'how to' videos on the JO website.Read more ›
I've bought most of Jamie's books in the past (all except Ministry of Food and the Red Nose books) and really enjoy cooking recipes from all of them...until now!
I was given this book as a birthday present and opened it in anticipation of reading some interesting recipes, that would make my mouth water as I read them and I would be trying to find time to cook them for myself...and then found a recipe for a bacon butty. What did that say to me? Lazy! On looking further through the book, a lot of the recipes are re-hashed from earlier books or just plain lazy - omelete anyone? One Pan Breakfast? And some of the recipes are just old recipes with different names - Kate and Wills Wedding Pie = Beef and Guinness pie.
There are a few recipes I would like to try, such as Empire Roast Chicken and the Guinness Lamb Shanks but, overall, I would have liked to have found more than 2 dishes I would want to make, from a book that advertises "Over 130 reasons to love our food"
Sadly, this is one cookbook that will unlikely see the light of day again. And I will be more cautious in the future when purchasing any more of Jamie's books.
Do yourself a favour - search his website before buying this book. You'll probably find the few recipes you would want to cook already there for free !
