The Return of the Naked Chef was one of Jamie’s early cookbooks and I’ve owned it for years. I made a few recipes successfully but then started to only cook old favourites from the book. After starting to blog how I get on with new recipes I’ve become much more adventurous in trying new recipes so I returned to this book. Some recipes such as his Salmon with Proscuitto and lentils and spinach had become favourites that I had often cooked over the years. His basic risotto instructions were a revelation and his prawn and pea risotto is so good I’ve resolved to try growing peas again (I was less keen on his garlic risotto). His style is very chatty which I like.
This would be an excellent cookbook for someone starting to get into more serious adventurous meals and is the book that tempted me to buy many more Jamie Oliver cookbooks.
It is split into the following chapters
- introduction
- make life easy
- potty about herbs
- morning glory
- tapas, munchies and snacks
- simple salads and dressings
- soups and broths
- pasta and risotto
- fish and shellfish
- meat, poultry and game
- vegetables
- bread
- desserts
- bevvies
- stocks, sauces, bits, bob, this, that and the other
I’ve tried the following recipes from this book
- pan-toasted almonds with a touch of chilli and sea salt
- pappardelle, spicy sausage meat and mixed wild mushrooms
- tagliatelle with saffron, seafood and cream
- farfalle with Savoy cabbage, pancetta, thyme and mozarella
- risotto – various
- prawn and pea risotto with basil and mint
- tray baked cod with runner beans, pancetta and pine nuts
- roasted slashed fillet of sea bass stuffed with herbs, baked on mushrooms with salsa verde
- fantastic fish pie
- salmon fillet wrapped in prosciutto with herby lentils, spinach and yogurt
- baked jerusalem artichokes breadcrumbs, thyme and lemon
- mashed veg
And with the exception of the garlic risotto I’d make all of these again and again.
100 Cook Books 