A great fig should look like it's just about to burst its skin. When squeezed lightly it should give a little and not spring back. It must be almost unctuously sweet, soft and wet. Yotam Ottolenghi More Quotes by Yotam Ottolenghi More Quotes From Yotam Ottolenghi A well-made salad must have a certain uniformity; it should make perfect sense for those ingredients to share a bowl. Yotam Ottolenghi salad ingredients perfect The combination of olive oil, garlic and lemon juice lifts the spirits in winter. Yotam Ottolenghi juice oil winter Mothers and grandmothers: these are the people that I admire most, not so much chefs. Yotam Ottolenghi mother food people The way to entice people into cooking is to cook delicious things. Yotam Ottolenghi cooking people way Just-poached vegetables show off their natural attributes, and taste fresh and light in a way you never get with roasting or frying. Yotam Ottolenghi light vegetables way Brunch, for me, is an extended breakfast that should be enjoyed whenever you have time properly to engage in cooking and eating. Yotam Ottolenghi brunch cooking breakfast Date syrup is a natural sweetener that has wonderful richness and treacly depth; I drizzle it over semolina porridge. Yotam Ottolenghi syrup depth wonderful It is more than twenty years since we left the city. This is a serious chunk of time, longer than the years we spent living there. Yet we still think of Jerusalem as our home. Not home in the sense of the place that you conduct your daily life or constantly return to. In fact, Jerusalem is our home almost against our wills. It is our home because it defines us, whether we like it or not. Yotam Ottolenghi home years thinking You can be vegetarian and eat fish. Its your choice, just say: I am what I am. There are no hardcore divisions anymore. Yotam Ottolenghi vegetarian division choices You dont need a machine to make pasta: a rolling pin and a fast hand can create a smooth, if thick, sheet. Yotam Ottolenghi rolling hands needs Some heat, some spice and plenty of citrus are the building blocks of many north African fish dishes. Yotam Ottolenghi spices heat block Pasta with melted cheese is the one thing I could eat over and over again. Yotam Ottolenghi pasta one-thing cheese Breakfast is always the best time for something juicy, sweet and fresh - it just feels like the right way to open the day. There's no right way, though, when it comes to choosing the fruit. Yotam Ottolenghi juicy sweet breakfast Pizza was made for television in so many ways: it is easy to heat up, easy to divide and easy to eat in a group. It is easy to enjoy, easy to digest and easy-going. It is so Italian! Yotam Ottolenghi groups italian television For me, the end of childhood came when the number of candles on my birthday cake no longer reflected my age, around 19 or 20. From then on, each candle came to represent an entire decade. Yotam Ottolenghi cake numbers birthday The differences between a tart, a pie and a quiche are a blur. Yotam Ottolenghi between blur pie differences One man's trash is another man's treasure, and the by-product from one food can be perfect for making another. Yotam Ottolenghi man treasure perfect food Chickpeas are one of my favourite things to serve with chorizo or lamb meatballs; they also work brilliantly as the quiet partner in a vibrant alphonso mango salad. Yotam Ottolenghi partner things work quiet There is a unique freshness when eating buckwheat noodles cold with plenty of herbs and citrus acidity. I can't think of any better use of chopsticks on a hot and sweaty evening. Yotam Ottolenghi evening unique eating hot I'm a firm believer that the world should be your oyster when you're cooking. People should open themselves to other cuisines - there are a lot of hidden secrets all over the world. Yotam Ottolenghi you cooking people world