Regular readers of the blog, or indeed anyone who takes a glance at my ‘Tried & Tested’ section may be aware that one of my favourite chefs is Jamie Oliver. I find his recipes very accessible and they’re among the most used on my book shelf. So before Christmas I got myself an early present and purchased his latest book. I watched one episode and 5 Ingredients – Quick & Easy Food was on it’s way from Amazon. It has since taken pride of place on the cookbook stand in my kitchen as the book of the moment.
The title really says it all, each recipe uses only five ingredients (not including store cupboard staples like oil for cooking) and they’re all quick and simple to make. This tuna and butter bean dish took less than ten minutes to put together and makes a great lunch, but would also be hearty and filling enough for dinner. It’s really fresh, light and considering the minimal ingredients, really packed full of flavour.
When I grouped my five ingredients together on the board before I began I must admit to feeling a little underwhelmed. ‘Well that’s not much, this is going to be quite boring’, I thought. Oh how wrong I was. the five ingredients here were tuna, butterbeans, red onion, celery and parsley. I was a bit bemused at the lack of salad leaves to make up this salad but the combination of finely sliced celery and parsley was not only delicious and fragrant but also provided a really nice crunch you don’t get from a traditional leafy salad.
In the very short time I’ve owned this book I’ve managed to get through several of the recipes. Smoky Pancetta Cod served with spinach and puy lentils is a particular favourite.
Diary of a Saucepot 
Does Jamie use linguine? There’s white strips of something on his plate!
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Hi Sally, the long strips are where he’s used a vegetable peeler to slice some of the celery lengthways.
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