The Naked Chef

Customer Reviews

No fuss, great fun and dead pukka

For those of you unfortunate not to catch Jamie Oliver on the telly - then get the cookbook. If you've caught him on the Telly, then buy the cookbook anyway.

This book is the first of two he's written so far based on his cooking shows. The 'Naked' part of Naked Chef refers to the cooking. His style is to strip down recipes into simple, tasty, quick and easy food. The wonderful thing about the recipes is they are not only easy to follow but they are the basis for as many wonderful variations as you want to make. For instance, he has a basic bread recipe, but lots of great variations.

Once you have the basics it is easy to develop your own dishes too. His presentation is always simple and he has lots of tips for how to make things work. He covers a full range of meals from breakfast through to beverages and deserts so there is something for any time of the day.

I must say I also like Jamie Oliver for his casual style. He is without pretentions but the food that comes out of the kitchen is always fabulous, looks great, tastes gourmet, and is dead impressive. As Jamie says - its Pukka (translation - GREAT!)

Eye-catching title, simple food

Jamie Oliver's first book based on his television series (no, the title does not refer to the chef but instead to his philosophy) is a fine entry in the cookbook market for those who prefer their meals on the plain but flavorful side. Oliver excels in simplicity. His stripped down recipes are easy to follow and don't require a lot of imagination to guess how they will taste. For example, his six recipes for salad dressings fit on two pages; the recipe titles describe exactly what one gets. While Oliver supplies a few recipes that I'll never try (Ravioli of Borage, Stinging Nettles, Marjoram, and Fresh Ricotta) and a few gourmet dishes (Spicy Squash, Basil, and Ricotta Tortellini with Crispy Herbs), most dishes will be familiar to those who dine out at mid-priced restaurants. The emphasis is heavily, though not exclusively, on pasta and Italian flavors. (For ambitious cooks, Oliver supplies clear instructions on how to made pasta at home.) Meat recipes are often plain, without sauces or exotic ingredients; you'll find roast chicken, slow-cooked lamb shanks, and pork chops with thyme, lemon, and pesto. The fish and seafood dishes tend to use off-beat (for Americans) ingredients such as sardines, whole trout, and skate wings, although pan-seared tuna, a staple in restaurants nowadays, makes an appearance. Desserts are uninspired.

The strength of this cookbook is the no-nonsense style and the color plates that accompany the recipes. I recommend this for beginning cooks and those who have simple tastes and are looking for something new. Gourmet cooks, particularly those with a lot of cookbooks, are likely to find themselves bored with the selections.

A book that changed my life

Recently, a friend asked me if any books had changed my life in the past year or so. I thought for awhile, and responded, "Why, yes, I guess you could say 'The Naked Chef' has changed my life. Now, I love to cook!"

What I love about these recipes, besides that they're delicious, is that there isn't a lot of fussiness: no exact measurements (except for the baking recipes, of course), no tricky little "tie each noodle in a bow" steps, no sinks full of dirty pots and pans (many of the recipes are "one-dish").

This cookbook also possesses a couple of attributes that make meal planning easy: great photographs, and an extensively cross-referenced index. I now own all 4 of Jamie Oliver's cookbooks. (...)