This is how Yotam Ottolenghi’s roasted chicken with Arak should have looked like. without the blue curacao
There is a point to this ramble. It’s abut the disasters than can befall cooks who don’t always know what flavours best enhance each other. And the dangers of substitutions in recipes.
But it’s also about what ingredients do work well together, thanks to Glynn Christian’s book How to Cook Without Recipes.
My style of cooking tends towards the organic and impulsive. I forage through the fridge, see what’s available and cook accordingly. I sometimes use recipes, but can seldom resist fiddling with them. I add a bit of this and that, sometimes substituting one ingredient with another.
I always think I know better than Nigella, Jamie or Yotam Ottolenghi. Wrong!
The results vary. Sometimes I produce a spectaclar meal. Other times, well … here’s a cautionary culinary tale – and some solutions.
