A taste of JAMIE’S KITCHEN
He isn’t your typical angry, tattooed chef on television. Jamie Oliver is homely, happy, and always seems bubbling with energy. The master chef, hugely popular thanks to shows such as Jamie’s 30-minute Meals and Jamie’s Comfort Food, runs two restaurants in Delhi and is finally launching a pizzeria in Mumbai. He talks to SIMPLY MUMBAI about going vegetarian, sustainable sourcing and his projects ahead.
Q. It’s been almost a year since you launched in Delhi. What are some of the things you learnt from your time there?
A. Well, we had a really great start and the restaurant has continued to be busy, so we must be doing something right. What’s really pleasing is that lots of people have been visiting regularly, which is always a good sign. I think we pitched the menu right—it’s affordable, but backed up with fantastic, exciting food and service.
Q. What are some of the flavours you now identify as truly Indian?
A. Indian food is so diverse with such an incredible range across all the regions, as you know, so it’s pretty much impossible to define everything with just a few flavours. My friend, Maunika Gowardhan, is from Mumbai and she’s an expert on spice and layers of flavour throughout India’s regional cooking heritage. Her cooking is simple, authentic, accessible and packed with exciting flavours, and for me, that’s what it’s all about.
Q. Are you likely to incorporate anything typically Mumbai to the menu?
A. We try and keep our international menus in line with what we’ve written for the UK as much as possible, but we’ve also made some obvious tweaks for the Mumbai market, including the addition of lots of beautiful vegetarian pizza options.
Q. Does it concern you that there are a large number of vegetarians in the city?
A. Not at all. In fact, it’s lovely to work with beautiful, fresh ingredients and to celebrate what’s so good about vegetarian cooking. I think the layering of flavours is unique to Indian food and really stands out in vegetarian dishes. I’m aiming for two or three vegetarian days a week myself at the moment, so I’m no stranger to vegetarian cooking.
Q. Why did you choose to enter Mumbai with the Pizzeria first?
A. The simplicity and relaxed atmosphere of the Pizzeria really suits the city. It’s also accessible in terms of price and experience, which I hope will give many people the opportunity to try us out.
Q. What according to you is the perfect pizza?
A. You can’t go wrong with a simple, classic Margherita—sometimes less is more. Having said that, it’s no secret that I’m a big chilli fan so when we created the Chilli Freak pizza for our pizzerias— that’s tomatoes, jalapeños, vegetarian Parmesan, fresh chilli and mint, plus my secret sauce—I’d say that’s pretty close to perfection for me.
Q. You’re all about sustainable sourcing; have you had the chance to visit the local Indian markets?
A. We’ve found some truly fantastic suppliers offering incredible produce— almost everything we use is sourced within India, which is a great achievement. I would love to visit India. It’s been on my list for a long time now, so I hope it won’t be too long before I get to come and meet everyone.
Q. Hyper local and regional food is now gaining more significance in India. Do you see that as a threat to your Italian menus?
A. Not really, because I think that as long as you’re offering affordable quality, people will come back again and again. Plus, I’ve always been a real believer in simplicity, which is why Italian cooking appeals to me so much. The impact of the flavours comes from fresh, seasonal ingredients, cooked without fuss and I think there are a lot of similarities between what we do and what’s evolving in India. You can’t beat a dish made with great, carefully sourced ingredients which has been put together with love.
Q. Can we look forward to new TV shows or books anytime soon?
A. I’ve been writing a new book called
Super Food Family Classics, which is all about making beautiful, healthy, simple dishes that work for the whole family—there’s loads of veggie stuff in there, so hopefully you’ll get to see that soon. Then there’s the continuing global campaign to tackle diet-related diseases, and of course, my own family will be growing, too. It’s a busy year, as always.
YOU CAN’T BEAT A DISH MADE WITH GREAT, CAREFULLY SOURCED INGREDIENTS WHICH HAS BEEN PUT TOGETHER WITH LOVE