Rosie Reynolds - The Shortcut Cook All in One

Contents

As a trained chef, cookbook author and food stylist I have worked on many cookbooks and written hundreds of recipes. It is my job to get great tasting, beautiful food on the table (or set) usually in a short space of time and under a certain amount of pressure and scrutiny. Over time I have developed plenty of shortcuts to make great meals, faster and easier, that taste delicious and look good without sacrificing flavour, texture or eye appeal. As a mother, I also get to continually practise my skills of cooking for my family at home and, well, sometimes I just need to make it even easier!

My last book, The Shortcut Cook , was filled with lots of shortcuts, or tricks of the trade; those things chefs and food professionals just do as part of their daily job without thinking about it or, in some instances, even realising it. Well, Im here to let you in on more creative solutions, tricks and ingredients that will provide delicious meals that are easy to prepare with depths of flavour and less work in the kitchen for you and your family.

Like The Shortcut Cook , this book is intended for home cooks who want a straightforward, practical approach to preparing tasty, beautiful food without pretence. But Ive managed to make it even easier. How, you ask? Ive cooked everything in just one pan, pot or dish. Super tasty, super stylish, super simple.

This is how I cook for my family to harness and concentrate flavours into one dish that leads to the enjoyment of beautiful delicious food that is easy to prepare. With this book Id love you to find the enthusiasm that I have for the food I cook and to embrace some of the kitchen wisdom Ive learned over the years.

I hope this book inspires you to get into the kitchen and to enjoy the process of cooking a great meal for yourself, friends and family.

Rosie

I always like to start every cooking journey by reading through the recipe Im setting out to make. I take notice of the ingredients. Do I have everything? If not, can I make an easy substitution and will the recipe still work? Thinking of swapping chickpeas (garbanzos) for cannellini beans yes it will! Thinking of swapping flour for chia seeds no it probably wont!

I read the method before I start cooking not only to see if it is possible at the particular meal time but so I know what is coming up. Its super helpful to read the first couple of lines of the recipe before you skip back to prepping and chopping if it says preheat the oven you can do this immediately so you are ready to go. In this book you will also see the size and type of cooking vessel you need to use.

Youll see that I have a few favourite ingredients that are always in my cupboard. If you have these on standby, youll never struggle to put together a tasty meal: olive oil, light-flavoured oil I use sunflower or rapeseed garlic, onions, tinned tomatoes, eggs, ginger, bacon, Parmesan, honey, frozen pastry. And a well stocked spice rack containing all the basics including cinnamon, cumin, paprika, garlic granules, turmeric, chilli (hot pepper) flakes, etc.

I love fresh herbs. I keep mine in a glass jar in some water in the refrigerator. Thyme, rosemary and bay leaves will last for ages and are good fresh or dried.

All the recipes have a preparation time (this tells you how long it will take to get everything ready for cooking) and a cook time (how long the recipe will take on the stove or in the oven). These are a guide, so please use them as such.

The ingredients are listed in the order in which they appear in the method, the preparation required is listed next to the ingredient (e.g. sliced, grated, chopped, etc.). If you work your way down the ingredient list and prepare the ingredients as you go, you will be ready to start cooking as soon as you reach the end of the list. There is a fancy chef term for this: mis-en-place (everything in its place).

The shortcut from each recipe is highlighted so you know how this recipe is saving you time, or helping you achieve a more delicious result.

I would urge you to follow the recipes closely the first time you cook them. I have tried and tested the recipes and know they work, taste delicious and look great. Once youve made it, eaten it, talked about it, taken a picture of it, digested it, then you can make it again, putting your stamp on it and making it your own.

There are some things that Ill always do when Im cooking, which make my life easier, make cooking more pleasurable and help food taste its best.

Gather everything before you start cooking: equipment, ingredients, a clean dish towel, etc.

Have a large bowl or a plastic bag nearby for food waste, to keep your work station clean and clutter-free.

Fill the sink with hot soapy water to keep your hands clean and to speedily wash up used or dirty bowls and equipment for quick re-use. Keep a clean cloth close by for wiping and some paper towels for patting, drying and draining foods.

Start your cooking sessions by putting on the kettle this will mean you can make up stock from cubes quickly, rinse out tins to add the liquid to sauces and stews, or get pasta on the boil much quicker.

Most pastas dont need to cook in a huge pot of boiling water, they will cook just as well in a smaller pan. Doing this will also give you an intensely starchy cooking water, which will thicken your sauce with great success. The same goes for boiling vegetables: you dont need huge vats of water to cook veg, just a pan thats fit for purpose.

Make sure meat is not refrigerator-cold when you put it in the oven, as it will take a good 2030 minutes to warm through before it can start cooking.

Like meat, eggs need to come to room temperature before cooking. This will prevent them curdling cake mixes or being undercooked when boiled.

Sharp knives will speed things up in the kitchen; a speed peeler will thinly and evenly slice; and a good pair of kitchen scissors will snip precisely.

The equipment list for this book is, by design, neat and tidy. I use the following tins and trays (pans) to test the recipes in this book, but you can vary the sizes slightly or substitute trays for other tins, but keep your eye on the timings as they may change if you take too much of a wild detour from the size or type of tray specified. For baking Id suggest sticking to the size listed as I know they will work. I favour metal, ceramic or cast iron to cook with, but if youre confident with silicone and alternative materials thats great. Once again, keep your eye on timings as I dont test my recipes in these alternative materials.

Baking trays/pans/tins

A standard 30 x 20 x 5 cm (12 x 8 x 2 in) enamelware/metal tray (pan): This size is great when you have sauce and food that needs to be contained as all the flavour is harnessed in the tray.

Large 39 x 27 x 2 cm (15 x 10 x in) metal baking tray: This size is ideal when you have vegetables that need to char and gain colour while they cook, and the extra space allows the hot air of the oven to circulate so the food cooks all around and prevents steaming the vegetables.