Quotes from Yotam Ottolenghi

I love dishes that feature the various shades of a single colour, making you stop to check what's in there.

Kirmizi biber has a sweet aroma and can vary in spiciness.

In vast parts of the world, people don't eat meat.

Just-poached vegetables show off their natural attributes and taste fresh and light in a way you never get with roasting or frying.

A great ratatouille is one in which the vegetables interact with each other but are still discernible from each other. The trick is to cook them just right: not over, not under.

I do support people eating more vegetables. It's a good thing to do.

Nearly all edible seaweeds - or 'sea vegetables,' as they ought technically to be called - belong to one of three broad groups: green, red and brown algae.

In certain European cuisines, vegetables are cooked a long time. I take the term 'al dente' and use it for vegetables.

Chermoula is a potent North African spice paste that is ideal for smearing on your favourite vegetables for roasting.

The addition of vinaigrette to freshly roasted vegetables gives them a freshness and juiciness they don't normally have; the acidity brings out new shades of flavour, too.

Stereotypical vegetarian food looks gray and brown.

You can be vegetarian and eat fish. It's your choice, just say: 'I am what I am.' There are no hardcore divisions anymore.

Most British cheeses are now vegetarian and are labelled accordingly. However, French and Italian manufacturers still tend to use rennet.

Tahini is fantastically versatile, its deep, nutty flavour a harmonious match with roasted vegetables, grilled oily fish or barbecued meat.

Polenta is to northern Italy what bread is to Tuscany, what pasta is to Emilia-Romagna and what rice is to the Veneto: easy to make, hungry to absorb other flavours, and hugely versatile.

Vegetarian and frugal it may be, but the chickpea is one of the most versatile ingredients you could keep in your cupboards.

Plums are a good substitute for gooseberries.

For me, the end of childhood came when the number of candles on my birthday cake no longer reflected my age, around 19 or 20. From then on, each candle came to represent an entire decade.

Chickpeas are one of my favourite things to serve with chorizo or lamb meatballs; they also work brilliantly as the quiet partner in a vibrant alphonso mango salad.

How can something that's 95% water be so divisive? Alone among vegetables, the poor, innocent stick of celery elicits the most vicious attacks.

I get great pleasure from stuffed foods, from an apple strudel to a vegetable samosa, from a whole roasted bird with a sweet and savoury stuffing to a vine leaf filled with rice and spices.

Stuffed vine leaves tend to burn and/or stick when you cook them. To avoid this, use a heavy based pan lined with a few layers of second-rate leaves.

Panko are the elite of the breadcrumb world because they stay so crunchy and light.

My dad makes food with very few delicate flavours.