When you concentrate on Greek and Greek Cypriot food, your thoughts may go to an entire lot of meat.
“There’s simply so many kebabs, and we love a grill,” admits Georgina Hayden. “That’s most likely a preconception that’s justified.”
However there’s one other facet to the delicacies she’s eager to uncover – the plant-based meals eaten throughout Lent and different fasting occasions of the yr. And there’s an terrible lot of fasting: as much as 200 days a yr, together with the 50 days earlier than Easter, 50 days earlier than Christmas, and each Wednesday and Friday.
“Should you’re doing it correctly, that’s a number of days with out meat,” says Hayden. “However it means if you do eat meat, they go laborious – it’s about steadiness.”
Hayden, who labored with Jamie Oliver for 12 years, has devoted her newest cookbook to “nistisima” – “a Greek phrase, which means Lenten meals,” she explains. “It’s the meals we eat within the preparation for any massive spiritual pageant. That’s the greater which means, however in case you have been offered with one thing that was ‘nistisimo’, or some meals that was ‘nistisima’, mainly meaning it’s plant-based, on a extra easy stage.” It does embrace shellfish, however Hayden’s ebook is completely vegan, “for the sake of ease”.
It would all sound a bit daunting – the spiritual references and vegan consuming – however that’s not Hayden’s purpose in any respect. She’s eager to not inform anybody what to do – she’s not vegan herself and wouldn’t ask anybody to go utterly plant-based in the event that they don’t need to – she simply needs to “empower individuals with a load of recipes that introduce extra lentils and greens to their life”.
And also you gained’t discover unhappy meat replacements or vegan cheese anyplace within the ebook – significantly as Hayden tried vegan feta as soon as (“I used to be curious!”) and calls it “truthfully essentially the most disgusting factor I’ve ever eaten”. As a substitute, she discovered so many dishes from Cyprus and the encompassing international locations are unintentionally vegan, and completely scrumptious in their very own proper.
“As a substitute of making an attempt to copy cauliflower cheese and make it one thing it’s not, it’s about discovering new dishes which have been round for hundreds of years that simply occur to be plant-based,” she says – and this wasn’t a tough activity in any respect (the ebook may have been “double the dimensions, simply”).
Hayden grew up round Greek Cypriot meals – her grandparents ran a taverna in north London – however her analysis took her even additional afield. “I used to be researching not simply Greek meals however the meals from the encompassing international locations within the Center East and jap Europe. There are such a lot of dishes and a lot meals from these locations that’s naturally and historically vegan,” she explains. “That simply fascinates me, particularly these days, after we’re making an attempt to eat extra veg and making an attempt to be a bit extra conscientious for the planet, whether or not you’re a meat-eater or not.”
She wrote the ebook when the pandemic was in full drive and he or she couldn’t journey to fulfill individuals. She describes, with glee, WhatsApping monks in Lebanon, FaceTiming a lady in Jordan to see what she was making for Lent, and studying from one other monk (there have been a shocking quantity of monks concerned in her journey) the trick to essentially the most scrumptious kibbeh (deep-fried, stuffed pastries) – including pumpkin puree as a substitute of water to the batter, to essentially amp up the flavour.
“There’s a lot speak about – and rightly so – cultural appropriation in meals,” Hayden says thoughtfully. “We actually have to take a look at the place our meals comes from and the place recipes come from. However it’s a very laborious one – particularly in a ebook like this – if you’re crossing so many borders. Everybody has their very own model of just about the identical dish. Lots of people are conscious of stuffed vine leaves they usually consider it as a Greek dish. However it’s not only a Greek dish – you go to Turkey, the Center East, you go to jap Europe, everybody has their very own model.”
One other factor all of those dishes have in widespread is time. “It’s most likely the alternative of what everybody needs proper now – everybody needs pace, everybody needs much less washing up and whatnot,” groans Hayden. “However if you’re speaking about vegan or plant-based cooking, since you don’t have animal fats to provide you flavour” – you’ve received to speculate a bit extra time in it.
One of many monks she spoke to would prepare dinner his onions for an hour – a far cry from what most of us do, which is actually burning diced onions in a pan for a couple of minutes earlier than including different substances. “OK, we’d not have time to prepare dinner onions for an hour – however if you do, it makes a lot distinction,” says Hayden. “You may do your slow-cooked shoulder of lamb for 4 hours – why don’t you apply the identical precept to your greens? Not every thing must be fast.
“Within the ebook, there are a great deal of speedy recipes – as a result of that’s life – however equally, in case you’re not having a giant chunk of meat for Sunday dinner, apply the identical compassion and like to your greens and also you’ll get a great deal of flavour. I believe that’s much more essential to do with plant-based meals, as a result of it wants that sweetness that comes from sluggish cooking.”
However don’t fear, it’s not just like the recipes within the ebook are overly advanced and laborious to comply with – Hayden is Jamie Oliver’s protégée, in any case. She lately reunited along with her former boss as a choose on Channel 4’s Nice Cookbook Problem With Jamie Oliver, and calls him “such a tremendous mentor”.
Hayden provides: “He taught me a lot – he has at all times put the house prepare dinner on the forefront when he’s occupied with issues, and he’s basically taught me how one can write recipe.”
‘Nistisima: The Secret To Scrumptious Vegan Cooking From The Mediterranean And Past’ by Georgina Hayden (revealed by Bloomsbury, £26; images by Kristin Perers), obtainable 31 March.
