FOOD & DRINK
Some exper ts now say we need to eat 30 plants a week. Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall makes it easier and more enjoyable with his plant-packed recipes
The brilliant Tim Spector has made a compelling case for the wisdom and benefits of eating 30 plants a week (there are around 11,000 known edible plants), and now it falls to me to show you how to do it. Happily, it’s a task I relish: not only do I believe I can make it pretty easy for you, I’m also very confident you are going to enjoy the ride. This is partly because I think there is genuine interest, excitement and fun to be had from making this change in your approach to shopping, cooking and eating.
But it’s mainly because I know that you will end up enjoying your food even more than you already do. Thirty plants a week cannot help but deliver more deliciousness to your plate.
Don’t assume that just because this approach is undeniably good for you, it must be a chore to get there. I genuinely think the opposite is true. It frees you from the tyranny of portion size – you can sprinkle on a handful of chopped herbs or a spoonful of sesame seeds and you’ve chalked up another plant. On the whole, my recipes have done the hard work for you, putting glorious fresh veg, fruit, nuts and spices onto your plate in common sense proportions, and with variety and diversity always at their heart.
The combining and layering of plants of all kinds has always been at the heart of great cooking, of exciting, delighting and surprising our taste buds (which is one of the defining aspects of human culture, along with art and music). And you are about to spend some time becoming more committed to this central tenet of the culinary art. Enjoy the journey – it’s a lifelong pursuit which, like all the best adventures, has no final destination.
8 PLANT PORTIONS
BARLEY KEDGEROTTO
This lovely creamy dish of smoked fish, grains and greens sits somewhere between a kedgeree and a risotto – hence the name. It’s a luxurious way to enjoy the flavours of smoked fish and the goodness of whole grains, along with silky greens and popping peas or beans.
200G PEARL BARLEY (OR SPELT)
500G UNDYED SMOKED HADDOCK OR 400G KIPPER FILLETS
2 BAY LEAVES
300ML MILK (DAIRY OR NUT/OAT MILK)
OIL OR FAT, FOR COOKING 1 LARGE ONION, FINELY SLICED
1 LEEK, TRIMMED AND FINELY SLICED
2 CELERY STICKS, FINELY SLICED
3 GARLIC CLOVES, FINELY
SLICED 4 MEDIUM EGGS
150G FROZEN PEAS OR EDAMAME BEANS, DEFROSTED
100G SPINACH, COARSE STALKS REMOVED, SHREDDED
A KNOB OF BUTTER
A SMALL BUNCH OF PARSLEY, LEAVES PICKED AND ROUGHLY CHOPPED
A SMALL BUNCH OF CHIVES, SNIPPED (OPTIONAL)
SEA SALT AND BLACK PEPPER, TO TASTE
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