Ikoyi: A Journey Through Bold Heat with Recipes

Description

‘In what seems like only a brief moment, Ikoyi has shaken the world of cooking.’ – René Redzepi, chef & co-owner of noma The exciting debut cookbook from the acclaimed chef of the two-Michelin-starred London restaurant Ikoyi Ikoyi, named as one of the World's 50 Best Restaurants in 2022, is one of the most original, flavor-driven restaurants of its time. Run by childhood-friend duo Iré Hassan-Odukale and chef Jeremy Chan, the innovative culinary mind behind the unique tasting menu, its menu is inspired by the spices of Sub-Saharan West Africa and produce from local farms and artisan producers. The book includes narratives throughout illustrating Ikoyi’s inspiration and inception, as influenced by Chan’s experiences living, cooking, and traveling in Hong Kong, Canada, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Europe. Each recipe in this fascinating book features a story about how the dish was developed, plus the influences of seasonality and produce from local producers. This debut cookbook tells the compelling story and journey of Chan and Ikoyi, with 80 recipes that Chan has carefully developed to encapsulate bold heat: his signature style. Review: I love this book - freedom is mine! - I am one of those Nigerian middle aged, middle class women who went to ikoyi the restaurant and was frankly puzzled by the menu and why the food was not recognisably "Nigerian" given the name of the restaurant. That thinking got in the way of my enjoyment and it is only now that I have read the book that I "get" what Jeremy is trying to do and I love it. First things first, this is a book that you need to read. The description of the journey to bring a restaurant into being in London is engaging and a reminder of just how much it takes to get your food out to the people, no matter how tasty and good it is. Second, I now understand that he is exploring the use of West African ingredients in lots of non-traditional ways. That is wonderfully freeing for me as someone who has always kept to traditional Yoruba recipes while experimenting deeply and broadly in other people's traditions. I am really looking forward to using this book as a jumping off point for finding new ways to use traditional West African ingredients - some of which are already familiar to me and some of which are not. I like that a lot of the base recipes will give me the opportunity to preserve short lived items from my allotment by making things like elderflower oil, while others will allow me to swap in things that I already make, like groundnut miso and fermented pepper mash, with confidence using and riffing on the descriptions that precede each recipe. I don't normally write reviews but I am super happy to have found this book and look forward to returning to the restaurant with a more open mind. Review: Excellent book - Nice book