With character: brutal meat dishes. Simple recipes from the world's best chefs Best recipes from readers and chefs of the competition

Optimistic Julia Child, ironic William Pokhlebkin and aristocratic Thomas Keller with their recipes on WomanJournal.ru.

Chef's Recipes: High Art Made Simple

Who said celebrity chefs, Michelin-starred chefs and culinary geniuses have complicated recipes?

Of course, they can spend a whole day preparing a dish with ingredients that are unthinkable for us. But sometimes they don't! And they come up with the simplest recipes, according to which everyone can build a delicious dinner in a short time.

“Naked” James Oliver and optimistic Julia Child, ironic William Pokhlebkin and aristocratic Thomas Keller, vegetarian propagandist Delia Smith and sushi genius Nobuki Matsushima with their signature recipes on WomanJournal.ru.

Cottage cheese vanilla pudding from James Oliver

What do you need:

110 g softened butter

220 g powdered sugar

2 vanilla pods

270 ml milk

How to make James Oliver's Cottage Cheese Vanilla Pudding:

1. Cut the vanilla pods lengthwise, remove the seeds, put the vanilla in a bowl.
2. Grate lemon zest, add butter and icing sugar, beat everything together. Add egg yolks to the mixture, beat again.
3. Pour milk at room temperature there, squeeze lemon juice, pour flour. Mix.
4. Put the dough in a greased baking dish, bake in a water bath for 45 minutes at 280 degrees. Serve with strawberries and cream or sour cream.
5. Curd pudding from James Oliver is ready.

Bon appetit!

Beef Burgundy by Julia Child

250 g bacon

1 kg beef tenderloin

1 carrot

1 bulb

2 tbsp. spoons of flour

750 ml dry red wine

1 st. a spoonful of olive oil

1 st. a spoonful of tomato paste

500 ml stock

Salt, black pepper to taste

How to cook beef burgundy from Julia Child:

1. Cut beef into cubes, pat dry with paper towels. Finely chop the bacon and fry, put in a baking dish.
2. In the same pan, fry the beef, then finely chopped onions and carrots.
3. Put all the prepared ingredients in the form. Salt, pepper, add flour, mix. Put in the oven, preheated to 200 degrees, for 4 minutes, mix again. Pour in wine and broth, put tomato paste. Mix again and put in the oven. Simmer for 2.5 hours at 160 degrees.
4. Julia Child's Beef Burgundy is ready.

Bon appetit!

Ratatouille by Thomas Keller

3 red, orange and yellow pepper halves

5 st. spoons of olive oil

3 garlic cloves

1 bulb

4 cherry tomatoes

1 sprig thyme

1 sprig of parsley

1 eggplant

Salt, black pepper to taste

How to make ratatouille from Thomas Keller:

1. Roast the peppers in the oven, laying crust side up on a baking sheet. Cool, remove the skin. Slice.
2. Finely chop the onion and garlic, sauté in olive oil. Add chopped tomatoes and spices.
3. Zucchini, eggplant, cherry tomatoes cut into thin slices, put in a spiral in a baking dish. Add garlic mixture on top.
4. Close the form with foil, bake for 2 hours at 180 degrees. Then remove the foil and bake for another 30 minutes.
5. Ratatouille by Thomas Keller is ready.

Bon appetit!

Yellow soup from William Pokhlebkin

1.25 l meat broth

7 egg yolks

50 g butter

1–1.5 st. tablespoons of wheat flour

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon 6% apple cider vinegar

pinch of saffron

How to cook yellow soup from William Pokhlebkin:

1. Beat egg yolks, add vinegar and dilute in warm meat broth.
2. Melt the butter over low heat in a saucepan, slightly darken the flour in it until light yellow. Cool down.
3. Pour the entire broth with the yolks diluted in it into a saucepan with toasted flour and, stirring constantly, bring the entire contents to a boil. Before boiling, in the middle of cooking, add ginger, saffron, salt and 25 g of oil.
4. Yellow soup from William Pokhlebkin is ready.

Bon appetit!

Chicken and Rice Casserole by Paula Dean

400 g green beans

500 g chicken fillet

1 bulb

225 g hazelnuts

300 g celery paste

1 cup mayonnaise

170 g boiled rice

1 cup grated cheddar cheese

A pinch of salt

How to make Paula Dean's Chicken and Rice Casserole:

1. Chop onions and nuts. Boil rice. Chicken fillet cut into pieces.
2. Mix all ingredients and place in a greased baking dish. Bake for 25 minutes at 170 degrees until done.
3. Paula Dean's Chicken and Rice Casserole is ready.

Bon appetit!

What to cook for a dinner party, how to beat simple buckwheat, what to do with two kilograms of cherries - the answers to these pressing questions can be extremely exciting. Five famous Moscow chefs shared with us their new recipes for main courses and desserts.

ginger crumble

Soluxe Club Restaurant Chef Chen Yuzan

Ingredients:

• Chinese pear - 400 g
• Dried apricots - 120 g
• Bean vanilla - 10 g
• Grenadine syrup - 35 g
• Powdered sugar - 45 g
• Lemon juice - 25 g

Cooking method:

Peel the pear, cut into small cubes, dried apricots into strips. Scoop out the vanilla pods, put everything in a saucepan and add the rest of the ingredients. Cook over medium heat until the pear is semi-soft. Spread the finished mass into molds, sprinkle with ginger streusel on top and bake for 10 minutes at 200 degrees.

Streusel:

Mix in a bowl 100 g of softened butter, 100 g of almond flour, 100 g of wheat flour, 100 g of powdered sugar, 20 g. ground ginger. Roll the dough into a sausage shape and wrap in cling film. Place in refrigerator for 2 hours until firm.

Bolognese buckwheat

Restobar "Prozhektor", chef Maxim Myasnikov

Ingredients:

• Buckwheat - 70 g
• Onion - 30 g
• Confit tomato - 10 g
• Greens - 1 g

Parmesan sauce (35 g):

• Cream - 250 g
• Parmesan cheese - 40 g

Bolognese sauce (100 g):

• Beef - 1000 g
• Celery - 300 g
• Carrot peeled - 300 g
• Loop - 300 g
• Red wine - 500 g
• Tomatoes in own juice - 500 g
• Rosemary fresh - 10 g
• Olive oil - 50 g
• Garlic - 3 g
• Oyster mushrooms - 40 g
• Cilantro - 15 g

Cooking method:

Rinse and boil buckwheat. Saute oyster mushrooms in olive oil with salt, pepper and garlic. Cut the onion in half and divide it into segments, scald in boiling water for 10 seconds and bake for a few seconds on the stove. Put parmesan sauce on a plate, top with buckwheat, onion, fried oyster mushrooms, pour over bolognese sauce, sprinkle with herbs and garnish with tomatoes.

Bolognese Sauce:

Scroll vegetables through a meat grinder. Fry in olive oil with garlic and rosemary. Scroll the meat through a meat grinder, after the vegetables are fried, add the meat and fry everything together. Pour in red wine - evaporate, put the tomatoes and simmer until tender, salt. Pepper and add sugar.

Parmesan Sauce:

Heat cream, add grated parmesan cheese. Melt cheese in cream to make cheese sauce.

Confit Tomatoes:

Take tomatoes, peel the skin, cut into 4-6 parts, sprinkle with salt, sugar, citrus peel (orange, lime and lemon) with thyme. Bake at 100 degrees for 2.5 hours.

Cherries with chocolate mousse and wafer crumbs

Restaurant Sixty, Chef Carlo Grecu

Ingredients:

• Milk chocolate - 300 g
• Cream - 370 g
• Gelatin - 10 g
• Egg (yolk) - 3 pcs
• Sugar - 40 g
• Dark chocolate - 160 g
• Wafer crumb - 160 g
• Sweet cherry - 150 g

Cooking method:

Melt dark chocolate, add waffle crumbs to it. Put the resulting mass into a mold and freeze.

Break cream in half. Soak gelatin in cold water. Mix the yolks with sugar, heat the first part of the cream to 80 degrees. Boil the yolk with cream. A little brew mass. Add gelatin to the heated mixture and dissolve it. Straining, add the mass to the chocolate, cool slightly, beat the second part of the cream and add to the mass. Pour into molds, top with frozen waffle crumbs.

Decorate the dessert with chocolate and cherries.

Chanterelle julienne

Gastrobar "We're not going anywhere", chef Dmitry Shurshakov

Ingredients:

• Chanterelles - 80 g
• Boiled veal heart - 40 g
• Onion - 15 g
• Cream - 50 g
• Chicken broth - 50 g
• Vegetable oil - 10 g
• Poached egg - 1 joke
• Smoked suluguni cheese - 10 g
• Dill greens - 3 g
• Green onion - 3 g

Cooking method:

Steam the chanterelles, boil the veal heart for 1 hour. Fry onions in oil, add chanterelles - fry slightly, pour in the broth, put the heart - stew. Pour in the cream and cook until the sauce thickens.

Serve the dish in the same pan in which it was cooked. Sprinkle with cheese and garnish with herbs, add a poached egg and drizzle with olive oil.

Lamb shank with mashed potatoes, Crimean port and gooseberries

Restaurant Duran Bar, concept chef Nikolai Bakunov

Ingredients:

• Potato - 350 g
• Lamb shank (back part) - 1 piece
• Salt - 2 g
• butter - 80 g
• Cream - 30 g
• Carrot - 1 piece
• Onion - 1 piece
• Parsley - 3 branches
• Tomatoes - 1 piece
• Butter - 50 g
• Half head of garlic
• bay leaf half
• Peppercorns - 5 pieces
• Gooseberries - 200 g

Cooking method:

Boil the potatoes, drain the water, let stand on the stove for 2 minutes. Take out the butter in advance and cut into medium-sized cubes. Warm cream separately. Rub potatoes with oil through a sieve and add cream. salt

Clean the knuckle from the veins, wrap it with twine to keep its shape. Put in a small saucepan, add spices and roots (onions, carrots, garlic), butter, pour water over the meat level. Cover tightly with foil and place on the stove over high heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a minimum for 1.5 hours.

Prepare the marinade on the wood structure. Take a container slightly larger than the diameter of the plate, pour water, put garlic, brandy, herbs, spices, peppercorns - warm up to a temperature of 80 degrees to reveal the aroma of spices. Cool, immerse the wood structure. Marinate from an hour to a day.

Pierce gooseberries with a needle, immerse in port wine and boil twice over medium heat. Discard the gooseberries and combine with the demi-glace sauce.

Put the finished shank and mashed potatoes on a tree. Pour the sauce over the shank and potatoes - put in the oven. Cook for five minutes.

Pies "Vkusnotishcha without hassle" The pies are soft, tasty and do not get stale for 2-3 days (if they live, of course :)) The dough is prepared in 5 minutes and the pies are immediately molded, no need to wait until it rises. Ingredients: 1 cup warm water; 50 gr. pressed yeast; 1 st. a spoonful of sugar; 1 teaspoon of salt; 3 art. spoons of sunflower oil; 4 cups flour; 1 glass of boiling water; any filling. Preparation: Dissolve the yeast in warm water, add sugar, salt, sunflower oil, mix the flour a little and pour in a glass of boiling water. Knead the dough. After the dough is kneaded, we immediately begin to sculpt pies. I prepared the filling in advance, I had a potato with a liver, and so, any one to your taste will do here. What I love about this recipe is that you don't have to wait at all - even though the dough is yeasty. While some were fried, I sculpted the next ones) The pies didn’t turn out very beautifully, but they have no equal in taste and speed. Bon appetit!

Comments 26

Classes 906

Potato meatballs - scatter in an instant. I bring to your attention a worthy recipe for a hearty dinner. Mushroom sauce with champignons can be served with potato patties. Ingredients Potato - 1 kg. Onion - 1 pc. Eggs - 4 pcs. Flour - 2-3 tbsp. Ground crackers - 2 tbsp. Vegetable oil - 1/2 cup. Hard cheese - 100 g. Salt, ground black pepper - to taste. Cooking method Step 1 Wash potatoes, peel and boil in salted water. Cool down. Step 2 Wash, peel and cut the onion into small cubes. Step 3 Grate the cheese on a medium grater. Step 4 Grate potatoes on a medium grater, add onion, 2 eggs and grated cheese. Salt and pepper everything and mix well. Step 6 Beat 2 eggs. Then form meatballs and roll in flour. Dip the meatballs in eggs, ground crackers and fry in vegetable oil.

Comments 2

Classes 200

"Gul" manti Ingredients flour 500 gr. water 130 gr. salt 1.5 tbsp lamb pulp 1kg. onion 3 pcs. carrots 3 pcs. tomato 3 pcs. pepper 1 tsp zira 1 tsp vegetable oil 2 tbsp. We cut the vegetables into small cubes, and cut the meat even smaller. Add salt, pepper, crushed zira and mix with your hands. We put the finished filling in the refrigerator for 20 minutes. Knead the dough from flour, water and salt. Divide into two parts, put in bags and remove for 15-20 minutes. Then roll out into a thin layer, cut into wide ribbons. We smear them with vegetable oil, put the minced meat on the ribbons. We fold each tape with minced meat in half. We pinch the side edges of the tape folded in half. We twist our tape into a snail and pinch its edge. We get flower-shaped manti. We dip the bottom of each manta in vegetable oil so that they do not stick to the stand. We cook on a mantyshnitsa or in a double boiler for 40-45 minutes. We put the rest of the manti in the freezer. Bon appetit)

Comments 8

Classes 224

BUNS FOR HAMBURGERS INGREDIENTS: Dough: Milk - 100 ml Sugar - 1 tsp. Yeast (8 gr dry) - 20 gr Wheat flour / Flour (4 tablespoons) - 50 gr Dough: Kefir (neutral yogurt can be used) - 250 gr Sunflower oil - 2 tbsp. l. Salt - 1 tsp Wheat flour - 450 gr Chicken egg - 1 pc. Sesame - 2 tbsp. l. METHOD OF PREPARATION: For dough, crumble the yeast in warm milk, add sugar, flour, mix well and leave for 10-15 minutes to activate the yeast. After that, add kefir or neutral yogurt to the dough. If you add kefir, then you can add 1/3 tsp to it. soda so that it does not give sourness and stir. Add sunflower oil, salt, stir everything. Gradually add the sifted flour and knead the dough. The dough is soft, sticky to the hands, as it should be. We need to knead it for about five minutes, so as not to be very sticky, you can pour a little vegetable oil on your hands. Lubricate the bowl with vegetable oil, spread the dough and leave for 45 minutes to rise. When the dough rises, punch it down. I baked 12 buns, for this I weighed the dough, I got 907 grams, and cut off a piece and weighed about 70-75 grams. Shape into a ball and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Flatten the buns a little with your hand, cover with a towel and leave to proof for another 30 minutes. Beat the egg with a fork and grease the buns that have come up. Sprinkle with sesame seeds if desired. Leave for another 5 minutes and send to the oven preheated to 200 degrees for 20 minutes. Bon appetit! #dessert #lunch #dinner #snack #buns

Comments 6

Classes 208

CAKE "EXPLOSION OF TASTE" Cooking time (active time) - 60 min INGREDIENTS: For cakes: Wheat flour - 450 gr Baking powder - 1 tbsp. l. Margarine (72% fat) - 250 gr Egg yolk - 4 pcs Sour cream - 250 ml Filling: Egg white - 4 pcs Sugar - 180 gr Starch - 1 tbsp. l. Cherry - 500 gr Poppy (Poppy mass) - 250 gr Cream: Sour cream - 250 ml Sugar - 180 gr Jelly (cherry) - 70 gr Butter - 300 gr COOKING METHOD: In the sifted flour, add baking powder, margarine and rub into crumbs. Add egg yolks, sour cream and knead soft dough. Divide into 6 pieces and refrigerate overnight. Beat egg whites with sugar until stiff. Roll out the cake, grease with half of the whipped proteins, cherry on top, cover with the second rolled cake. Bake at 190 gr. until light golden. Also bake the second cake with cherries. According to this principle, bake the third cake with poppy seed filling. For cream, mix sour cream with sugar and bring to a boil, add jelly and simmer over low heat for 5 minutes. Cool and beat with butter. Lubricate the cakes with cream and leave to soak for 6 hours. Bon appetit! #dessert #lunch #dinner #snack #cherries

I have always been interested in how to turn a simply delicious dish into a truly magnificent, festive one. It is clear that decorations, serving and serving are needed. However, even the chefs of restaurants, who know how to cook delicious, delicious dishes, far from all can boast of the art of decorating them. What to say about family feasts? All these roses carved from vegetables, olives and sprigs of greens ... All this is already morally outdated and at times even evokes melancholy.

Therefore, when attending chef master classes in the best restaurants in Moscow, we chose one where each dish is a real masterpiece. James Reduta, sous-chef of the Grand European Express restaurant, agreed to teach MIR 24 readers how to turn dishes into works of art.

The main thing here is not to be lazy and prepare the decor separately, - says James. - Carrot breading, and sun-dried tomatoes, and crispy rice paper fried in oil, which can be tinted with beetroot juice or turmeric at the cooking stage, and chips from the thinnest slices of bread, potatoes or sweet potatoes, and food combinations, and the finest vegetable slices, and drops of sauces.

According to him, it is very important what the color scheme of the dishes will be: for some dishes, warm colors are appropriate in the design, for others, a cold color palette is good. Before our eyes, James decorated several dishes, along the way explaining what he used in the decor.

Grilled Calamari with Kenyan Beans, Sun Dried Tomatoes and Thick Yellow Pepper Sauce

Boil mini-potatoes in their skins, then cut each potato into halves and fry them in oil with a little garlic. Separately fry the pods of Kenyan beans. We cook squid rings on the grill, pepper everything and add some salt.

Prepare a thick yellow pepper sauce. Heat olive oil in a frying pan, add onion and spices, fry them. Add the roasted bell pepper cut into strips and cook for 5 minutes. Then pour in white wine, chicken broth and cook for another 10 minutes until the pepper is completely soft. Add the cream, remove from heat, cool slightly and grind warm in a blender until a slightly watery homogeneous puree. Salt and pepper, mix.

Now let's start assembling the dish. Place the yellow pepper sauce in a deep bowl. We spread potatoes, bean pods and squid rings on it, which should drown in the sauce by a third. Then we decorate the dish with sun-dried tomatoes. You can buy them ready-made or make your own. James dries them for 6 hours in an oven at low temperatures, sprinkled with lemon zest and dry aromatic herbs.

Another spectacular move is a cap of milk foam, which is obtained by whipping milk with a small amount of sugar and food lecithin. The last ingredient ensures the persistence of a cloud of airy foam. It doesn't stay on for quite some time.

Then the thinnest slices of radish and small petals of spinach and chard (leaf beet) are sent to the dish, which, as if by chance, fell on the edges of the dish. They do not carry any taste load, this is just a decor!

The finishing touch: James sweeps the dish with a stroke of orange carrot breading along with the plate, and the milk foam does not sag - it holds it. Breading unites all parts of the dish, makes it complete and echoes the ruddy color of the sauce.

Danish halibut with sweet potato sweet potato and mushroom and anise sauce

Halibut fillet fry in a pan, salt and pepper.

Slightly fry the mushrooms, add salt, pepper, and then add cream, anise and boil a little. It turns out a thick mushroom sauce. Then we prepare mashed potatoes from baked sweet potatoes. It turns out dazzling orange and sweet in taste.

Now we start assembling the dish: put mashed potatoes on a plate. James "draws" a sweeping orange drop with a decisive stroke. She puts some mushrooms in sauce on it, places the fish on top so that the mushrooms peek out a little from under it. On top of the fish again spreads the mushrooms. So that it all turns out to be wrapped in a brilliant appetizing sauce.

Around this composition are laid out several sun-dried tomatoes and radish slices, a pair of mini-spinach leaves and chard.

The final touch is a cap of milk foam whipped with lecithin (hello molecular cooking!).

All! Serve the dish hot until the mashed potatoes, mushrooms and fish have cooled down.

Duck leg "Confit" with polenta and crispy rice

First, prepare the duck leg: it must be salted, pepper and simmer in a pan over low heat until the meat is soft and all the fat is rendered.

When the duck is almost ready, we cook soft, non-cool polenta (this is a porridge made from finely ground corn grits, a denser version of which is called hominy in Moldova).

Then James takes a drop of balsamic cream on a wide, stiff brush and decisively draws a line across the entire plate from edge to edge. He lays the pallet in the middle, making a “pillow” out of it, on which he places an appetizing duck leg.

Now comes the turn of color and taste nuance: he uses a spoonful of tomato confiture, giving it a neat shape. To do this, James, using two tablespoons, "conjures" over the confiture, shifting it five times from spoon to spoon.

Making this exotic ingredient is not at all difficult, but it gives an interesting effect. To make jam, you need to dip the tomatoes in boiling water for a few minutes, cool, remove the skin, cut into quarters, remove the seeds, and put the pulp in a saucepan and slowly boil it with lemon juice. Then turn the mass into a puree with a blender and add sugar at the rate of 300 g of sugar per 500 g of tomato pulp. Boil to the desired consistency, cool.

And now comes the turn of the main decoration: a huge exotic “flower”, which is not even clear what it is made of. This is rice paper: James makes real miracles out of it. And all because it is not purchased, but home-made rice paper, which means that it can be tinted at the production stage by adding turmeric to the dough for yellow, or beetroot juice for bright pink.

It was precisely from such rice paper that he used decorations for a duck with a palette. Rice paper dough should be rolled out, put on a greased sheet of parchment and dried at very low temperatures until the paper hardens, and then cut into squares. In order for the dyed rice paper to take on the shape of an exotic flower, James lowers the square into deep-fried for a few seconds, where it instantly contracts, arches and takes on an intricate three-dimensional shape.

We put this “flower” on top, add a spinach leaf and serve until all this splendor has cooled down and breathes the aromas of duck and palenta.

Lamb meatballs with lightly salted cheese cream, tomato confiture and crispy flatbread

The name of this dish speaks for itself and includes almost all the ingredients included in it.

We prepare meatballs from lamb pulp: only minced meat, salt and pepper, nothing more! We fry them in a small amount of vegetable oil on both sides, having previously lined the pan with parchment.

Lightly salted feta cheese should be crumbled and ground, adding a little cream, until a homogeneous creamy state (not too liquid, because the cream should keep its shape!).

We dry half of the unleavened cake in a dry frying pan on both sides (a little bit so that it becomes crispy and acquires a slightly ruddy color). Mini-potatoes are first boiled to the skin, and then fried in oil, with the addition of finely chopped garlic.

We prepare tomato confiture in the same way as in the previous recipe.

Let's start assembling the dish. James draws a strip of balsamic cream on the plate with a wide brush, lays out one meatball, rests the cake on it, pressing its edge with the second meatball. As a result, the cake is fixed at an angle.

The sous chef puts the sous-chef cheese cream into a pastry bag with a figured nozzle and squeezes beautiful “roses” into the corners of the composition.

Fried, appetizingly sizzling potatoes and spinach petals complete the composition, settling on a plate in an artistic mess.

And the last thing: close to the top meatball, partially overlapping it, James lays an oblong slide of tomato confiture. It not only gives the dish a bright color accent, but also favorably complements the taste of lamb meat.

The main thing is to do everything quickly so as not to let the meatballs cool down and serve the dish hot!

Arugula and Shrimp Salad with Balsamic Dressing and Crispy Sweet Potatoes

For this salad, peeled shrimp and mushrooms are quickly fried in vegetable oil, to which we add a little chopped garlic.

We lay the arugula in an appetizing slide, “shade” the greens with a thin stream of balsamic cream, then “shade” the same stream of vinaigrette sauce on top (here is its composition: vegetable oil, soy sauce, maple syrup, Dijon mustard, garlic).

We spread the halves of cherry tomatoes, shrimp and mushrooms in a circle. The composition is completed with sweet potato chips and the thinnest slices of black bread. Both are cut on a slicer very thinly and deep-fried for several seconds. A secret from James: in order to cut brown bread so thinly, he pre-freezes it.

Caesar salad"

Classic Caesar salad James makes very simply, and still turns out very beautiful.

He fries chicken fillet pieces very quickly on both sides so that they remain juicy. Iceberg lettuce is torn into pieces and stacked in a slide, around this slide are cherry tomatoes cut in half and canned capers. The leaves are poured with classic Caesar sauce, and still warm pieces of chicken are laid on top. Finally, top everything with grated parmesan. And sets at an angle to each other two deep-fried rice chips, tinted yellow with turmeric.

Caprese

This appetizer is based on the classic caprese salad, but how different it is from its prototype!

James peeled the tomatoes, cut them into quarters, and before placing them on a dish, sprinkled with powdered sugar and caramelized it with a cooking gas burner.

Basil in the salad is completely present in the form of an airy mousse. Green basil should be cut very finely, but it is better to chop in a blender and add to the liquid biscuit dough. Pouring the dough into cups, put them in the microwave and after a few minutes we get a porous bright green “sponge” with the taste and smell of basil. Carefully cut it out of the glass with a knife, tear it into pieces and lay it on a plate. Between the pieces of airy mousse we lay out the mozzarella, which we also tear with our hands.

Then comes the turn of tomatoes with a caramel crust around the edge. He sets them in a geometric order, resting a little on the cheese, and sprinkles everything with a little fragrant olive oil.

James paints the rest of the plate with drops of balsamic cream. He does it this way: first, he squeezes out the balsamic cream in small circles, dotting the plate with them in a checkerboard pattern. And then he takes a wooden skewer and, dipping it into each circle, draws a stroke.

But what about the indispensable for caprese - the famous pesto sauce? His James squeezes out a few drops on either side of each piece of mozzarella. At the end, the geometric pattern of the dish is slightly diluted with slices of radish and spinach leaves, which the chef arranges with tweezers in an artistic mess. Agree that it turns out just a fantastic beauty!

Tatyana Rubleva

We feel free and confident in the kitchen if we know cool life hacks that allow us to create amazing dishes. And if we have in stock a few tricks that the best chefs in the world have shared with us? What if you gain experience from them by following their advice?

It's time to turn the cooking process into a real art, fascinating and exciting. In this review, we have collected the most interesting tips and life hacks from trendsetters in culinary fashion.

Jamie Oliver

It is unlikely that this chef needs a special introduction. Jamie Oliver is a famous English chef, restaurateur, and part-time showman who was able to interest millions of viewers in cooking and spread the philosophy of home healthy eating to the whole world. By the way, fifteen years ago, Jamie Oliver was awarded the Order of the British Empire for these achievements, and was also admitted to the Royal College of General Practitioners.

How to Peel Ginger Root Easily

• The most effective way to peel ginger is to scrape off the brown skin with a simple teaspoon. So you do not cut off the excess, retaining all the pulp.
• If you're in a hurry, just cut off four sides of the spine, leaving thick trimmings. You can then use them to make ginger tea and other healthy drinks.

How to separate the protein from the yolk

• The classic way to quickly separate the yolk from the protein is to split the egg into two parts and pour the yolk into one or the other shell until only it remains in it. This should be done over a bowl where the protein will drain.
• Another easy way to rid the yolk of the white is to crack the egg right into your palm and let the white drip between your fingers until only the yolk is left in your hand.
• If you have a clean 0.5 liter plastic water bottle on hand, you can, by squeezing it in the middle, gently draw the yolk from a broken egg into a plate with a neck.

Heston Blumenthal

Heston Blumenthal is a famous English innovative kitchen alchemist whose vocation is molecular gastronomy. Once a self-taught chef, his talent and ability to improvise has made him the world's leading chef, author of cookbooks and host of his own BBC shows, in which he shares fascinating insights into the combination of foods and the chemical processes involved in cooking. .

How to cook pasta

• If you are going to make excellent pasta, use only high quality products from durum wheat. Pasta loves water, so even for a couple of servings of pasta, you need at least two liters of water.
• Do not be guided by the cooking time indicated on the package as recommended. Taste the pasta yourself (the pasta is ready when it reaches the al dente stage) and, after stopping cooking and draining the water, add olive oil to them.

How to fry food

• Frying food is not such a simple process as it seems at first glance. It is important to monitor the temperature of the fat, because too hot fat will burn the food, and too cold fat will saturate the food, which will become unpleasantly greasy in taste.
• If you regularly cook french fries, first boil the slices until soft and, pulling out with a slotted spoon and letting the water drain, transfer to the refrigerator for an hour, then fry in a deep fryer in two stages. Let the fat drain a bit before serving these potatoes.

April Bloomfield

April was born in the UK, although she became a world-famous chef by opening several restaurants in the US (two of them Michelin-starred). She is the author of several cookery books, in which she reveals the secrets of her home cooking, and also shares her author's meat recipes. By the way, to try her signature burger at the New York restaurant The Spotted Pig, visitors book tables a month in advance.

How to make the perfect herb sauce

Since April Bloomfield specializes in meat dishes, she knows all about the perfect sauces for them. Try to make this one - simple and insanely delicious:

1. In a bowl, chop two shallots, a clove of garlic, chili pepper, 50 grams of parsley, 50 grams of mint and salt.
2. Add two tablespoons of lemon juice and 150 milliliters of olive oil, then mix. The sauce is ready!

How to cook meat dishes

• Just before cooking, let the steak soak for about ten minutes in a small amount of salt. This approach will ensure uniform frying of meat, and also create an appetizing salty crust.
• When looking for your favorite burger, feel free to experiment and try different combinations. Of course, you need to use only high-quality meat. April Bloomfield's Crown Burger is served with Roquefort cheese and thinly sliced ​​French fries.

Wolfgang Puck

This Austrian chef currently owns twenty restaurants around the world. He became famous not only for his unorthodox take on cooking recipes, but also for his signature original recipes and cookbooks. By the way, it is Wolfgang Puck who is the main person responsible for buffets and festive feasts at Oscar parties.

How to choose seasonings

• Universal herbs that should always be in the kitchen: rosemary, thyme, kaffir lime, mint and basil. Thanks to this set you will be able to create masterpieces even from simple products.
• Fresh fish fillets are easy to spoil with extra seasoning, and to make them just amazing, just add basil and olive oil. Rosemary and basil are great for chicken and vegetables. Thyme and mint will help refresh the taste of dishes, while kaffir lime leaves will diversify Asian recipes.

How to cook vegetables

• Boiled potatoes are a simple and tasty dish, which requires some subtleties when preparing it. After boiling the potatoes, drain the water from the pan and put the potatoes back into it, tightly closing the pan with a lid and leaving for 5-7 minutes.
• If you are going to steam vegetables, be sure to add olive oil to them. It must be of high quality - only in this way the prepared vegetables will turn out to be truly tasty.

Vladimir Mukhin

Vladimir Mukhin is the most famous Russian chef, whose name is known outside of our country. Vladimir is a champion and laureate of various culinary competitions, the chef of the White Rabbit restaurant in Moscow. He once started his career in the kitchen of the restaurant where his father worked, and today he oversees many restaurants himself, managing to organize gastronomic events and travel the world collecting unique regional products.

How to choose products

• The key to success is only good, high-quality products. Never buy frozen meat or fish for your meals. Always pay attention to seasonal vegetables or fruits - they are the most delicious.
• In the markets, wind up your vendors, sample their freshest products, and feel free to check out proven recipes.

Universal dishes

• Soup is a unique dish that combines many flavors at once. It does not need any sauces and side dishes, the soup replaces everything at once. By the way, Vladimir himself loves borsch: the chef eats it at any time, and if he were told that he would eat only one dish all week, Vladimir would choose this particular soup.

• Reconsider your opinion about vegetables. Today it is not only a universal side dish, but first of all - the main ingredient and an independent dish.

Ina Garten

Ina Garten is known all over the world as a famous author of cookbooks and a charming TV presenter. Aina never received a special culinary education, but in France she became interested in cuisine and fell in love with the cult of fresh and quality food. Today, as an energetic and passionate chef, Aina develops her own line of Barefoot Contessa products and continues to publish recipe books.

Fruit hacks

• When buying fruits that have not yet reached their optimal maturity, put them with those products that should ripen faster. So, for example, a rapidly darkening banana will significantly speed up the ripening process of neighboring fruits.
• The ripeness of a pineapple can be determined not only by smell: if you pull on one of the longest leaves on its top, and it separates effortlessly, the fruit is definitely ripe.
• Lemon juice is your main assistant in the kitchen. It not only perfectly fights against sharp and unpleasant odors, but also helps to instantly get rid of the hotness of hot spices that have stuck to your fingers.