2019-09-30_Hello!_Magazine_UK

JOURNEY

TO JAPAN

Cookery writerKatie Caldesitalksexclusively to HELLO!aboutreigniting a culinary

passion and making healthy choices with her husband, Italian chef Giancarlo Caldesi

K

atieCaldesiis bestknownfor

herloveofItalianfood.She

hasco-writtenmanyrecipe

bookswithherhusband

GiancarloCaldesiand

togethertheyrunanItaliancookeryschool

andrestaurantsinBerkshireandLondon.

ButaftertravellingtoJapanthissummeron

a foododyssey– includingsushilessonsin

Tokyo– Katiemarksthisweek’skick-offof

theRugbyWorldCupinJapanwithsome

easyJapaneserecipestomakeat home.

Katie,whatsparkedyourinterestin

Japanesefood?

“Inmy20s,I hada Japaneseflatmate

and hermotherusedtosendher

beautifullywrappedfoodparcels.I wanted

tofindoutmoreaboutJapanesefood

presentation,therulesandingredients.”

Is Japanesecuisineparticularlyhealthy?

“The Japanese have an expression that

Serves 2 Preparationtime20-25minutes,plussoaking time

“Arameis a seaweedthatis sold

driedandthenrehydratedin water.

It doesn’thavea particularflavour

butit looksgreatandis highin fibre,

iodineandcalcium.TheJapanese

tendto eatsaladswithlightlycooked

vegetablesastheypreferthetexture

to rawandfindthemeasierto

digest.If youarein a hurry,tahini

pastemakesanexcellentsubstitute

fortoastingandgrindingyourown

sesameseeds.Thedressingis also

greatwithothersalads,halved

boiledeggsandcooked meats.”

INGREDIENTS

• 15g/½ozarame


• 2 springonions,trimmed
  and finelysliced


• 100g/4ozcarrots,cutinto
  thin strips


• 100g/4ozbroccoli,cauliflower
  or Brusselssprouts,finelysliced


• 50g/2ozsavoyor other green
  cabbage,finelysliced


• A pinchof salt
  Forthetahinidressing


• 4 tbspsesame seeds or 3 tbsp
  tahini


• 2 tsp mirin
  
  
  • 1 tbspsoysauce
  
  
  • 3-4tbspof coldwater
  
  
  
  

1 .Soakthearameincoolwaterfor

30 minutes.Placethespring

onions,carrots,broccoliand

cabbageina bowlandcoverwith

boilingwater.Adda goodpinchof

salttothewaterandstirthrough.

Leavetostandfor4 minutes,then

strainina sieveandplungeintoa

bowlofice-coldwater.

2 .If you’remakingthedressing

fromsesameseeds,toastthemin

a dryfryingpanuntilgolden,

keepingthemonthemovesothey

don’tburn.Tipontoa sheetof

greaseproofpapertocooldown.

Transfertoa pestleandmortar

andgrindtoa powder,leavinga

fewwholeseedsfora littletexture.

Mixthis,orthetahini,withtherest

ofthedressingingredientsand

enoughcoldwatertoproducea

creamypouringsauce.Tasteand

addsaltif necessary.

3 .Drainthevegetables,putthem

ina saladbowlanddrizzlewiththe

dressing.Thiswillkeepat room

temperature for an hour or two.

means‘eatuntilyouare80%full’.I thinkthe

useofchopsticksratherthancutleryslowsyou

downsoyoueatless.If theydohaveproblems

withobesity,it isn’tobvious.

“Usuallythefoodis servedinfivesmall

dishes,sometimeswithonemaindishtoshare.

Inonedishtherearefermentedvegetables,

whicharesogoodforguthealth;inanother

therewillbethemeat,fishortofu;otherswill

containvegetables,riceandtheobligatory

miso soup.TheJapanesehavea varieddietso

it iseasytofindplant-baseddishes,butif you

area strictveganorvegetarian,it’shardto

avoidtheadditionofbonito(fish)instocks as

it isusedtogiveanumamiflavour.”

TellusaboutyourrecentbookTheDiabetes

Weight-lossCookbook...

“Giancarlosufferedwithtype2 diabetesbefore

wediscoveredthelow-carbohydrateapproach

totreatingweightgainandthecondition.We

weresoinspiredbyhissuccessinreversinghis

diabetes and losing weight that we decided

towritea bookaboutit.I havespentthepast

coupleofyearsthinkinguprecipesthatswap

pasta,rice,breadandpotatoesforlow-carb

foods.Wehaveevenputa low-carbmenuinto

ourrestaurantsandnowteach low-carb classes

atourcookeryschool.”

Howeasyis it tocreateauthentic

Japanese dishesat home?

“Mostoftheingredientsareavailablein

supermarkets,butforreallygoodquality

youmightneedtolookonline or seek out

a Japanesesupermarket.”

Whatsingleenduringmemorydoyouhave

fromyourtriptoJapan?

“Amealpreparedbymonksina Buddhist

monasteryinKoyasan,a woodedareahighin

themountainssouthofOsaka.It wasvegan

and absolutelydelicious.Butnoonespoke

EnglishsoI havenoideawhatI ate.Someofit

wastofu,someofit fermentedvegetables and

seaweed, but the rest... who knows?”

ARAME, CARROT & BROCCOLI SALAD

‘Theversatile

sauceis alsogreat

withothersalads,

boiledeggsand

cooked meats’

FOOD

PORTRAIT PHOTO: © HELEN CATHCART ▼^101