Lessons from Nigella Lawson
Nigella Lawson is a wise woman. She explains to us in a relatable, easy and always tempting way how to get the tastiest dishes on the table. Her motto: minimum effort for maximum result. And who wouldn’t want that? After watching cooking shows for around twenty years, these life lessons from this cooking goddess have stayed with us the most.
Look, if there’s anyone who knows how to lure you into the kitchen with a gentle touch and a glass of wine, it’s Nigella Lawson. No hysteria, no complicated frills, but cooking as life intended it: a little messy, incredibly delicious and always with style. When everything threatens to go wrong in the kitchen, she’s there. The friend who whispers: “Relax, it’ll be fine.” These life lessons from her kitchen are worth their weight in gold – and they save you a lot of stress at the stove.
Grating garlic
Finely chopping garlic is a lot of work, and Nigella happens to hate it. That’s why she came up with the brilliant idea of grating (peeled) garlic over the pan. Okay, you do have some leftovers, but it’s ideal for people who should be kept away from knives.
Chef’s treat
According to Nigella, the best thing about cooking is the chef’s treat. All that cooking deserves to be rewarded with the first bites and trimmings from your dish. Even before the food is on the plate, Nigella regularly treats herself to little snacks straight from the pan. And so do we.
The mezzaluna is your friend
The rocking knife is indispensable in the kitchen, especially because Nigella is actually quite clumsy. With the crescent-shaped knife (hence: mezzaluna), you can finely chop all your herbs in no time. Easy, right? Or, as Nigella says: ‘This makes me feel like one of those super confident people‘. And that is exactly the image we hope people have of us in the kitchen.
Rubber gloves
When Nigella cuts very hot peppers, she wears yellow cleaning gloves. Handy, because sobbing uncontrollably from all the pepper you accidentally rubbed into your eye does nothing to improve the cooking process. Done with the fiery things? Then take the gloves off and you won’t risk any more tears.
Freezing
Leftover wine, egg whites, bones and carcasses. Nigella is always generous, but she doesn’t waste food. That’s why her freezer is full of portioned leftovers. Need a splash of wine? Making meringues? Making stock? A rummage through the freezer provides a whole range of useful ingredients.
Cling film without the hassle
Like the rest of the world, Nigella hates cling film that refuses to cooperate. And that is often the case. You tear it off, but it doesn’t tear along with you. You roll it out, but it keeps sticking. Nigella’s hack? Stand the roll upright and tear the cling film off from top to bottom. Easy does it.
Cutting through
Cutting haricots verts or flat beans in half, or removing the ends? Nigella doesn’t bother taking them out of the packaging, but simply cuts through the entire package. That way, all the cutting is done in one go. From now on, you’ll never do it any other way.
Boil the water first, then add salt
Only add salt to your water once it is boiling. If you add it earlier, it takes longer for the water to boil. Curious how much salt you should add to the water? We tell you in the article about common pasta mistakes.
Get snipping
Dill, spring onions, sandwiches… Nigella tackles them all with scissors. You snip them straight into the pan. That’s one less step, after all. Then put the scissors straight into the dishwasher, because it’s important to keep your scissors clean when you use them in the kitchen. And chicken breast? I always snip that too!
Our favorite Nigella quotes
You could easily memorize these and casually sprinkle them into conversation at the table or whenever something threatens to go wrong:
- “If it looks like it has been given love, it will taste that way too.”
- “The kitchen is not a laboratory. It is a place of pleasure.”
- “A recipe is a guideline, not a law.” (So we tweaked her recipe for chicken with 40 cloves of garlic a little. A classic here in the newsroom!)
- “Failure in the kitchen? That’s simply called: creating a new classic.”
- “Cooking is not a performance test. It is a love letter to yourself and to others.”
- “Always taste, and if it isn’t delicious: add extra butter or extra wine.”
- “Perfection is boring. Delicious food makes people happy.”
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