A brief insight into a 2-week stage at Ottolenghi Spitalfields. My first stage (or work placement) was at Nopi, before the plague hit, and it’s been fantastic returning to another of these exciting kitchens with their fabulous creative teams.

First things first, and it’s a quick change into chef’s whites, hair tied up, and straight into the kitchen brandishing sharpened knives, a sharpie, and a bottle of iced water.

Days 1 and 2 were spent working in the ‘larder’ (as opposed to the hot section, the pastry section, the pass…). The first job was preparing agrodolce — a sweet and sour sauce. Don’t forget, everything is multiplied 10, 50 or 100 times. To put it into perspective, when the recipe called for 120 ml of vinegar, I was mixing up 12 litres, along with 6 litres of honey — not a time to make a mistake in your measurements.

Other jobs included preparing and layering up the signature Ottolenghi salads, caramelising trays of walnuts, and making dozens of borek, while ducking out of the way of the pastry chefs (whose ovens were right behind me — so they kept me nice and toasty warm).

Day 2 included a visit from the food safety inspector (5 star rating, of course).

The third day was spent with the hot section, making and shaping pita bread dough, marinades, and prepping veggies.

I managed to choose some of the hottest days of 2022 to work in the kitchen, but despite the extremes in temperature the delicious food kept on coming and the smiles remained.

Many thanks to @xristos_karetsos for letting me join the team, albeit briefly, to @another_foodie_ for keeping me busy, and to all the team for their tips! Respect to the team 🔥