I’ve always been involved in cooking at home – I can’t remember not being,” says Buddy Oliver, the son of famous chef Jamie Oliver.
With his dad’s smile and the same cheeky charisma, it’s no wonder the 13-year-old YouTuber is becoming a rising star in the TV world and is now releasing his very first cookbook called Let’s Cook: Fun, Easy Recipes For Kids.
Following in his dad Jamie Oliver’s culinary footsteps, Buddy has created the cookbook to inspire beginners with fun recipes that are easy to make and follow and allow readers to gain much-needed confidence in the kitchen.
“Cooking is one of my all-time favourite things to do (alongside rugby, of course!),” says Buddy. “It’s really fun, and a great skill to learn, so Let’s Cook is full of the things I love to cook and eat. It’s not
fancy or hard to do, it’s just simple food done nicely.”
COOKING FROM BIRTH
It’s no surprise that the son of Jamie Oliver has been cooking since the age of four and says his favourite recipe in the book is the easy meatballs and spaghetti because it “tastes so good”! He goes on to share, “Although I’ve been creating content on my YouTube channel for quite a few years now, seeing my recipes come together as an actual book has been really cool. I’ve had the best time creating it, and I hope that lots of other kids have the same amount of fun learning to cook from it.”
DAD’S ADVICE
But when it comes to Jamie lending his expertise in the kitchen, Buddy doesn’t shy away from it. “I love cooking fish with Dad,” he says, “We almost always have fish on a Saturday – quite often mackerel. I’ve learned to fillet it, and it feels really cool to be able to take a whole fish, prep it, cook it and serve it up for the rest of the family.”
His advice for aspiring chefs is, “Try not to think about it too much. Cooking can be unpredictable, and it doesn’t always go to plan, but that doesn’t matter! Try to relax and treat it like a fun thing, because it is.”
No doubt we’ll be seeing more of Buddy – and there’s no doubt dad-of-five Jamie is his biggest supporter, saying, “Buds you’re a total legend, people always say that kids need their parents, but I can honestly say it’s been the other way around.”
Fish Finger Sarnies With Sweet Potato Chips
“My dad’s nutrition team helped me make sure that the recipes in Let’s Cook are the right balance between nutritious everyday foods and things to be enjoyed occasionally. The recipes can be enjoyed by your whole family, so just dish up smaller portions if you’re cooking for little siblings. Throughout the book, there are handy tips to building positive eating habits that are easy to remember and will help you on the path to leading a healthier, happier life.”
From Let’s Cook (Penguin, $45)
Serves 4 Total time 45 minutes
- 4 sweet potatoes (800g total)
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- olive oil
- 25g plain flour
- 1 large free-range egg
- 1-2 thick slices of wholemeal bread (roughly 80g)
- optional: 15g cheddar or parmesan cheese
- 4 x 120g white fish or salmon fillets, skin off, pin-boned, from sustainable sources
- 2 tablespoons tomato ketchup
- 4 heaped tablespoons natural yoghurt
- 1 little gem lettuce
- 4 submarine rolls
1. Preheat the oven to 200°C. Scrub the sweet potatoes clean, slice each one into chunky chips (use a crinkle-cut knife, if you’ve got one), then tip them onto a large baking tray.
2. Season lightly with sea salt, black pepper and the smoked paprika, then drizzle over 1 tablespoon of olive oil and toss to coat. Spread out in a single layer on the tray and bake for 35 minutes or until golden and cooked through.
3. Sprinkle the flour onto a plate and beat the egg in a shallow bowl. Whiz the bread in a food processor with the cheese (if using), 2 tablespoons of olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper until fine, then tip onto a baking tray. Line a second tray with greaseproof paper.
4. Carefully slice each fish fillet in half lengthways (it doesn’t matter if they’re slightly different shapes). Turn each one in the flour until evenly coated, dip into the egg, letting any excess drip off, then turn in the breadcrumbs until well coated all over.
5. Transfer the fingers to the lined tray (at this stage, you can freeze the fish fingers, so feel free to double up and have some extras for another day).
6. When the chips have 15 minutes to go, add the tray of fish fingers to the oven until golden and cooked through (cook them for 20 minutes if cooking straight from frozen).
7. Mix the ketchup and yoghurt together to make a kinda Marie Rose [seafood] sauce, trim and finely shred the lettuce, and slice the rolls in half.
8. Load up the bases of the rolls with a spoonful of the sauce and a handful of shredded lettuce, then place 2 fish fingers on each one, and pop the lids on. Serve the sweet potato chips alongside.
Recipe from: Let’s Cook: Fun, Easy Recipes For Kids, $45, by Buddy Oliver is published by Penguin Michael Joseph ©Jamie Oliver Enterprises Limited (2024 Let’s Cook). Recipe photography: © David Loftus, 2024. Buy it from here.
