Ikoyi: A Journey Through Bold Heat with Recipes

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Along with the other recent triumph of “BAO” that I loved, I look forward to this new focus on chef-centric storytelling and artful presentations of the worlds greatest restaurants and cuisines. While chefs might not be able to get their hands on some of Chan’s ingredients they will appreciate his precise instructions and the fact that the recipes are presented are taken directly from Ikoyi’s own recipe folder.

What they can do is read the broader, more important messages, which is the philosophy on how to handle meat, source good meat, cook meat, caramelize fish skin, the passion and care with which to handle specific kinds of ingredients.A wonderful insight into the bold and colourful world of flavours that Jeremy has delicately balanced and brought together to make the exciting food of Ikoyi. There’s something interesting about creating minimal food that’s condensed and concentrated but multilayered and complex at the same time. As chef and cofounder of the two-Michelin-starred London restaurant Ikoyi, Chan is certainly familiar with resisting easy labels. I know if the jollof has been cooked correctly by listening to the frequency of the sizzle as the pan draws near the pass for plating. Allow them to smoke and burn, but make sure they don’t overcook on the inside, and turn them to ensure they are all evenly blistered.

I love that recipe: The kebab is made with amazing grazed sheep, and the farmer is creating a very sustainable, holistic way of farming sheep. In a blender, blitz together the whipping cream, milk, crab, egg yolks, ginger, garlic, and Scotch bonnet for 2 minutes. But if I was to create a half-Chinese, half-Canadian jollof, I knew it would have to stand up in terms of flavor.

If the pan is silent, or has been sitting just 30 seconds too long, I know the grains will have an oily, bland consistency and will require re-cooking. Elsewhere, he charts Ikoyi’s struggle to stay open the first year, despite glowing reviews, and how a passion for exceptional seasonal produce has continued to drive everything on the menu. I suppose we both come from strong rice-eating cultures, so it’s no wonder that we have always reverted to cooking rice with prawns (shrimp) and roast chicken on the occasions that we hang out together. But then Ikoyi - which launched in 2017 and is a regular on the top end of Restaurant’s list of the best 100 restaurants in the UK​​ - has always had struggles with its identity.

He discusses developing (and eventually abandoning) the concept of a Nigerian restaurant with his childhood friend—and Ikoyi’s managing director and cofounder—Iré Hassan-Odukale (the restaurant is named for the neighborhood in Lagos where Hassan-Odukale grew up). Blitz the broth in a blender for 5 minutes until very smooth, adding some filtered water if necessary, then pass through a chinois. Though most Ikoyi dishes are born out of subjective and abstract inspirations, jollof rice is an existing culinary tradition—and a fiercely debated one, at that. If you never have the great privilege to experience the extraordinary Ikoyi, then this book gives you an insight into the sheer brilliance and remarkable intelligence of Jeremy Chan. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Condé Nast.

If he claims to be cooking Cantonese cuisine, then yeah, there might be an issue because he’s claiming something he’s never experienced and doesn’t know anything about. Leave to cool at room temperature, breaking it up with your hands and adding some cold butter and oil to further break apart the grains.

Since opening in 2017, it has become a culinary destination: impressing diners and critics alike with its bold West African-inspired flavors, innovative combinations of spices with the freshest British ingredients, and striking, textured, minimalist-leaning aesthetics. The sheep-kebab essay is the funniest one to me because it’s about being a child and being fascinated with this giant piece of fake meat—gray and extremely depressing looking—impaled by a skewer. If you grow up in a Chinese family, you’re exposed to so many amazing flavors and types of ingredients: jellyfish, chicken feet, dumplings, noodles, all kinds of ingredients and ways of eating that you just don’t get with a Western upbringing. Loosen each tray of rice with some filtered water if necessary, then steam in the oven for 20 minutes.Each recipe in this fascinating book features a story about how the dish was developed, plus the influences of seasonality and produce from local producers.