In Jamie Oliver's newest cookbook, you don't need many ingredients to make a delicious meal

You don’t need a ton of obscure ingredients to cook up a delicious meal. That’s the crux of chef and restauranteur Jamie Oliver’s new cookbook “5 Ingredients Mediterranean.”

The cookbook follows a similar format as Oliver’s 2017 release “5 Ingredients: Quick & Easy Food.” He says he didn’t intend to repeat the theme of simple, stress-free recipes, but saw that’s what readers wanted. Plus, he says his wife talked him into it after the success of his first easy recipes collection.

The book features everything from main courses to desserts. Readers likely have the ingredients on hand, making the dishes quick to whip up even if you have no time to head to the store first.

Oliver says that as times change, so does peoples’ relationship with cooking. He says the average consumer relies on takeout more often and doesn’t want a long grocery list or a meal that takes hours to prepare. Oliver says one of the main goals of writing this book was to make fresh, home-cooked meals approachable and attainable for people of all class statuses.

“Technology in life is changing our lifestyles. And of course, the food industry wants to fix everything for you. And what happens when that happens is people forget how to cook. And we know that when people forget how to cook, they're not so well,” Oliver says. “For me, cooking isn't just about joy and the gorgeousness of serving people that you love, but also it's kind of political and it's about our kids and it's about our futures.”

By Jamie Oliver

Tunisian shrimp spaghetti

Charred brussels

Lemon-tzatziki chicken

"5 Ingredients Mediterranean" by Jamie Oliver is published by Flatiron Books © Jamie Oliver Enterprises Limited (2024).

Julia Corcoran produced and edited this interview for broadcast with Todd Mundt. Grace Griffin adapted it for the web.