Plenty

The cookbook that changed how a generation thinks about vegetables. Yotam Ottolenghi drew from his Guardian newspaper column “The New Vegetarian” to create a collection of 120 recipes that treat produce as the star of the plate, not a side dish waiting for a piece of protein to justify its existence.

Why Start Here

Most vegetarian cookbooks before Plenty fell into two camps: earnest health-food guides or collections of pasta and cheese dishes that happened not to include meat. Ottolenghi offered a third path. His recipes combine Middle Eastern, Mediterranean, and Asian influences with bold spicing and an instinct for textural contrast that makes every dish feel exciting.

The book is organized by ingredient: roots, squash, mushrooms, tomatoes, aubergines, pulses, grains, and more. This structure helps you think about vegetables differently. Instead of asking “what can I make with this eggplant?”, you start seeing connections between ingredients and techniques across recipes. You learn that a charred aubergine pairs beautifully with tahini, that roasted cauliflower loves sharp, bright flavors, and that the simplest salads can carry a meal when the dressing does real work.

What makes Plenty ideal as a starting point is its confidence. Ottolenghi never apologizes for the absence of meat. He simply presents food that is complete and satisfying on its own terms. After cooking from this book for a few weeks, the question shifts from “what do I eat instead of meat?” to “which of these dishes do I want tonight?”

What to Expect

A beautifully photographed 288-page cookbook with recipes that range from simple salads to more involved dishes. Most recipes are weeknight-friendly once you stock a few pantry staples like za’atar, sumac, tahini, and good olive oil. The flavors lean Mediterranean and Middle Eastern. Expect bold seasoning, fresh herbs, and a style that rewards curiosity in the kitchen.