Born and raised in England, it’s no surprise that chef Jamie Oliver has become a household name there, with a number of restaurants, a cooking school and television series’ airing daily across the UK.
But, according to Oliver, Australia is his second home.
“It’s always a joy to come to Australia – it’s probably the easiest place for me to cook in my natural way,” he told the Weekender.
“In a way, when ‘The Naked Chef’ started 23 years ago, its style was naturally a bit more Aussie and I think the Aussies embraced it straight away – I’ve always felt my style is a bit more Australian than British.”
Over the years, Oliver has become renowned for his work around casual cooking and quick and easy meals, with over 30 books on these topics now under his belt.
Though he said after 25 years of writing cookbooks the process feels like second nature to him, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s easy, with the want to be useful in people’s lives driving him to continue creating.
“I think it’s something like one in every five people in Australia have a Jamie Oliver book, which is quite extraordinary and very humbling,” he said.
“I think my dyslexia has meant I approach cookbooks as a whole experience – not just words. I’ve always had a close relationship with photography, design, font and application – what kind of paper, what kind of layout. I’m very visceral. When I write recipes, I’m there – I can imagine cooking it, tasting it, smelling it. And I’m 80 per cent accurate, then I finesse it through testing to get it to 100 per cent.”
Last month, Oliver added the newest title to his collection, Simply Jamie – a book full of fast and simple recipes to make a chef out of even the most beginner cooks.
And, it’s these beginners that he said the book is perfect for, providing a few pieces of advice for amateur chefs to up their game.
“Just give it a go! Start with an easy recipe, something you really want to eat, like pasta, and just try it. Confidence only comes from practice, so the more you do it, the better you’ll get,” he said.
“And, the other thing you must remember, is not to worry if things don’t quite go to plan – food can be very forgiving and actually sometimes when things go a bit off-piste, you often end up creating something equally delicious but entirely unexpected.
“Have fun with it.”
On Saturday, November 9, Oliver will be dishing out even more words of wisdom when he steps on stage at Sydney Coliseum for ‘Jamie Oliver – The Joy of Cooking’.
The show will see Oliver undergo an in-depth interview, discussing everything from his early days in cooking to his television career, and how he balances it all as a father of five.
Then, he’ll be taking questions from the audience – and nothing is off limits.
“[I’m excited to meet] the people who’ve made the effort to come out and see me. I love chatting to my audience, they’re just brilliant,” he said.
“Of course, it’s nerve-wracking to talk in front of all those people – I feel nervous before I go on stage – but once I’m out there, the atmosphere is always buzzing and I love it.”
‘Jamie Oliver – The Joy of Cooking’ will be on at Sydney Coliseum on Saturday, November 9 at 7.30pm. Tickets start at $99. For more information or to book, visit http://www.sydneycoliseum.com.au.
Cassidy Pearce
Cassidy Pearce is a news and entertainment journalist with The Western Weekender. A graduate of the University of Technology Sydney, she has previously worked with Good Morning Macarthur and joined the Weekender in 2022.