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We were recently joined by acclaimed British-Iranian chef and food writer, Sabrina Ghayour, as she demonstrated a few recipes from her latest book, Flavour, making their debut on our menus soon.
These training experiences are super important to our teams, acting not only as a source of education and inspiration, but also an opportunity to socialise with colleagues in a creative environment.
We took the opportunity to speak to Sabrina about her partnership with Restaurant Associates, her new book Flavour, and what’s coming up in 2024…
Tell us about your relationship with Restaurant Associates?
I've been working with Restaurant Associates for many years, doing pop-ups, events, training days, and meeting Restaurant Associate chefs from up and down the country. My aim is to share my techniques and recipes, and to demonstrate how to get the best out of cooking with spices – making healthy, simple, and balanced dishes with big flavours.
Talk us through your approach to flavour.
My approach to food and cooking is seasoning things correctly. My recipes aren't necessarily complicated, it’s the balanced spice and season blends that make the dishes so spectacular. I like balance sweet flavours with a level of acidity – they really complement one another.
Why are training days like this so important?
Training days give chefs throughout Restaurant Associates an opportunity to engage with somebody who specialises in a particular style of cuisine, or a particular style of cooking. Getting that one-to-one opportunity to grill or question that 'expert' based on the needs of your own kitchen helps them adapt menus in a more thoughtful way.
I always find face-to-face interaction more useful and beneficial when it comes to learning!
You came from a corporate background. Why is eating a healthy, varied and balanced diet important in office environments?
Every business, now more than ever, has a duty to look after their employees by keeping energy and mind-function high through nutrition. In order to sustain this, you need good food.
There needs to be a balance of protein, healthy carbs, plenty of fresh fruit and veg. Using interesting seasonings and spice blends really helps inject personality and big flavours into my dishes, that keep people coming back to enjoy them.
Tell us about your new book, Flavour.
My latest book features 100+ crowd-pleasing recipes with a Middle Eastern twist that are simple, delicious and easy to recreate at home. There are recipes perfect for midweek meals, and those ‘wow’ dishes for weekend entertaining.
What’s coming up for you in 2024?
It's the year of the supper club for me! I will be rolling out supper clubs in five locations: Yorkshire, London, Hampshire, Bristol and Manchester.
With Restaurant Associates, I have a few more pop-ups planned, and another supper club on the horizon. Stay tuned…