The food writer on the best tomato ketchup, her dangerous knife obsession and a cookbook featuring “food you want to get in your face”
INGREDIENTS
Belazu preserved lemons »
“Belazu is a brand that was set up for Waitrose by The Fresh Olive Company. They do the best quality preserved lemons that you can find in the supermarkets.” – Sabrina
Belazu harissa »
A hot chilli paste widely used in North African and Middle Eastern cuisines. “I always have harissa in the fridge. One jar of harissa turns rice, couscous, quinoa and a manky onion into something really special.”
Zaytoun za’atar »
A Middle Eastern blend of herbs, sesame and salt. “I can’t live without za’atar and for me the best brand is this Palestinian one. No other mix has ever come close.”
M&S tomato ketchup
“I prefer M&S ketchup to Heinz, because it’s less acidic.”
Tricana tinned tuna
“I took my mum to Lisbon last October and we found a Conserveira counter inside the Mercado de Ribeira. Mum was like, ‘You’re not going to buy tinned fish are you?’ I’m like, ‘No it’s fine, you go and sit down’. And this is what I came back with: a 2.5kg tin of tuna and a full spectrum of smaller tins – smoked clams, octopus… I love this stuff.”
Burt’s Guinness crisps »
“These are addictive little bastards. They’ve got a Marmite-y thing going on. I normally have pub packets of Scampi Fries here, and Monster Munch, Wheat Crunchies – these are my favourite things to eat, especially after a shift.
Old Bay seasoning »
“Thank god for Old Bay, it’s the best thing to season chicken with. I can’t live without it.”
Maldon’s smoked salt »
Sabrina has a huge 1.5kg tub of smoked salt on her windowsill.
Garlic powder »
“Garlic powder doesn’t have brash abrasiveness of raw garlic. Add it to fried mushrooms and it gives you a different intensity.”
Organico artichoke hearts »
“I always have a jar of artichoke hearts in the kitchen – in oil, never in brine. You can add them to a lot of things – pastas, pies, salads.”
OBJECTS
Microplane »
“You can get these cheap from Selfridges. It’s just great because I zest everything to death. There’s so much flavour to be got from orange, lemon, lime zest. It’s a way of citrusing things up without adding the acid.” – Sabrina
Cuisinart mini food processor »
“I can’t live without my mini food processor from Cuisinart. The bigger ones are a bitch to clean. I use this all the time to make dips, mince onions… it’s great.”
Le Creuset frying pan »
“I’m such a geek. My boyfriend asked what I wanted for my birthday – “Shall I book you into a spa?” I said I’d love a shallow casserole dish from Le Creuset. Then I saw the big Selfridges bag in my room. Yay!”
IO Shen knives »
“I have about 16 of these. I’ve been banned from putting any more in the knife drawer because my mother’s like, every time I dip my finger in there I get cut. I’m said, well it’s because I have good sharp knives. And I have a sharpener so I keep them razor sharp. I got to know the woman from IO Shen at a road show. She’s a great person and her knives are amazing.”
BOOKS
Feast, Nigella Lawson »
“I love all Nigella’s books. She’s good at making food you want to get in your face – coffee ice creams or something obscene cake-wise. There’s no pretention about it.” – Sabrina
Jamie’s Comfort Food, Jamie Oliver »
“I have a lot of respect for Jamie and his recipes are fantastic. People talk shit about him and I just think, He’s knocking it out of the park – what the hell are you doing?”
Bread, Cake, Doughnut, Pudding: Sweet and Savoury Recipes from Britain’s Best Baker, Justin Gellatly »
“I find a lot of joy in books that teach me something I don’t know. This is my bedtime book right now and it’s conquering my fear of making doughnuts. Because I love doughnuts and when I realised that Justin Gellatly had worked at St John for 10 years I thought, yes buddy your doughnuts are the best I ever had. The custard ones in particular.”
