The Joy of Room Temperature Food

Braised green beans, eggplant with tomato and cumin, herby zucchini

With the exception of ice cream and maybe soup, I would probably be happy to eat everything at room temperature. In my opinion, most things taste better sitting comfortably in the middle of the hot-cold spectrum. Flavours open up in a way that is impossible to taste when something is either hot out of the oven or cold from the fridge. Even ice cream benefits greatly from a 10 minute rest on the counter before diving into it.

I think I love room temperature food so much because it allows for the most relaxed version of cooking. There is no pressure for the delicate timing of things to be ready at just the right moment. You can take your time, relax and enjoy the process, which is always going to make the best tasting food.

Cooked vegetable dishes are especially wonderful for eating at rooms temp, the beauty of them being that you can make enough for the week and pull them out just a little while before you wish to eat to take the chill off. These are a few of my favourites, though there are plenty more, that I made using the produce that was in season in late summer- lovely beans, tomatoes, eggplant and zucchini. I served them with lamb kofte- which I baked without tomato sauce, simply drizzled with a little olive oil, for 12 minutes at 180C/350F until just cooked- and plenty of soft Turkish bread (focaccia would work well) to sop up all the juices.

Slow Cooked Green Beans with Tomato

This is a classic dish of the Mediterranean and Middle East, and while there are many different versions, I like to keep it very simple. The beauty of this is that it is a great way to cook those beans that are tough, or that grew larger than you would prefer, any sign of starchiness melting away into tender, silky, olive oil-laced lusciousness. The main thing here is patience, a low gentle heat and long cooking time is key to get the texture right.