Following his tasty series Jamie Cooks Spring earlier this year, Jamie Oliver continues his year-long quest to ‘cook the seasons’ with a new three-parter on Channel 4
In Jamie: What To Eat This Week, the chef celebrates Summer’s in-season ingredients, from fresh, juicy tomatoes and strawberries to fresh cucumbers and peppers.
“We're spoiled for choice,” says Jamie. “The garden is full of delicious things, and you don’t even need to cook them. There’s nothing like feasting on sun-warmed strawberries and raspberries!”
Here’s everything you need to know about Jamie: What To Eat This Week…
Jamie: What To Eat This Week — release date
The first episode Jamie: What To Eat This Week airs on Channel 4 on Monday, July 15 at 8 pm. The following episodes in the three-part series air weekly at the same time. The series will also be available on channel4.com.
Jamie Cooks Spring is also available to watch on C4’s free streaming service.
Jamie Cooks — a year-long project
With every season, Jamie celebrates the joy of that time of year, as he creates recipes inspired by ingredients that are in season – whether you have a vegetable patch, pots on the windowsill or buy your produce from the supermarket or farmer’s market.
Jamie: What To Eat This Week is the second instalment of the extended seasonal series.
The first outing, Jamie Cooks Spring, aired in May 2024. The Autumn and Winter series are expected later this year.
What’s on the menu in Jamie: What To Eat This Week
Star ingredients in the opening episode are fennel, peas, carrots and beetroot. These garden gems are showcased by Jamie in his recipes, Pork, Fennel and Bean Gratin, Pea Risotto, Rainbow Salad Wraps, and Mackerel and Beetroot Salad. There are also tips on what to buy and grow - including clever space-saving edible hanging baskets!
Later in the series, recipes range from savoury to sweet, as Jamie cooks up a storm from his garden shed.
“There’s a gorgeous One-pan Chicken with Tomatoes and New Potatoes and a super simple Creamy Rice-pudding with Strawberry Jam,” shares Jamie. (See our episode guide below for more details on what’s on the menu).
Jamie: What To Eat This Week — episode guide
Episode 1 - Monday, 15 July, 2024
Following his series Jamie Cooks Spring earlier this year, Jamie Oliver continues his year-long quest to ‘cook the seasons’. And, since his last outing, he hasn’t been letting the grass grow under his feet.
In this episode the chef celebrates a bounty of fennel, peas, carrots and beetroot, showcasing them in delicious recipes, including a seasonal twist on a roast and carrot-championing slaw. There are also tips on growing your own garden gems - including clever space-saving edible hanging baskets. There’s typically British sunshine and rain too, as he cooks up a storm with faithful pooch Conker by his side in this joyful slice of summer.
Recipes in episode 1 — Jamie roasts up a succulent roast loin of pork and turns it into a stunning cheesy bean and fennel gratin. He then makes an oozy pea risotto using the freshest seasonal peas. After picking some homegrown carrots from his veg patch, Jamie uses them to make a rainbow slaw served with griddled chicken in a toasted wrap. Finally, he cooks up some stunning mackerel and serves it on a bed of incredible sun-dried tomato couscous and multicoloured beetroots.
“One of my personal favourites are fresh peas - I hero them here in a silky risotto – but not before stealing a few for myself!” says Jamie. “I’m really lucky to have space for growing. But it doesn’t matter if you don’t have your own garden patch or even windowsill space, you can tap into what’s in the supermarkets.”
Episode 2 - Monday, 22 July, 2024
In this episode, Jamie picks the first of the season's tomatoes, combining them with some early potatoes and chorizo in a sauce to make a delicious sticky chicken traybake.
Jamie's son Buddy joins him in the garden picking strawberries for his next dish, creamy rice pudding with the quickest strawberry jam.
Jamie then shares his love of spice by picking some home-grown chillies and using them in a quick pickle and as a veg in their own right on delicious prawn skewers that he griddles on the BBQ. And, to finish it all off, Jamie prepares a stunning green gazpacho soup using his hero ingredient of cucumbers, along with some other green summer veg.
Episode 3 - Monday, 29 July, 2024
Jamie rounds up his glorious summer offerings with some seasonal plums, as he rustles up a gorgeous sauce to serve with crispy duck, and then shows us his beehives as he harvests some honey.
He then griddles and chars some beautiful peppers on the BBQ to add to a simple but delicious pepper panzanella salad.
He gets back in the garden to pick his home-grown courgettes and serves them up on a Mediterranean-inspired rice dish. And to really put the cherry on top of the summer cake, Jamie makes an epic sour cherry frangipane, served with crème fraîche and sticky cherries.
Jamie: What to Eat This Week — Q&A with Jamie Oliver
What excites you about Summer produce?
“Where do I start?! The garden is heavy with the weight of delicious things to eat – and you don’t even need to cook them to enjoy them. Come summertime, the cooking options are endless.”
What does Summer taste like for you?
“I love to get outside and fire up my barbecue for family feasts – think baked fish, low-and-slow shoulders of pork, or chargrilled asparagus – that familiar smoky smell just sums up summer to me. There’s so much that brings a smile to my face at this time of year. It’s just joyful.”
What should we be looking out for at the market or supermarket at this time of year?
“There is so much in the world of fruit and veg that’s at its absolute best right now. You’ve got the usual suspects like strawberries, Jersey Royals and tomatoes – and you know that if they’re grown in the UK, they’re going to taste off-the-chart delicious. My personal favourites are fresh peas, there’s also nothing I like more than growing and cooking my own beetroot and Summer plums aren’t just great for puds, they go perfectly with meats, like duck.”
Why did you want to make this?
“I think the art of seasonal cooking could be lost unless we take the time to champion it, and there’s so much to love about it. Not least because produce eaten at its very best is utterly delicious, bursting with flavour. But eating seasonally is also kinder for the planet, it’s a great way to get more of the good stuff into your diet, and to keep costs down in the kitchen.
“I also wanted to remind viewers that by having the confidence to surf the seasons, your scope for cooking just gets wider. I want to encourage more people to get back into the rhythm of growing and cooking their own food, because having a genuine connection with where our food comes from is going to be essential for our future.”
What would you advise our readers to plant in the Summer months?
“What I love about Summer is that it’s such a great time for growing - you can sow and harvest a crop in just four weeks! Radishes are great for this and they add that beautiful peppery punch to a summer salad. You can also sow carrots now, in time for an Autumn harvest.”
Did you have fun while filming?
“Yes! We had the typical English summer weather – windy and rainy! The shed leaked and we had buckets and pans everywhere to catch the drips, but we had so much fun, and the lighter evenings meant we could film for longer. Plus, the record-breaking temperatures last June meant we had bumper harvests, so it was all good.
"Nature’s so clever. Fruit and veg are like perfect pieces of art. To be able to go outside and snap off asparagus spears, which are so fresh you don’t need to cook them for much more than a minute, is amazing. They only need a pinch of salt and maybe a squeeze of lemon, and they taste extraordinary. Cooking something you’ve grown yourself, changes you for life. It might sound romantic but I want everyone to experience that.”
We will update this space with information on Jamie Cooks Autumn and Jamie Cooks Winter (working titles) later this year.
