Jamie's 30 Minute Meals the Complete Season 1

Though it garnered some criticism in its homeland for what was later discovered to be an ambitious – if not to say downright misleading – title, Jamie’s 30 Minute Meals was a wild success of both sides of the Atlantic, providing another arrow in the considerable quiver of the one man media juggernaut known as Jamie Oliver. 

The book which accompanied the series is one of the fastest-selling titles in UK publishing history, and Oliver was praised for both the ingenuity and seeming practicality of the series’ no-nonsense approach.  Some of the sheen wore off following the Christmas sales boom, when readers attempting the book’s recipes in the cold light of day realised that not only did the meals require an initial outlay of some £300 ($510) on cooking utensils, but that some contained more than 30 ingredients, an astonishing requirement when considering the grocery budget of most ordinary households.  Furthermore it appeared the 30 minutes excluded preparation and heating times, and in any event one would need to be a professional chef, as several UK newspapers gleefully demonstrated, to complete the meals in anything approximating the feted half-hour. 

The above lengthy proviso aside Jamie’s 30 Minute Meals fully deserves its early plaudits, and while its recipes may take us mere mortals a mite longer than he-of-the-dancing-knife-blade they are nonetheless almost uniformly deft and imaginative concoctions.  Designed to be cooked in a single brief sitting and to provide a starter, main course and dessert, each 30 Minute Meal is a mini masterpiece.  To be found within are Jamie’s take on comfort food (Chicken Pie, Cauliflower Macaroni), scintillating seafood (Asian-Style Salmon, Grilled Sardines), hearty winter warmers (Piri Piri Chicken, Tapas Feast) and a few spicy creations for more daring palettes (Thai Red Prawn Curry, Steak Indian Style). 

Presented with Jamie’s trademark veracity, this sprawling 6-disc set is a must for Oliver aficionados, or at least those who aren’t expecting to take the master chef entirely at his word.  But hey, it’s Jamie – I think we can forgive him.