{"id":9296,"date":"2019-05-28T06:39:40","date_gmt":"2019-05-28T05:39:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/?p=9296"},"modified":"2019-06-07T06:08:26","modified_gmt":"2019-06-07T05:08:26","slug":"book-review-salt-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/","title":{"rendered":"BOOK REVIEW \/\/ Salt & Time, recipes from a Russian Kitchen by Alissa Timoshkina"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In all honesty, when I was approached to\nreview this book I thought to myself \u2018Really? Siberian Food? Honestly?\u2019 I guess\nI was one of many, guilty of stereotyping Russian food into either matriarchs\nromantically eating Blinis and Caviar whilst downing shots of icy Vodka, or\nSoviets desperately scratching around the shelves for whatever tinned food\nremained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Salt<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Timoshkina sets the picture straight. She takes you on a culinary journey across her vast homeland, taking her own grasp on the various cultural influences that make Siberian Cuisine so speckled. Recipes range from Ashkenazi to Russian and Central Asian cuisines alongside those that are authentic to Siberia alone. She gives the entire book a real personal feel, sharing stories from her family history and her heart-warming associations with some of the recipes. What I particularly enjoyed was her often colloquial tone, making you feel as if she is sitting down with a nice cuppa chatting to you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In essence the book reveals Russian food as\nvibrant, nourishing and exciting. It opened my eyes to the fact that foods that\nappear \u2018en vogue\u2019 at the moment such as ferments and pickles are actually time\ntested Russian classics, developed as a means of preserving food in desperate\ntimes. Indeed, the book title itself \u2018Salt & Time\u2019 is an ode to the\nsimplest way in which ferments are made.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The book begins by introducing various Russian staples, from buckwheat to smetana (a type of Russian soured cream that seems to appear in almost everything). Siberian cuisine appears ubiquitous with rye bread which Timoshkina suggests you pair with most dishes (along with vodka).  This is the point where I realised that this book is probably aimed at more experienced or willing cooks. The ingredients are quite specialised and most would have to be bought online or in specific shops; they would also only be suitable for the recipes stated (unless you had a very wide imagination).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First up are \u2018Starters, Salads &\nSides\u2019. To me, these were akin to many Scandinavian dishes. Recipes such as\n\u2018Rye Crostini Three Ways\u2019 and Cured Mackerel wouldn\u2019t go amiss in a Scandi\nCookbook. Most are fresh and very appealing. A good start.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Next, the book moves to Soups. I learned that, largely because of the climate, the Russians have a huge soup eating culture. I made the \u2018Solyanka\u2019 (Fish Soup) and it was very well received. The recipe was easy to follow and yielded good results. It did however, require the extra optional kick of Turkish hot peppers to elevate it from possibly being a touch bland. I was surprised to see the inclusion of an Asian mushroom broth in amongst the recipes as I had no idea the Asian influence on Russian Cuisine was so apparent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Main dishes are varied and not the potato and starch-laden stews or meat-centric recipes one might associate with food from such a cold climate. I was pleasantly surprised by dishes such as \u2018Vegan Bigos with Smashed New Potatoes\u2019 and a perfectly light Poached Trout & Potato Stew. Flavours appear quite simple but seem to deliver on taste.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Possibly my favourite section was Pickles & Ferments which was right up my street. The simplicity in which she guides the reader through the process of fermentation is how it should be, not clouded by scientific precision. There are also some novel ideas such as \u2018Pickled Tofu Skins\u2019 which appealed. If you’re new to fermenting and pickling, start with the Red Sauerkraut<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Desserts were somewhat less appealing. For me, too sweet and cakey, but that could be a result of the need for sustenance in such a severe climate. I was however, intrigued by the \u2018Bird Cherry Cake\u2019 which looks just like a black forest gateau, but uses bird cherry flour and red wine\u2026 so bizarre I might just have to test it out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The book rounds up with a section of drinks. This is normally the point where I begin to lose interest; there\u2019s only so many different tea infusions I can flick through. But this is more varied, introducing drinks I had never even considered such as those made from silver birch or sea buckthorn (one of my personal favourite ingredients). Surprisingly, not all the recipes are laced with vodka!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Final Thoughts<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In essence this is a lovely, personal insight into Siberian Food. Timoshkina is obviously very passionate and this is resonated in her book. It\u2019s definitely one for the more determined cook as you will have to buy specialist ingredients and some recipes are a bit more complex and time consuming. I enjoyed it far more than I expected and if nothing else the food photography and styling are just beautiful!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More Information<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Salt & Time is published by Mitchell Beazley and hardcover costs \u00a325. Buy it from Amazon here<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/h6>\n\n\n\n
Disclosure:<\/em><\/strong> We were gifted the book. All opinions are our own. There are some affiliate links within this article; if you purchase the book having clicked on our link, we get a small percentage of the sale, at no cost to you, which helps keep the site running. <\/em><\/h6>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In all honesty, when I was approached to review this book I thought to myself \u2018Really? Siberian Food? Honestly?\u2019 I guess I was one of many, guilty of stereotyping Russian […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9296","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london","entry","has-post-thumbnail"],"yoast_head":"\nBOOK REVIEW \/\/ Salt & Time, recipes from a Russian Kitchen by Alissa Timoshkina - Healthy Living London<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A unique collection of modern Siberian recipes from Alissa Timoshkina, with Eastern European and Central Asian influences, reviewed by chef Susie Morrison.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"BOOK REVIEW \/\/ Salt & Time, recipes from a Russian Kitchen by Alissa Timoshkina - Healthy Living London\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A unique collection of modern Siberian recipes from Alissa Timoshkina, with Eastern European and Central Asian influences, reviewed by chef Susie Morrison.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Healthy Living London\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/HealthyLivingLondon\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-05-28T05:39:40+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2019-06-07T05:08:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/SaltTimeBook.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Gourmet Glow\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Gourmet Glow\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/\",\"name\":\"BOOK REVIEW \/\/ Salt & Time, recipes from a Russian Kitchen by Alissa Timoshkina - Healthy Living London\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/SaltTimeBook.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2019-05-28T05:39:40+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2019-06-07T05:08:26+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/#\/schema\/person\/3fe05640f4a4b6ba34bd73cc8e1e2d60\"},\"description\":\"A unique collection of modern Siberian recipes from Alissa Timoshkina, with Eastern European and Central Asian influences, reviewed by chef Susie Morrison.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/SaltTimeBook.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"http:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/SaltTimeBook.jpg\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"BOOK REVIEW \/\/ Salt & Time, recipes from a Russian Kitchen by Alissa Timoshkina\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/\",\"name\":\"Healthy Living London\",\"description\":\"The go-to online destination for honest health and fitness information about classes and products in London.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/#\/schema\/person\/3fe05640f4a4b6ba34bd73cc8e1e2d60\",\"name\":\"Gourmet Glow\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/555382784d2012747b78b75bb6d5f3d1?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/555382784d2012747b78b75bb6d5f3d1?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Gourmet Glow\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/author\/gourmetglow\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"BOOK REVIEW \/\/ Salt & Time, recipes from a Russian Kitchen by Alissa Timoshkina - Healthy Living London","description":"A unique collection of modern Siberian recipes from Alissa Timoshkina, with Eastern European and Central Asian influences, reviewed by chef Susie Morrison.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"BOOK REVIEW \/\/ Salt & Time, recipes from a Russian Kitchen by Alissa Timoshkina - Healthy Living London","og_description":"A unique collection of modern Siberian recipes from Alissa Timoshkina, with Eastern European and Central Asian influences, reviewed by chef Susie Morrison.","og_url":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/","og_site_name":"Healthy Living London","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/HealthyLivingLondon\/","article_published_time":"2019-05-28T05:39:40+00:00","article_modified_time":"2019-06-07T05:08:26+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/SaltTimeBook.jpg"}],"author":"Gourmet Glow","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Gourmet Glow","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/","url":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/","name":"BOOK REVIEW \/\/ Salt & Time, recipes from a Russian Kitchen by Alissa Timoshkina - Healthy Living London","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/SaltTimeBook.jpg","datePublished":"2019-05-28T05:39:40+00:00","dateModified":"2019-06-07T05:08:26+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/#\/schema\/person\/3fe05640f4a4b6ba34bd73cc8e1e2d60"},"description":"A unique collection of modern Siberian recipes from Alissa Timoshkina, with Eastern European and Central Asian influences, reviewed by chef Susie Morrison.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/#primaryimage","url":"http:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/SaltTimeBook.jpg","contentUrl":"http:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/SaltTimeBook.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/nutrition-and-food-for-healthy-living-in-london\/book-review-salt-time\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"BOOK REVIEW \/\/ Salt & Time, recipes from a Russian Kitchen by Alissa Timoshkina"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/","name":"Healthy Living London","description":"The go-to online destination for honest health and fitness information about classes and products in London.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/#\/schema\/person\/3fe05640f4a4b6ba34bd73cc8e1e2d60","name":"Gourmet Glow","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/555382784d2012747b78b75bb6d5f3d1?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/555382784d2012747b78b75bb6d5f3d1?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Gourmet Glow"},"url":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/author\/gourmetglow\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9296"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9296"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9296\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9597,"href":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9296\/revisions\/9597"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9296"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9296"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9296"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}