My kitchen is … very simple. I live in a suburb of Stockholm. I have a sink, a chopping board, a few knives and a small stove. Outside I have a firepit and an old grill. By Swedish standards, it’s a normal size. We have a table where we have all our family meals. When I was growing up, meals together as a family were always very important. That’s more complicated when you work in a restaurant, but we’ve figured out a way: I pick the kids up from school and cook with them, then go back to work.
My favourite kitchen tool is … my cast-iron pots and pans. I use them all the time, on the fire and on the hob. (When my wife was pregnant with our first child, the GP didn’t need to prescribe the usual iron supplements for her – we reckon she got enough from our pots!.
My storecupboard staple is … potatoes. For some reason, they’re really on a downturn in Scandi cooking – people are going for rice, pasta and quinoa, and I don’t get that. I love potatoes. Traditional cooking is important to me, and it’s disappearing Modern Scandi cuisine doesn’t relate back to traditional methods and recipes – foraging has always been important, but not the cuisine.
When I’m starving I … whip up some sourdough pancakes or waffles. I like them every way, though sweet berry compote is my favourite topping. My kids like them too, but with the topping on the side. Always on the side. And nothing fancy – the kids are more like Italians than Swedes in their love of simple food.
My culinary inspiration is … my day. How the day is turning out inspires what I will cook. I don’t plan much in advance – I live in the moment, especially since having a family of my own.
My best-kept kitchen secret is … anything cooked is better than nothing. The effort is all it takes – getting over that hurdle. Just start cooking – that’s the best advice. I’m not a fussy eater: if someone cooks a meal for me, it’s beautiful. How often do people today actually make you something? Cooking is one of the last things that people still do for themselves.
When I’m invited to dinner I always take … flowers. My love of flowers is a relatively new thing, also related to having a family of my own. As a kid, I never understood the appeal – I thought a garden without veg was a waste of time and space. But when I had kids of my own, and slowed down a bit, nature became so much more important.
Everything tastes better with … salt. Simple, natural salt. I like to make a mix of burnt hay with salt – it adds a wonderful flavour to everything, especially potatoes. Hay salt and butter on a potato, it’s a thing of beauty.
When I go shopping I … am pretty organised. I don’t write a list – it’s all in my head.
For dinner tonight … I’m cooking for friends – I’m thinking scallops, maybe, with cucumber, parsley – and potatoes.
- Niklas Ekstedt is a Swedish Michelin star chef, restaurateur and TV broadcaster. His cookbook, Food from the Fire: The Scandinavian Flavours of Open-Fire Cooking, is out now (Pavilion). @NiklasEkstedt
