There’s a building in North London, built from equal parts brick and tahini, walls coated in olive oil and floors stained with spice: habanero and fenugreek, Aleppo chilli and ras el hanout. This is the Ottolenghi Test Kitchen, the OTK to some, where a group of individuals meet and eat, cook and write, tear and share and gather with just one motive: to create good food with good ingredients, and to share it with the world.
In truth, the OTK isn't a new venture. It began around ten years ago with Yotam and gradually grew as more creatives joined forces. This ebb and flow of voices and personalities has shaped a space where you enter and instantly feel it's more than just the sum of its parts.
Today, the test kitchen is the creative hub of Ottolenghi, where recipes undergo rigorous testing and tasting before finding their place online or in print to be shared with food lovers worldwide. We're part of an ongoing dialogue about food, culture, creativity, and experimentation, and we'd love for you to join us—from our kitchen to yours, wherever you may be.
The test kitchen is a collective of chefs, writers, doers, and thinkers. Leading the crew is Milli Taylor, who keeps everything in check. Then there's Verena Lochmuller, Chaya Pugh, Jake Norman, Katja Tousig, Jens Ferdinand, and Angelos Angelides. Together, they cook, taste, converse, and craft all the recipes they hope will grace your tables.
They also rely on their trusted colleague Claudine Boulstridge, our secret OTK weapon, who rigorously tests all our recipes from her family kitchen in Wales. Ultimately, though, there's Yotam, who pushes and inspires us while ensuring we have enough flexibility to chart our own course.
