Welcome Spring in Delicious Style by Recreating Jamie Oliver’s Easy Seasonal Recipes on BBC Lifestyle

With winter behind us, it’s time for food lovers to come together and celebrate the return of fresh, seasonal flavours.

Say goodbye to hearty soups and indulgent cheat meals and get ready to embrace vibrant new dishes that capture the essence of spring.

Looking for inspiration to cook up some seasonal delights at home? Tune into Jamie Oliver: Seasons, airing every Tuesday at 20:00 on DStv Channel 174, running until 24 September 2025. If you missed the first episode, don’t worry—you can catch up on DStv Catch-Up.

Adding a touch of local flair, South African food influencer and food scientist Una Ndou, better known as unas_minikitchen on Instagram and TikTok, has taken Jamie’s seasonal recipes and added her unique Mzansi twist. Una recently recreated two standout dishes from the show, tailoring them for South African kitchens.

 

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For Jamie’s Hot ‘n’ Sour Rhubarb with Crispy Pork Belly, Una swapped out rhubarb for raspberries—an ingredient that’s more accessible locally. She also made Jamie’s Spinach & Goat Cheese Risotto even more relatable for South African taste buds by using cream cheese and Parmesan instead of goat cheese.

Una’s creative spins on these recipes prove that anyone can bring their own twist to the kitchen, making international dishes feel like home.

Want to recreate these dishes at home or follow Una’s recipe? Here’s what you’ll need:

Hot ‘n’ Sour Rhubarb with Crispy Pork Belly (Serves 6)

This simple yet delicious meal takes 1 hour and 50 minutes to prepare. This dish combines the tanginess of rhubarb/raspberries with the sweet and salty flavours of soy sauce, honey, and Chinese five-spice to create a beautiful sticky sauce paired with crispy pork belly, silky noodles, and steamed greens.

WATCH VIDEO HERE

INGREDIENTS

• 2kg pork belly, bone out, rind and most of the fat removed
• Vegetable oil
• 4 nests of medium free-range egg noodles (375g total)
• 500g seasonal greens, such as spinach, spring greens
• 4 spring onions
• 1 bunch of mixed herbs, such as coriander, mint, basil (30g)

MARINADE

• 400g rhubarb (Una’s Alternative: 400g raspberries)
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 5cm piece of ginger
• 2 fresh red chillies
• 1 heaped teaspoon Chinese five-spice
• 4 tablespoons runny honey, plus extra for drizzling
• 2 tablespoons low-salt soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Score the pork fat in a crisscross fashion, then cut into 3cm pieces and place in a roasting tray.
3. For the marinade, remove and discard any leaves from the rhubarb/wash the raspberries. Set one stick/a few raspberries aside, then roughly chop the rest and place in a blender.
4. Peel the garlic and ginger, halve and deseed the chillies and add to the processor with the remaining marinade ingredients. Pulse until smooth.
5. Pour the marinade over the pork and massage it in, then add a mug of water and tightly cover the tray with tin foil. Roast for 1 hour 30 minutes, or until the meat is tender, but not coloured.
6. Once the pork is done, finely slice the remaining stick of rhubarb/raspberries and place in a large non-stick frying pan on a medium heat with a drizzle of honey. Cook for a few minutes, stirring occasionally, then tip into a bowl and set aside, leaving the pan on the heat.
7. Carefully remove the foil from the tray, then use tongs to transfer the tender pork into the frying pan, leaving the sticky sauce behind. Cook for 5 to 10 minutes, or until crisp and golden (you may need to do this in batches).
8. Cook the noodles according to the packet instructions, steaming the greens in a colander on top of the pan for 5 minutes, or until tender.
9. Trim the spring onions and finely slice with the herb leaves. Drain the noodles, and toss in the roasting tray until coated in the lovely sauce.
10. Divide the greens and noodles between serving dishes, top with the sizzling crispy pork and spoon over any remaining sauce. Sprinkle over the spring onions, herbs and pan-fried rhubarb/raspberries, and serve.

Spinach and Goat Cheese Risotto (Serves 4)

Another simple meal that takes only 40 minutes to recreate. This silky risotto bianco (or white risotto) provides the perfect base to celebrate the gorgeous spring veggies at its best. The perfect accompaniment to heighten these seasonal flavours is a dollop of cream cheese or crumbles of goat’s cheese for a tangier finish.

WATCH VIDEO HERE

INGREDIENTS

• 2 litres quality chicken stock
• 2 small onions
• 1 celery heart
• Olive oil
• 300g risotto rice
• 125ml dry white wine
• 300g baby spinach
• 60g Parmesan cheese
• 1 knob of unsalted butter
• 50g soft goat’s cheese (Una’s Alternative: Cream cheese or parmesan)
• Extra virgin olive oil

METHOD

1. Pour the stock into a small pan and simmer on a low heat.
2. Peel the onion and finely chop with the celery, reserving any nice yellow leaves, then place in a large, high-sided pan on a medium heat with 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
3. Cook for 10 minutes, or until softened but not coloured, stirring occasionally, then stir in the rice to toast for 2 minutes.
4. Pour in the wine and stir until absorbed. Add a ladleful of stock, stirring constantly until it’s been fully absorbed before adding another. Continue to add ladlefuls of stock until the rice is tender but still holding its shape – it should take around 17 minutes.
5. Keeping a few nice leaves for garnish, put the rest of the spinach into a blender with 3 to 4 ladlefuls of stock and blitz until you have a super-smooth, vibrant green sauce.
6. Take the risotto off the heat and coarsely grate in most of the Parmesan, then stir in the blitzed spinach. Cover the pan and leave to relax for 2 minutes, or until the risotto is creamy and oozy, then season to perfection.
7. To serve, ladle into shallow bowls and dot with the butter. Crumble over the goat’s cheese/cream cheese, sprinkle a few baby spinach leaves, and finish with the remaining Parmesan.

For more recipes to unleash that inner chef this Spring, visit https://www.bbcafricachannels.com/recipes.

Jamie Oliver: Seasons, airs every Tuesday at 20:00 until 24 September 2025 on DStv Channel 174.

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The post Welcome Spring in Delicious Style by Recreating Jamie Oliver’s Easy Seasonal Recipes on BBC Lifestyle appeared first on YOMZANSI. Documenting THE CULTURE.