Carter’s Kitchen No. 2
and fish, potatoes and lemon sauce
Outi Forstén, Finland
I met Outi during a few months in Tuscany where I worked in a kitchen of a villa one summer. We quickly became close and I enjoyed listening to her stories from Finland, it sounds magical. We loved to drink and party back then and while I don’t think I learned much, I had so much fun and did make lifelong friends that I miss dearly.
Where is your kitchen, and what does it look out onto?
In Helsinki, Finland, in a little area that’s called “wooden Vallilla” because houses are made of wood here. From the window I see a small park where people take their dogs out. They’re fun to look at.
What’s the first thing you do when you walk into it?
- Probably clean something.. Wash a cup that’s left in the sink or pick up stuff from the floor, something like that.
What’s usually left out on the bench or within reach?
Bread. My child’s dad has a bakery and often brings me a sourdough loaf! If I’m out of that then store-bought rye bread which is also great.
What do you have when you don’t feel like cooking at all?
Slice of bread with butter and tomatoes :)
What do you eat or drink almost every day?
Coffee, I love coffee almost as much as life itself...
What’s the last thing you made, even if it was simple?
I boiled potatoes and fried pikeperch fillets I always have in the freezer (caught by my parents!)
Is there something you make on repeat without thinking?
Many things! Tomato pasta might be the most common one, but I also like to make noodle bowls with all kinds of vegetables on it, and often fish with potatoes.
What do you have late at night or early in the morning?
Yoghurt and granola late at night. I can’t eat early in the morning... just coffee and lots of water!
Is there a drink you make all the time?
- Rose tea. Dry rosebuds in hot water, it’s beautiful and smells great and the taste is very subtle and sophisticated and I heard it’s great for skin! So it also makes me feel beautiful :)
Is there something you always order when you’re out?
My friend runs a cute wine bar just down the street from where we live and I go there quite often and always order a non-alcoholic beer and sometimes a bowl of olives.
Is there a place you go back to for the same meal?
I’d say a sushi spot close to our old apartment in a neighborhood called Töölö. I always order whatever they have on the menu that day and it’s always perfect. But I eat out very rarely, it’s so expensive here. (If school cantine doesn’t count!)
What’s something you’ve eaten recently that stayed with you?
I made a really nice babka with chocolate and orange zest and it was heavenly..
How do you take your coffee or tea?
I drink coffee with oat milk in the morning and black in the afternoon. I also love all kinds of tea. I sometimes like to have this very strong Chinese black tea that a friend once gave me saying that it tastes like going to a sauna, and it does...
Where do you eat your meals most of the time?
Home, by our dining table (that’s too big for this kitchen). Although I often eat at school too because the lunch only cost around 2 euros and is very decent.
What do you like listening to in your kitchen?
Radio, always. I have an old school radio that I can’t live without, and always the same channel which is the local Radio 1, very classic station. One exception is an hour in the morning when there’s a show I really cannot stand to hear! When that one’s on I listen to some podcast, I like to listen to interview podcasts like “Talk Easy” for example.
What’s something slightly imperfect in your kitchen that you still use?
Every day it crosses my mind that I should throw away one particular plastic chopping board that doesn’t look or smell so great anymore - but I still use it daily. Probably because of that I eat a bit of plastic all the time..
A meal or food moment that stays with you:
Only thing that comes to mind are all the food moments I didn’t have when I had just found out I was pregnant, and I happened to be in Hong Kong working in a pop-up restaurant. There was this local collegue that showed us all the amazing restaurants but there was a lot things on the menus that I had to avoid because of the pregnancy, and also didn’t have any appetite for anything else than maybe some edamame beans. We still wanted to keep the pregnancy a secret so I was embarrassed to be this annoying tourist who couldn’t eat anything and also bummed because the things others ate looked so good. Such a rare occasion to be there, it’s so far away from where I live that I don’t know if I’ll ever go back. I wish I could go one day and not be pregnant.
Follow Outi on instagram @ou___ti
The last thing Outi made was boiled potatoes and fish that she keeps in the freezer from her Dad. After a weekend away, we were low on food but I remembered some fish in the freezer. While mine wasn’t from my Dad, I made a simple and delicious lunch with it and share the recipe below.
