Putting vegetables first: The Cork chef who has led the way in plant-based eating

Cotter, who had worked at wholefood vegetarian restaurants in Cranks in London and the Quay Co-Op in Cork, was determined to focus on a different kind of vegetarian offering at Paradiso, taking his cues from the fusion food that he had experienced while living in New Zealand.  “It was not so much about vegetarian food as about developing a new style of cooking,” says Cotter. “I wanted to produce great food in a casual setting. I had eaten at [New Zealand chef] Peter Gordon’s restaurant in West London and he was doing very simple food with really interesting combinations. He was the king of the antipodean version of fusion but it was also popular in California. It was a very Pacific thing, grabbing flavours from all over that region and mixing them with traditional European cooking. I wanted to create a vegetarian cuisine that was exciting, pleasure-driven and flavour-focused — rather than worthy.” 

Moving away from a health food focus —“brown rice and chickpea” vegetarian meals — meant that Cotter refused to put rice and pulses on the menu for the first few years after the restaurant opened. This had unexpected consequences for the way he cooked. “I had to put a distance between Paradiso and other vegetarian restaurants. In terms of developing my cooking, it meant I had to concentrate on vegetables rather than pulses or grains and that was the foundation of me learning to cook in my own style,” says Cotter. “It was, ‘What are we going to do with carrots, broccoli and asparagus?’.”

Cotter’s long-term association with his vegetable suppliers, Ultan Walsh and Lucy Stewart of Gort na Nain Farm, near Nohoval, was noted internationally when they won a World Restaurant Collaboration of the Year Award in 2019. “It’s an absorbing and engaging relationship,” says Cotter, a relationship he also celebrated in his 2007 cookbook Wild Garlic, Gooseberries…And Me (Collins). At that time, it was a new way of looking at how a restaurateur and grower could work together: “There were things that we needed — artichokes, beetroot— and Ultan would grow them a certain way. There were also things he wanted to grow and we had to figure out how to use them. The kitchen had to learn to respond to the farm, and farm to the kitchen.”

For Cotter, this way of working developed over time. “It wasn't a philosophy and I certainly wasn’t lecturing people. It was about community. I liked the idea of buying things from people I liked and knowing the person who produced them. It’s a nicer way to do business, to build relationships rather than phoning up for the big white truck. It just evolved slowly into the food culture.”

Cotter’s concentration on locally sourced food was not just about vegetables: in the early years, Café Paradiso was also focused on dairy, specifically local cheese. “My connection with the place was through dairy first, rather than through vegetables, because of cheese producers like Bill Hogan — who made Gabriel and Desmond — the makers of Durrus, Coolea and, later, Knockalara. I got to know the cheesemakers so cheese was the first thing that connected me to the food network. The other thing about dairy is that it makes it possible for the flavours to be really rich and flavourful. Cheese, herbs and spices were the main things that gave food its flavour in those early days,” says Cotter.

The menu has been consistently moving in a vegan direction over the last eight years, however, and Cotter credits his current head chef Meadhbh Halton for her work on this aspect of the menu. “The starting point now is always vegan, both when we build a dish in practical terms or sitting at a table with a sketchbook. It’s in our minds that it should be vegan unless we reach a point with it where it demands some cheese. It might need a grating of Knockalara, but we can take that off for vegans. We don’t start with something that is non-vegan and work backwards anymore. It just means we have to work a little bit harder to make food as satisfying and full of flavour.”

With the big anniversary in 2023, Cotter doesn’t intend to rest on any laurels. “We will be celebrating 30 years but we are setting the groundwork for the next decade. Our new head chef Miguel Frutos is ready to take over in October and the key thing we have been trying to do is to remain youthful and current with the energy and curiosity of a new restaurant. We’re constantly evolving and adapting, but still remaining true to the repository of memories that is Paradiso.”

• Denis Cotter is cooking at Overends Kitchen in Airfield Estate on Friday, 22 July (sold out) and Friday, 26 August, using produce grown on the 38-acre urban farm. More information at https://www.airfield.ie

Denis Cotter’s top three Café Paradiso dishes:

Braised turnip galette of chestnut and mushrooms: “That was a total one-off creation that came out of my brain. I’m really proud of it.”

Aubergine: “I loved aubergine and nobody was working with them in Ireland. There were a number of aubergine dishes that became favourites on the menu.”

Feta and pistachio couscous cake: “This has been on the menu for 20 years and is still a bestseller to this day. When we did meal kits during the lockdowns, it was the one dish we couldn't leave out.”

Denis Cotter's Beetroot Risotto with Orange, Hazelnut Crumb, Knockalara Sheep’s Cheese

Beetroot risotto with Orange, Hazelnut Crumb, Knockalara Sheep’s Cheese

Recipe By:denis Cotter

Of Our Cheese Brings All Can Vegan Omitted Here, Finished Olive A Oil But This Like Is With Base Or As Knockalara Can The It The With Of Or Creamy Vegan Or Risotto, Butter, Cheese And Replaced With Be Soft Vegan One Be Tang Lovely Butter

Servings

2

Preparation Time

 30 mins

Time Cooking

 1 hours 20 mins

Time Total

 1 hours 50 mins

Course

 Main

Cuisine

 Italian

ingredients

• Hazelnuts 50g Skinned

• Breadcrumbs 50g

• Chopped 1 Thyme Fresh Leaves, Tablespoon

• 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

• Olive Oil 100mls

• Juice Orange 20mls

• Juice 30mls Lemon

• Of Orange 1 Zest

• Peeled Roasted Beetroot, And 500g

• 1 Litres Vegetable 5 Stock

• Chopped Shallots, 2 Finely

• Chopped Finely Garlic, 2 Cloves

• Risotto Carnaroli As Such 300g Rice,

• 125mls Wine Red

• 100mls Olive Oil

• 50g Butter

• Fresh 100g Crumbled Knockalara Cheese, Coarsely Sheep’s

method

1. The Oven Preheat 100c

2. Lightly 15 Toast And For On A Browned Until Place Mins, Hazelnuts The The Tray 20 In Oven

3. The Rolling Coarsely Nuts Flat Or Wide The Crushing A Of By With Pin A Knife Chop

4. Are Crumbs From Frying Place Few Add Together And Everything In Golden And Season Thyme The Toss And Seconds Toast Medium Add A Crisp, Pan Heat Then Remove Nuts On The Oil The Pan And A Heat, The Until The The Frequently Brown, Salt Stirring Breadcrumbs With When For

5. Season Oil Thick Olive With Together Pouring Consistency To With The A Citrus And Hand Blender Blend A Salt Get

6. It A Blitz In Chop Chopped And Beetroot Very Finely Processor The Get Food To Roasted A Finish

7. The Over Stock Heat Low A In Warm Keep Pot

8. Over 2 Minutes Olive Pan For The Medium The In And Heat 7 Toast It, Often Little Rice A 8 Stirring And Shallot For Oil Minutes A Cook Add And Heat Garlic

9. It Stock A Stirring, For Often, Number With Is Rice Simmer, Now Repeat Of Absorbed A Minutes Add Been Red Stages Rice Add Times, A Stirring And Until Of Been More Approx Has Simmer Minutes Two Grains Often The Or In It The Ladle Until Just Until Has 20 Absorbed Latter Wine The Few Check Stock Tender, And

10. Season Stir Heat Beetroot From The In Oil And Remove Salt Finely And Butter Olive And Pepper, Black Well Immediately The With And Serve The Chopped

11. Over Hazelnut Some Cheese And And Knockalara Orange Sheep’s The Serve Risotto With Bowls Sprinkled Some In Shallow Crumb Sauce