Cleared Plates and Satisfied Mates!

Yes, I am the sad cookery-show-fan who wakes up early on a Saturday Morning to religiously watch Saturday Kitchen. And yes, I do set reminders for Masterchef to which I take VERY seriously. I was always the one to stay inside cooking with my mum, rather than going outside to play with all the other little kids and I do not regret it one bit!

Anyway….back to the actual blogging part, over the last few weeks I have shared my love of some of my favourite chefs, cooking programmes and recipe books. I've always loved the literary representation, visuals and aesthetics of food. Although it a performance by the chef, I love the way they present or describe food on screen and cooking shows. I love emotion and drive behind a dish and how that makes you feel. I love reading about food and talking about food. And while researching for this blog, I came across the most beautiful articles that has inspired me to spread my love and passion of food!

I hope you've enjoyed my blog!

Ching He Huang

I remember in the early 2000’s when Ching He Huang first came into popularity for her cooking show; “Ching’s Kitchen” as she created the most delicious Chinese meals from her North London studio flat.  The main ingredients of Ching’s cooking shows and recipe books are simplicity, fresh ingredients and the willingness to have fun and enjoy! Ching is very calm and collected as she cooks, she keeps a connection with the audience with eye contact and a friendly, reassuring voice! It’s refreshing to see a chef cooking slowly, carefully and comfortably.

Ching He Huang

“Chinese Food Made Easy” (2008) is still one of my favourite cooking shows, I just love her presenting style and the way she cooks. For each show, she has a specific topic that she wishes to cater to (no pun intended). For instance, for the episode “Cooking for friends and family” she creates dishes that delicious and easy to make e.g. Lion’s Head Meatballs (no not an actual lion’s head) but a westernised version of Italian meatballs. Of course this perfect for family and friends as it is just to prepare the meatballs beforehand and just put in the oven. In the meanwhile you can be attending to other bits and bobs.

Lion's Head Meatballs

Another episode, Ching cooks for the women’s rowing team. Being athletes, these women obviously need a healthy, balanced diet. Ching sets out on a mission to make a healthy version of sweet and sour pork with egg fried rice. An absolutely delicious healthy alternative that isn't gloopy or make you feel queasy when you fork into your plate or mouth! Ching lets us into some of the absolute shocking factors of Chinese takeaway food. For instance, takeaway sweet and sour pork has an average of 240g of fat, which is almost as much fat in as many as 30 hamburgers! Her alternative swaps the deep fried, floury batter (on the pork) to a healthy version which is dry roasted soya beans and this makes a delicious, crunchy coating.  The audience salivates as they just watch her both prepare and cook this delicious pork. As with many things in life, it is hard to come by balance for instance, with work and children. However, in the kitchen it is achievable, you can regulate the amounts of ingredients and how spicy/sour/sweet you like it! In this case, the sweet, tenderness of the pork is beautifully contrasted with the deliciously, crunchy coating of the soya beans. 
Traditionally, Chinese cuisine is low in fat, balanced and nutritious. This does not mean tasteless or mundane, but rather pays tribute to the 'yin and yang' concept. Rather than opposing sides, 'yin and yang' are actually paralleled to one another. In this case, the 'Yin' is the soya beans and the 'Yang' is the pork! Essentially, the perfect union of opposites!

Yin and Yang

On a different note, my Mum and I were VERY happy and excited to see Ching on screen collaborating with Ken Hom for "A Culinary Adventure." My Mum is avid fan of "the godfather of Chinese cuisine" Ken Hom since the early 80’s and to see the original and earliest of Chinese chefs teaming up with a modern chef, was an absolute treat! They partner so well as they both share great charisma, they’re very enthusiastic and they both have an absolute passion for food and family!

Ching He Huang and Ken Hom

West Indies and Naparima Cookbook

To some people, food and drink are seen as nothing more than sustenance. For this blog, I wanted to share a recipe book that I hold close to my heart which is Naparima Girls High School Cookbook. This cookbook demonstrates exactly why food and drink are not just sustenance. 

As stated in “The Flavours of Modernity” the “human mouth is the ambiguous locus of two oralities: one articulates the voice, language; the other satisfies a need, the ingestion of food for survival first of all, but also for a pleasure that becomes juxtaposed with the value of nourishment” (3). This is certainly true, as food is absolutely central to the West Indian home, food is to be enjoyed and appreciated, not just eaten. This beautiful quote perfectly encapsulates the West Indian 'eater' although we need food to stay alive, this looks beyond food as object but rather food is life, love, motivation and easy gratification! From family gatherings to simple everyday dinners, eating delicious food with my family will always be a treasured memory.

To be honest, there are not many West Indian TV chefs (that I like)! However, much like “The ‘Best Way’ Book” written by “practical housewives” the Naparima cookbook is made of compiled recipes donated by local parents whose daughters went to Naparima Girls High School Cookbook. The variety of recipes in this cookbook reflects the variety of the West Indies, for instance the influence of other cultures, such as Chinese and African.


In the below image, the pink version is the oldest and original which is my Mum’s and mine on the right is one of the newest additions which includes much more refined, and improved recipes. I just love opening the pages of the original copy and seeing the faded colours, scribbles of measurements and little notes inside. 

In all honesty, we don’t use it as much nowadays, as my Mum knows most recipes by heart, however recipes such as do need exact measurements or a certain time to cook. 


I chose one of my favourite books – “Crick Crack Monkey” (1970) by Merle Hodge to illustrate some meanings of food in West Indian culture. The bildungsroman “Crick Crack Monkey” (1970) often uses food to depict class difference and culture. This could be seen when Tee goes to Canapo to see grandmother. While there, Tee describes her grandmother as having “spent a great part of the week stewing cashews, pommescytheres, cerises, making guava cheese and guava jelly, sugar cake, nut cake, bennay balls, toolum, shaddock-peel candy, chilibibi.” (15). This gives the reader an insight into the exotic, local folk culture of the West Indies, both the preparation and cooking of food seems extremely laidback, thus mimicking the enjoyable but slow pace of life.


To quote the foreword of Naparima Girls High School Cookbook, “culture is an expression of a way of life and has many components, food being one of the most important” (4). Having grown up in Trinidad from a young age, this book was an absolute staple in the West Indian household.

Ina Garten

She is the warm, cosy aunt you never had – Ina Garten. With a beautiful kitchen, a ridiculously lush garden and a kind disposition, we have the ‘neighbourly’ cooking show – Barefoot Contessa. I love how classy and engaging Ina is, she has a very clean cut image and maintains this image in both her TV show, Barefoot Contessa and my favourite of her cookery books, How Easy Is That? Ina says that this “book is all about saving you time and avoiding stress.” Having read this cookery book like a novel a thousand times, I can truly say she is right! The dishes are easy to prepare and cook, especially if you don’t have time or if you’re not a fan of cooking! For instance, I've made the “Weeknight Bolognese” and of course the “Ultimate Grilled Cheese Sandwich.”

I love the fact that Ina cooks in her home kitchen, it’s such an intimate and generous setting where she shares her own recipes and forms of cooking them. I love the performance of her life on Barefoot Contessa, the very typical image of the Ina at home fulfilling her duties, taking care of the home and having mid-day lunches with similar women. At the end of this day, Ina is sure to prepare a delicious, intimate meal for herself and Jeffrey her husband. The very classic "Honey I'm home!" They both eat and all is right in the world. It is clear that Ina creates dishes that are easy, delicious and comforting. Having read, "Hearthstories: A Modern Woman's Quest for the Essential Self" Ina confirms this herself stating, "Comfort foods are for all seasons. It helps to know as the light recedes that we have a pot of food warming. This is the ultimate hearth food"(Devrais 182).

Seeing as though she creates her own recipes and love all kinds of foods, I've always wanted to know what chefs like eating on their days off when at home with their families. According to the Food Network website, just a few of Ina’s favourites include, ‘perfect’ roast chicken, linguine with shrimp scampi, herb-roasted turkey breast and ‘outrageous’ brownies. This is one of the reasons I love Ina, she mostly cooks classic dishes that don’t need much changes, but she adds personal touches that make the dishes better! I mean come on who doesn't want brownies, let alone ‘outrageous’ brownies!

'Perfect' Roast Chicken

Linguine with Shrimp Scampi

It makes me both happy and sad that you can find recipes online. Happy just for ease, if you don’t particularly want the whole book and just one recipe, then you’re good to go! However, the rise in internet recipes and chefs having their own blogs posting recipes, slowly the cookery book trend is dying out. Personally, I love salivating over old cookery books and to me, there’s something very satisfying about seeing dirty finger prints of flour or spilt gravy on pages of cookery books!

Anthony Bourdain

“CONTEXT AND MEMORY PLAY POWERFUL ROLES IN ALL THE TRULY GREAT MEALS IN ONE’S LIFE” - Anthony Bourdain.

I love the organic nature (no pun intended) of Anthony Bourdain, along with his cookbooks and cooking shows. A former heroin addict, Bourdain has a very rugged, rebellious image and is extremely laid back which adds to this fun atmosphere of his shows. The vulgarity of his language, his honesty and his undeniable appreciation for everything he gains on his travels adds depth to his show “No Reservations”.

In “Food and Cultural Studies” critic John May “points out that independent travel is therefore predicated on a quest for a ‘backstage encounter’ with ‘authentic people’ things and places” (164). This is further agreed by Bourdain as he states research of a particular country for the show, can be most difficult unless they have found “found a local contact who lives in the area, who knows the show, has a sense of humour and understands our approach”(GQ 2012). In this same way, critic John Urry has “agreed that travel is dependent upon the cultivation of a ‘tourist gaze’ which contrasts the unusual and sensual aspects of travel with those of everyday life” (33). It is much more exciting to see the real country, through a local who has a spontaneous yet educative outlook on their country and willingness to share this.

This unpretentiousness is further mirrored in an interview for the magazine “Ask Men”. Anthony Bourdain shows his respect for the working class stating his job is a luxury not the right of a travel writer/chef. He states,

“This? This is easy. Look, my life is not hard in general. My regular job is to travel and shove food and liquor in my face and go to all these fantastic places. Working a bread shift is a lot 

harder. I know what real work is and you know what? This isn't it” (2015).

Obviously chefs are normal people, and as stated above Anthony has definitely worked his fair share of 'normal jobs.' And this lead me to question two things that always intrigued me about chefs:

1. What do they cook at home and what are their family’s reactions or roles e.g. if the husband is the ‘cook’ at home – does the wife cook too? Or can his children cook?
2. What’s their views on other chefs, how do they feel about what other chefs cook?

To answer the first, being that Bourdain was a chef before No Reservations, he obviously knows how to prepare a wide selection of meals. And I love his quote from “Men’s Journal” as he states,

“In an ideal society, over 12 should be able to cook a few basic things reasonably well. They should be able to feed themselves and a few friends, if called to do so, both as a kindness, and as a basic life skill”.

I definitely agree with this and the fact that he mentions cooking for friends, which again goes back to the social element of food and cooking, the sharing and love around a table with family and friends. This made me think, food is memory and while you can never relive a physical memory, you can do so through food. This is reiterated by many TV chefs, as there always seems to be a yearning for the past and wanting to recreate your favourite dishes. It’s the idea of wanting to create your own beautiful memories and have that treasured later in life.

To answer the second, being that Bourdain is the rebellious and outspoken personality, he does not hold back! This could be seen in a GQ interview where he states,

“The cooking profession, while it’s a noble craft and a noble calling, cause you’re doing something useful – you’re feeding people, you’re nurturing, you’re providing sustenance it was never pure. Vatel was a hustler. Careme was a hustler. Escoffier was a hustler”.

Pause. Was that sacrilege? The great 19^th century French chef Georges Escoffier - scrutinised? I’d have to say I agree, I absolutely love Anthony Bourdain and his magnificent approach to food, cooking and travel! Along the way, many chefs lose the most important aspects of food – the taste and feeling. It quickly became something about ridiculous decadence, the aesthetics and aristocracy.  

Much like Nigella, Bourdain seems to be a genuine person and chef (coincidence that they both starred on The Taste? I think not!). Bourdain’s willingness, enthusiasm and modesty are just some of the reasons why he is so admirable and popular amongst the general public.  For one thing, he doesn't just travel to the mainstream islands and eat in polished, formal restaurants like other chefs do. Instead, he travels to astonishing places such as his favourite - Southeast Asia. He shows his appreciation stating, “the food, the culture, landscape and smell: they’re all inseparable.”

Nigella Lawson

“FOOD IS THE LANGUAGE OF EMOTION” (Close Up: Nigella Lawson, Queen of Food Porn, 2012)

Nigella Lawson, the food goddess herself is the one I must refer to and unlike many other TV chefs she remains taboo!

Nigella Lawson has a very smooth, stylish and seductive manner of presenting. She uses semantic fields and is brilliantly descriptive as she entices her audiences with effortless recipes. For instance in Nigella Express, while making an Anglo Asian Lamb Salad Nigella proceeds “to strew chunkily” the lamb over some lettuce leaves. This relaxed attitude about cooking soothes the reader who might become worried about the presentation of the dish. After all, food is to be eaten, enjoyed and not looked at.

Like stated in Carol Wright’s “The Liberated Cook’s Book” Nigella very much embodies “today’s cook (who) may be a full-time career woman who also runs the house and garden, does the shopping and hopes to enjoy entertaining friends to a meal she has prepared after a day at the office”(205). This is seen throughout Nigella’s many series’ where she is entertaining her friends with a table laden with delicious food without breaking a sweat. It is common to think that having a midweek dinner will be all well and good, however when the day approaches you find yourself without your hair done nor your potatoes peeled.

Like her many cookery books, on her show Nigella adds a small peri-text/recall of memory before each recipe citing her passions, influences and her take on that particular recipe. This is supported in the Food and Wine magazine by writer Jen Murphy, where Nigella states,

“When I write a book, the words really inhabit the page and get behind the page. But on TV, you want the viewer to have the same experience as you in the kitchen, and you need to unite visually. I do a running commentary and really try to use words in a very precise way and try to be evocative with my language.”

In the Nigella Express episode “Against the Clock” she manages to create a wonderful three course meal that leaves her guests amazed as one of her guests asks, “I just can’t imagine how you manage to do all this after work, because it’s quite amazing what you’ve put together in what…just….what – half an hour?” To which Nigella replies, “I find greed to be a great motivator.”

I have concluded 3 main reasons for Nigella’s success:

1.        Normality. Yes, you heard me, she lives a very ordinary, relatable life that includes obstacles like everyone else. For instance Nigella also doesn’t use ingredients that aren’t easily accessible, if you are quick sighted enough you will be able to catch a glimpse of a Tesco or Waitrose label. Also, we see Nigella doing general day to day errands such as picking up her children from school, doing the laundry, gardening and going shopping etc. Thus her recipes and style of cooking are all cleverly created to accommodate everyday life.
2.     Ease. In all of her series’ bar a few recipes, most dishes are achievable by the amateur. Let’s face it, no one has more hours in a day than anyone else. Therefore, you are not going to find a recipe for a roast dinner that takes 15 minutes. Be reasonable. Nigella provides shortcuts, cheat ingredients and enthusiasm. And in the midst of working life, children and everything else that you encounter you must appreciate her sharing these easy alternatives, which the nation does! Nigella doesn’t name Nigella Express for no reason, it is packed full of speedy, delicious dishes that can be whipped up in just 20 minutes.
3.     Genuineness. Clearly Nigella doesn’t fake her persona and she is only interested in presenting delicious food in no time. She is unapologetic about not being a chef, she does not claim to be a connoisseur or an expert in a certain area of food. And while many ‘cheffy’ programmes with Heston Blumenthal, with his impeccable metallic gadgets and perfect ‘chef whites’ cooks alone in a kitchen. Nigella is at home, she is comfortable and it is much more engaging seeing her in a leisurely manner when her children occasionally walk into the kitchen and eat at the dinner table.

I have always found Nigella to be classy and sophisticated, from her book covers to the colour scheme of her clothing. Although she admits to being messy and clumsy, she does not become flustered. Nowadays, with media and importance of image it is not suggested that you be yourself but rather change your image and personality for the camera. However Nigella embraces flaws and mistakes.

To bring this to the boil (pun intended) I’ve always loved the homely feel of Nigella’s different series’, the pottering around in slippers, pouring a glass of wine while waiting for a stew to well...stew and just seeing Nigella in her office typing away. I completely share her view that “greed, a helpful obsession and the connection between food, people and culture” (Close Up: Nigella Lawson, Queen of Food Porn, 2012) drives our motivation of love, happiness and life. However, I think the one thing she leaves out is how to look fabulous 24/7!

Welcome to my blog!

I love cooking! I love eating! I LOVE FOOD! My point being, if there is a word more powerful than love, then that’s how I feel about food! To me, food incorporates everything that motivates the human specifically love, memory and life.

Through a series of posts, I will be researching cookery books and cooking programmes specifically focusing on factors such as aesthetics, structure and style. I will also be looking at chefs such as Ching He Huang, James Martin, Anthony Bourdain, Tom Kerridge and Nigella Lawson to name a few. The reason for my choosing of these particular chefs is the cultural aspects, being from different countries and making different food, I will be able to compare the presenting styles of each chef. I also love the fact that each of these chefs have made no secret of their love of Literature and how they incorporate this passion of novels into cookery. For instance, Nigella Lawson stating with much difficulty that one of her favourite novels is Charles Dickens’ David Copperfield.

Recently, I was watching Nigellissima with my mum, and I was saying how much I admired every single detail of the show, from the colour of Nigella’s outfit to the beauty of the camera movement. Much to my annoyance, my mum destroyed my dreams by saying that each of these actions were perfectly staged by paid creative directors who coordinate these beautiful ‘natural’ movements. I really wanted to believe that those carefully positioned twinkly lights were reflecting off the shiny metal of Nigella’s food mixer spontaneously. 

On the contrary to my mum’s statement, Nigella maintains the view that her show is “not scripted and (I) feel it's virtually impossible to be anything but yourself when you're in front of the cameras and cooking so there is a measure of truth in what you see.” To an extent I believe this, however I feel that there are some staged parts of the show that are added to attract and seduce the audience.

I’d have to say that I much prefer cooking shows to cookery books being that they are real people that incorporate feeling, emotion and memory into their recipes. To me, this makes for a successful show, for instance when Tom Kerridge mentions making slow-cooked apple-glazed ribs for friends, the social aspect of cooking and eating together is appealing for all audiences who may want to do the same.

As seen below, these are a few of my many treasured recipe books.

Throughout the next few blogs, I wanted to discuss a few things, including:

• The presenting style of my favourite chefs
• The aesthetics and somewhat glamour of cooking shows
• The beauty of language and how language is the perfect partner for food

In my next blog, I will be discussing one of my favourite TV Chefs, Nigella Lawson.