Nisha Katona might be the United Kingdom’s curry queen, but her mother will always trump her in the kitchen.
“My mum is the mother ship of cooking excellence,” says the self-styled celebrity chef, a practising barrister famous for her culinary videos on YouTube, television appearances, recipe books and a chain of restaurants called Mowgli in Liverpool and Manchester.
Katona will be at Emirates Airline Festival of Literature on Friday (March 3) to participate in the panel session, Follow Me: When Writers Get Social, where she will discuss social media and share tips on using it to promote a creative career.
“I have found social media to be a place of encouragement and affection,” says Katona. “I even have a follower who calls himself my husband on his profile – he isn’t. But whenever I appear on TV, he tweets ‘Well done, wifey’. It’s good-hearted. Weird, but good-hearted.”
While growing up in the UK, Katona ate at a table laden with Bengali food and British favourites.
“My mother is from Varanasi and my father from Lucknow, but our ancestors are from Calcutta [state capital of Bengal], so I grew up eating typically Bengali food – fish and rice, fried vegetables in turmeric, and light dal,” she says.
“But every day my parents would cook English dishes after school for us so we would be more socially acceptable with friends who came home.”
Katona, who had no formal culinary training, is best known for her curry-made-easy philosophy – her recipes do not require slaving over a hot stove – and she makes sure her instructions are peppered with plenty of tips.
“My top tip is to stick to lentils and vegetables,” she says.
“Pair them with fried seed spices, such as cumin and mustard.
“Another tip is to use English mustard paste as a finishing flavour.”
Mowgli was built on the flavours of her childhood, and vegan dishes take pride of place on its menus.
“Veganism is the new hot trend in the UK,” says Katona.
“People are so much more conscious now of what they eat.
“We realise that eating meat every day is not only bad for our health but bad for the planet.
“Indian food, in my opinion, is at its best in the vegan kitchen.”
She is putting the finishing touches on a new book, The Spice Bible, scheduled to be published in June, which is dedicated to her daughters.
"The Spice Bible enshrines all the deep food philosophies of my ancestors," says Katona.
“It reveals the ancient, tried and tested formulae that have been shrouded by mystery.
“It is a book I write for my daughters – it is their spell book with which they can conjure up the flavour of their mother’s love, and their grandmother’s kitchen, long after we’ve gone.”
• Nisha Katona, Friday, March 3, 6pm to 7pm at Al Baraha 1, InterContinental Hotel, Dubai. Visit tickets.emirateslitfest.com to book
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