Thanks for tuning in to the last episode of this season - we’re ending on a high! My guest today is the lovely, and incredibly talented co-founder and chef of the much-loved Japanese restaurant Koya. Shuko Oda and her business partners John and Junya opened Koya in Soho back in 2010, specialising in Udon - the chewy moreish flour-based noodles which they handmake fresh every day and pair with an array of beautiful broths and toppings. Shuko is also renowned for her blackboard specials where she and the chefs at Koya really get creative and use the best of British ingredients to come up with di ..read more

My guest today is a chef on a mission, championing Filipino cuisine in London. Budgie was born in the Philippines, grew up in Sydney, and moved to the UK 9 years ago, and that’s when he decided to change careers and become a chef.  While working at other restaurants, he started Sarap as a supper club 4 years ago, as a way to connect to his heritage, to learn about Filipino food, and to champion this underrepresented cuisine in London. After winning the Brixton Kitchen competition, Budgie opened Sarap as a permanent restaurant in Brixton’s Market Row at the start of last year. I ..read more

Lulu has been cooking professionally since she was 18, first in the private catering world, and then moving into London restaurants, most recently as sous chef at the beloved Rochelle Canteen. Lulu began to grow more interested in produce, where it came from, and how it was grown, so last year she left the kitchen to go and work on farms and learn more about regenerative growing.    This led to a whole lot of new doors being opened and Lulu co-founded SSAW Collective with two of her good friends. They grow the most beautiful flowers and do pop-ups and food events that champion l ..read more

Ollie Hunter recently published his second book, Join the Greener Revolution: 30 easy ways to live and eat sustainably. He believes that sustainability is the only way forward, and that it has to be at the centre of everything - whether it be food, our communities, economics, energy, education, or simply making a loaf of bread... Ollie owns and runs The Wheatsheaf pub in Chilton Foliat with his wife Lauren, which was voted the most "sustainable business" in 2019. It’s not too far out of London so I headed over there for lunch to chat to Ollie about his views, his new book, how he found his way ..read more

Today on the show I’m speaking to Vietnamese cook, author, food photographer, and stylist Uyen Luu. A few years ago, I went to one of Uyen’s supper clubs she hosts in East London, I fell in love with her food and I've been a fan of hers ever since. Now, lucky for us she’s just launched her new book called Vietnamese - Simple Vietnamese food to cook at home. And it’s a beauty!   As it so often is with beautiful food made from the heart, there’s a bigger story behind why it’s there and what it means to its maker. For Uyen, coming over to the UK as an immigrant when she was a littl ..read more

Bettina started her business, Bettina’s Kitchen, to share her knowledge on plant foods, seasonality, incorporating local produce into our diets, and to spread the word on how to eat more sustainably, and cook in a way that makes us feel good while still being damn delicious.  This all came about as a result of being diagnosed with PCOS and endometriosis years ago and being told that she wouldn’t be able to have children. After changing her diet and lifestyle, Bettina fell pregnant 6 months later, and she’s been on a mission ever since to share the beauty and power of plant-based foods, to ..read more

Joining me on the show today is cookbook author, writer, podcaster, and infamous salad queen, Hetty McKinnon. After she had her children, Hetty wanted a way to connect with and build relationships in her community so she decided to start making hearty salads from her home kitchen in Sydney and delivering them to her hungry neighbours on her bicycle. She named her small operation Arthur Street Kitchen and it quickly grew a cult following which led to the publishing of her first book, Community, in 2013. And the rest, as they say, is history.  Hetty now lives in Brooklyn and recently publis ..read more

FOOD TRIBE IS BACK! And joining me on the show today is none other than the uber-talented, ray-of-sunshine, superstar Mexican chef Santiago Lastra. Since he left Mexico at the age of 18, Santiago has been traveling the world, the ultimate nomad chef, and in 2017 he had the opportunity to work with Rene Redzepi and the Noma team when they asked him to project manage the entire Noma Mexico pop-up in Tulum.  It was a huge success and this experience of sharing Mexican food with people from all over the world led to a dream for Santiago - a dream of putting down roots and creating a restauran ..read more

My guest today is farmer and butcher Ian Warren, who owns the family-run Philip Warren Butchers in Cornwall. They produce and sell some of the highest quality meat in the UK, supplying top restaurants in the country, and also selling directly to consumers. This year, during lockdown, they launched ‘On the Pass’, making their specialist cuts of meat, that would normally have been used by the likes of Brat and The Ledbury, available for people to order online and cook at home. Ian and I talk about the work he does and what is means to rear and sell quality meat, and he shares some background on ..read more

My guest today is farmer and butcher Ian Warren, who owns the family-run Philip Warren Butchers in Cornwall. They produce and sell some of the highest quality meat in the UK, supplying top restaurants in the country, and also selling directly to consumers. This year, during lockdown, they launched ‘On the Pass’, making their specialist cuts of meat, that would normally have been used by the likes of Brat and The Ledbury, available for people to order online and cook at home. Ian and I talk about the work he does and what is means to rear and sell quality meat, and he shares some background on ..read more