Everywhere I go I see people binge-watching reels, and if they have a little kid in a pushchair crying out for attention, that kid’s immediately given a phone and then they start binge-watching reels too.

Bit surreal to discover that a lot of things I wrote on the old twitter and in my articles have ended up being quoted in Indian and American newspapers and magazines and even British tabloids. How strange. Guess I'd better be careful what I write from now on :)

Bridget Jones may have put 'Boxing Day turkey curry' on the radar, but in fact it dates back to 19th century when, in Britain, leftovers were turned into curries with onion, curry powder, cream, butter, stock, lemon juice - considered an inferior form of cooking that gave curries a downmarket image.

Merry Christmas everyone! X

What is this ingredient exactly. I see it in so many Middle Eastern and East European greengrocers. Some kind of fermented cabbage in vacuum packs, but how is it used?

I've got to that scary stage in my Indian food dictionary where it's become too huge, too unwieldy, and I'm anxious about the practicalities of publishing such a ridiculously ambitious tome - in what format, what should stay in and what should be cut, its relevance post-AI etc.

Looking forward to new vegetarian restaurant from Jikoni in 2026. Apparently it'll be at Brunswick Centre in Bloomsbury, serving wholesome, fast-casual, more traditional Indian fare inspired by Ravinder Bhogal's maternal ancestors and Sikh langars (gurdwara's community kitchens).

I just read a prominent Indian figure say that "sago is soaked tapioca pearls." This is incorrect. The terms sago and tapioca are used interchangeably as they look alike and may taste similar, but sago comes from palm trees, and tapioca from cassava root. They're totally different.

Shame on the city of London corporation, which has handed over the running of 4 much-loved independent cafes, including my local in Golders Hill Park, over to the Daisy Green cafe chain despite robust protest from regular customers. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Not that I want to give anyone dodgy ideas but - like savoury hot cross buns - hasn't any bakery or commercial retailer dreamt up savoury mince pies yet?

This (via @salutethepig.berlin) is not good. But the idea that printed cookbooks might make a comeback as a result... well I hope so but I'm not sure. I know that a lot of people have already moved on to - and totally hooked on - YouTube and TikTok recipe videos. www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

This book sounds fabulous - but please, Indian publishers, make these books available internationally. Luckily I can ask my sister to bring it over, but the voices of Indian food historians deserve to have a global audience and need to be heard louder. speakingtigerbooks.com/product/in-t...

I wonder how many people are going to Christmas dinner at their relatives' with a jar of chilli crisp

I don't know if PRs still send out press releases or contact influencers directly - but the few I do still get are increasingly absurd. 'Ukraine's favourite Christmas tipple' (yeah like that's what's concerning Ukraine right now), 'how to feed discarded Christmas trees to goats' (?!)... WTF

Why have restaurant reviews lost their vicious edge? There are countless different reasons - this article tackles a few, along the lines of a general cultural shift, especially after Covid: observer.co.uk/style/featur...

A great big massive thank you to everyone who's been buying my book - it seems to do really well around this time of the year (maybe because of the Christmas-red cover?). I'd be happy to sign copies. shop.bl.uk/products/the...

I was thinking how this year I haven't seen any madcap Brit-Indian Christmas concoctions like mincemeat naan, brussels biryani or cranberry chutney chaat... and then this popped up on my Instagram feed: bigmumsamosas.com?srsltid=AfmB...

This is so fascinating (via @davidjesudason.bsky.social). 'Reverse import' is a term used by food historians to refer to dishes unknown in the country of origin that then get adopted there (like chicken tikka masala) but this is like... reverse reverse import? double reverse import? two-way import?

This is a straightforward Anglo-Indian recipe for Christmas cake in 1881's 'Dainty Dishes For Indian Tables' - but there are also several Indian regional variations made from coconut, mango or ginger preserve, cashew liquor, crystallised gourds, papaya and watermelon rind archive.org/details/dain...

As if everything isn't doom and gloom already, press release says: "Ecologists reveal Christmas decorations could threaten garden wildlife". I mean come on...

Of course Italian food is absolutely delicious - but what does it mean when an entire cuisine gets 'intangible cultural heritage status'? Don't all cuisines have heritage? Does it make a difference? What about dishes that change over time, as they inevitably will? www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Made the mistake of asking Gemini some stupid, obscure question a few months back. It gave me a succinct answer at the time, but then went ahead and researched the entire topic (I didn't even ask?!) and has presented it in the form of a book, chapter by chapter.

When did 'smashed avocados' morph into good old guacamole? Smashed avocados were once just mashed avocados with salt, pepper and lemon juice designed to slather on toast. Now restaurants and supermarkets use the term interchangeably and make them with the exact same ingredients.

Just emerged from an unusual meditation event in central London (which also involved ‘tea meditation’) - and the most unusual thing about it was that none of the 100 or so people who attended looked at their phone even once in the 3 and 1/2 hours of its duration.

Oops I forgot to go for Christmas drinks at the House of Commons this week. As you do.

This popped up on my Instagram and is very much the sort of thing I’ve been talking about - a traditional Kerala Christmas celebration in Islington on 12 Dec. The menu of family recipes sounds great: www.tickettailor.com/events/thema...

The Duchy of Cornwall getting involved is too funny... www.theguardian.com/food/comment...

This is the second time I’m having a masala dosa in the restaurant of the Royal Free - and I still can’t get over how extraordinary it is to eat something freshly cooked by a South Indian chef in an NHS hospital. Although I didn’t see any, the brief menu also mentions idli.

Meera's recipe is so, SO reminiscent of ones that Rose Elliot used to do. Rose was Guardian's original vegetarian columnist and was replaced by Ottolenghi, who later became their main columnist, then Meera was given veggie column. Kinda like a full circle moment. www.theguardian.com/food/2025/no...

I'm writing a guide to all the gift guides

I would love to see an Indian Christmas cookbook with traditional Christmas recipes from Goa, Kerala, the Anglo-Indian community and so on - everything from rose cookies and guava cheese, to neureos and Allahabadi cake all recorded in one book.

When does 'Black Friday' actually end? Or does it ever end?!

Reading a restaurant review in which the critic says the spinach curry "had plenty of spinach flavour". This is food writing at its best.

Just discovered this site that sells rare and unusual heirloom beans in the UK - look how beautiful they are! I'm in bean heaven... www.heirloombeans.co.uk/shop

Happy green bean casserole day to my American friends

Food and drink writers! I'm very excited about the Guild of Food Writers awards, which are now open. You don't have to be a member of the Guild to enter. Why not submit your favourite work from this year? www.gfw.co.uk/guild-of-foo...

Is the Waitrose Christmas ad supposed to be a tribute to trashy Christmas movies

I mostly agree with this lovely piece - BUT if someone changes a traditional recipe to such an extent that it becomes a completely different dish, or if they create an outlandish version to go viral on social media, are they 'living' the recipe or ruining it? thecommontable.eu/the-living-r...

There are a lot of school boys and teenage guys in my gym at this time - and, a bit bafflingly, today they’re exchanging casserole recipes. “You have to brown the onions properly.” “Make sure you add fresh thyme and rosemary.”

Sad to hear that chef Skye Gyngell has died. I loved her restaurant Spring at Somerset House (especially its zero-waste Scratch menu based on discarded ingredients - pretty innovative for a smart restaurant at the time).

Was Bluesky down? Wasn’t able to log on earlier.

In my Indian food dictionary, should I include dishes that are hugely popularised by certain chefs but only associated with those chefs and haven't translated to everyday folk cooking them, therefore they haven't become part of the cuisine's repertoire?

Although it's understandable that UK's 2nd/ 3rd generation diaspora-owned Indian restaurants have Brit-Indian dishes like 'masala turkey' on their Christmas menus, wouldn't it be great to see traditional Christmas dishes from India's Goan, Kerala and Anglo-Indian Christian communities too.

Chefs, you know it's okay to cook a dish that's not a journey or a story

This event sounds brilliant and it's something different from the usual jolly festivities

There’s a Food Film Festival at Selfridges cinema on Thurs 20 Nov (I didn’t even know there was a cinema in Selfridges). Not sure you can really have a food film festival without Tampopo but still, here’s your chance to watch Babette’s Feast on big screen: www.thecinemaatselfridges.com/whats-on/mubi

I blame ‘Dubai chocolate’

If you want to grab a bargain, my book is at the lowest price I have ever seen on Amazon at £7 (it's also still available in many bookshops, including British Library's own) www.amazon.co.uk/Philosophy-C...

This sounds great - a kimchi festival at SOAS on 28 Nov, 5pm-8 pm, with seminars led by Korean academics and food industry figures, followed by kimchi making and tasting. Free to attend but there's a brief registration form. www.soas.ac.uk/about/event/...

I read that Mamdani was "mostly just eating biryani" on his campaign trail. Eating a storied Mughlai classic... as a snack? I approve.