Trusted British chef recipes, tested at home
Nigella Lawson’s forgotten cookies are a cross between a meringue and a cookie, flavoured with cardamom and studded with chocolate chips and pistachios. The batch makes 12 to 14, from her book At My Table. A friend described them as tasting like a cookie within a cookie, and at home they’re known as “Merookies”, immensely …
Nigella Lawson’s chicken barley is a thick, creamy one-pot pottage of chicken thighs, pearl barley and root vegetables simmered in mustardy stock. It serves 4 to 6, from her book At My Table. She describes it as somewhere cosily between a stew and a slightly soupy, sticky risotto, offering instant comfort. It’s the sort of …
Nigella Lawson’s Catalan toast is charred rustic bread spread with a fuzzy mush of grated ripe tomato, garlic and olive oil. It makes about 6 pieces, from her book At My Table. She first came across it in a tapas bar in Barcelona “about 100 years ago”. Properly called pa amb tomà quet in Catalan, it’s …
Nigella Lawson’s golden egg curry is eggs poached in a rich, aromatic, turmeric-tinted and tamarind-sharp coconut sauce, spiced with chilli, ginger and lemongrass. It serves 2, from her book At My Table. She credits it to Yasmin Othman and says she glows with gratitude every time she eats it. Known as masak lemak telur in …
Nigella Lawson’s meatballs with orzo is a cosy one-pot dish of tender beef meatballs and orzo pasta, all simmered together in a herby tomato and vermouth sauce. It serves 4 to 6, from her book At My Table. She calls orzo a non-negotiable staple in her kitchen, a stand-in for rice or potatoes, and the …
Nigella Lawson’s negroni sbagliato is a bubbly “mistaken” negroni, made with prosecco in place of gin, mixed with Campari and red vermouth and served by the pitcher. It makes 6 glasses, from her book At My Table. The classic negroni is Campari, red vermouth and gin; this bubbly version swaps prosecco for the gin. It’s …
Nigella Lawson’s grapefruit margarita is a sharp, refreshing twist on the classic, shaken with tequila, orange liqueur and fresh grapefruit juice over ice, in a salt-rimmed glass. It makes 1 cocktail, from her book At My Table. She says one quick gulp of a cold, sharp margarita and she feels she’s on holiday. It isn’t …
Nigella Lawson’s jewelled salad is a finely chopped salad of courgette, cucumber, tomato and herbs, studded with pomegranate seeds and dressed with lemon and olive oil. It serves 4 to 6, from her book At My Table. She calls it chopped salad at home, a long way from the American classic and, at its starting …
Nigella Lawson’s chocolate cake with coffee buttercream is a moist, fudgy two-layer chocolate sponge, deepened with espresso and sandwiched and topped with a smooth coffee buttercream. It cuts into 8 to 12 slices, from her book At My Table. She calls it reassuringly easy and very popular in her house, needing nothing more taxing than …
Nigella Lawson’s chilli cheese garlic bread is a pull-apart loaf filled with a chilli-and-garlic butter and gooey mozzarella, baked crisp in foil. It makes about 10 slices, from her book At My Table. She calls it a more robust version of the damp, bendy garlic bread that dominated her eating life in the ’70s and …