A Taste for LIFE

This DJ and model’s exotic Bond-girl name belies her slightly more girl-next-door tastes, namely an unbridled passion for Koka noodles

A model’s life in food

What did your mother make you?

My mum is the most amazing cook; her curries are legendary. She’d have about 10 pots on the go, with several different curries, home-made samosas, onion bhajis, her own naans. The full shebang!

The meal you will always remember?

Pitta parcels — pitta bread, stir-fried vegetables, cheese and mayo. The only thing my dad made well.

Your defining food experience?

We were brought up as vegetarians, so we never really ate meat, except for a brief stint in New York when I was nine years old. I ordered a burger, and it arrived with blood on the plate. I realised then where meat came from, and returned to my vegetarian ways.

First dish you ever cooked?

Probably fried-egg sandwiches. Does that count as a dish?

What is your comfort food?

Pizza.

What is your hangover cure?

Pizza, always pizza.

What do you drink?

Lots of coffee, but if we’re talking alcohol, it’s red wine, or vodka and soda with fresh lemon and lime.

You can only eat three things for the rest of your life, what are they?

Pizza; Koka noodles; cheese.

How important is food to you?

When it comes to animal welfare, it is very important. But other than that, not majorly. I thoroughly enjoy a good meal, but most of the time, I just eat whatever’s there or will fill me.

What’s your guilty pleasure?

Koka noodles. I’m obsessed! I could talk for hours about them. They’ve always been there for me in times of need.

You can go anywhere and have anything to eat with any one person. Where, what and who?

A full Italian meal, on Lake Como. I’d bring one of my best mates, but obviously I’d extend the invite to George Clooney if he was in the area.

What’s your favourite restaurant?

I really love Kinara Kitchen in Ranelagh. They do one of my all-time favourite dishes there, Palak Paneer. It’s creamy spinach with paneer, mildly spiced with garlic and pine nuts. I crave it on a regular basis.

And abroad?

Roberta’s Pizza in New York.

What’s your sweet treat?

Biscuits. I’m an absolute fiend for biscuits.

Worst meal ever?

Probably last week in Barcelona. I ordered a pizza, and it was genuinely the worst pizza ever made! I never thought a pizza could get that bad, but it was. I’m pretty sure they microwaved it.

What’s your signature dish?

Scrambled eggs with cheese on very buttery toast. I’m unreal at it!

Are you careful about what you eat?

I go through waves of caring. I’m a bit extreme; it’s either all or nothing. It could be solely beans, lentils and vegetables for weeks, and then it’s back to all the biscuits, cheese, eggs, and whatever junk I can fit in my face.

What’s your perfect family meal?

Fondue. A big cheesy mess that all the family can get involved in.

January Winters is a model with Morgan The Agency and DJs regularly at events and clubs. Instagram: @januarywinters

“I could talk for hours about Koka noodles, they’ve always been there in times of need”