Bake Off winner Nadiya Hussain’s receipe for success
With a new cookery book just out, the 2015 Bake Off winner reveals how her children are her taste-testers
When Bake Off winner Nadiya Hussain writes recipes for her cookery books at home in Milton Keynes, she ensures that every recipe has been tested to perfection. That means running it by an expert panel of taste testers: her children!
Sons Musa (11) and Dawud (ten) and seven-year-old daughter Maryam try out all of Nadiya’s recipes before they go into her books, and they don’t mince their words when delivering verdicts. “They’re brutally honest and that’s important for me – they don’t sugar-coat anything!” says Nadiya (33) with a laugh, when we meet to discuss her newest cookery book, Nadiya’s Family Favourites. It boasts more than 100 familyfriendly recipes, from burgers to curries, savoury tarts to luscious cakes. In person Nadiya is petite, smiley and friendly, talking fast and excitedly about cooking and life at home with her children and husband, IT consultant Abdal. Nadiya’s kitchen is a magnet for Abdal, she says. “When I’m testing recipes, he will come into the kitchen and go, ‘Can I smell garlic? Can I taste a bit of that?’” says Nadiya, chuckling. “It’s helpful. If I’m testing,
I’ll put the dishes down with a piece of paper and he’ll score them out of ten for me.” She recently won him over with a coffee and orange cake. “He’s always impressed with how I mix flavours.” It seems clear how strong their marriage is – Abdal has been supersupportive since his wife was propelled to stardom; he now works from home to help with the children. Nadiya reveals her children will try absolutely anything, which those of us who look after fussy little eaters will find galling. “They love tripe and chicken livers – I grill them and put them on a salad, or they’ll eat them with rice piled on top,” says Nadiya. She adds that her children have begged her to write an offal cookbook, “but I don’t know if the world’s ready for that yet!” she laughs.
But what happens when the little Hussains criticise Mummy’s offerings, or Abdal gives a less-than-favourable marking to one of Nadiya’s new dishes? Does she take the criticism on the chin? “No!” says Nadiya. “I’m like, ‘Come on, guys, I tried really hard and I made that one four times!’ If they all say no, then I won’t put a recipe in. If they like at least some of it, then it will go in.” Home cooking is particularly important to Nadiya’s family because, as observant Muslims, they eat only halal meat, which means grabbing a takeaway or going out to eat isn’t quite as easy for them. “It’s quite fun not being able to eat everywhere – we have to move around, or just eat the vegetarian option,” insists Nadiya. “It’s made my children inquisitive, too, and if they see something on a menu they can’t eat, they say, ‘Mummy, can you make that at home?’ So I’ll come home and make a Cornish pasty.” Since she won The Great British Bake Off and the hearts of the nation in 2015, Nadiya has barely paused for breath. Along with baking the Queen’s 90th birthday cake, she’s published four cookery books (two for children), a novel (with more on the way) and barely been off the telly – she’s starred in The Chronicles of Nadiya, Junior Bake Off, The Big Family Cooking Showdown, and, next month, Nadiya’s Family Favourites, a TV series to accompany the cookbook. While the success is gratifying, it was a turnaround for the former stay-at-home Milton Keynes mum, requiring long working days and stints away from home. It doesn’t help that Nadiya has suffered from panic disorder since she was a child and still has regular attacks; she keeps the condition under control by using mantras she repeats to herself, by getting exercise and sleep, and by accepting that it’s a part of her. The panic disorder gets worse, says Nadiya, when she’s tired and when work keeps her away from her children.
Nadiya is candid about the downside to her career – the time she spends away from home. “I will say to myself, ‘Am I destroying my children by not being at home?’ But I’m working like any other mother is, so why would I be destroying my children?
“I won Bake Off just before my daughter turned four, and now she hates Bake Off and says, ‘I’m never watching Bake Off again, because that’s what took Mummy away,’” adds Nadiya. “That’s when I ask them to have perspective. I’ll say, ‘Remember the time we got asked to go to a premiere or the opening of a theme park? We do that because of Mummy’s job.’”
So life’s not all confectionery and fairy cakes, even for housewife superstar Nadiya Hussain. She’s just another modern mum trying to figure out how to juggle the roles of wife, mum and career woman. And she’s doing a pretty good job keeping the plates spinning. “Honestly, every time I write a book, I pinch myself,” says Nadiya, a big smile lighting up her face. “I often think, how did I ever end up doing something I’d always wanted to do?! It’s a dream come true.”
“I often think, how did I ever end up doing something I’d always wanted to do?! It’s a dream come true”