The Great British Menu returns to our screens tonight (1 February) with a new set of judges putting the contestants through their paces.
The farewells will include former judges Oliver Peyton, Rachel Khoo and Matthew Forte, replaced by Michelin-starred chef Tom Kerridge, comedian Ed Gamble and Nisha Katona, chef, author and founder of Mowgli street food restaurants.
The first episode of The Great British Menu’s new series airs tonight at 8pm on BBC Two. But who exactly is Nisha Katona – and what did she do before she became a chef?
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Who is Nisha Katona?
Nisha Katona is a chef, food writer, TV presenter and founder of Mowgli Street Food, a chain of Indian restaurants.
Born and raised in the Lancashire town of Ormskirk, Katona, who earned an MBE in Services to the Food Industry in 2019, made the switch to teaching Indian cuisine after a successful career as a solicitor.
She has written four cookbooks – Pimp My Rice, The Spice Tree, The Mowgli Street Food: Authentic Indian Street Food and The 30-Minute Mowgli – and has made television appearances on programs such as This Morning and Radio 4’s The Kitchen Cabinet.
Nisha Katonas Mowgli street food Restaurants, the first of which opened in Liverpool, have subsequently expanded to locations across the UK. New restaurants are set to open in Bristol, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Brighton in 2022.
In January this year she was appointed sixth Chancellor of Liverpool John Moores University, where she studied law in the 1990s. She is also Chair of the Mowgli Trust, a charity.
What did Nisha Katona do before she became a chef?
Before becoming a chef and food writer, Nisha Katona was a practicing child protection advocate for two decades. In 1996 she was admitted to the bar for the first time.
Is Nisha Katona married and who is her husband?
Nisha Katona is married to husband Zoltan Katona, a Hungarian musician. The couple, who met when Nisha was a student, have two children together – daughters Tia and India.
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