Neha Misra<\/a>\u00a0is holding an Asian masterclass at the cookery school at the prestigious Bodnant Welsh Food Centre on November 16.<\/p>\nThe spice queen will be showing how she makes food for the stars, such as the dishes she created for the singer and actor Bill Bailey, Russian opera star Florence Hvorostovsky plus Holby City actress Hari Dillon \u2013 presently starring on New York\u2019s Broadway.<\/p>\n
Mum-of-two Neha began her career creating fabulous outfits for Bollywood movies, and went on to become a justice campaigner for the man wrongly accused of the murder of TV presenter Jill Dando.<\/p>\n
Now she\u2019s turned her love of cooking into a catering business, including running supper clubs at her London home. She has become so successful that London Mayor Boris Johnson asked her to speak at a conference to inspire a diverse mix of entrepreneurs.<\/p>\n
Her culinary skills also helped raised hundreds of pounds for research by the world-renowned Great Ormond Street Children\u2019s Hospital into craniofacial surgery and genetic disorders.<\/p>\n
Neha, who is also about to start the second series of her show with online digital radio station K2K, will be heading to Bodnant on\u00a0 Sunday, November 16, for a Spice Delight class, when she\u2019ll give expert advice on how to cook with spices.<\/p>\n
She said: \u201cI adore cooking and have devised dishes that can provide savvy solutions for any household.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith my course at Bodnant I aim to maximise the many benefits of Asian cooking, such as dishes that can easily be made in bulk, leaving me enough to freeze, or meat dishes that taste better if cooked ahead.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy recipes are a melting pot of Asian flavours but with British ingredients and methods. Through them I love to introduce people to pan-Asian dishes that use accessible and adaptable ingredients, which are healthy yet cheap, easy to find and quick to use without compromising on taste.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m really excited about being chosen as a tutor for Bodnant Cookery School because it is based at a centre which is totally dedicated to the excellence of food.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t wait to get to North Wales where I know the quality of fresh meat and produce is just fantastic.<\/p>\n
\u201cOn November 16, I\u2019ll be showing some family-friendly dishes using local ingredients such as lovely Welsh lamb as well as things that are from Asian cooking and possibly aren\u2019t quite so familiar, like lentils.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll also be showing people how to use spices but not take them too seriously. For instance, I\u2019ll be a passing on little tips – when you don\u2019t have tamarind to hand you can always use a well-known brand of brown sauce, which has tamarind in it but is more likely to be in everyone\u2019s kitchen cupboard.<\/p>\n
\u201cApart from that I\u2019ll be bringing along a few ingredients from London such as paneer, an Indian cheese which is similar to halloumi but not so rubbery in texture, and making cassava chips, which are an alternative to those made from potatoes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bodnant Welsh Food centre Chris Morton is looking forward to trying out some of Neha\u2019s spicy delights. He said: \u201cIt will be interesting to see how Neha uses the many ingredients we have on offer here – such as our own cheese, butter, and meat cuts – in her cooking.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am sure that Neha will also be surprised to see just how many spices and flavourings, grown or produced in Wales, we have on sale at Bodnant \u2013 you don\u2019t have to travel far to get the ingredients you need for a stunning recipe.\u201d<\/p>\n
Neha currently hosts regular supper clubs at her home in west London.<\/p>\n
The 49-year-old was born and raised in Hammersmith where she still lives, graduated with a fashion degree from Kingston University in 1993, and worked on Bollywood movies headed by two-time BAFTA nominated director Gurinder Chadha – among those she helped dress was Bend It Like Beckham actress Parminda Nagra,\u00a0 who went on to star in hit US television series ER.<\/p>\n
Giving vent to her lifelong passion for food, Neha also began cooking on a voluntary basis for staff at the Mojo Miscarriages of Justices Organisation \u2013 eventually joining the charity as a researcher. Her cases included Barry George, who was jailed for the murder of TV presenter Jill Dando.<\/p>\n
Neha said: \u201cWorking alongside lawyers, I helped to do the background research on it and in the end his conviction was judged unsafe by the Court of Appeal and was quashed in 2007. After a retrial, he was acquitted in 2008.<\/p>\n
\u201cAltogether I worked with Mojo for about five years and although it was a really exciting time for me I decided to find a job that was a little more family friendly.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have two children, my son Shyal, 11, and daughter Tisya, who is seven. It was around this time that Tisya started school and I had a little more time. I wanted to work but very much felt I needed to be my own boss, so I began my cookery business.<\/p>\n
\u201cI now run my company called Neha\u2019s Cooking, which incorporates a website through which I sell a range of spices, cookery courses and a monthly supper club.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverything is based on my own style of cookery which has three principles of love, family and flavor which pretty much guide everything I do.<\/p>\n
\u201cLast year I was asked to provide one of the prizes for an auction held during a charity ball in aid of the Great Ormond Street children\u2019s hospital in London, which was a sumptuous meal cooked by me in the winner\u2019s own home.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was \u00a31,000 a ticket and the person who won the prize was the Russian opera star Florence Hvorostovsky. I\u2019ll never forget going along to her \u00a35 million mansion in London to cook the meal for Florence and her guests who included the comedian and musician Bill Bailey.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was next to him at the table when we sat down to eat and it struck me what a really nice bloke he is. Actually, he later joined us on one of the supper club nights. I put these on about every month in the large self-contained basement at my home and cater for groups of six to 21.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe sometimes have a bit of music or art along with the food and everyone enjoys them very much because they love to meet people with a shared interest in food in a more relaxed and intimate setting than a public restaurant.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bodnant Welsh Food centre at Furnace Farm, Tal-y-cafn, in the Conwy valley, has its own dairy making cheese and ice cream, plus an on-site bakery and butchery, with award-winning pies. There\u2019s also a wine store and tea rooms\u00a0plus the Hayloft restaurant and farmhouse accommodation.<\/p>\n
To book a place on the course with Neha, and for more details on other courses at the Cookery School visit bodnant-welshfood.co.uk.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n
<\/div>