Discover Helen Graham’s recipes on The JC
Helen Graham's debut cookbook, Centrepiece, puts vegetables in the spotlight[Missing Credit]
Looking for highlights, it’s hard to know where to start, as every page presents a thrilling new combination of surprising, sometimes challenging, but always genuinely mouthwatering textures and flavours. From caramelised courgette dip with dates and fenugreek, to cumin aubergine and coriander chutney with star anise caramel; Hispi cabbage, date butter and tahini, to butternut squash, baharat candied chestnuts and whipped feta; Chocolate, soy and olive oil torte, to Earl Grey, halva and blackberry fool – it’s a riot of flavours and colour.
While you might not recognise her name, if you live in London and enjoy eating out you may already know – and be a fan of – Graham’s work. From their first opening in London’s Spitalfields till November 2023, she was the executive chef at Bubala, the micro-chain of vegetarian restaurants which opened to rave reviews in 2019.
One of those rave reviews came from Jay Rayner, who in a full-circle moment has now written the (glowing) forward to Centrepiece – in which he not only declares that Graham is “blessed with exquisite taste” but also speaks of the “Ashkenazi Jewish background which Helen and I both share.”
Graham serves up her Earl Grey, halva and blackberry fools (Picture: Yuki Sugiura)[Missing Credit]
For a non-Jewish cookbook, Centrepiece feels joyfully and unashamedly Jewish. In her introduction, which follows Rayner’s forward, Graham tells readers “My cooking is playful and comes from a lifetime spent pinballing between the many facets of my Jewish identity”, and a not insignificant number of recipes and ingredients – from babka to latkes, amba to Malawach (a Jewish Yemeni flatbread) – are Jewish too. Was Graham conscious of this, and is it something she was concerned about in the current climate?
“I feel like my cooking incorporates a lot of ingredients from the diaspora, so [talking about my Jewish identity] is my way of trying to explain to the wider public why I'm cooking with these ingredients, because I guess it's not really clear without explaining that piece of the puzzle,” she says. “It felt really terrifying to write about that, but you know, what can I do other than just be honest and try to represent myself as accurately as possible? I'm aware that some people are going to see it and immediately not be interested, and that's fine. I'd rather that than misrepresent myself and have a huger appeal.”
As an openly Jewish woman in the public eye (she now has over 25,000 followers on Instagram) I wonder if Graham has experienced much antisemitism? “It hasn’t been terrible,” she says – before telling me that she lost 50 followers in an hour after posting a picture of some hamantaschen, and received a message calling her a “f*cking Zionist b*tch”.
“I haven't stated any [political] views or anything, but I think people just make assumptions about you and what you believe,” she says. “I think there needs to be an element of protecting your peace, and the things I share publicly will be food and things that are really easy and relatable, and the politics side I'll discuss with my friends and family. People aren't entitled to my opinion. That's the way I see it anyway.”
Graham grew up in Harrow, in what she describes as a typical Ashkenazi Jewish household, and jokes: “The only spice that we had in the cupboard was cinnamon, and that was for Passover.” Despite this, she says she became interested in food quite early on – pushing her mum out of the kitchen to make Friday night dinners from the age of 12 – and largely credits this passion to weekend trips to Golders Green. “We’d eat at Solly’s and places like that, and I think that's what got me excited about food – the spices and the colours and all the kinds of sauces.”
Discover Helen Graham’s recipes on The JC
Helen Graham's hawaij roast potatoes with preserved lemon roast shallots (Picture: Yuki Sugiura)[Missing Credit]
Looking through Centrepiece, these influences are clear to see – but with so much going on, I ask if she can recommend a good starting point for someone who has bought her book and feels a little overwhelmed? “I would say the hummus recipe,” she says, without missing a beat. “The chapter’s called ‘hummus is a feeling’, and it's actually less a recipe and more just kind of a gentle companion for someone who's making hummus from start to finish. It's full of anecdotes from the kitchens at Bubala where I was developing the recipe, and I think it's a really nice introduction to the way I cook. And then, if you want to go further, there's three different garnishes that you can make too.”
With Bubala back in the conversation, I’m curious to know if she misses it – or even regrets walking away when she did? “I loved Bubala and I'm really proud of what I did there, but I was ready to draw a line under it,” she says with confidence. “By the time I left I'd been in restaurants for 11 years and I was feeling really burnt out and like I'd sacrificed a lot of my personal life. I’m really enjoying this new chapter.”
Centrepiece by Helen Graham is published by Hamlyn
Discover Helen Graham’s recipes on The JC
Helen Graham is hosting a dinner at The Camberwell Arms on 30 April. Find out more here.
