The Settler's Cookbook : A Memoir of Love, Migration and Food

“An unexpected joy of a book . . . it follows an emotional and culinary journey from childhood in pre-independence Uganda to London in the 21st century.”—The Sunday Times Through the personal story of Yasmin Alibhai-Brown’s family and the food and recipes they’ve shared together, The Settler’s Cookbook tells the history of Indian migration to the UK via East Africa. Her family was part of the mass exodus from India to East Africa during the height of British imperial expansion, fleeing famine and lured by the prospect of prosperity under the empire. In 1972, expelled from Uganda by Idi Amin, they moved to the UK, where Yasmin has made her home with an Englishman. The food she cooks now combines the traditions and tastes of her family’s hybrid history. Here you’ll discover how shepherd’s pie is much enhanced by sprinkling in some chili, Victoria sponge can be enlivened by saffron and lime, and the addition of ketchup to a curry can be life-changing . . . “Alibhai-Brown paints a lively picture of a community that stayed trapped in old ways until it was too late to change . . . [a] brave book.”—The Guardian “For many of us food is the gateway experience into other cultures and lives. Yasmin’s personal story intertwined with the foods which mean so much to her touched me deeply. And made me hungry. You can’t ask for more.”—Gavin Esler, author of Brexit Without the Bullshit: The Facts on Food, Jobs, Schools, and the NHS “It’s beautifully written, as you would expect, and utterly fascinating. There are some wonderful dishes here too.”—Tribune “An unexpected joy of a book . . . it follows an emotional and culinary journey from childhood in pre-independence Uganda to London in the 21st century.”— The Sunday Times Through the personal story of Yasmin Alibhai-Brown’s family and the food and recipes they’ve shared together, The Settler’s Cookbook tells the history of Indian migration to the UK via East Africa. Her family was part of the mass exodus from India to East Africa during the height of British imperial expansion, fleeing famine and lured by the prospect of prosperity under the empire. In 1972, expelled from Uganda by Idi Amin, they moved to the UK, where Yasmin has made her home with an Englishman. The food she cooks now combines the traditions and tastes of her family’s hybrid history. Here you’ll discover how shepherd’s pie is much enhanced by sprinkling in some chili, Victoria sponge can be enlivened by saffron and lime, and the addition of ketchup to a curry can be life-changing . . . “Alibhai-Brown paints a lively picture of a community that stayed trapped in old ways until it was too late to change . . . [a] brave book.”— The Guardian “For many of us food is the gateway experience into other cultures and lives. Yasmin’s personal story intertwined with the foods which mean so much to her touched me deeply. And made me hungry. You can’t ask for more.”—Gavin Esler, author of Brexit Without the Bullshit: The Facts on Food, Jobs, Schools, and the NHS “It’s beautifully written, as you would expect, and utterly fascinating. There are some wonderful dishes here too.”— Tribune Through the personal story of Yasmin's family and the food and recipes they've shared together, The Settler's Cookbook tells the history of Indian migration to the UK via East Africa. Her family was part of the mass exodus from India to East Africa during the height of British imperial expansion, fleeing famine and lured by the prospect of prosperity under the empire. In 1972, expelled from Uganda by Idi Amin, they moved to the UK, where Yasmin has made her home with an Englishman. The food she cooks now combines the traditions and tastes of her family's hybrid history. Here you'll discover how shepherd's pie is much enhanced by sprinkling in some chilli, Victoria sponge can be enlivened by saffron and lime, and the addition of ketchup to a curry can be life-changing ... Praise 2 Title Page 4 Dedication 5 Epigraph 6 Table of Contents 7 Acknowledgements 9 Prologue 10 1 Enticing Blightie, 1972 26 2 Paradise Found, AD 68–1920 48 3 Born in Elysium, 1920s–54 91 4 The Sun Drops, 1955–60 131 5 Children of the Revolution, 1961–67 175 6 Paradise Bust, 1967–72 213 7 The Nation of Shopkeepers, 1972–77 255 8 Rhiannon was a Blonde, 1976–86 299 9 The Longest Year, 1987–88 337 10 The Sun Also Rises, 1988–2006 374 Epilogue 416 Notes 421 Further Reading 429 Conversion Tables 430 List of Recipes 432 About the Author 435 Copyright 436