Nisha Katona, aged 50, was born in Ormskirk, Lancashire. She is well known for opening up the famous restaurant chain Mowgli which has garnered all of her success but she is also well known for cooking on famous television shows such as This Morning. 

Katona first began her career as a barrister in Law, after reading Law at Liverpool John Moores University, where she also met her husband. She qualified as a barrister at the Inns of Court School of Law in 1996 and is a member of Lincoln’s Inn. She then worked full-time as a Barrister in Liverpool’s Chavasse Court Chambers. Katona then switched to teaching about the tricks and the trade of Indian cuisine. 

The success of Mowgli began back in 2014 in order to feed Katona’s “nagging obsession to build an eatery serving the kind of food Indians eat at home and on their streets” according to MyLondon. According to the Mowgli website, the simple dishes of the restaurant are “a million miles away from the curry stereotype” and “convey the truth that real Indian food is extremely healthy, often vegan and always packed with fresh flavour.” 

The success of Mowgli began back in 2014 in order to feed Katona’s “nagging obsession to build an eatery serving the kind of food Indians eat at home and on their streets”

The first branch of many restaurants to come was Mowgli Liverpool followed by the Manchester branch a year later. Katona also founded and chairs the Mowgli Trust which donates over £300,000 to local and global charities every year. 

In July 2021, Katona was selected to be a part of the newly formed Hospitality Council in which a team of leading industry experts assemble to deliver the government’s Hospitality Strategy. The strategy aims to help hospitality firms, such as restaurants like Mowgli, to re-open and recover as well as become more resilient after the devastating effects of the pandemic. 

Katona has had many stints on many television shows, most notably as a guest chef on This Morning. She has done many different takes on classic Indian dishes with an English twist, such as her keema shepherd’s pie. She has also written many cookbooks, such as her first book Pimp My Rice in which the chef shares her different takes on how to cook rice. Her most recent book the Mowgli Cook Book explores how you can even make some of the most famous dishes of the restaurant yourself at home. 

Her most recent book the Mowgli Cook Book explores how you can even make some of the most famous dishes of the restaurant yourself at home

One of my favourite recipes of Nisha Katona’s is her one pot chicken biryani, the recipe is below: 

Ingredients

• 5 tbsp veg oil
• 2 large onions finely diced
• 5cm 2 ginger, peeled and crushed
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed
• 600g chicken breast, diced small
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1/4 tsp chilli powder
• 3 tbsp garam masala
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 stick cinnamon
• 2 cloves
• 3 green cardamom pods
• 100g finely diced dried apricots
• 500ml water

For the rice

• 600ml cold water
• 400g white basmati rice
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp turmeric

For the onions

• 5 tbsp oil
• 3 large onions, finely sliced
• 1 tsp salt

For the saffron pour

• 1 tsp saffron strands steeped in 100ml warm milk for 5 minutes

For the dough seal

• 120g plain or chapati flour
• 50ml water
• 2 tsp veg oil

For the garnish 

• Pomegranate seeds
• Chopped fresh coriander

 

Method

1. Set a large wok style pan over a medium heat. Add the oil, onions, ginger and garlic and fry until brown. Now add the chicken and cook for two to three minutes. Add all the spices, ingredients and apricots and stir for 3 minutes. Now add the water and simmer with a lid on over a medium to low heat for 15 minutes.

2. Meanwhile add the water, rice, salt and turmeric to a pan and simmer on a medium to low heat until the rice has just absorbed the water. This is around 8 minutes. Place a lid on and set aside.

3. In another pan, gently fry off the onions in the oil until golden and stringy. Season with salt.

4. Preheat the oven to 200C. Spoon in a layer of the flavoured rice to the bottom of an ovenproof dish. Add half of the fried onions and lightly cover with another thin layer of rice. Add half the chicken curry, then repeat with rice, onions, rice and the remaining curry. Finish the layering with rice and pour the saffron and milk over the top of the rice.

5. Mix the ingredients for the dough seal in a bowl. Create a long sausage and seal the joint between the lid and the dish. Place the dish in the preheated oven and cook for 15 minutes.

6. At the end of the cooking time, remove from the oven, break the dough seal and serve with a scattering of pomegranate seeds and coriander.

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