John Gregory-Smith
Welcome to my very professional about me page. I work in several different areas, but all based around lovely food. I’m a chef and I specialise in Middle Eastern and North African cuisine. Today it’s taken me out of the kitchen and I work as a TV presenter, content creator and best-selling author (fancy!).
For someone who could barely string a sentence together on paper as a student, I have gone on to write seven cookbooks, including best selling Fast Feasts, Saffron in the Souks, Orange Blossom and Honey and Turkish Delights. I have written for newspapers and magazines all over the world, and until recently had a Saturday Supper Club column in the Telegraph. Sadly, the Sunday mag Stella was axed so my column went to the mighty Diana Henry. I can’t be livid about that. To my old English teacher – haha, I did it!
I work as a TV presenter, appearing regularly on C4’s Sunday Brunch, ITV’s This Morning and BBC Morning Live. I have also popped up on various shows on ITV and BBC, and even a few in Australia and America. It’s always a joy.
I post regular recipe videos on my Instagram (220k) and TikTok (270k) channels. They range from every day easy dishes with a Middle Eastern twist to classic dishes that I picked up on my travels. My most successful pasta video received 30 million views across my channels and a recent Turkish recipe, creamy eggs or Çilbir, received over 1 million views and 20K likes on Instagram.
Pre-pandemic, I spent most of his time travelling around the Middle East in search of the best local recipes from sizzling street food to heavenly home cooked meals. This research forms the basis of my recipes today and I cant wait to get back on the roas soon.
That’s me x JGS
My books
Turkish delights
Vibrant Turkish recipes, from the Bosporus to the Black Sea.
Mighty spice express
Speedy street food made easy.
Mighty spice
A whirlwind tour of cooking with spices.