Bradford 2025 Project Invites Community Recipe Submissions for New Cookbook

Individuals who enjoy cooking at home are encouraged to submit their recipes for inclusion in an upcoming recipe book that will celebrate Bradford’s rich culinary heritage. This initiative, which forms part of the Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture program, aims to produce a cookbook titled Meet our Mothers, featuring a collection of 50 recipes. Artist Deepa Mann-Kler, who is spearheading this project, described it as a “celebration” of the distinctive blend of cultures and flavours found in Bradford. She stated: “One of the things that brings human beings together is food and it’s common to cultures, class, races, communities.” She further elaborated, saying: “It’s a collection and celebration of Bradford’s people, communities, and flavours across the district.” Recipes can be submitted by any resident with a BD or LS29 postcode through the City of Culture website. The deadline for submissions is 9 December. Contributions can be provided either in a written format or as a video. Mrs. Mann-Kler indicated that she is particularly interested in receiving “special stories and memories around food”. She explained: “If there is a specific food or a recipe that has been in the family for generations, that has been passed down, we all have those recipes and we want to hear them.“The one that I go to in terms of my own reflection is a chicken curry recipe that my father taught me.” She recounted that each time she prepares this particular dish, it transports her back to a kitchen in Leicester with her father. “It brings me joy and I relive that as I cook it, as I eat it, as I share it with my children and my husband and it’s being passed on to another generation.” The cookbook is scheduled to become available for purchase in late 2025. Any individual under the age of 18 wishing to submit a recipe must obtain permission from a parent or guardian.