Book review: The Pepperpot Diaries by Andi Oliver

“I feel that I want these recipes to be just the start for you. I’d love you to think of them as a jumping off point,” says Andi Oliver in the introduction to her long-awaited first cookbook.

Though this book will certainly give you that, it’s a fabulous entity in itself. In recent years we’ve all become fairly familiar with elements of Caribbean cooking, but this book delves deeper, exploring the intersectional nature of Oliver’s life and upbringing as well as offering interesting and novel dishes.

It is presented, as the title suggests, as a diary with an entry for each section ranging from bread and dumplings to curries in the Caribbean to sweet things. There are more basic recipes for readers new to Caribbean cooking – fried dumplings, luxurious mac and cheese and rum punch – but with more developed recipes the deeper you get into each section.

A cheese, leek and smoked chilli rarebit bread and butter pudding is everything you’ve ever wanted in one dish, combining a beautiful pudding with glorious savoury flavour, and curried carrot scones scintillate with curry powder, dark rum and coconut milk.

The book also provides a view into Oliver’s Caribbean restaurant Wadadli Kitchen in London’s Hackney Wick. “Wadadli Kitchen really is like stepping into my own power and dreams,” writes Oliver, after sharing the restaurant’s recipe for its own roast chilli hot sauce. Including the restaurant, alongside her TV work and her childhood Oliver captures herself within these pages. It’s not just a view of her life for her fans, nor a simple collection of recipes, but both in one, without either reducing the worth of the other.

With an air of authenticity that comes from lived experience – not necessarily true to origin, but true to the self – these recipes come from the heart. The legendary Great British Menu presenter has created a perfect representation of herself in this book, as well as a unique view into Caribbean cooking for her readers.

The Pepperpot Diaries: Stories From My Caribbean Table by Andi Oliver (DK, £27)