Ed Smith

Author / Chef / Influencer

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Books

Ed Smith is the author of the acclaimed On the Side (Bloomsbury 2017); the best-selling The Borough Market Cookbook (Hodder and Stoughton 2018); and the award-winning food blog  www.RocketandSquash.com. A former City lawyer turned cook and food writer, Ed’s words and recipes have appeared in all major food magazines, supplements and websites, including The Sunday TimesGuardianTelegraphThe FT Weekend MagazineWaitrose WeekendDeliciousOlivefood52.com and eater.com.  Ed and his work have won and been shortlisted on multiple occasions for numerous awards. Most recently, in 2020 he was shortlisted as Best Online Food Writer at the Guild of Food Writers Awards; and in 2019 as Best Cookery Writer alongside Diana Henry at the Fortnum and Mason Food Awards, and Best Food Writer alongside Bee Wilson and Grace Dent at the Guild of Food Writers Awards.

 

Current publication:

CRAVE:  Recipes Arranged by Flavour, to Suit Your Mood and Appetite - Quadrille - 27th May 2021

Observer Food Monthly top 20 food books of 2021

Waterstones best food and drink books 2021

Longlisted for BBC Radio 4 The Food Programme Cookbooks of the Year 2021

Shortlisted for Fortnum and Mason Food and Drink Awards 2022 - Best Cookbook category. 

Ed Smith helps his readers home in on their cravings (whatever the reason for them) by organising his recipes within six cleverly conceived flavour profiles: fresh and fragrant; chilli and heat; tart and sour; curried and spiced; rich and savoury; and (best of all?) cheesy and creamy. There’s also a directory of alternative cravings at the back, providing additional ways in. All bases are covered, from snacks through sides, to main courses and puddings.

Think of fermented and fresh tomato salad with feta for when both sun and cook are already smiling; or lamb chops with cacio e pepe white beans if in need of a re-set; the likes of 'nduja spatchcock chicken, should a tickle of chilli be in order; or curried brisket noodles to meet spice needs. Whether we want snap and crunch or velvet softness, sharp citrus or warming aromatics, or just something involving bubbling, molten cheese, CRAVE presents a fresh take on seasonal cookery, but goes beyond that too ― acknowledging core instincts and base itches, and so delivering recipes you’ll want to make every day of the week, whatever the weather or mood.

Praise:

'A deliciously inviting book, crammed with recipes that had me reaching for the post-it notes!' - Nigella Lawson

“The recipes will dazzle and delight” Nigel Slater

“Once again, Ed Smith has done something really smart. Cooking the flavours we are craving in any given moment, the resulting book feels so novel and fresh. Ed’s writing is thoughtful and conversational; his recipes confident and delicious.” Yotam Ottolenghi

“Ed is one of the greatest cooks I know and this book is a perfect friend in the kitchen: useful, innovative, trustable and completely joyful.” Meera Sodha

“Crave is my kind of cookbook, it puts feeling and intuition at the centre of how we eat. It’s packed with the friendly, approachable and original recipes that Ed is so brilliant at. I'll be cooking from it on repeat.” Anna Jones

This is a genius idea: recipes arranged by flavour profile so that you know exactly where to look if you fancy something tart and sharp, or rich and creamy, or fresh and zingy and so on. - India Knight, The Sunday Times

Smith is a clever and thoughtful writer, whose recipes are always both enticing and comprehensive. In his latest book, though, he has lit upon the brilliant idea of categorising “by craving”; fresh and fragrant, tart and sour, curried and spiced, cheesy and creamy, etc. - Tim Hayward, FT Weekend Summer Books of 2021

I told myself: no more new cookbooks. But then I clapped eyes on Crave by Ed Smith, which arranges recipes by mood, and it called to me. - Rachel Cooke, Observer Food Monthly

 

Praise for The Borough Market Cookbook - Hodder & Stoughton - 2018

This book is a rare gem: a bible in the kitchen, a brilliant guide to using seasonal produce and a great pleasure to read." - Meera Sodha

"This glorious celebration of the vibrant buzzing community of traders and producers, of their high-quality products, values and ethos, and the pure simple joy of delicious seasonal cooking makes me want to run to the maze of alleys under the railway arches and run quickly back home to cook. Like the market, the book is exciting, instructive, seductive and inspirational." - Claudia Roden

 

Praise for ON THE SIDE: A Sourcebook of Inspiring Side Dishes - Bloomsbury - 2017

Shortlisted for the inagural JANE GRIGSON PRIZE 2018 and THE GUILD OF FOOD WRITERS BEST FIRST BOOK AWARD. 

"Full of recipes I want to cook and eat" - Yotam Ottolenghi

"This is both a beautiful and eminently useful cookbook. I know it will often be pulled out from my kitchen shelves." - Anna Jones

"A lifelong fan of 'bits on the side', the joyous accompaniments to the main course, I am thrilled to see them taking centre stage. I want to eat every recipe in this book." - Nigel Slater

 

 

Non-Fiction

Publication DetailsNotes

THE BOROUGH MARKET COOKBOOK

2019

Hodder & Soughton

Borough Market is the beating heart of London's food scene. Every year millions of locals and tourists flock to Borough Market to soak up the unique atmosphere, interact with the expert traders and sample the world-class produce.

This gorgeous book takes you on a tour of a year at the Market, from the beginning of spring, through Easter and Midsummer, to Apple Day in October and the switching on of the lights at Christmas - with the most delicious recipes highlighting the very best of those celebrations.

ON THE SIDE

2017

Bloomsbury

Whilst writing his food blog, Rocket & Squash, Ed Smith noticed that a key part of our meals was being ignored. On too many occasions, side dishes were being relegated to an overboiled afterthought, or dismissed with a throwaway 'eat with potatoes' or 'serve with seasonal greens' line. But our side dishes have the potential to be as inspirational as the main event itself. In fact, they're often the best bit! Here it's the 'two veg' rather than the meat which are given the spotlight: you'll find 140 inspiring recipes and insightful tips to make your pulses, roots, vegetables and greens dazzle in their own right. Think of garlic oil pea shoots, smoky ratatouille, celeriac baked in a salt and thyme crust, carrots with brown butter and hazelnuts, spelt grains with wild mushrooms, and chorizo roast potatoes