Saliha Mahmood Ahmed
Having been a passionate home cook all her life, Saliha battled 64 contestants in front of 6million viewers to become the winner of MasterChef 2017.
A proud mother and wife, Saliha works as a doctor at St Mary’s, Paddington, specialising in Gastroenterology. Balancing a life in food and medicine, Saliha has enjoyed appearing at various food festivals and shows across the country since her time on MasterChef. In her debut cookbook KHAZANA (Hodder & Stoughton 2018) Saliha builds upon her reputation for recreating traditional South East Asian food in a modern and exciting way. It was voted ‘Best New Cookbook’ at the 2019 Observer Food Monthly Awards and Saliha was awarded the title of ‘Best Chef 2019’ at the British Restaurant Awards, as voted for by the public.
Saliha’s book FOODOLOGY: A FOODLOVER’S GUIDE TO DIGESTIVE HEALTH & HAPPINESS combines her medical expertise with a passion for gut-friendly, delicious food. It was published by Hodder & Stoughton in 2021 and went straight into the bestseller list.
THE KITCHEN PRESCRIPTION was published in Spring 2023 and soared straight into the Sunday Times bestseller list. It is a collection of delicious recipes designed to encourage good gut health.
Saliha’s campaign #NoHungryNHSStaff with Neely Mozawala has led to a commitment by the NHS for healthy hot and cold food for hospital doctors to access 24 hours a day.
“Saliha is a class act. She’s walked in here and taken her food culture apart and put it back together in a modern and very exciting way. She always does something a little bit extra – something which always surprises us”. (John Torode, MasterChef judge)
Instagram: @salihacooks