Dame Joanna Lumley praises new ‘Kukri Kitchen Cookbook’
Dame Joanna Lumley stands beside Pam Reynolds, who was awarded the Sir James Gildea Award.
Cook up a storm!
A fantastic new cookbook blending authentic British and Nepali recipes is now available to order for £10 plus shipping, with the proceeds benefitting The Gurkha Welfare Trust and SSAFA, the Armed Forces charity. The ‘Kukri Kitchen Cookbook’ is filled with dozens of delicious starters, mains, and desserts, with recipes like ‘Urmila’s Salmon Curry’, ‘GWT Spiced Kheer’ and ‘Nicci’s Green Tea Ice Cream.’
Recipes for the book were contributed by Pam Reynolds BEM, her colleagues at SSAFA, and the wives of Gurkha veterans. All are a part of the ‘SSAFA Reading Gurkha Ladies’ Project’, an initiative by the Reading branch to provide English classes to the wives of newly settled Gurkha veterans in the UK.
Pam recalled that when the first Gurkha wives arrived to their office, they struggled to speak and understand English. “It was the usual Tuesday morning in the Reading SSAFA office…Chandra, one of our Gurkha caseworkers, ushered out some very subdued, sad, confused looking Gurkha ladies. This was our first batch of dependents of retired Gurkhas which had been allowed into the country after Joanna Lumley’s determined work to achieve their entry…the decision was made to try to set up some [English] classes to see if it might help.
“Each week the numbers [of students] increased. The ladies loved meeting each other and soon started to pick up some vocabulary. From the fairly chaotic early years the team of over 30 volunteers was teaching over 100 ladies each week…from the start, Joanna Lumley supported and encouraged us – we would not have managed to achieve what we have without her.”
Twelve years later, the project cultivated a strong friendship between the teachers and the students. “It is absolutely wonderful to see the ladies starting to speak and certainly understanding quite a lot of English…this recipe book arose out of the many parties we have had, where we enjoyed Gurkha dishes and [the Gurkha wives] started to get used to ours!”
For her dedication to this initiative, Pam was awarded the Sir James Gildea Award by Lieutenant General Peter Pearson CB CBE The Governor of the Knights of Windsor and The President of the Berkshire Branch of SSAFA. Dame Joanna Lumley was also in attendance, and she is hugely supportive of the cookbook, even writing the foreword.
“What makes this book of recipes so appealing is that it is a collection of favourite dishes from people whose lives and kitchens are fundamentally very different,” said Joanna Lumley. “Where else would you find Momo Dough alongside Welsh Cakes, Very Easy Tuna Pasta and Sherpa Lamb Curry?
“I find this whole venture irresistible; and what makes it even more marvellous is that all the proceeds will contribute to the welfare of all our Armed Forces and their families. Sleeves up! Aprons on! Let’s cook!”
If you would like to order your own copy of the Kukri Kitchen Cookbook for £10 plus shipping, please email the Branch Administration Coordinator at SSAFA here.