The Slice: Rikha Reddy
cookbook recommendations from the best chef I know
Hi, my lovelies! If you’re reading in your email browser, be sure to click "view entire message" so you can read the whole thing! This edition of The Slice is longer than usual, but extra special ✨
Anyone who knows me even a little is well aware of my best friend Rikha. The two of us have been glued at the hip since second grade, and in DC, we’re a package deal, finishing each other’s sentences and sharing (as our friend Hailey affectionally puts it) “one brain cell.” When Paul and I moved in together, I had a nonnegotiable requirement: that Rikha live within a one mile radius. Being the lovely boyfriend he is, our apartment is a four minute walk from hers.
Rikha is not only a loyal and cherished friend — she’s also a killer chef with a keen eye for excellent food writing.
When we were roommates in our early twenties, I marveled at her ability to turn boring staples and near-expiring fridge products into vibrant dishes. Observing Rikha, I learned the value of a sharp knife, the variance between flaky sea salts, and the power of her holy grail ingredient: chili crisp.
When Rikha embarks on a new recipe, it’s a whole day adventure, and our friend group happily reaps the benefits — dimpled, oily focaccias, aubergine dips, and inventive takes on classic Indian dishes like dal. Rikha also hosts popular supper club events, showcasing them all on her foodstagram, @paprikhaaa.
I wanted to feature my bestie on The Slice this week because I love food writing, and the girl seriously knows her way around a cookbook. She’s also serving up recommendations for delicious romance novels and culinary creators you won’t want to miss 🍳
What is your favorite fictional book about food?
Bookpeach readers, I apologize. I will simply not have a one-book answer for any of these questions because I've never shut up once in my life!
Director Nora Ephron’s When Harry Met Sally is my favorite movie, and I was super excited to read her book Heartburn, based on her doomed marriage to Carl Bernstein. Ephron manages to write about a horrible experience with such levity, and I distinctly remember laughing out loud during the group therapy passages. While food is important to the plot (pie scene!!), Ephron also sprinkles recipes throughout. It is rumored that the salad dressing recipe included in the book was a favorite of Jason Sudekis and Olivia Wilde, and he laid his body in front of the actress's car to prevent her from bringing the dish to then-beau Harry Styles.
I also devoured Sweetbitter by Stephanie Danler. I have to thank Alli for many, many things in this life, but most important of all is introducing me to Top Chef in the 4th grade.1 Ever since then, I've been obsessed with chef-lebrities and fine dining culture. While this book puts less focus on the dishes, it is such a rush to follow along with a young waitress way out of her league in the fast-paced, drug-fueled, cutthroat world of upscale dining.2
I'm currently about halfway through Piglet by Lottie Hazell and am desperately eager to read about the fate of this croquembouche!3
What cookbook has been the most influential for you?
My shelf is stocked with recipe-filled books, including those I return to most like
’s Nothing Fancy, ’s Simple, and the Maydan (a beloved DC restaurant) cookbook, Maydan: Recipes from Lebanon and Beyond. However, I find that books like Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat by and Start Here by are the best to actually learn from. These read like textbooks and give a food science understanding of basic and complex cooking techniques. These books can feel a bit rudimentary to the more experienced home chef, but I felt a new confidence in my cooking after learning the "why" behind certain steps. I highly recommend reading these in their entirety rather than seeking out individual recipes.Also, I would be remiss if I didn't mention Joshua McFadden’s Six Seasons. This book showcases cooking seasonally best! Each chapter starts with raw vegetable recipes when produce is at the beginning of its season. The recipes get heartier with longer cook times as the season goes on, so that veggies are enjoyed at their prime. As spring turns to summer, I will be reaching for this book first!
And what about a cooking memoir?
Again, apologies for my inability to be succinct!
Top Chef fans will remember Fatima Ali from Season 15. Fellow contestants, judges, and viewers alike adored Ali’s ability to blend the Pakistani flavors of her youth and her professional expertise gained in fine dining restaurants, including the three-Michelin-starred Meadowood. Between the filming and airing of the season, Ali was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer. Her memoir Savor explores her culinary journey — from her home kitchen in Lahore through her schooling at the Culinary Institute of America into the filming of Top Chef. When Ali's plans to travel and eat became impossible as her illness progressed, the chef finalized her memoir as a reminder to savor all that life has to offer.
I genuinely stay up at night lamenting the fact that I never had a chance to dine at Gabrielle Hamilton's Prune before it closed during COVID. I became a devoted fan of Hamilton's after watching her in season 4 of Mind of a Chef.4 Her memoir Blood, Bones and Butter dives into her past and how her chef's journey started in the kitchen of her childhood home. Just like the author, the book is pure grit and simply delicious.5
I don't think I need to give a backstory on Anthony Bourdain and his third book Kitchen Confidential. However, I will encourage Bookpeachers to listen to the audiobook version of this memoir. Bourdain's narration is sardonic and crass and at times violent, but I wouldn't want it any other way.
Finally, I have Be Ready When the Luck Happens by Ina Garten and Crying in H Mart on my TBR!
Where do you find your best recipes?
Everywhere! TikTok, Instagram, food shows, cookbooks! I try to cook seasonally, so if I see that peas are in season, I’ll go to TikTok and search for pea recipes and dig until I find something that I know will satisfy a craving. I also save any promising recipes into a folder on each app and will search back through when lacking inspiration.
Who are your favorite "cookfluencers" to follow?
Omg, this list could be a MILE long!! My favorites to follow right now are:
(@wishbonekitchen) is of "private cheffing in the Hamptons" fame, but she is such a fun follow, with an adorable puppy and hearty recipes.
Hailee Catalano and Chuck!! Follow her (@haileecatalano) for well-thought-out recipes, follow him (@chuckischarles) for impeccable music choices and creative dishes, and follow their joint account (@2peoplecooking) for their precious Friday dinners!!6
(@carolinagelen) is a very approachable food writer who has recently had recipes in NYT Cooking. I highly recommend her arrayes and the roast chicken with fennel and orange.
Gillie Houston (@gilliehouston) is such a fun watch! She has great music taste and very satisfyingly chops to the beat. Her fattoush salad is fantastic, and I made her superbowl Italian grinder sliders one year ago and got GREAT feedback.
Andy Baraghani (@andybaraghani), who you’ll remember from Bon Appétit Summer 2020 fame, has stood the test of time. His chickpea pasta that's a mix between pasta e ceci and cacio e pepe is DELISH.
(@lahbco) is a Moroccan-Puerto Rican food writer with recipes that you WISH you could smell through the screen. His dishes are well-spiced and chock-full of herbs!
(@sohlae) is also of BAoS2020 fame. Sohla and her adorable partner Ham are SO incredibly knowledgeable about food science, but you never feel like you're being lectured to when watching their content. They are also so incredibly supportive and trusting of each other, and it is extremely endearing. I love their Mystery Menu Series on the NYT Cooking YouTube page. The episode making a multi-course meal out of chickpeas is eye candy.
Dan Pelosi (@grossypelosi) is just a cutie patootie — there's no other way to say it! His life is FULL of color, and it's an honor to be let into his world. I especially recommend the Piccata Pasta Salad and his Garlicky Citrus Dressing.
Cara (@cynchmakes) is a beautiful Irish woman with a divine accent. She loves a solo dining experience, and it's so fun to follow along with this adventurous eater.
@cripyegg420 doesn’t have recipes, but it’s a great source of inspiration when you cannot fathom coming up with something to eat for dinner. Simple, homey, inviting food.
Okay, non-cooking related, but I know how much you love a cartoon cover romance! What’s your biggest recommendation?
This is HARD. Listen, I don't need to wax poetic about Emily Henry. But I will say Beach Read will always be #1 for me.
The romcoms I come back to the most are The Brown Sisters Series by Talia Hibbert. I think she is a standout author, and she gives each character a full, rounded personality — something that doesn’t always happen in this genre. In my favorite of the three (Get a Life, Chloe Brown), Hibbert writes with such tenderness when describing the romance between the titular main character, who has fibromyalgia, and her love interest.
I also have been loving the Rebel Blue Ranch series by Lydia Sage. Friends have heard me singing the praises of Done & Dusted and Swift & Saddled! This series is sexy and sure is cheesy, but I enjoy learning about each of the family members on a sprawling ranch in Wyoming.
Is there a book that combines your love of cooking with your love of romance?
Okay, this is a hyper-specific recommendation. Alli and I had just come off a huge Great American Food Truck Race binge, so when I discovered Simmer Down by Sarah Smith, a food truck rivalry romantic comedy, I ATE that up. But tbh, this has become a huge crossover genre! There is a series by Sonali Dev that has a culinary twist on some Jane Austen classics. I've also heard great things about Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manasala.
Huge thanks to Rikha for her ah-mazing recommendations and 20+ years of friendship! Be sure to follow @paprikhaaa for more from this diva ✨
Do you have a book lover I should interview? Send me an email and I’ll be in touch! 💌
📚 On my shelf
I finished The Winner by Teddy Wayne on my flight home last night, and wound up loving it! If a twisty, class-conscious thriller set on an exclusive island during the pandemic sounds like fun to you, I highly recommend. Shout out to Libby’s airplane mode hack for allowing me to finish in one sitting.
I also finished Sunrise on the Reaping, and although I enjoyed it, I did find it to be weaker than the other books in the series (especially the most recent prequel). For some reason, the characters didn’t lock me in so much — maybe the amount of tweens killing each other has finally reached peak carnage? Regardless, I remain excited for the movie and am grateful Suzanne Collins seems to be expanding this universe thoughtfully, and not just for the Marvel-level dollar signs.
📚 Links and things
My CNN bestie Yahya Abou-Ghazala spearheaded this piece investigating state AG’s taking advantage of luxury foreign trips 💰
I love this mental health treat from Timm Chiusano (shoutout to my friend Sea Jay for sharing!)
Paul and I had the most wonderful time walking the Portuguese coast on the Camino de Santiago! ☀️
Happy reading! 💛
XOX
Alli
Were we too young to be watching this show featuring cursing, angry chefs? Probably yes. Is it still my #1 favorite show? Also, yes.
Sadly, my friend Ebba and I tried the television version of this book, and it was laughably unwatchable.
Underrated, amazing show produced by Anthony Bourdain! The first few seasons should still be on Netflix.
Extremely niche fun fact for Top Chef fans: Hamilton’s wife is Ashley Merriman from season 5!
OMG I LOOOOVE these two. I’m so tempted to re-download TikTok just for their content.
Lovely interview, and I love the special category of cooking memoirs! I'm also so glad you enjoyed my review of Piglet.
Love Rikha love you love this!!