Cooking with Peter Sidwell

When I think about family cooking, I don’t think about perfection. I think about flour on the worktop, somebody stealing bits of pastry when they think no one’s looking, and the noise of a busy kitchen at the end of the day. Cooking at home has always been less about impressing people and more about bringing everyone together and that’s exactly what inspired so many of the recipes in Peter Sidwell’s Kitchen.

Over the years, my kitchen has changed from a professional workspace into the heart of our family home. When my children were younger, cooking became part of our daily rhythm. Some nights were quick and chaotic, others slower and more relaxed, but food was always the thing that brought us around the same table. As a dad, I’ve learnt that family cooking isn’t about producing restaurant-standard meals every evening; it’s about creating moments. Sometimes that’s making a proper dinner together, and sometimes it’s simply icing buns on a rainy afternoon.

The recipes featured here perfectly capture that balance of comfort, creativity and family life. The Lemon Iced Buns are pure nostalgia for me. They take me straight back to childhood bakery visits, standing in front of the counter trying to decide which treat to take home. There’s something timeless about enriched dough and sweet citrus icing, and they’re exactly the kind of bake children love getting involved with. My kids have always enjoyed the messy jobs in the kitchen – kneading dough, spooning icing everywhere except the bun, and inevitably licking the bowl clean before anyone else gets the chance. Those simple baking memories stay with children forever, and I think that’s one of the most powerful things about cooking as a family.

Then there are recipes like the Crab Linguini, which remind me that family food doesn’t have to be complicated. I’ve always believed that a few really good ingredients, treated properly, can create something special. Pasta dishes like this are brilliant for busy households because they come together quickly, but still feel like an occasion. I love recipes where everyone naturally gathers around the stove somebody grating parmesan, somebody tearing basil, somebody sneaking bits of crab before dinner is served. Food creates conversation. It slows people down, even if only for half an hour.

The Tikka Salmon and Spinach Pie probably says the most about how I cook today. Family food in Britain has become wonderfully eclectic. One night it might be a roast dinner, the next it’s curry-inspired comfort food wrapped in crispy filo pastry. I love that modern family cooking reflects the flavours we’ve all grown up around. This pie is packed with flavour but still approachable, and it’s the sort of dish I’d happily put in the middle of the table for everyone to dig into together. Those are always my favourite meals-generous food, shared properly.

As both a chef and a parent, I’ve realised that cooking with children isn’t really about teaching recipes. It’s about confidence, curiosity and connection. It’s allowing kids to taste, stir, shape and experiment. Some of the best conversations happen while chopping onions or waiting for pastry to turn golden in the oven. The kitchen becomes a place where families reconnect without even realising it.

That’s what I hope people find in these recipes: not just something delicious to cook, but a reason to spend time together. Because long after the plates are cleared, those are the moments that really matter. Happy cooking!

Pete
Insta: @petersidwellchef

Tikka Salmon and Spinach Pie

A fish pie with a twist, I love this recipe as it is packed full of flavour, easy to prepare and delicious to eat. It’s a lot lighter than the normal fish pie so you don’t feel like its a winter comfort dish.

Preparation time: 20 mins + 20 mins marinating
Cooking time: 40 minutes

Ingredients (serves 4-6):

• 1 Red onion
• 1 thumb ginger finely grated
• 1 garlic clove finely grated
• 1 Lemon zest and juice
• 450g Frozen spinach
• 2 Eggs
• Salt and pepper
• 4 tbsp Greek style yogurt
• 2 tbsp Tandoori spice mix
• 600g Fresh salmon
• 270g Filo pastry (7 sheets)
• 50g Melted butter or margarine
• 3 tbsp Nigella seeds

The Method:

1. Remove the spinach from the freezer, place in a colander over a bowl and leave to thaw.
2. Meanwhile chop the red onion finely and place in a mixing bowl with the grated ginger, garlic and lemon zest.
3. When the spinach is thawed transfer to a clean tea towel, draw the corners together and squeeze out all the excess water.
4. Add the spinach to the onions along with 2 free range eggs. Season with salt and pepper before stirring together.
5. In a separate bowl mix the yogurt, spice mix, lemon juice, salt and pepper.
6. Stir together and add the salmon, cover the fish and leave to marinate for 20 minutes this will develop the flavour.
7. Brush some melted butter on the bottom of a deep oven proof dish that measures approximately 30cm by 20cm.
8. Sprinkle with some nigella seeds and a little of the spice mix then layer the pastry into the tin, making sure each sheet over laps and hangs over the sides of the tin so that when you fold the pastry on top it will cover the filling.
9. Once all seven sheets of pastry are in, brush with more melted butter and place the spinach mixture into the base.
10. Lay the salmon on top of the spinach and finally fold all the excess pastry handing over the edges into the middle.
11. Brush the top with the remaining butter and scatter over some nigella seeds.
12. Bake the pie in a pre heated oven 165c for 30-40 minutes until golden and crispy on the top.

Crab linguini

I just love the simplicity of this dish, just a few ingredients that love to be in the same pan together. The sweet flavour of crab works so well with the fresh basil taste, combined with the perfectly al dente cooked pasta, you will have the perfect light pasta dish.

Preparation time: 5 mins
Cooking time: 10 mins

Ingredients (serves 4):

• 350g linguini
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 clove of garlic, chopped
• 150ml dry white wine
• 200g crab meat (cooked and picked)
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 50g butter
• 12 large basil leaves, gently chopped
• Pinch of salt and pepper, to taste
• Parmesan, grated, to finish
• Extra-virgin olive oil, to finish

The Method:

1. Cook the linguini pasta in plenty of salted boiling water for approximately 9 minutes.
2. In a large frying pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat.
3. Add the garlic and cook for about 1 minute until fragrant.
4. Add 1 ladle full of pasta water from the pan.
5. Pour in the white wine, bring the mixture to a simmer and let it cook for about 2-3 minutes to reduce the liquid slightly.
6. Add the crab meat to the pan and gently toss to coat it with the sauce.
7. Cook for 1-2 minutes until the crab is heated through.
8. Stir in the lemon juice, chopped basil (this needs to be chopped gently as it bruises very easily leaving a bitter taste) and butter.
9. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Mix well to combine all the flavours.
10. Lift the cooked pasta out of the cooking water and add straight into the frying pan with the crab sauce.
11. Toss everything together until the linguini is well-coated and the ingredients are evenly distributed.
12. Scatter the pasta with grated parmesan cheese and drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

Lemon Iced Buns

This is nostalgia through and through. As a kid, I would visit the bakery, and this would be the treat I would always pick. A perfectly baked, enriched dough, topped with a super sweet, tangy icing… what more could you want?!

Ingredients (makes 12):

• 350g Strong white flour
• 150g Plain white flour
• 14g Dried yeast
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tbsp Custard powder
• 1 tbsp Sugar
• 325ml Warm milk
• 50g Butter, softened

Icing:

• 2 Lemons
• 150g Icing sugar

The Method:

1. Mix both flours in a mixing bowl, followed by the yeast, salt, sugar and custard powder.
2. Blend, then add the milk and mix with your hand to form a soft ball of dough.
3. Add the butter and mix in before transferring the dough to a clean, lightly floured work top and knead for 5-10 minutes.
4. Place the dough back into the mixing bowl, cover with cling film and leave to prove for 1 hour or until it doubles in size.
5. Once the dough has proved, scoop it out and knock all the air out of the dough using your hands.
6. Divide the mix into 12 equal portions and shape into bread rolls.
7. Place the rolls into a nonstick muffin tin and leave to double in size, then bake for 20 minutes in a preheated oven at 180c.
8. When the buns are baked, remove from the oven and leave to cool for 20 minutes.
9. Mix the lemon juice and icing sugar and spoon over each bun.

Love baking with Peter Sidwell? Try his Homemade Wagon Wheels!

Discover how to make these nostalgic, hob-nob style biscuits at home with the kids. Read the full recipe and guide here.

Read the Recipe