Lauren Joseph spends most of her time thinking about food, whether she's cooking it or writing about it. The London-based chef worked the line at Michelin-starred restaurants Dorian and Lita while also contributing to publications including The New York Times and Bon Appetit. Before returning to professional kitchens, she spent more than a decade as an editor across food, travel and design media, but ingredients have always been the throughline. Raised among the vines on her grandparents’ vineyard and endlessly curious about what people eat and why, Joseph approaches food with the appetite of a cook and the eye of a storyteller.

10 ingredients you always have in your fridge…

Good, salted butter and compound butters (I make big batches and keep a stash of little logs in my freezer). Pickled things: long, crunchy peppers to pile on top of grilled meat; kimchi to pair with eggs, preserved lemons to add depth to vinaigrettes. Lemons and limes (but if I had to choose one, always limes!). Dry vermouth: both for cocktails and finishing sauces. The heat trifecta: salsa macha, chilli crisp, and a vinegar-y hot sauce. Full fat dairy: usually crème fraîche or yoghurt. A nice cheese like comté or Ossau Iraty, purely for snacking while I cook. Dark or bitter greens: kale, rocket, radicchio. Tart green apples. An emergency supply of wine gums, kept in the fridge to make them chewier.

What is your most memorable dining experience?

My first cookbook as a teenager was an Alice Waters one. A few years ago, I staged at Chez Panisse and took myself to dinner there solo for my birthday. Sometimes you’re scared to see how the sausage gets made; not so at Chez. During that dinner I just had this overwhelming feeling of being in the right place and the right line of work.

What influenced your love of food?

Growing up on my Grandparents’ vineyard and eating all the grapes off the vine. In hindsight, I was the peskiest invasive species – I’m grateful that they allowed me to indulge in the pure gluttony of perfect produce.

Who is the best cook you know?

I had a sous chef once who could make something out of nothing for staff food and had exquisite knife skills. I really admire that versatility. He had all the skill of a great home cook along with the precision of a fine dining chef.

Who is on your dream dinner party table? 

Now and then I interview a chef for a New York Times story who goes on a little poetic tangent about ingredients and I always wish I had more time with them. I’d give them place cards with the ingredient they rhapsodised about: Suzanne Goin of A.O.C. in LA (crème fraîche) Daniel Rose of Le Cou Cou, NYC (cabbage), Bo Bech of Bobe, Copenhagen (egg yolks) ...

Share the menu of your last supper…

A rib eye with an edge-to-edge rare cuisson and a dark crust, coconut rice with plenty of herbs, lime, and curry leaves, my Grandmother’s pol sambol and a couple Sri Lankan acharus, a tower of spring greens, ice cold, no expenses-spared burgundy, bowls of kumquats and salted chocolate ice cream for dessert.

What is your favourite vegetable?

Fennel, forever.

Top five favourite places to dine?

Claro, Brooklyn. The Waterman Arms, London. King, New York. Rambutan, London. Chez Panisse, Berkeley.

Lauren Joseph's recipe for warm fennel, radicchio, and citrus salad

I first made a version of this salad in high school. I was in Ojai, California, which is a little town full of citrus groves. I love that you get the sweet taste of roasted fennel along with the bright, anise-y herb. Use any citrus you like, and play around with the chilli level – this salad can take a bit of heat.

Ingredients

Serves 6

• 3 bulbs fennel (preferably with fronds attached)
• 1-2 heads radicchio, depending on size
• 2 oranges, grapefruits, or blood oranges
• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
• Generous splash of a good white wine or cider vinegar
• Pinch (¼ tsp) cumin seeds, rushed
• Pinch (¼ tsp) red chilli flakes
• Flakey salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

1. Cut the fennel into wedges, reserving the fronds. Season, then deeply brown in a pan with a generous glug of the olive oil. (You’ll use whatever is left for dressing.)
2. Meanwhile, separate the radicchio leaves and supreme your citrus. Top and tail the fruit with a chef’s knife so you have flat edges on both poles. Then, using a small sharp knife, follow the curve of the fruit from top to bottom, removing the peel in long strips. Separate the segments from the pith with your knife and set aside, reserving the peels and the central pith of the citrus; you’ll use any leftover pulp for juice.
3. Once your fennel is browned on both sides, toss in your spices to toast briefly, then squeeze the peels and citrus core over the pan to deglaze it. Remove from the heat, take the fennel out of the pan, pour in the vinegar, then whisk in the remaining olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
4. Lightly dress your leaves with the warm vinaigrette, then arrange with citrus segments, fennel wedges, and the remaining fennel herb.