Podcast Then & Now #29 - Teresa Cherfas in conversation with Alissa Timoshkina

My guest today is Alissa Timoshkina. Originally from Omsk in Siberia, Alyssa left Russia to study in England at the age of 15. She has been living and working in London ever since. She is the author of two cookery books – but cookery books with a difference. The first came out six years ago and is called Salt and Time: recipes from a Russian Kitchen, and the second about the cuisine of Eastern Europe, was published more recently and is called simply Kapusta. Between publication of her first and second book, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. For Alissa, 24 February 2022 really did cut her life in two: “Then and Now”. In our podcast she explains why.

This podcast was recorded on 13 March 2025

My Questions

• Do you remember how you felt on the day Russia invaded Ukraine three years ago?
• You took a decision to help Ukrainians. Tell us about this initiative.
• What does home cooking mean for you? What are your most vivid memories from childhood?
• Were there any particular dishes you made for yourself in England as a teenager when you were missing family back home, to remind you of them?
• The title of your second book is Kapusta. What associations does this word have for you?
• You write in your book that food is the language of unity. But there are no recipes from Russia in the book. Even familiar recipes like borscht or sauerkraut or potato fritters are attributed to other countries or peoples. Why is that?
• If you were to hold your first book, about Russian cuisine, in your hands today, what would your thoughts be?
• When did you first realise that you were Jewish? What does it mean to you?
• You have written that your favourite pursuits are history and cooking. How have you managed to combine them in your professional life?
• Do you think of Russia as your Motherland? Or is that no longer possible for you?