TV chef Rick Stein names Leicester as one of his top UK cities for food

Legendary TV chef Rick Stein has named Leicester as one of his top five cities in the UK that have made him ‘fall in love with food all over again’.

Stein has travelled the length and breadth of the UK tasting and recreating popular dishes for his BBC Two series Rick Stein’s Food Stories.

TV chef Rick Stein with food writer Gurdeep Loyal in Leicester

So, when he was asked to name his top food destinations for BBC Online there were plenty to choose from.

But Stein plumped for Leicester in his top five, along with London, Bristol, Manchester and Belfast.

Students and academics in the know at De Montfort University are well aware of the fantastic Indian food scene on their doorstep.

But it is a bit of a coup for an internationally famous TV chef, who devoted an entire series to cooking in India, to give the city’s South Asian cuisine his stamp of approval.

Stein told BBC online: “People from India originally settled in Leicester due to there being work available in the garment industry.

“Indian culture is still important to the city and has helped to create a strong food scene.

“Now it's a very important food producing city and I just found the atmosphere there really impressive.

“There are some places in the UK now which are a bit depressed, but Leicester ain't one of them!”

Gurdeep takes Rick Stein for an Indian high tea at Bobby's

In episode three of the latest Rick Stein’s Food Stories, which you can watch on BBC iPlayer here, the chef travels around Leicester with local food writer Gurdeep Loyal.

He uncovers a hidden gem of a food truck on an industrial estate, tries a Thali and then indulges in an Indian high tea, made up of sweets and savouries, at Bobby’s on Belgrave Road.

While tucking into a thali in the city Stein says: “That’s absolutely wonderful, I think it’s some of the best Indian food I’ve ever tasted.”

After the trip, he’s inspired to return to his home in the Cornish fishing town of Padstow and make his own version of the well-loved cross-over dish chicken tikka masala, complete with chapatis.