Shona Karim Khan: Now koftas are a bit harder; I use a recipe from an old Indian cookbook I picked up in the charity shop on Mitcham Road, as I never inherited any authentic Bengali recipes from my mother.
She left all the cooking up to our ancient chef, Osama, and he never showed me how to cook either, although when I was a little girl he always treated me to the tastiest bits of sugared nuts left over from the puddings he made for Eid and holidays.
And his lamb koftas were delicious – little melting bits of heaven in your mouth, perfectly spiced with fresh coriander and ginger.