About

I didn’t set out to become a cookbook author. I set out to understand the world through science — and somehow, that path led me straight to the kitchen.

Growing up in Bombay, I moved to America for graduate school, eventually landing in Washington D.C. as a molecular biologist. The science was fascinating, but the daily grind was draining me. So in 2011, I started a food blog called A Brown Table — not as a career move, just as a way to breathe. I wanted to cook, share food, and feel something again.

Life had other plans.

The blog grew. I taught myself food photography and styling. After moving to California, instead of culinary school, I cold-called twelve bakeries in my neighborhood — one called back. I staged at a patisserie while still working at a pharmaceutical company, and eventually quit to work as a pastry chef. For the first time in a long time, I was excited to wake up in the morning.

That led to food styling and photography work in San Francisco, a column at the San Francisco Chronicle, and my first cookbook deal. Since then I’ve written four cookbooks — Season, The Flavor Equation, Veg-Table, and my newest, Fundamentals of Flavor (preorder now, out September 2026). I’m currently an Editor in Residence at America’s Test Kitchen, where I also host In the Test Kitchen on Netflix and Flavor Forward on YouTube— exploring the ingredients, science, and stories behind great cooking.

The science never left me though. It just found a better home. Everything I do — the recipes, the writing, the videos — comes back to one question: why does food taste the way it does? Understanding that, I believe, makes all of us better cooks.

I live in Los Angeles with my husband, dog, and two cats. I’m always happy to talk food, science, career pivots, or The Real Housewives. Don’t be a stranger.

xx 

Nik