Now it's Chilli Banana - The Cookbook

Promotional Feature

Cheshire's leading specialist in Thai home-cooking launched her first 'Chilli Banana' restaurant in Wilmslow nearly 20 years ago. Now May Wakefield is going into print with a debut cookbook that publishes in November.

The 160-page hardback features more than 50 recipes along with notes on Thai cooking, ingredients and the country's food culture.

For a long time 'Chilli Banana' steadily built an award-winning reputation that Cheshire took to its heart. Then, a year ago, the restaurant switched to a prime, customised, town centre site on the corner of Water Lane and Hawthorne Street. Now, the cookbook marks the first anniversary of the move.

May Wakefield learned to cook as a child, in Prachinburi Province east of Bangkok. She helped feed community farmworkers at lunchtime and then worked with her mother to prepare seven-course family banquets for the evenings. Now she is among the North West's most successful chefs – heading a Thai team that re-creates delicate Thai flavours from popular Bangkok street food to five-star skyscraper restaurant cuisine.

"Producing our own cookbook has been a dream for a long time," says May. "Now, after years of serving customers, doing cookery demonstrations and being regularly asked for recipes by thousands of people who have enjoyed meals at Chilli Banana, it's all come true.

"This first cookbook represents a cross section of the most popular dishes from our recent menus. We are proud to say they are not western equivalents, they are the real thing. This is true Thailand."

Personalised signed copies of 'Chilli Banana', from Meze Publishing - with photography shot in Cheshire and Thailand by Tim Green - is available to pre-order from www.chillibanana.co.uk.

Sneak Preview

If you'd like to join the launch celebration there's an exclusive sneak preview at Chilli Banana in Wilmslow on Monday 17th of November from 5.30pm to around 10pm - before the book goes public and hits the retail outlets.

And that will also double as a first birthday party since the move to Water Lane a year ago almost to the day.

But tickets will be limited because of the restaurant capacity – so it will be 'first come, first served'. The price is £10 per person. Please mail [email protected] by 12th November to reserve your place, quoting Wilmslow, 17th November.

Chilli Banana will serve dishes from the book as canapé-style finger food during the evening with a drink selection of Prosecco, wine, beer and soft drinks.

The first books off the press will be there to buy and, of course, May will be there to sign and dedicate them for you.

..... And then there's Christmas

Watch out, too, for May's new Christmas ideas. She and husband Steve Wakefield are recently back from one of their annual trips to Thailand and they've bought home some new ideas that you're going to want to try.

The Christmas lunch offers a selection of starters, main courses and desserts to share ... all for £17.95 and the menu launches on November 25th.

That, with other new dishes, street food specialities and banquets will all add up to the best Christmas food this side of Bangkok.

The Chilli Banana Thai Restaurant, 71 Water Lane, Wilmslow, SK9 5BQ.

T: 01625 539 100 Email: [email protected].

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Chilli Banana
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