Yotam Ottolenghi: Nothing compares to homemade meals

A new study in the British Medical Journal suggests microwave dinners are better for you than home cooked meals.

Researchers at Newcastle University compared the nutritional values of recipes from bestselling cookery books with shop-bought meals.

They found that the recipes of TV chefs like Nigella Lawson, Jamie Oliver and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall were, on average, higher in calories, fat and saturated fat and lower in fibre than supermarket ready meals.

Yotam Ottolenghi, chef and food writer in The Guardian, says the research isn't helpful.

He told The World At One: "I find it really infuriating because what we see is people equating calories with eating healthy food. Eating ready-made meals is about being very passive, and actively cooking is something that nothing compares to."

"The way to entice people into cooking is to cook delicious things. TV chefs are not responsible for people's consumption of fibre, this is not our job."