Quotes from Ainsley Harriott

I was quite shy. I found my way, I suppose, with food. It's a confidence builder. How else in life do you get that opportunity for someone to say to you, 'Wow, that's really great'? You put food in front of someone and, 'Ahhh, I really enjoyed that!' It's a lift.

I was one of those that didn't so much go to the discos or the clubs to drink. I went with a towel around my neck. I was ready to sweat!

In our house caring about food is pretty instinctive.

I used to quite like the idea of zooming in and out of traffic quite quickly, but when you get a decent car and kids in the back, you become more courteous.

So I've got mates I've known since I was five years old. Their children know my children. There's something really lovely about it. When you're an immigrant - my parents were immigrants, their brothers and sisters lived all over the world, Florida, Jamaica, some in Europe - it's a grounding thing. That community is critical.

Our house was always full of friends and family and we would all sit down to enjoy my mum's Caribbean food, which was always a generous and shared experience.

When it comes to cooking, it's a skill you learn and develop.

Mum passed on her cooking skills to all her children.

I like introducing people to new dishes and new flavors.

If you want to go way way back, then I'm Scottish. My great great grandfather was Scottish, James Gordon Harriott, and a white Scotsman too.

I was a bit of a show-off at school. I told jokes a lot because I wanted to have friends.

I'm so fortunate that I've chosen the right career path. Yes, perhaps I could have been out there with my own restaurant earning a load more dosh, but television has been good to me.

I say time and time again - yes, cooking is wonderful to cook for your loved ones and see them eat the food but the most important thing is getting them all sat around the table together.

I want to help others smile and be kind as often as possible.

Think about your first kiss - if you did it and it was bloody awful, you might not do it again. It's the same with cooking - you start off gradually, you get your confidence, and you build on that. Don't be too adventurous to start with - learn how to cook one dish well.

People can be comfortable, really, once you invite them into the kitchen.

What I like best is showing people how to have fun in the kitchen. And sharing my love of cooking.

I grew up not being intimidated by the kitchen.

I sometimes wish I was 10 years younger.

What I've tried to do over the years is to kind of open the door to say 'It's a meal, it's OK, don't panic, don't get worked up about it.'

When you look at people cooking in Britain - and Dubai, too - they're not that adventurous. They need to be encouraged somehow. And not everybody needs to be shouted at.

Bread's so important for me, it makes such a difference. I like it with a lovely bit of cheese on it, sometimes just with butter, or with some fresh soup.

Although my family is originally from Jamaica, I grew up in a diverse community in south London. As my parents were immigrants they made every effort to integrate and we used to go to a wonderful church where we befriended families from all over the world.

Food is an integral part of Caribbean life - it's diverse just like Caribbean culture, with flavour influences from India, Europe, China, South America and Africa.