Sanjay & Shashi Aggarwal, co-founders of food and gifting business, Spice Kitchen

Our Story

From our kitchen table to cooking pots and pantries all over the world. What started with a love of cooking has grown into a business built on flavour, curiosity and bringing people together around the table. We hope our spices inspire you to cook boldly, experiment often and create memories over meals that are shared. We are Sanjay and Shashi Aggarwal, mother and son duo and co-founders of Spice Kitchen: a family owned, family run business, and this is our story so far...

Where It All Began

Every family has recipes that tell a story… ours just happened to become a business. Spice Kitchen began around a family dining table on Christmas Day in 2012. Having discovered that retirement wasn't quite as fun as she'd imagined, Shashi was looking for a hobby to keep her busy when Sanjay suggested she start selling the spice blends that family and friends had loved for years.

Spice Kitchen's spice tins on a colourful background

The Sari Story

Together they began talking about creating a beautiful sari wrapped spice tin that people would love to give and be excited to cook from. It was, as Sanjay still describes it, a "silly little idea" but really… it was inspired by a lifetime of family recipes, shared meals and the belief that good food has a remarkable way of bringing people together. To this day, Shashi and her team of seamstresses hand sew the sari wraps that dress our famous spice tins.

Spice Health Indian Spice Tin, 9 Spices & Handmade Silk Sari Wrap - Spice Kitchen - Spices, Spice Blends, Gifts & Cookware

Our Roots

While our roots are proudly Kenyan and Indian, our curiosity has always stretched much further. When Shashi arrived in Birmingham in the 1970s, she discovered a city alive with flavours from around the world, where ingredients, recipes and culinary traditions from countless cultures sat side by side. Sanjay grew up immersed in that wonderfully vibrant food scene, where discovering a new cuisine was simply part of everyday life. That spirit of curiosity continues to shape Spice Kitchen today.

Spice Kitchen's Pav Bhaji dish as featured in Sanjay Aggarwal's cookery book, also called Spice Kitchen

Exploring Flavour

We love exploring the flavours, techniques and traditions that make kitchens around the world so exciting, encouraging home cooks to experiment with confidence, whether that's mastering a family curry, discovering Middle Eastern cooking or trying something completely new. Our growing collection of recipes is designed to help every cook feel a little more adventurous, one meal at a time.

Spice Kitchen cookbook by Sanjay Aggarwal, on a yellow background with spices and a pink cloth.

Growing

We've been fortunate enough to win multiple awards, publish two cookery books, collaborate with talented chefs – including the incredible Chetna Makan – and see our products appear on shelves across the UK and beyond. We're incredibly proud of those moments, but they were never the destination. What matters most is hearing that one of our spice tins became the centrepiece of a family gathering, inspired someone's love of cooking or found its way into a much-loved gift.

Akshaya Patra Foundation – Our Charity Partner

More Than A Decade Of Giving Back

The same thinking shapes the way we run our business. From carefully sourcing our spices and creating our own distinctive blends to supporting charities – including the incredible Akshaya Patra Foundation – to community projects and meaningful collaborations, we believe that great food can make a difference both around the table and beyond it. You can read more about Our Spice Expertise, Our Values, Charity Connections by clicking on the links.

And Now Back To You…

We're not simply selling spices. We're inviting you into a way of cooking that's adventurous, curious and full of flavour. A way of cooking that celebrates different cultures, encourages you to get (more!) confident in the kitchen and creates reasons to gather the people you love around your kitchen table. Wherever your cooking journey begins, we want to be part of it!