Delia and Nigella criticised for 'hard to follow' recipes

Government study criticises Nigella and Delia for making recipes too complicated

Delia Smith and Nigella Lawson have been criticised by a Government study for making their recipes too complicated to follow. The research looked at recipes from five of the most popular celebrity chefs, and assessed them for usability.

Nigel Slater was praised for being the easiest chef to understand, with Jamie Oliver coming in second. Gordon Ramsey was third and the study added that the language he employed was so easy to read that even a seven-year old could follow his directions.

In contrast Nigella was criticised for her 'chatty' writing style, meaning that an estimate of 5.3 million adults would find it too difficult to understand her books.

For Delia, it was the multitude of stages in each of her recipes that meant up to half of people who do not have GCSE level reading and numeracy skills would find her recipes too difficult.