I'm an immigrant kid who came to America from India when I was very young and grew up in New York City with a single mom and really was influenced by all of those immigrant cultures bumping up against each other.

I've always had a fantasy to write a cookbook, because everyone wants to know what a model eats.

Where is it written that a smart woman can't also be stacked?

People always comment about my clothes. They don't think a fashionable woman can love food and be knowledgeable and actually cook.

I have great empathy for all the contestants that come on 'Top Chef,' whether they go home right away or they make it to the finish line. It's a very vulnerable position they put themselves in and I feel for them.

One thing that happens when you're pregnant is that as your stomach starts to stretch. It itches! So I have to keep my belly really lubricated. Every morning, there's a buttering ceremony after I get out of the shower. It's really like basting a turkey with body butter.

I really love fried chicken.