Prue Leith Calls Out Sexism in Food Industry

has revealed the head chef of the Savoy told her he'd never hire a woman as she would only 'distract the men and curdle the mayonnaise when on her period'.

The South African-British restaurateur and TV host has reflected on the sexism she experienced while working in the food industry.

Prue first went to cookery school in London in 1960 and , but she was a female chef amongst a sea of men.  

And the general consensus among those male chefs, Prue has claimed, was that women had no place in the professional kitchen and should keep their cooking to the home - and for the enjoyment of their husbands. 

The host, 86, revealed that male Head Chefs actually believed women would 'curdle the mayonnaise when they had their periods'.

One chef in particular whose sexist comment stuck with Prue was Silvino Trompetto, Head Chef at the Savoy Hotel from 1965 until 1980, who told her he did not hire female chefs because 'they won't stay because they'll get married so there is no point in hiring them and anyhow they'd distract the men and then you wouldn't get good work out of them'. 

Speaking to Davina McCall on Thursday's episode of her Begin Again podcast,Prue was asked about navigating the cooking industry as a woman. 

She said: 'The truth is because I always worked for myself I never had to deal with what young women still sometimes obviously less, have to deal with in kitchens, which is that a lot of our top chefs after the war were French or German chefs and all the language of a kitchen is very military. 

'You talk about a brigade and what the boss says goes and all of that is really important in a kitchen and there has to be instant obedience but there does not have to be bullying and awful things.

'And I had really no idea about how awful it was because I had never worked in a restaurant. 

'When I had a cookery school, and by then I was getting to know lots of chefs and stuff, and I would ask them to give my students work experience or to employ them when they were qualified and at first they'd just laugh and say "we don't have women in the kitchen".'

Speaking on Silvino, she said: 'I remember Trompetto, the head chef of the Savoy, saying he'd never, ever have a woman in the kitchen and I said why not, what if she was the best chef in the world and he said "no I would never have a woman in the kitchen".

'He said "they won't stay because they'll get married so there is no point in hiring them and anyhow they'd distract the men and then you wouldn't get good work out of them" and I said "honestly, that is nonsense".

'He actually said "no, no. It's quite simple. Women are not meant to be in the kitchen. They're meant to be at home in the kitchen. That's where they belong".'

Prue added: 'So he said "I won't have a woman in my kitchen because at a certain time of the month she will curdle the mayonnaise"… 

'Head Chefs actually believed women would curdle the mayonnaise when they had their periods, that's witchcraft.'

It comes after Prue called weight-loss jabs a 'waste of money' after she 'didn't lose a single pound' while . 

Prue, who announced she was stepping back from the show in January, said she decided to try it after her husband John Playfair, 71, dropped three stone on Mounjaro. 

The prescription-only drug, also known as Tirzepatide, is used for and the treatment of Type 2 .

Prue told the Press Association: 'I tried, but it didn't do anything. I didn't read the instructions. I reckon I was eating 200 calories a day, which I didn't realise. 

'And what your body then does is it simply says, "this is starvation. I mustn't let anything go". I did not lose a single pound. So I lost no weight, although for two weeks I was eating almost nothing.

'I don't think I need to (use it). It's b****y expensive, and I think if it's not going to work, it's a waste of money.'

Prue went on to say during her nine years on Bake Off sampling indulgent treats, Prue revealed she never .  

She said: 'Cake and wine go together. I mean, it's obviously not a diet to be recommended. It worked fine for me. It's only 10 weeks of my life, and it's only two days of every week. It's not seven days a week. For 20 days, I lived on cake and wine.   

'I could have happily gone on doing it forever. I know I would miss it, but I'm running out of time.' 

It has since been confirmed Nigella Lawson will take her place, and will  when the new series begins filming in April.