Vikki Moursellas is a cook, recipe developer, cookbook author and content creator whose love of food is deeply rooted in her Greek heritage and family traditions. Alongside her twin sister Helena, Vikki first rose to prominence on My Kitchen Rules, before building a career spanning cookbooks, recipe development, events and content creation.

Much of her cooking is inspired by the recipes and memories passed down from her Yiayia Koula (grandmother), with a focus on generous, flavourful food made to be shared. Today, Vikki continues to bring a modern twist to traditional Greek flavours while sharing her passion for food, family and gathering around the table with her community.

Food is such a big part of your life. What does food mean to you beyond simply cooking?

Food has always been about my family and the memories that the recipes I cook hold. I love that a simple recipe can transport me straight back to my Yiayia’s (grandmother's) kitchen. I want to carry on my Greek roots and the cooking I learnt from my Yiayia, and share those recipes with my daughter. Some of my strongest childhood memories are tied to food, watching our Yiayia Koula cook and gathering around the table with our family.

What are some of your strongest food memories from growing up?

Our Yiayia and Papou grew mandarins and oranges and even now, every time I peel a mandarin, I’m taken straight back to her kitchen. Green beans also hold a lot of memories. We would help Yiayia trim the ends off the green beans with a blunt knife while watching her favorite drama tv show- The Bold and the Beautiful. It’s such a simple memory but those everyday moments are the memories that have stayed with me and always will. 

Was there someone in your family who first inspired your love of food or shaped the way you cook?

Definitely our Yiayia Koula. She was the person who first inspired our love of food and shaped the way we cook today. We spent so much time in her kitchen, watching her cook and learning through simply being around her. She taught us that Greek cooking doesn’t need to be complicated. It’s about good quality ingredients, cooking with love and most importantly feeding people you love. So much of what we cook today comes back to the things we learnt from her.

Growing up in a Greek household, what did you learn about the role food plays in bringing people together?

We learnt from a very young age that food is how you bring people together and still to this day we love to bring friends and family to the table for a feast. There was always something being prepared in the kitchen and there was always room at the table for one more person. We never rush a meal, it was about sitting together, talking, laughing and sharing stories.

Our Yiayia taught us that one of the greatest ways you can show someone you love them is by feeding them. I think that’s something that has stayed with us and is at the heart of the way we cook today.

How has your Greek heritage influenced the way you cook and the flavours you gravitate towards today?

Our Greek heritage influences almost everything about the way we cook. We naturally gravitate towards the flavours we grew up with- olive oil, lemon, garlic, oregano, tomatoes and feta. We learnt to keep things simple and let good ingredients speak for themselves. Greek food is generous, colourful and made to be shared and I think that’s why we’re always drawn to dishes that can be placed in the middle of the table and enjoyed together.

Are there any family recipes or food traditions that are particularly special to you and that you hope to pass on?

Most of the classic Greek recipes we’ve been cooking for years were handed down to us by our Yiayia. They’re tied to so many memories of growing up and gathering around the table as a family- recipes like dolmades, yemista and spanakopita. What’s really important to us is keeping those recipes alive and passing them on to the next generation. We want our children to grow up knowing these flavours and traditions and to have that same feeling of home when they cook them. Even the simplest recipe can carry so much history and meaning.

Where do you find inspiration when creating new recipes?

It comes from a combination of memory and seasonality. A lot of our inspiration starts with the food we grew up eating and the flavours we know so well from Yiayia’s kitchen. We often take a traditional Greek dish and think about how we can give it a little modern twist or bring together ingredients in a way we haven’t tried before.

We are inspired by what’s in season, sometimes an ingredient will catch our eye and the recipe grows from there. And, of course, travelling to Greece, eating out and discovering new flavours always sparks ideas.

What excites you more: discovering a new ingredient or putting your own spin on a familiar dish?

I think it’s probably putting our own spin on a familiar dish. There’s something really special about taking a recipe that has been part of your life forever and finding a new way to enjoy it. We love keeping the essence of a traditional Greek dish, but adding a little twist or bringing in an unexpected ingredient.That said, discovering a new ingredient is always exciting too, especially when you start thinking about how you can bring it into the flavours we already love.

When you’re in the kitchen, how much of your cooking is planned and how much comes down to instinct?

I would say it’s a real mix of both. We definitely plan when we’re developing recipes, especially when we are working on a cookbook or for a client, but once we’re in the kitchen, instinct takes over quite a lot.

Growing up cooking with Yiayia, we learnt to trust our senses and tasting as we go, adjusting seasoning, knowing when something needs a little more olive oil or lemon without necessarily measuring everything. For us, cooking isn’t always about following a recipe exactly. It’s about understanding the ingredients and trusting your instincts.

What makes a recipe feel uniquely yours?

A recipe feels uniquely mine when it has a sense of where it has come from. So much of our cooking is rooted in the food we grew up eating with our family, particularly the recipes we learnt from Yiayia, but we’re always adding our own experiences and ideas to them. It might be a little take on a traditional dish, a combination of flavours we love or simply the way we have learnt to cook it over the years. 

Do you see cooking as a creative outlet? What role does creativity play in the way you approach food?

Absolutely. Cooking is one of our biggest creative outlets. We love that you can start with a few simple ingredients and turn them into something completely different through flavour and texture. Creativity for us is also about not being afraid to experiment while still respecting where the food comes from. We are always thinking about how we can take the flavours and techniques we grew up with and make them our own.

Did you always imagine having a career centred around food?

Food was always a huge part of my life, but I never imagined it would become my career. Growing up, cooking was simply part of everyday life, it was how we connected with our family, especially through the recipes we learnt from our Yiayia. It was really our experience on My Kitchen Rules that opened our eyes to the possibility of building a career around something we genuinely loved.

What started as a passion for cooking together has grown into cookbooks, recipe development, events and content creation. Looking back, it feels like a very natural journey, even though it was never something we originally planned.

When did you first realise that people were connecting with not just your recipes, but the stories behind them?

I think we started to really realise it through My Kitchen Rules, when people connected with us as twin sisters and with the family and Greek food we were sharing. But it became even more apparent when we started writing our cookbooks and sharing the stories behind the recipes.

People would tell us that a particular dish reminded them of their own Yiayia, their mum or gathering around the table with their family. That’s when we realised that food can be so much more than a recipe- it can carry memories, traditions and a sense of home.

What has surprised you most about building a career as a food creator?

I think what has surprised me the most is just how far something that started as a love of cooking together could take us. We never imagined that our family recipes and the food we grew up with would connect with so many people. We have had people tell us that cooking one of our recipes reminded them of their own family or brought back memories of home. That’s something we never expected, and it’s probably the most rewarding part of what we do.

What do you love most about sharing your recipes and cooking with your community?

What I love the most is the connection that comes from sharing food. For us, food has always been about family, bringing people together and creating memories around the table, so it’s really special to be able to share that with our community.

We love seeing people cook our recipes in their own kitchens, put their own spin on them and then share them with their families and friends. There’s something really beautiful about knowing that recipes that have been passed down to us are now being passed on to someone else.

How do you think social media has changed the way we discover, share and engage with food?

It’s made food feel much more personal and interactive. We don’t just share a finished recipe-  we can share the story behind it, show people how we make it and have conversations with our community. We love that people can cook one of our recipes, tag us and tell us about their experience. It feels like a much more immediate and genuine connection. At the same time, I think it’s important not to lose sight of the stories and traditions behind food. Social media moves so quickly, but some recipes have been around for generations and those are the ones we really want to keep sharing.

When someone cooks one of your recipes, what do you hope they take away from the experience?

I hope they take away more than just a delicious meal. I hope they feel a sense of connection, whether that’s to their own family, to Greek food or the culture. So many of our recipes come from memories of cooking with our Yiayia and gathering around the table as a family, and we would love for people to create those same kinds of memories in their own homes. If someone cooks one of our recipes and it becomes something they make for their own family for years to come, that would mean so much to us.

You’re constantly stirring, tossing, searing and moving between recipes. What do you look for in cookware that can keep up with you?

For me, cookware needs to be practical, reliable and able to keep up with the way I cook. I am constantly moving between recipes, so having cookware that heats evenly, is responsive and can handle everything from a gentle simmer to a really good sear is so important. I also love versatility, I cook everything from quick family recipes to big Greek feasts, so I need cookware that I can rely on day after day. When you’re cooking as much as I do, you want cookware that makes the process easier and lets you focus on the food rather than the equipment.

How important is durability when choosing the tools and cookware you use every day?

Very important. I’m in the kitchen every day, whether I’m developing recipes, cooking for my family or preparing for a shoot, so my cookware gets a lot of use. I want pieces that can stand up to that and continue performing well over time. For me, durability is also about investing in quality pieces that I can rely on. I don’t want cookware that’s just beautiful when you first buy it. I want something that becomes part of my kitchen and that I reach for again and again.

Are there any kitchen essentials that have earned a permanent place in your cooking routine?

Definitely. A good non-stick pan is probably one of my everyday essentials. I use it for everything from eggs and pancakes to searing, sautéing and quick family recipes, so having one that I can rely on makes such a difference. A good saucepan, a large pot and a sharp chef’s knife are essentials I’m constantly reaching for everyday. I tend to keep my kitchen quite practical, I would rather have a few really reliable pieces that I use all the time than lots of things sitting in the cupboard.

What do you think separates good cookware from great cookware, particularly when you’re using it day in and day out?

For me, great cookware is the kind you don’t have to think twice about. It heats evenly, feels good in your hand, is easy to use and consistently gives you a good result, whether you’re cooking a quick breakfast or preparing a family meal. When I’m using cookware every day, those little things really matter- how evenly it cooks, how well it holds up, how easy it is to clean and whether you can trust it to perform every time.

After spending so much time in the kitchen, what qualities do you value most in a great pan?

I really value even heat, durability and versatility in a great pan. I want something that heats quickly and evenly, has a good weight to it and feels comfortable to use, especially when I’m cooking for long periods. I also love a pan that can genuinely do it all- from sautéing vegetables and making a sauce to getting a really good sear. And because I use my cookware so often, easy cleaning is a big one for me.

Food has taken you from your family kitchen to television, publishing and creating content for a huge community. Looking back, what has the journey taught you about your relationship with food?

I think the biggest thing it’s taught me is that food has always been about so much more than cooking for me. Growing up, it was about family, tradition and those everyday moments around the table. I didn’t realise at the time how much those experiences would shape the way I cook and the way I share food today.

From My Kitchen Rules to writing cookbooks and creating content, I have learnt that food has this incredible ability to connect people. It can bring back memories, introduce people to different cultures and create new traditions within their own families. It’s also made me appreciate just how important it is to keep those family recipes and stories alive. The more I share them, the more I realise that I’m not just preserving my own family’s food traditions- I’m helping pass them on and hopefully inspiring other people to create their own memories around food.

After everything you’ve experienced, what is it about food and cooking that continues to excite and inspire you today?

For me, it’s the endless possibility. I can have an idea for a dish in the morning and by the afternoon be in the kitchen testing it, changing things and seeing where it takes me. I love that cooking allows me to be creative but also keeps me learning.

Finally, what is one dish you could cook again and again and never get tired of?

It would be spanakopita. I could honestly eat it any time and I never get tired of making it. There’s something about the combination of flaky pastry, spinach, fresh herbs, feta and plenty of olive oil that just never gets old. It’s also one of those dishes that I love experimenting with, changing the shape or playing with the filling.