Standing in the beautiful kitchen that her nutritional empire helped to build, it’s no wonder that Emily English says she sometimes has to pinch herself. Em the Nutritionist, as she is known to her 2.2 million followers on Instagram, recently moved into a newly renovated home in south-west London with her husband, Aaron McFeely, and it’s here that her deliciously healthy – and viral – recipes are filmed for social media.
Emily’s videos have registered millions of views, becoming the basis of a hugely successful business. In the past year, she has released two best-selling cookbooks and has been declared a millionaire, while her gut-health supplement brand, Epetōme, recently attracted a multi-million-pound investment. Not bad for someone who’s only 30 years old.
"I pinch myself every single day that I've been able to do this, just from making videos on social media," Emily tells HELLO! when we meet for this exclusive photoshoot and interview. "It's actually nuts. It’s happened so fast that it’s taken a very long time for it to feel like mine, and sometimes it doesn't feel real."
Inside her kitchen
But real it is, as shown by the magnificent space in which she works her culinary magic. The kitchen, which contains a large stainless-steel central island with 4D porcelain marble-effect worktops and bespoke wooden cabinetry, was designed with a nod to the professional kitchens where her grandmother, who inspired her to cook when she was growing up, used to work.
Her favourite part of the room is the hidden pantry and her most-used gadget is her air fryer. Emily and Aaron, a brand strategist, married in September 2024, and creating their new home has been a labour of love. Before moving in last year, they gutted the property, which had originally been two flats, later combined into one. "It had been rented out for ten years, so it was dated and hadn't been touched for so long," she says. "We knocked it back down to its concrete shell and redid it all."
It was here that the recipes in Emily’s latest cookbook, So Good Express, were created. "It’s the food you want to eat, designed by a nutritionist, but fast," she says "These are recipes for real life, for people who maybe have kids to feed or have a busy job but still want to make something that's nourishing their bodies."
Recipe inspiration
The recipes were inspired by the dishes and ingredients she likes to eat. "I don't cook to try to boost my ego," she says. "I cook to look forward to what I'm eating and how it's going to make me feel after I've eaten it."
The book was her third to reach No 1 on the Sunday Times Bestseller list. "It makes me feel really proud, because I'm lucky that I get to do something I love that also makes people happy. There's a real joy in being able to feed people."
Emily, who has a degree in nutrition from King’s College London, grew up in Bedford as the second of five siblings. Scouted by a modelling agent while she was attending a music festival at the age of 17, she was hired as an in-house model for Asos. But after signing with an agency, she was pressured to lose weight despite already being slim, leading her to develop unhealthy eating habits.
She found a therapist who helped her to recover and quit modelling before applying to study nutrition. From there, she set up her own nutrition clinic, which built slowly until she started posting on social media recipes that she had created for clients.
Thoughts on weight-loss injections
From there, her brand was born, as she promoted a healthy lifestyle that can be followed just as easily by people seeking to lose weight as those wanting to eat well.
Having dealt with unhealthy eating habits, what does she make of the explosion in popularity of weight-loss injections like Ozempic and Mounjaro? "I think it's a case-by-case basis," she says. "I know so many people for whom it's really changed their life, and it can be an amazing tool.
"Quite frankly, it’s here to stay, so it's about helping to guide people with ideas to help heal their relationships with food, and making sure that nutrition still feels fun, and that food is still tasty. Rather than fearmongering, we have to create a world where we're living with it."
She adds: "If people want to go on Ozempic, I don't think there should be shame. It's your body; it's your choice. Sometimes people are almost judged for going on Ozempic, but then they're judged for being overweight and unhealthy with diabetes, so they can't win."
The creation of Epetōme is, she says, one of her greatest achievements. "It’s growing like the clappers, which is amazing," she says. "From a business perspective, to be able to create something and have it grow as massive as it has become has always been a dream of mine."
Becoming a millionaire
Last year, she realised that she was a millionaire. How did that feel? "The first person I told when I saw £1m in my bank account was my dad. He’s always been entrepreneurial. I remember giving him a call and saying: 'I did it, Dad!' and we both cried."
Next on the menu is having children with Aaron.
"I'd love a family. I think we’re at that point in our lives where we think about having kids – and then I'd obviously love to do nutrition stuff around that. The baby book, the weaning… discovering that side of my life excites me."
Emily has just signed a deal to write more cookbooks, and she's also thinking about TV. "I've just started doing YouTube and I love it," she says. "I don’t think people really see my personality through quick, snappy Instagram and TikTok videos. I love the idea of being able to spread my message more.
"We've got a couple of potential series in the pipeline, which is exciting. I would love to do something like going into a struggling household or seeing someone who doesn't feel as though nutrition is for them and showing them what it can be."
An amazing support network
Aaron has been a significant support throughout her career. "The most important thing is that he is my best friend and keeps me sane," she says. "If I'm ever a little bit stressed or anxious and my thoughts are running away from me, he's the person who can give me a reality check. He’s definitely the yin to my yang."
Achieving such success so quickly has affected her, she says. "I feel really proud of myself, but sometimes I get a little bit of imposter syndrome. I think when anyone's grown so far and so fast, they're going to feel like that.
"I've got an amazing support system and I've got an amazing family and partner to whom I can say how I feel. Sometimes, you've got to just ride the wave."
Now, she's working on a meal-planning app with her recipes and continuing her work teaching nutrition in schools. At the heart of it will be the food she loves to cook. "All my life, I know I'll always want to write recipes and feed people in that way," she says. "It's my favourite thing in the whole wide world."
Emily’s latest cookbook, So Good Express, is out now, published by Orion, priced £25
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