Ingrid Espelid Hovig

Ingrid Espelid Hovig (born 3 June 1924) is a Norwegian television chef and author of cook books. Through appearances on her cooking show Fjernsynskjøkkenet over 26 years, between 1970 and 1996, she came to be considered the "culinary mother" of Norway, with the comparison "the Julia Child of Norway" often applied.

She was born on Askøy, near Bergen, and grew up in Kleppestø. She graduated from the Norwegian State College for Domestic Science Teachers in 1950, and became acquainted with the French cuisine during a stay in Paris. Upon joining the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation in 1962 as program secretary for nourishment and consumer material, she became part of the country's first generation of television celebrities. The cookbook Den rutete kokeboken, of which she is the editor, is considered a national cook book. Also, in 2008 the newspaper Dagbladet recognized her 1967 book Ingrid Espelid ber til bords as among the twenty-five most influential prose books in post-1945 Norway. Her total publications to date exceed 50.

As the first non-American, she was presented by the International Association of Culinary Professionals, "The Life Time Achievement Award". In 1994 Espelid Hovig was awarded the Knight, First Class of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav.

Although retired, she accepts assignments from publishing companies, and other short term engagements. She was an honorary juror at the inaugural Bocuse d'Or Europe in 2008. Espelid Hovig has also been a political candidate for the Liberal Party of Norway, and has met as a deputy representative in the borough council of Frogner, Oslo. In her 80s, she is considered a national trendsetter for women of her generation who by a large margin are prone to follow her trademark hair style.

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