Yasmin was born in 1968 in Merthyr Vale, South Wales. She grew up in a tied cottage in the picturesque village of Bourton-on-the-Hill in the Cotswolds. Her mother worked in the catering department of The Fire Service College in Moreton-in-Marsh and her father worked as a tree surgeon on the Sezincote House Estate. During her youth, Yasmin did not have much of a passion for food. Her food knowledge at this stage was a very traditional home cooked style with little spice. Yasmin moved to Coventry in her late teens, exposing her senses to the delights and smells of the Midlands. It was at this time when Yasmin had her first taste of curry. In 1990, Yasmin married Farook, a British-born Muslim whose parents moved from India to the UK in the 1950's. This marriage exposed Yasmin to the many different styles Asian cuisine entails. This is when Yasmin's love of cooking really took hold.