A husband who complained about his wife's cooking has been jailed for life after he strangled her during a row over breakfast.

Ali Akhtar had claimed that his Mauritius-born second wife Mariam could not cook properly and her curry had given him diarrhoea, Bradford Crown Court heard yesterday.

The 54-year-old, who pleaded guilty to murdering his wife at their flat in Ure Crescent, Manningham, last November, was told he would have to serve a minimum of eight years and 107 days before he could be considered for release. But the Recorder of Bradford Judge Stephen Gullick made it clear it would be up to the parole board to decide if he could be let out at that stage.

"On the tenth of November 2003 following an argument when she refused to make your breakfast words were exchanged between you and your wife," said Judge Gullick. "The temperature clearly rose and you then manually strangled her for some time - you said about five minutes - before reinforcing your efforts with a ligature, probably from behind her against the front of her neck. Having killed your wife you then telephoned your first wife and explained what you had done.

"An ambulance was summonsed and the emergency services arrived at your flat, but by that stage your wife was already dead. The killing was clearly the culmination of a period when your relationship with your wife had deteriorated and both of you, I'm satisfied, were equally critical of the behaviour of the other."

Akhtar, who has five children by a previous marriage, told police his second marriage had never been particularly happy.

Prosecutor Andrew Campbell QC told the court: "One source of continuing complaint was, it seems, that he was not happy with her cooking and that he thought he had made a bad choice in marrying her."

The court heard that unemployed Akhtar, who had no previous convictions, had suffered mild depression since 1987, but he did not always take the tablets he was prescribed. In the month before the murder he complained to a neighbour that his wife was nagging him and he also told his first wife that Mariam, 38, wanted him to leave.

When he called his first wife after the murder Akhtar said he strangled her because she told him to leave the house.

When emergency crews arrived at the flat Akhtar told police officers: "I've strangled her about 20 minutes ago. She wouldn't make my food." The police recovered a piece of nylon cord which was later established to have been the murder weapon.

During his police interviews Akhtar said his wife had threatened to throw out his clothes that morning and he claimed his head "went wrong". "She was very bossy," he said. "I lost my temper."

He said he was not happy about having to send money and parcels to his wife's relatives in Mauritius and maintained that she could not cook properly and her curry had given him diarrhoea.

Mrs Ali suffered from diabetes and pancreatitis and Akhtar also complained about having to make regular trips to hospital where he had to wait for six or seven hours.

Barrister Guy Kearl QC, for Akhtar, said the killing had occurred on the spur of the moment after a long and unhappy period.

"There was an argument over what people may term as something and nothing over domestic chores and that argument was the last straw as far as he was concerned," Mr Kearl said.

"He had got up that morning after his wife. She had made herself a cup of tea.

"He had asked for a cup of tea and some food and there was an argument over who should prepare the food."

Mr Kearl outlined previous incidents when Mrs Ali had attacked his client with boiling water, a rolling pin and a shoe.