BOOKS AVAILABLE IN OUR ESTORE

AMAZING JOURNEYS: CAMBODIA (2012)

LOVE! LIVE DANGEROUSLY! AND HAVE FUN! (2013)

NO PLACE LIKE SERANGOON GARDENS (2015)

WHEN ALL IS DARK, REACH FOR THE STARS (2017)

100 FABULOUS PEOPLE (2020)

Young Maestro Chef-Author (2022)

I have been asked, why this series? In November 2019, I joined ACTS (A Call To Share), a Catholic volunteer organization, for their outreach in the Philippines. We spent five days in Hugo Perez Elementary School, teaching and laughing with kids in one of Cavite’s poorest neighbourhoods. I discovered a hunger in them to learn, a hunger five days could not and would not appease. And I thought of my young authors in Singapore. I wanted them to visit these kids and to write a story together. Then came 2020 and covid 19. Two long years dragged by. And it hit me …. Can my young authors fundraise through a book project?

Yes, My Culinary Adventure is an initiative by my writing foundation to raise funds for needy families in Cavite. Surely there are other ways? Why bring 10- to 16-year-olds into the kitchen, some of whom have not used a ladle in their lives? And in the height of the pandemic?

I wish I can tell you why. Perhaps it’s the consequence of not knowing when we can start travelling again. It’s been two long years. Or when I can visit Adelaide and Sydney again to see my girls, which I always do early December for the last few years….yes, I deliberately chose this cookout in SunRice on my birthday! And I’m glad I did that. Coz in three short hours, these kids had so much fun learning to make cupcakes and spaghetti! And that made me happy! It made me happy to see the joy on their faces when they finally created their dishes and enjoyed eating them! It made me happy when I see many of them saving the cupcakes they’ve made, to share with their siblings. It reminded me of my own daughters, Pam and Pauli …

Now the serious fun begins. Young Master Chef-Author (YMCA). The imprint I created. If kids can cook (well, frying an egg is cooking too!), they can write too! The whole family gets involved! And may I add…..I am amazed at the heritage that is revealed through each chef-author’s sharing.

It must have been a very personal journey for the chef-authors. Especially reminiscing on Remembering My Heritage! How often have they eaten a dish without knowing its origins or the amount of effort and love put into preparing it? From simple yet tasty recipes like Matthew’s Dumpling, Megan’s Wonton, Xinran’s Meat Pie; Meagan’s Steamed Milky Egg Custard, heart-warming soup dishes like Kate Kokomi’s Mee Hoon Kueh and Lige’s Longyan Clear Soup Noodles, William’s Xinghua Mee Sua; to grandma’s own like Abhinayya’s Thosai, Clara’s Hong Shao Rou, Arnav’s Chaat, Avishi’s Chana Bhatura, Chloe’s Mohinga, local traditional like Kayden’s Hokkien Mee, Joanne’s Claypot Chicken Rice and Jayden’s Chicken Rice; — it’s so wonderful how much learning happens in the kitchen! To transfer that learning to their very own book, that’s magic!

What I so enjoy about creating this series is also the Letter from Mum. I don’t know if any mums or dads (yes, two dads did write!) shed any tears when writing that letter. A few touched me and I believe it touched their child too!

Here’s a few I like to mention: “Since you were young, we made every effort to expose you to the wonders of the world and the fascinating diversity of cultures all around us through travels and exposure to different food, as food itself is an experience. We hope to inculcate in you an openness to embrace different cultures and experiences, to seek to understand and to practice acceptance. What better way to do that than through appreciating the food from different cultures!” — Meagan Rae Tan’s mum

“What I want you to remember is our rich heritage and culture are our roots and that this has come about not because we were rigid or non-adaptable but because we adapted, accepted and evolved. I wish that as you grow up your anchor, your roots are strong to support you and allow you to branch out – to acquire, appreciate and assimilate.” — Avishi Gurnani’s mum

“Mom is very happy that you also learned to make dumplings and enjoyed it. Grandma’s craftsmanship has also been passed on to you. People’s feelings about food are mostly homesickness, nostalgia, and nostalgia for childhood. Dumplings are delicious, and they are meant for reunion. Every mother instills the sense of taste in the memory of her child. Once these seeds of feelings take root and germinate, even if they go far, the familiar smell lingers and will remind children of the direction of home. I hope you can also pass on this “mother’s taste” forever.” — Wang Xinran’s mum

“As you came into my life, Mummy was determined to carry on these flavours and always be able to welcome you home with a warm meal from my heart as you grow up. Reminiscing the tastes of my childhood while watching you enjoy the simple fares I can bring to you at home, looking at you appreciating and savoring each spoonful had brought much joy to my heart. Perhaps, looking forward to the many more years to come, maybe one day, you will be the one in front of that wok bringing our family’s flavours to the table for your own family.” — Kayden Chong’s mum

And a particular Letter From Clara’s dad, so whimsically funny that I had to share it here: “When you were around three years old, your mom went on a 2-days-1- night trip to Batam with her “mommies group.” Being a responsible father, I cooked a nice, delicious dinner for you that evening, a simple home-cooked meal. When your mom called, amongst Hmm…now is the taste test other topics, you happily blurted “Daddy cooked Maggie mee for me!” I was shocked! That was not true! That was not Maggie Mee. It was the one and only “Unif Tung-1 instant noodles with chicken & abalone flavour.” I wanted to set the record straight and quickly chipped in “with lots of tomatoes and vegetables!” Well, I suspected that brand and flavour was not that important to your mother at that point in time. I also suspected that I was in hot soup…at least it’s chicken and abalone flavour. Sure enough, when she was back from her trip, rested and loaded with energy, I volunteered to help her offload some of that excess energy. “How could you cook such unhealthy food for our daughter! I will always make the effort to cook a proper meal for her…” Fast forward to present time. Whenever you smell that familiar aroma while in the living room, you will happily announce “daddy is cooking yummy instant noodles, can I have some?”

I am not proud that I introduced you to instant noodles. But I suspect that when you are older and staying up late to study, or feeling down and wanting some comfort food, you will think of the special, one and only… daddy… and Tung-1 noodles.

In this particular order I hope. 🙂
With lots of Luv,
Tomatoes and Vegetables,
Daddy”