Have you got what it takes to be a master chef? Yeoh Siew Hoon is thinking of giving it a go.

I have always been pretty useless in the kitchen.

I grew up in a household where my father loved to cook and thus barred all women, including my mother, from this area of the house where he was king.

A man's place, he believed, was in the kitchen.

Now you know why I grew up confused over gender rules. I never questioned why all the top chefs in hotels were men, for example. (Actually, come to think of it now, why is it so? Can anyone answer me?)

Anyway, all these memories of my father came rushing back to me the other night while I was attending Orchard Hotel's Charity Gala Dinner to launch a cookbook by Master Chef Chan Kwok.

Master Chef Chan, who presides over the Hua Ting restaurant in the Singapore hotel, recently bagged two awards at the World Gourmet Summit in Singapore – Hua Ting was named Asian Ethnic Restaurant of the Year and he clinched the Asian Ethnic Chef of the Year Award.

To celebrate his triumph, Millennium & Copthorne International commissioned a cookbook entitled "Chan Kwok, A Culinary Genius" and the dinner featured a menu specially prepared by the master chef.

I must tell you, it was one of the most exquisite and finest Chinese banquets I have ever had, and I have been to a few in my lifetime.

Master Chef Chan does wonders with his wok. Among my favourite dishes were Roasted Duck with Shredded Fruits accompanied with peanut sauce and vinegar, an interesting blend of flavours, textures and colours; steamed live prawn topped with bird's nest and egg white which sort of melted as you ate it; and crispy cod with fiesta sauce which felt like a celebration in your mouth.

The only disappointment was the stewed e-fu noodles with shredded chicken, bean sprouts and preserved vegetables which was a bit soggy – probably because they had to serve 400 guests in one go.

Anyway, Master Chef Chan's story is one everyone loves – the rags to riches kind. He started in a restaurant, sweeping the floor and clearing the garbage. Then the Hong Kong-born native slowly worked his way up, first in a Chinese retaurant in Kowloon, then he moved to Macau, and later Singapore and Perth, doing what he loved best – cooking and creating.

His belief is that you must have a passion for what you do and work hard at it. A good measure of how much you love what you do is to imagine your life without it – could you live without it?

As his story was shared with the audience by Vincent Yeo, president-Asia/Pacific, M&C, I found myself asking, what if I was told I could never write again?

It would be like losing half of myself, or perhaps all of myself. In that, Master Chef Chan and I are similar – we love what we do.

The only difference between he and I is that I too started my working life, sweeping the floor, except I walked out on the job that same day. I remember telling my boss at the time, "I don't even sweep the floor at home and you want me to sweep the floor here."

I must say have no regrets about throwing in the broom that day. I think I am more cut out for writing than sweeping the floor.

Anyway, I am now so inspired by Master Chef Chan that I bought his cookbook and I am tempted to try out a few recipes during this Lunar New Year with my family in Penang.

I am sure my father wouldn't mind me in the kitchen now. In fact, he may even quote from Charles Pierre Monselet in "Letters to Emily", "Enchant, stay beautiful and graceful, but do this, eat well. Bring the same consideration to the preparation of your food as you devote to your appearance. Let your dinner be a poem, like your dress." 


In other words, eat well, cook well and dress well, my friends.

Gong Xi Fa Cai.


The SHY Report
A regular column on news, trends and issues in the hospitality industry by one of Asia's most respected travel editors and commentators, Yeoh Siew Hoon.

Siew Hoon, who has covered the tourism industry in Asia/Pacific for the past 20 years, runs SHY Ventures Pte Ltd. Her company's mission is "Content, Communication, Connection".

She is a writer, speaker, facilitator, trainer and events producer. She is also an author, having published "Around Asia In 1 Hr: Tales of Condoms, Chillies & Curries". Her motto is ‘free to do, and be'.

Contacts: Tel: 65-63424934, Mobile: 65-96801460

Check out Siew Hoon's new website, www.shy-connection.com, which features a newly-launched e-zine with a difference.