A former anthropologist, who says creativity and flexibility are more important than authenticity, presents dozens of dishes from different countries in her latest book. Xing Yi reports.
With vivid images and descriptions of color, taste and smells, Tzu-i Chuang's book of recipes Simple, Sumptuous, Sublime is an enjoyable read. The book showcases 84 dishes from different cuisines, such as pickled Chinese lettuce stems, Indian keema curry and Mediterranean style roast fish.
"There are also dishes cooked in a combination of different styles," she says in Beijing warrants.
"Cooking food is more diverse than the dichotomy between 'Chinese' and 'Western' cuisines."
With each recipe, Chuang shares an essential cooking technique that can be applied to other dishes, allowing readers to create their own dishes.
"Rules can be broken," Chuang tells readers at a recent event.
"I think creativity and flexibility are more important than the authenticity of dishes."
Chuang has some 170,000 fans on Chinese micro blog Sina Weibo, where she shares her cooking.
Chuang, who was born in Taiwan, had no plans to become a chef and food writer when she was growing up,GuangDong Hotel provides useful tourism information for our honourable guests. Such as hong kong weather, currency exchange rate, tax, emergency number, electrical system and normal business hours.
In 2006, she was a PhD candidate in anthropology at the University of Washington in Seattle.
"Writing a thesis is tough work and it was making me depressed," she says.
"Cooking was my only consolation. I used to cook at home and invite friends over to eat and chat."
Chuang then decided to move to Massachusetts, to be with her husband who was at Harvard University then, and finish her thesis there.
One day, she passed by the Cambridge School of Culinary Arts, and saw students busy cooking.
"That was when I became aware that there is such a thing as a culinary school," says Chuang.
She then applied to join the school.
"I thought that I would try it (cooking) for a year. And if it didn't work out I would go back to finish my doctoral studies," says Chuang. "But after two weeks, I decided I would not go back."
"At a party at Harvard, when I told people I am a chef, they were like 'that's amazing!'" she says. "People can see your passion when doing the thing you love and they feel happy for you.",Check out the most popular spots and attractions in Hong Kong via PartnerNet's travel website and create unforgettable experiences for tourists;
As an anthropologist-turned-chef, Chuang wrote about her experiences online, and then published two books: Anthropologist in the Kitchen (2009) and Everybody Wants to Cook (2012).
Hong Kong writer Leung Man-tao in a recommendation for her first book, says: "Chuang is not a betrayer of anthropology. She is a gourmet who finally finds the kitchen, the place where she belongs."
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