Introduce yourself

I was born in India, but I am a Singaporean. My family is a classic ‘rojak’ case. My great grandmother is Hokkien and my great grandfather is Anglo-Indian. We even have a little Arab blood running in our family. Naturally, the food that we have at home reflects our mixed heritage – an explosion of Indian, Chinese and Arab flavours. My passion for cooking grew when I was studying in Australia. I was craving my grandma’s food – the fragrance of her curries, spices and rice. At the ripe ‘old’ age of 17, I started cooking food as that reminded me of home. I haven’t stopped cooking since then – it has become my passion, reflecting my heart and soul.

To me, Home is…

the kitchen. Cooking means a lot to me and invokes lots of memories. Every dish that I put out, I can always hear my grandmother and aunt’s voices in the back of my head asking, “Have you put enough salt? Did you taste the dish?” This is how I grew up. I can never see myself outside the kitchen. Home is where the kitchen is.

What’s the story behind the dish you are presenting?

My dishes use only local ingredients. I was trained from young to visit the wet markets. I love talking to the aunties and uncles at the market and handle the ingredients (especially smelling them). Local ingredients to me are crucial. Cooking should not only be about the dish, it should also support local communities.

About Kitchen Movements

Kitchen Movements, a series of events curated by The Party Elves, provides a platform for home chefs to shine and share their dishes. They focus on self taught passionate home cooks who cook with locally sourced, sustainable ingredients. Kitchen Movements hopes to cultivate a community that comes together over a shared love of home cooked food and the belief in a giving community.