I have had a passion for spices and food from as far back as I can remember. I was born and raised in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and as a school girl; I could always smell my house before I could see it. Alighting from my turmeric colored school bus, I would tip toe across the veranda as my mother had turned it into a bright canvas painted with spices, all arranged on zinc plates for drying under the tropical sun.

I used to help my mother ready spices for grinding at a nearby mill, staining my hands yellow and earning the tease ‘the girl with yellow hands’ at school. Much of my growing up years was spent in our family kitchen preparing wholesome meals while trading food stories in our rustic kitchen.

I have worked professionally as a Chef, at the world-class Four Seasons Resort in Chiang Mai, Thailand and the Four Seasons Resort in Bali, Indonesia. When I came to America, I shared my passion for Southeast Asian cooking and culture with a few friends in my kitchen. Many found this enlightening and with my sharing it grew into a formal cooking class teaching thousands of food lovers throughout North America on how to bring exotic and healthy flavors to their table.

I was able to use this passion and author my cookbook, ‘The Spice Merchant’s Daughter’ published by Clarkson Potter Publishers New York, which received a starred review by Publishers Weekly 2008 and was also NPR.com 10 Best Cookbooks of 2008. I was also featured in The Wall Street Journal, The Associated Press, ABC News, The Washington Post, and various key media and radio talk shows throughout America.

I now reside in the Pacific Northwest with my family and personally plan and lead cultural and culinary tours to my homeland in Malaysia including Thailand and Bali, Indonesia.

I believe that cooking is more than just a compilation of recipes; it is a journey involving all your senses; its creation is an enjoyable process bringing gratification to ones well-being. 'Celebrating food is celebrating life! Family and friends', I hold this with great passion.