By Christine Yunn-Yu Sun
Social media has changed how we read, write and publish.
Yet another example is Tiffy Chen, whose popular TikTok cooking and food sharing videos are now transformed into Tiffy Cooks, a cookbook featuring “88 easy Asian recipes from my family to yours”.
Chen was born and raised in Taiwan and relocated to Canada as a teenager.
Her recipes are for classic East Asian dishes, such as the tea eggs, daikon cake, stinky tofu, drunken chicken, three-cup chicken, and the famous “Taiwanese XXL fried chicken”.
These classics are turned into easy-to-make dishes using everyday ingredients yet retaining the original/traditional styles and tastes.
It is amazing that anyone at home can learn to make soy milk, chilli and garlic oils, steamed and pan-fried buns, sesame and peanut mochi, and even the renowned “boba pearls” for milk tea.
The cookbook is divided into four parts, with Part One offering everyday recipes to be made in minimal time.
Part Two features dishes to be shared, while Part Three introduces a series of bulk-making, freezer-friendly recipes.
Part Four covers a variety of popular desserts and drinks.
Meanwhile, the author writes about the importance of food, through which we are connected to our roots and traditions.
It is thanks to our love of food that we recognise how similar we are and how our differences help enrich our lives.
The author further shares the stories and rich history behind each dish, including memories of family gathering and cooking with and for her parents and grandmother.
“Food is our love language. By cooking for each other, we are telling each other ‘I love you’.”
Without doubt, food unites generations and brings comfort to households and communities alike.
As Chen says, food “brings people together, regardless of language, background, and culture.
It can help you feel you’re a part of something, that you aren’t alone”.
This cookbook is for both home-based food lovers and those sojourning far away from home.
To borrow the author’s good words: “Let’s make some amazing meals together and say cheers to health and happiness.”
