E Komo Mai
(Welcome)
(Welcome)
My name is Kūlia. I am very fortunate to be raised in a multi-cultural world. My hometowns are 3 small Islands in the Pacific: Hong Kong, Singapore and Hawai'i; born in Hong Kong, raised in Hong Kong and Singapore, hanai ("adopted" in Hawaiian) into the Hawaiian and Filipino cultures. Hawai'i is my beloved home state, while I continue to wander around the mainland and the world. I just relocated from the frozen tundra of Minneapolis to Sunny Southern California.
I grew up surrounded by food. Being raised in Asia, the expression of love and affection in our family is through food. My father and his family love to eat, while my mother is a chef and her family ran restaurants in Singapore. My cooking style reflect my up bringing and the cultures I was immersed in. My work took me to many parts of the world, my flavors and ingredients reflect places I lived or visited. Chinese, Nonya, part Hawaiian, a bit of Indonesian, touch of Indian, combined with old world English, all blended into my daily American life.
From a very young age, I learned to appreciate good cooking, and the art in cooking, importance of presentation. Cooking is creating art, while eating is an adventure. My true passion in life.
Why this blog?
I started posting pictures of my cooking on Facebook when my Japanese hanai sister moved back to Hawai'i, it was our way of teasing each other and sharing our lives. Many of my friends started asking me for recipes and some suggested that I should write a blog to share my cooking. I was too lazy to do anything about it.
I started posting pictures of my cooking on Facebook when my Japanese hanai sister moved back to Hawai'i, it was our way of teasing each other and sharing our lives. Many of my friends started asking me for recipes and some suggested that I should write a blog to share my cooking. I was too lazy to do anything about it.
I was visiting my college best Friend Matt Mattus in MA. His blog Growing with plants was recently mentioned in Martha Stewart's publication. With his encouragement, here I am.
Open for Hire
I used to teach cooking at Southwest community school. It was an interesting story. I followed my then husband here from New York, I didn't know anyone in Mid-west and it was in the middle of winter. A copy of the Community school catalogue came into the mail one day and on the back of it, there was a statement "Please contact our Community Coordinator if you are interested in teaching". Well... I called them.
When I moved to Minneapolis back then, most people didn't know what really Chinese food was, I decided I was going to share that part of my culture with them. At the end of day, I was a daughter of a pretty famous chef in Singapore
I had an idea how I would show them I was a good cook and teacher. One couldn't taste a resume or plain talk. They needed to taste my cooking, so I made a basket full of small Chinese dishes and went to the interview. I got the job!!! I loved sharing my cooking with the groups. I stopped teaching when my job demanded more travels overseas. I still miss that. Oh... I was featured in Minneapolis Star Tribune Tastemaker by Al Sickerman on May 5th 1991.
Open for Hire
I used to teach cooking at Southwest community school. It was an interesting story. I followed my then husband here from New York, I didn't know anyone in Mid-west and it was in the middle of winter. A copy of the Community school catalogue came into the mail one day and on the back of it, there was a statement "Please contact our Community Coordinator if you are interested in teaching". Well... I called them.
When I moved to Minneapolis back then, most people didn't know what really Chinese food was, I decided I was going to share that part of my culture with them. At the end of day, I was a daughter of a pretty famous chef in Singapore
I had an idea how I would show them I was a good cook and teacher. One couldn't taste a resume or plain talk. They needed to taste my cooking, so I made a basket full of small Chinese dishes and went to the interview. I got the job!!! I loved sharing my cooking with the groups. I stopped teaching when my job demanded more travels overseas. I still miss that. Oh... I was featured in Minneapolis Star Tribune Tastemaker by Al Sickerman on May 5th 1991.
I thought about teaching or doing more with my cooking and contemplated on the different options. One of ladies from the yoga community contacted me about getting a cooking class together. I love teaching and sharing my cultures. I am holding a in-home vegan class next month and I hope to do more. I will be cooking with 5 wonderful ladies. It is a full 4-course meal!
I am going to give this a try and open up to inquiry. I am going to keep this as in-home cooking arrangement since I don't current have access to a commercial kitchen.
I will cater the menu to your request. I will do all the shopping, come to your home with all the ingredients, It will be a hand-on class, you and your guests will cook the meal with me.
Time for a cooking party for your friends and family.
Time for a cooking party for your friends and family.
I am also open to just cook at your home for your friends and families. I am open to suggestions.
Fee varies, depending on the menu. Contact me at kulia.cooks@gmail.com
More about me
Apart from being a good cook, I am a taiko drummer and a hula dancer. Taiko is my heartbeat, hula is in my soul. These activities help me work off some of the eating that I so love.
I also love the art, especially photographs. I started shooting a year ago and am enjoying this new hobby greatly. I am a traveler. I have 2 great traveling companions - Louie and Andy. They are my 2 boys that you will find in many of my photos...
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| Andy loves banana |
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| Boy back in Molokai |
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| Louie has a way to let me now when I goofed a recipe |
Mahalo for stopping by.
Aloha, a hui hou!!!
Kūlia
Kūlia
