4 Chefs Dish Out How They Use Food as a Love Language

Why do you think food is an expression of love?

Kazi Hassan (KH): Food incorporates all five senses and is a powerful way of creating a connection and expressing love. 

Mohd Afiq Abd Ghani (MA): Food comes directly from the heart and soul.

Shanmuganathan Songappen (SS): Food has a special way of bonding two people together. It triggers emotions and expresses feelings even better than words can.

Sherson Lian (SL): Food, especially in Asian culture, symbolises care and love. When we go to someone's home we always bring a gift, be it a basket of fruit or a bottle of wine. Imagine how much further we go when preparing a meal for a loved one.

See also: A Food Lover’s Guide to Kuching, Sarawak

What is your earliest recollection of cooking from the heart? 

MA: My late grandfather was the head cook for the army. I often accompanied him in the kitchen and he would give me advice, telling me to always cook with love no matter who I am cooking for. 

SS: Watching my grandmother cook and provide for us.

What is your favourite dish to cook for loved ones?

KH: Crème brulée.

MA: Creamy mushroom soup with garlic bread, which also happens to be my wife's comfort food.

SS: Crab masala.

SL: A Chinese herbal soup. 

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What dish would you make for a celebration?

KH: A whole spring lamb, slow cooked with lots of aromatic spices, served on a bed of fragrant biryani rice cooked in a mutton stock with potatoes and saffron.

SL: A chocolate brownie that is slightly burnt on the outside but still soft and gooey on the inside, topped with vanilla ice cream and crushed macadamia nuts.

What do you think is the recipe for a healthy relationship?

KH: A cup of honesty, lots of trust and faithfulness, romance as needed, two tablespoons of forgiveness, a dash of playfulness, lots of laughter and a pinch of obsession!

MA: Communication is the key ingredient.

SS: Transparency and striking a fine balance between give and take.

SL: Accepting that no relationship is free of issues. 

See also: On the Pass with Mandy Goh, Executive Chef at The RuMa Hotel and Residences

What advice would you give to someone cooking a meal for a loved one?

KH: If you love cooking, and you love someone, show you really care for that person by cooking up a storm. 

MA: Be honest with yourself and do things with love. 

SS: Cook from your heart and enjoy the moment.

SL: Little details go a long way, so take the time to get to know the person this act of service is for. 

See also: A Food Lover’s Guide to George Town, Penang

Celebrity chef Sherson Lian also shares a recipe for Chinese herbal chicken soup with dried longans, his choice dish to cook for loved ones. He recommends adding in cooked rice before serving, which is how his mother used to do it. 

Chinese Herbal Chicken Soup 

Ingredients

1 whole kampung chicken

1 packet of Chinese chicken soup herbs

20g dried longan

1 carrot, cut into large chunks

1 radish, cut into large chunks

Method

1.  Wash the chicken thoroughly with running water, especially inside the carcass. 

2.  Bring a pot of water to a boil and blanch the chicken for 5 minutes to remove all impurities.

3.  Remove and run through cold water again to rinse off any scum. 

4.  Place the chicken and all other ingredients into a slow cooker on low overnight.

5.  Season with some rock salt before serving hot. 

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