Leyla Hur

The first thing I learned how to make was cheesy scrambled eggs in our tiny kitchen in Hong Kong. I was about six years old when my sister, Hetty taught me how to scramble the eggs, and to add "just enough" milk. She taught me that by adding the milk that I had to "feel" how much to add, in my heart. This was to be the beginning of a life long love affair between food and me.

At eight years old, I created my first four course meal, that included a loaf of bread. I was alone and home, and created this meal for my family.
That was the beginning of my experimentation and mind and taste-bud expansion.

From my earliest years, I have cooked by combining body, mind, and spirit - utilizing those three things combined with my senses. In my mind, I think of an ingredient and match it up and can literally "taste it" on my tongue before it is ever created. This works well for me when I go shopping, and I pick up the delicious smelling fresh ingredients and marrying them up in a dish to delight the senses.

For as long as I can remember, I liked to feed people and share my food with others. I have been privileged enough to grow up in Hong Kong, live in Malaysia, Australia, Canada, and now the United States; and I have travelled extensively throughout the world, sampling the delicacies of many different cultures. Much of what I have sampled and enjoyed, I have also re-created in my own kitchen.

From enjoying rich chocolate mousse on the Champs Elysees in Paris, to hawker (street food) in Singapore, eating an ice cream the shape of the Sydney Opera House in Sydney (Australia), or choosing the perfect fresh lobster for our table at the restaurants on Lamma Island in Hong Kong; good food has always played a huge part in my life.

I come from a long line of "eaters" and "cooks". Both my maternal and paternal grandmothers were fabulous cooks, as was my maternal Great-Grandmother. My mother and my sister are both amazing in the kitchen, as was my Aunty and my father; they have all passed their talent, knowledge, recipes, and tips on to me.

Now that I am married, I bring this joy of cooking and creating to my husband and introduce him to new tastes and help him explore and expand his culinary experiences.

And now, I share with you too the recipes from my heart, my heritage, and my successful experimentation.