Taiwan’s rich and nuanced cuisine is gaining popularity, thanks in part to blogger and TikTok star Tiffy Chen. Over the last few years, she’s piqued the appetites of millions of social media followers with recipes inspired by her Taiwanese upbringing in a multigenerational household.
In her debut cookbook, “Tiffy Cooks: 88 Easy Asian Recipes from My Family to Yours” (Ten Speed Press, $30), she recounts childhood memories wandering bustling street stalls sampling noodle dishes and bubble tea, spending summers traversing the island with her family catching crabs along the seashore, and gathering around bountiful holiday spreads prepared by her mother and grandmother.
When she was 12, she moved with her mom and sister to culinarily diverse Vancouver, Canada, for a North American education while her dad stayed behind to grow his business. Then she went off to college in a small Ontario town where Asian food was virtually nonexistent. To quell her homesickness, she started recreating simple family favorites such as fried rice and beef noodle soup.
That newfound passion followed her into a corporate career and eventually led her to start a food blog, and then a TikTok account. Now content creation is her full-time job, with her whole family chipping in to help. She’s traveled back to Taiwan and around Southeast Asia to broaden her knowledge and skill set, revealed in chapters that cover quick meals for two, family-style dining, freezer-friendly dumplings and buns, and traditional drinks and desserts. Her dad, who eventually joined the nest in Vancouver, provided the book’s calligraphy.
Having now tasted her expert flavor-layering for myself in dishes such as Traditional Taiwanese Chow Mein, Braised Soy Sauce Chicken, and savory-sweet Mushrooms and Bok Choy, I fully understand why she’s earned kudos from both renowned chefs and amateur food enthusiasts.
As she says in the book’s introduction, “I am a proud and passionate home cook first and foremost.”
Susan Puckett is a cookbook author and former food editor of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Follow her at susanpuckett.com.
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