My cuisine gurus

Here you will find photos of almost everybody who taught me to cook between 2007 and 2009, organized by countries with descriptions when you mouse over the images, and links to their websites if available. If you see something you like, post a comment and I’ll try to share recipes as soon as possible!

cozy cafe staff in kathmandu, who taught me nepali and tibetan dishes blu cheez staff in chandigarh, india, where i learned the magic and simplicity of indian spices while cooking tandoori, mughlai and punjabi cuisine. catherine in calangute, sharing portugese-influenced goan food. monolita in kochi, sharing keralan and bengali delights.

ferina and mom in medan, serving up coconut/lemongrass/turmeric laced fish and chicken, and my favourite indonesian dessert: rujak (chunks of fruits and cucumber covered in a tamarind/chili/peanut paste/sauce aunt marta with assistant/host jeanny, serving a number of delicious dishes and snacks in jakarta, indonesia sondang in jakarta, with some spicy rendang sultan in jakarta, indonesia, teaching commercial mie goreng aceh, minus the marijuana traditionally mixed in awi in jakarta, master of martabak (i like the sweet one, like a buttered pancake filled with chocolate, condensed milk and peanut, folded over itself so the chocolate can melt
ying, jumpa, and rai, who showed me a dizzying array of thai dishes available at their foodstall in sukhumvit 95, bangkok thailand thong yoya and soin, who proudly taught me central thai food in bangkok with a big smile yupin, serving up green mango, papaya, banana salads and more rung in ubon, thailand, serving up bbq fish and chicken
yin, my host and provider of home-style hong kong food amun, roasting up goose, chicken, pork and bbq pork in hong kong hung,hong kong dim sum chef who showed a lot of skill and patience in letting me enter and practice in his kitchen jackie fung in hk, who spent countless hours training and teaching me dim sum
hu guolin, du ya shen and son he jia ing, who taught me to make harbin-style dumplings in chengdu, china zhong mei, mother of the phoenix, who taught me to cook fragrant frog legs and other local specialties in changde, hunan province, china aunt ming e in changde, who shared incredible smoked pork, baby lotus, and spicy crayfish recipes
yukiko in itami, transported 80% of her kitchen and sauces to another friend's place to teach me late into the night slicing soba with Hiroyuki, north of osaka, japan The staff of Dalhangari, led by Hyun Ok, who graciously took me into their kitchen for a few days and taught me a lot of fundamental korean homestyle dishes, including kimchi! :)
young soo kim in seoul, experimenting with new korean recipes and fish from afar hailey, seoul's smiley new master of the korean pancake flip! hyunjoo and bella, guri gurus of bibimbap and dwen jang jigae (soybean paste soup/stew) sue from seoul, who came all the way out to my host's place early sunday morning, went to the market, taught me a masterful soft tofu clam soup (sundubu jigae), and back to the subway in only 2 hours! chang eunsook and kim sok ja, kindergarten cooks in busan :)
little margi in roma, who shared a delicious dish from her mom's collection, in between insults and fun jokes crazyman valerio in roma, who shared a number of pasta dishes with me terzo cerchio in istia, where agostina shared her secrets to great tuscan sauces, anna taught me how to make fresh egg pasta and gnocchi, and danielle showed me how he grills steaks that could feed a village adam in batignano, who found me a restaurant to learn in, taught me italian food etiquette, do's and don't's, and some great dishes to boot
mama vassiliki in zitsa greece, preparing delicious local dishes, including my favourite rabbit with walnut/garlic sauce, and the indespensible staple: feta cheese!! giota in athens, who enjoys preparing yuvetsi and other classic recipes, as long as all guests remain in the kitchen while she cooks marina's mamma zoe, who had great fun with me in the kitchen, teaching me traditional recipes and sharing stories without using words marina in athens, who was very eager to find authentic greek (not turkish or other mediterranean) recipes for me to learn, from family, friends, and herself!
mama samira in tunis, who shared numerous recipes during ramadan mahmoud, aspiring tunisian chef and food enthusiast fatma in tunis, who participated in an incredible culinary exchange with me over a number of days mama yesmina, sharing succulent tunisian specialties youssef in marrakech, who snuck me into his workplace in the evenings to teach me some moroccan mysteries
Gaby with her heavenly papas a la huancaina in lima ivette con sus papas rellenas en lima mama peti y susana con causa, tiradito y amor en lima señor ceviche, peter con pescado en peru mama pocha y eliana con purés en colores en callao