Eating Globally: Chinese Cuisine

Authors Cheuk Kwan (Have you Eaten Yet?) and Linda Lau Anusasananan (The Hakka Cookbook: Chinese Soul Food from around the World) reunite to share tales of scouring the world for good eats – and just a taste of home – as they recount stories from the Amazon to the Arctic including Peru, Malaysia, Madagascar and Iceland. Kwan and Lau Anusasananan will be in conversation with comedian and actor Ali Hassan (Is There Bacon in Heaven?). Judy Lam Maxwell, culinary-heritage tourism entrepreneur, will lead with introductory remarks.

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Cheuk Kwan grew up in Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan. His fifteen-part Chinese Restaurants (2005) documentary braids his personal experiences with his love of travel and appreciation for Chinese culture worldwide. Kwan’s personal memoir, Have You Eaten Yet? (2002), draws out a global narrative of the Chinese diaspora by linking together personal stories of chefs, entrepreneurs, laborers and dreamers who populate Chinese kitchens world-wide. The book is the 2023 Gold Winner of Taste Canada Awards (Culinary Narrative).

Linda Lau Anusasananan wrote The Hakka Cookbook: Chinese Soul Food from around the World (University of California Press, 2012). The Gourmand World Cookbook Awards named it “Best Chinese Cuisine Cookbook of the World 2012.” The book weaves together history, personal stories, and recipes of the Hakka, China’s “guest people.” For 34 years, she served as a recipe editor and food writer at Sunset Magazine. She also presents Chinese cooking videos and recipes on the subscription site Grokker.com.

Ali Hassan is a stand-up comedian, author and former chef. He is the host of Laugh Out Loud on CBC Radio, as well as Canada Reads – CBC’s “battle of the books”. In 2023, Ali began touring his latest one man show based on his decade in the food industry, entitled Does This Taste Funny? His comedic memoir Is There Bacon in Heaven? was described by Rick Mercer as “perhaps the funniest and most heartfelt Canadian memoir yet.”

Judy Lam Maxwell is a culinary-heritage tourism entrepreneur based in Vancouver. She is the owner of Historical Chinatown Tours which offers guided walking tours and traditional dumpling classes. Ms. Lam Maxwell, who is of mixed Chinese European heritage and has a UBC Master’s degree in History, also specializes in Chinatowns around the world. She is currently on the City of Vancouver Chinatown Advisory Committee and is a City Heritage Commissioner.

In partnership with Asian Canadian Writers’ Workshop.