About

The Girl

Hi there! Petra here, a notoriously picky eater slowly discovering what I’m missing out on.

I grew up spending a lot of time in the kitchen with my family and we mostly enjoyed home cooked meals. In a multicultural household, it was normal to find a mix of western and asian food on our dinner plate at the same time. Think steak with a side of bok choi! 

I am most comfortable when I know what goes into a dish (mystery meat is one of my worst enemies!) and still love cooking at home. That being said, I have come to realise I missed out on a lot of what the Singapore food scene has to offer thanks to my unadventurous nature. Given how big a role food plays in Singapore’s culture, I have been teased endlessly for not knowing my local food. I am on a mission to rectify that.

With control over my own kitchen these days, I spend an inordinate amount of time daydreaming about new dishes I want to cook, the people I’ll feed and the conversations that it will fuel.

The Blog

I continue to be surprised when I learn how few people my age regularly cook at home or how shocked people are when they learn that I cook almost daily. The expectation is that we would rely on takeout or the older generation. This is understandable given hectic schedules and how convenient, affordable and tasty the food available is.

To me, there is still something special about spending that time to prepare homemade meals for family and friends. As simple or complex as they may be, it brings people together. The preparation and the meal itself. It can represent a celebration or simply bring comfort. 

I grew up hearing about my grandma’s legendary curry & kueh’s but never got the chance to learn from her. Of course our rendition of a family recipe (unlikely to be documented and involving a lot of feeling) isn’t going to be better than our grandma’s on the first try, but who’s going to cook it for our grandchildren fifty years from now? I realise there are many other home chefs out there with great recipes too. I would love to learn from them and document their recipes for our community.

So much culture and tradition is carried through food and I can’t imagine losing that. Imagine the smell of that special dish on your favourite holiday wafting through the air, the buzz of family and friends about. Think about what this memory means to you and whether you’d like for your grandchildren to have the same wonderful feeling.

As I combine two of my favourite things, cooking and note-taking, I invite you to join me on my journey discovering what’s cooking all around our beautiful island and beyond, from my little kitchen.

The Kitchen Island Dream

For the longest time I’ve dreamed of having a kitchen island at home. Apart from the aesthetic, it represents a communal space where family and friends can come together. Amidst a bustle of activity, those around it share in their activities and conversation.

It’s not really about the island, it’s about what happens on and around it, the love and community it can represent.

In the same way food forms such a central part of family and friends coming together, I feel that a kitchen island tends to serve as a casual focal point for gatherings. The best setting to enjoy comfort food and intimate conversation.

As much as I dream of having my very own kitchen island, I hope to explore what’s happening in all the exciting home kitchens on our beautiful island. To meet the people in them, learn about the ingredients and methods they use and and hear the stories of themselves and those around their table.