While many professional chefs and home cooks trace their start in gastronomy to their grandparents\u2019 or parents\u2019 kitchens, that was not the case for Lim Tse Wei.<\/p>\n
In the opening chapter of his debut book of essays and recipes, Little Perfections: Eating in Singapore<\/em>, the US-based Singaporean writer and cook reveals: \u201cI did not learn to cook at my mother\u2019s side, or my grandmother\u2019s, and though my grandfather had been a cook for some years, we did not speak of it in the family.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIn Singapore, it\u2019s rare to hear about people who are genuinely passionate about what they do, and so Kitchen Confidential<\/em> was a window into this world,\u201d he explains. At 22, he was uncertain about his future, and cooking seemed like a viable anchor.<\/p>\n Another push came from Singapore\u2019s entrenched attitudes towards manual labour, which brushed against his personal beliefs. \u201cIf you grew up in Singapore, you are used to the idea that people who work with their hands are those who don\u2019t do well in school or aren\u2019t smart enough. I\u2019ve always found that idea incredibly offensive,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n His book echoes this sentiment with characteristic bluntness: \u201cIn Singapore, good sons do not learn to cook. They study hard and go to college and get jobs in nice, clean places with climate control.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"Lim](\"https:\/\/img.i-scmp.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/fit=contain,width=1024,format=auto\/sites\/default\/files\/d8\/images\/canvas\/2025\/12\/30\/d9611b2f-8629-4ddb-8449-c9fe1128f524_1f32a4b4.jpg\" "\\"Lim")
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