Let me introduce myself. My name is Linda Lau Anusasananan. I know it is a mouthful. Lau is my maiden name, just three letters. People often misspelled this short name. Imagine the confusion when I married my Thai husband and added Anusasananan. It’s twelve letters long. The name goes on and on but it’s easier to say than you think. Let me break it down for you: A-nu-sa-sa-na-nan. Some people just call me Linda A. or Linda Lau A.
I spent more than thirty four years writing about food for Sunset Magazine, a lifestyle primer on how to live in the Western United States. As Recipe Editor and food writer, I wrote food stories and developed and tested thousands of recipes for the home cook. I loved exploring ethnic cuisines, especially Asian. In 1987 I convinced my editor to let me go to China and as a result produced “From China’s Kitchens to Ours,” the first story written by an American magazine about home cooking in China. I also served as a special consultant to cookbooks such as Sunset Chinese, Sunset Oriental, Sunset Wok, and contributed to the Sunset Cookbook annuals and other publications. My articles have also appeared in Cooking Light, Flavor and Fortune, Yoga Journal, Zester Daily, and specialfork.com
I was born in the America but my ethnic roots are Chinese. Although I ate a lot of Chinese food growing up, typical American foods such as chicken pot pies, spaghetti, and tacos were also frequent fare. So I’m sort of an east-west gal. I love Asian foods but most of my cooking experience comes from working at Sunset Magazine. I like to demystify ethnic recipes for home cooks and Western tastes.
I am a member of the San Francisco Professional Food Society, Association of Chinese Cooking Teachers, and Les Dames d’Escoffier. In the past I served as president of the San Francisco Chapter of Les Dames d’Escoffier and the Association of Chinese Cooking Teachers.
Hi Linda,
Firstly congratulations on publishing your cookbook. I have just ordered it from Amazon!
Secondly, I’m a little confused because I thought I posted a message here earlier in the evening but I cannot find it now, so I apologise if two messages from me show up. I have recently set up a website at http://www.hakkamauritians.org and would be very pleased to add a link to your site and even a picture of your book, if that would be ok. Perhaps even a little bio! As you can see on the site, I took lots of photos of food when I was in Moiyan! I am sure the visitors to my site will be interested in your book.
Look forward to hearing from you,
Karen Cheung, UK
Karen,
I love your website especially the food photos and the language lessons. I never got very far with my Chinese classes and can barely remember Hakka words. I hope I can learn from your site. You can certainly link to my site. I can send you a cover image of the book as a pdf or jpg. Let me know what works for you. Good luck. I look forward to reading more.
Linda
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Amy, thanks for the write-up about the dinner and book. Linda
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Great to finally see someone publishing a Hakka Cookbook! I have just started looking into compiling my dad’s own Hakka food recipes…Hopefully will do more cooking about Hakka Food.
The cover drawing of your upcoming book is very attractive..Can’t wait to get a copy of the book!
Congratulations, Linda! What a labor of love. My mother’s father was a Hakka, or Keh as she says it, who was born and lived in Indonesia. I’m sure she and I will both enjoy your book. I look forward to seeing it in print! Will you be in Seattle for a book tour since Alan is here?
Pat, Hope to do something in Seattle. Just trying to figure out the schedule. Have enjoyed your blog for a long time.
We’d love to feature a Hakka chef at the Toronto Garlic Festival in October.
We could also do a Hakka food demo in September at Harbourfront.
Please contact me at Peterm@torontogarlicfestival.ca. We can help to promote your book.
Tel: 416 888 7829
Regards, Peter McClusky
Let me know when I can order the book. Can’t wait to see it.
Sharon,
It is a bit early to order now, wait until October. One seller will be the publisher: http://www.ucpress.edu/9780520273283 FOR A 20% DISCOUNT USE SOURCE CODE: 12M0402 I think there will be other retailers later.
Sharon, I’ve added a section on the site on where to buy the book. You can also pre-buy on amazon.com.