THE BLESSINGS OF ‘RENDANGATE’
MasterChef 2018’s ‘that Rendang Lady’ publishes a book
THIS is definitely a classic case of “When life throws lemons at you, you make lemonade”.
She stood by her principles and defended her traditional way of cooking but was shown the door in the famous MasterChef kitchen. That was last year.
For Zaleha Olpin Kadir, MasterChef 2018 participant, the closing of that door led to the opening of more, which led to the publication of her cookbook, My
Rendang Isn’t Crispy, by Marshall Cavendish, one of the largest publishers in Southeast Asia. The cookbook title will forever haunt and serve as a constant reminder to those in that big kitchen, who pronounced with such conviction and authority that Zaleha’s chicken rendang should be crispy AND should be off the bones!
With copies of her book in her hands, memories of being in that MasterChef kitchen came flooding back.
“My mind went straight back to the MasterChef kitchen where it all started. I did ponder and reflect on the moment but it is a very hard feeling to describe.
“I pinched myself when I was approached by Marshall Cavendish, but this (holding the books) is beyond that feeling. It is a completely different feeling. Yes, it is a huge relief and a big sigh that the long journey is over and it is now in my hands,” said Zaleha.
She said what happened in MasterChef Kitchen had definitely taken her to where she is today.
“For that, I am very grateful to BBC, MasterChef UK, the judges and the whole production company,” said Zaleha, magnanimous in her acceptance of where the journey had taken her.
The publication of the book, too, had taken me back to that
day when I saw her on the screen. I will never forget that crestfallen look on her face at the moment that spelled her exit from the reality show.
But the pint-sized lady from Kuantan, who walked tall among hefty chefs as they made their way to the kitchen, was determined not to be defeated.
Sure, she was heartbroken for a bit, but the rallying war cry and overwhelming support building up overnight from not just her followers but also from political leaders, high commissioners and ambassadors, helped her to regain her temporarily shattered confidence. All the while, her family stood solidly behind her.
“I must say I am lucky because it turned the other way round; instead of me being criticised for being eliminated for cooking the national dish and now people are saying ‘stay true to what you believe in’. Yes, my life has indeed changed tremendously!” gushed the mother of two.
“If not for the crispy chicken rendang episode, I would be just another forgotten MasterChef participant,” she reflected.
Since then, there have been songs written about it, sketches and memes about what was fast becoming known as “Rendangate”. It made headlines, points of discussions and recently it emerged, an interesting study was done on “The Curious Case of Crispy Rendang: critical and creative responses in challenging culinary orientalism” by a MA student, Kevin Bathman.
So for Zaleha, there was no time to wallow in self-pity. There were suddenly dozens of media interviews, television appearances, and cooking demonstrations. There’s so much interest in “that Rendang Lady” that she had to open another social media account to demonstrate her passion for cooking.
“There were Singaporean and Indonesian foodies contacting me, those from Thailand and Japan and also friends in Korea,” said Zaleha, who will be doing a tour to promote her book in Indonesia and Malaysia after the launch in Singapore.
“Now my children are complaining that I am always busy, always on the phone and always working,” said Zaleha when I visited her in her Bristol home recently, where she intends to hold cookery classes.
And, yes, they are tired of eating chicken rendang! But Zaleha’s is a family that cooks together, eats together and does everything together. When she cooks, youngest daughter Sofea lends a hand, Aiman, the eldest does the plating and takes pictures for her mother’s Instagram and husband Daud, edits video clips and archives all her pictures.
Time permitting, they would also troop along with her to her cooking demonstrations where she not only shows her cooking skills but also promotes Malaysian food products; such as at the Muslim Lifestyle Show recently.
She juggles this with the supper clubs she organises with her two friends, Nafeesa and Fatimah, under the banner of Malaysian Kitchen Supper Club. Then there are collaborations with a supermarket giant, ASDA, to promote Diwali and Eid food, invitations to network with international chefs, interviews and many more.
The cookery book has always been in the pipeline. Throughout her journey as wife of an expatriate, she collected recipes from home; dangling phone from one ear and stirring the pot and adding ingredients as her late mother berated her for not paying attention in the kitchen when she was cooking.
The recipes in the book, My Rendang Isn’t Crispy and Other
Favourite Malaysian Dishes, were mostly handed down from her mother and grandmother.
During summer breaks she would go back to the family home in Kuantan to collect more recipes and cook for her expat friends wherever she was in the world. But most of the time, it was her family who tasted and raved about her cooking and eventually persuaded that she, too, could be a participant in the reality show.
So, will there be a restaurant after this book?
“No!” was the consensus in the family.
Zaleha has other plans, though. For now, she is just going to bask in the glory of being an author and take lots of selfies! My Rendang Isn’t Crispy will be out on July 1 in Asia and on Sept 16 in Britain.
Don’t forget to get your copy from that Rendang Lady!