One of the biggest celebrities to come out of the Nineties was Martin Yan. He was the star of PBS's "Yan Can Cook", much like Julia Child was in the Sixties. Where did he go? He's still atound.
Regular contributor Priya Krishna interviewed him in today's New York Times Food section,He now has hos own YOu Tube channel with a modest audience. There are the same fans from thirty years ago along with a new generation of home chefs. He lives in the San Francisco Bay area where the PBS station there KQED reruns his shows.His background is humble. He left his home in Hong Kong to work for a family friend in their restaurant. He was thirteen, sleeping on the kitchen floor and working long hours .A church elder helped him secure a student visa to Calgary where he could attend university.It was at that city's TV station where his career began.CFAC-TV needed a filler so he filled in with a segment on Chinese cooking.The rest is history.
There were other CHinese chefs such as Joyce Chen and Cecilia Chiang who also started around the same time but Chef Yan's exuberant style made him stand out. He took his viewers inside an egg roll factory and into the kitchen of a dim sum factory. He had more access to these places because he spoke the different dialects that make up the Chinese language. Also he showed how to cook straight forward dishes as opposed to more complicated ones. This help draw in more people.As time went by he did introduce more intricate recipes. He built a lucrative career ranging from cooking specials to speaking at schools companies and even festivals around the world.He wrote cookbooks and opened restaurants in China and the USA.He has helped the careers of Ming Tsai , another PBS chef and Brandon Jew.
Martin Yan may not have thhat glittering star power of Julia Child or Jacques Pepin. He does have staying power thanks to online media. He can still cook and do it well.
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