#ChineseFoodiesofIG: Sheena Southam of Chasing A Plate

Sheena Southam of Chasing A Plate

This is part of an ongoing series of interviews I’m doing with my favourite Chinese foodies that I follow on Instagram. Come and follow the #ChineseFoodiesofIG hashtag on Instagram and leave a comment showing your support for these talented folk!

Where are you from? Where are you really from?

I'm first generation Kiwi Chinese born in Auckland, New Zealand. My Dad moved to Hong Kong from Guangzhou when he was six years old with my Ma-ma and my Mum was born and raised in Hong Kong. They both immigrated to New Zealand in their 20s and met and married in Auckland. 

What does home taste like?

My Ma-ma lived with us on and off when I was a kid. She was always the cook in our house as my parents owned a restaurant and would work long days at the business- my Dad in the kitchen and my Mum as front of house. Ma-ma is Hakka and would cook traditional dishes like mui choy pork patty- a steamed meat patty of preserved mustard greens and pork mince but she also embraced New Zealand's incredible ingredients. She'd steam egg dotted with Pacific oysters into a savoury custard and stir fry Greenshell mussels with blackbean sauce. Similarly, my Por-por used to make a stir fried rice vermicelli dish with thin strips of pāua (New Zealand's native abalone) that I still dream about. I haven't eaten these dishes in years but they're the ones that best represent home and my family's migration journey.

Favourite Chinese vegetable:

Gai lan! I crave a giant plate of gai lan stir fried with slivers of garlic on the daily. I love its deep, dark green colour and its crunch. 

Share a food memory:

My Ma-ma sitting on a tiny wooden stool in the kitchen hunched over a plastic tub mixing kumara (sweet potato) and glutinous rice flour to make fan su ban or kumara pancakes. She'd pan fry them into pikelet-like patties and a plate of them would sit under an upturned colander on the table for my sister and me to grab as a snack whenever we felt like it. They were sweet, sticky and covered in dark spots where she'd burnt them in the pan. The food of my childhood!

Cook or be cooked for?

This is a hard one! Before the pandemic my husband Thomas and I travelled full time eating and filming for Chasing a Plate so we were always being cooked for. There's nothing like rocking up to a street food stall in India, Vietnam or Mexico to taste a recipe which the vendor has been making for years and years. But, I reckon I'd have to say cook- I love making people happy by feeding them great food.

Who's your Chinese food legend?

My Ma-ma and Por-por- both absolute legends in the kitchen. I have such clear memories of the food they used to cook for the family- braised pork belly, sweet and sour pork, pan fried flounder drizzled with soy, one pot spare ribs and peas done in the rice cooker. No measurements or ingredients were ever recorded- flavour was created from intuition. 

The secret to Chinese cooking is:

Organisation. I'm usually reminded of this when the wok is smoking and I realise I've forgotten to slice the garlic and ginger to toss into the hot oil. Chinese meals often involve cooking more than one dish and time is always of the essence- especially when it's Cantonese cooking. You're stir-frying a couple of dishes at the same time you're steaming so it pays to have all your prep done, lined up and ready to go so you're not tearing around the kitchen like a chicken with its head cut off (this is me- often!)

Dream dinner party guests:

All of my loved ones around one table. We haven't lived in New Zealand for years so returning home and having the opportunity to sit around a table tucking into delicious food with our family and friends has been magic. I want more of that in my future.

Know any good Chinese restaurants?

We've had the opportunity to rediscover our hometown of Auckland since returning home and I'm loving Golden Garden in Balmoral for its Cantonese roast meats and flavour packed dishes. When I get back to Hong Kong one day my first meal will be at Tai Chung Wah in Cheung Sha Wan - it's a nondescript, slightly shabby dai pai dong which does awesome food. The bandit chicken is a must order!

What does Chinese food mean to you?

Love, family, togetherness, forgiveness, resilience, joy, struggle - Chinese food is intrinsic to my family's story. Nearly every treasured childhood memory of mine involves food in some form- it's a huge part of who I am.