Tell us about the time you started losing your vision. “I first noticed something strange happening with my vision when I was 20 years old. I was in college and noticed my right eye went blurry. I thought it was my contact lens so I changed it, but my vision was still the same. I went to an optometrist and after running some tests, he said it was something neurological. Over the next eight years, I gradually began losing my vision in both eyes. It was devastating.” What did you fear the most? “My greatest fear was losing independence. I really missed being able to drive somewhere by myself, do my own shopping, run my own errands and read my own mail. But I learned to ask for and accept help from others, and I saw the generosity and humanity in others, and that was the most rewarding thing. There were days and even weeks when I felt hopeless and confused.” You earned a master’s in creative writing. How did writing heal you? “When I went through my bouts of vision loss and even temporary paralysis because of the neurological condition, I felt very alone. As I began to heal, I found catharsis in writing about my experience. It renewed my love for reading and writing. I was an avid reader as a kid, and I loved creative writing, too. I just never thought it could be a serious vocation. But when I felt hopeless and at my wit’s end, the only things I found comfort in were books and writing. “I wrote about losing my mom when I was a teenager. I thought I needed to have a goal in life and that’s when I decided to go get a degree in creative writing. I believe art, whether in the form of words, paintings or food, helps people understand one another. Art breeds compassion.” Any plans to publish a book? “I’ve been working on my memoir since I was in grad school. I just signed with a new literary agent, so fingers crossed I get that book published soon. The memoir will touch on my journey with food, my vision loss and the loss of my mom.” Have you always wanted to be a chef and a restaurateur? “No. I didn’t even know I enjoyed cooking until I taught myself to cook in college. My love for cooking grew from there. I did want to open a restaurant, a cafe or an ice cream shop even before going on MasterChef .” You won Gordon Ramsay’s heart on MasterChef . Is there any advice he’s given you? “He taught me to stop doubting myself, start believing in myself, and trust my gut more. This has helped me in cooking, in business and in relationships.” Why did it take years after your MasterChef win to open your own restaurant? “There never seemed to be the right opportunity. Just because I won MasterChef doesn’t mean I’m suddenly a great professional chef. The thought of building up a restaurant, running a staff … all of this would be new to me. So I went on to do other things like write my cookbook, do more television, a lot of public speaking and travelling. I was approached in 2018 about opening my own small, 400 sq ft station inside a new chef hall in Houston. I felt the time and opportunity were right.” In 2017, you did a pop-up at Ozone at The Ritz-Carlton, in Tsim Sha Tsui. What did you like about Hong Kong? “Definitely the food, 100 per cent! I love Cantonese food: dim sum, wonton noodle soup, roast duck, roast pork and barbecue pork. I’m salivating just thinking about it. I also loved how westernised Hong Kong was. I think it would be one of the places I could live in Asia.” Are there any adaptive tools you use in the kitchen? “I depend a lot on my smart home device to set timers. I also use it to do measurement conversions, say, if I needed to convert 24 ounces to grams. I also use my smartphone or tablet – that’s where I store all my recipes and I keep a running list of everything I have on hand at any given moment in my pantry and fridge. It’s the equivalent to a sighted person opening their fridge and assessing their stock; because I can’t do that with my eyes, I keep track of everything in my kitchen in an app. “I have a touch sink that’s easy to turn on and off when my hands are dirty. I have some appliances like my stove and oven marked with raised bump dot stickers. A lot of these newer appliances have flat panel controls so there are no textured or tactile buttons or switches to help me know if something is on or off. So these stickers mark certain buttons or levels, and I can use my fingers to figure them out.” What appliance do you treasure the most? “My bench scraper, also known as a dough cutter. I use it to quickly scoop everything I’ve chopped on my cutting board to move it to the pot. It’s also a quick way to clean up your counter or cutting board because you just use its flat blade edge to sweep everything together. It’s definitely useful for someone who’s blind, but I’d use it even if I could see.” How do you plate up? “I visualise how I want the plate to look, then I set about recreating it with my fingers. I like to use contrasting coloured plates, and building height is nice for the visual effect. I also believe less is more and understand the importance of negative space, but I’m not too concerned with it. I also believe there’s a beauty in the organic process of leaving something where it lands on the plate.” How involved are you in the docuseries Blind Love ? “As an executive producer, I helped consult on the perspective of the visually impaired. I want to raise awareness of what it’s like to live with a vision impairment or a disability. This helps the world become more understanding and empathetic, and hopefully things like kitchen appliances, technology and cities get built with universal accessibility and inclusivity in mind. I’m currently filming a documentary, which will allow others to see what my life is like, particularly during the pandemic.”