Hi, I'm Grump! You probably recognize me from Tiktok (@feedgrump), where I post weekly cooking videos. Welcome to my food blog!
About this blog
My blog primarily focuses on Asian cuisine, but I also do some Western recipes. Oh, and I love creating copycat recipes. I enjoy the challenge of deconstructing popular dishes from restaurants and fast-food chains and making them accessible for home cooks.
Here, you'll find all of my favorite recipes inspired by everything I've learned over the last 20 years of my life.
Whether it's a simple Jam and Cheese Sandwich or a more complex Chinese Roast Duck, I've got you covered. And if you're looking to replicate your favorite restaurant recipes like Tim Hortons Chili or A&W Teen Burger, you can rest assured knowing I'll break down every step so you can replicate the recipe perfectly at home.
How I got started in Cooking
I've loved food and cooking ever since I was a kid. I first started cooking at the age of 7 while my parents were running our family pizza restaurant. My brother and I spent our evenings alone, so we had to cook our food most nights.
It started with mainly packaged foods like Kraft Dinner and Chef Boyardee, but eventually, it evolved into making recipes from scratch. In a way, cooking was a survival method but also so much fun!
Experience
I'm mostly an avid home cook but also have experience working in small restaurants and even casual fine dining. I also spent many years helping out at my family's pizza restaurant.
I spend almost all my free time cooking, learning, or thinking about food, whether it's recipe development, reading cookbooks, or just pondering what I'm going to cook for the next week.
Speaking of cookbooks, I'm also an avid cookbook collector! They're such valuable resources for anyone who loves cooking. Check out my cookbooks page to see my best cookbook recommendations.
Update: In October 2023, I quit my full-time office job to pursue food blogging full-time. Nowadays, I spend the majority of my days researching and developing new recipes.
More about me & the blog
Grump is actually my partner's gamer tag. Whenever we played games like the Jackbox Party packs with friends, she always set her nickname as Grump.
My life mission is to feed her good food, and that's how "Feed Grump" was born. When I made my social media accounts, I set my username as "feedgrump," and put my nickname as "Grump," so now, people know me as Grump, so that's how I introduce myself online. But really, I'm Grump'sĀ partner.
My favorite food will always be sweet and sour pork; it holds a special place in my heart. My family didn't have much money when I was growing up, so we didn't eat out very often. But when we did, my parents always ordered sweet and sour pork because they knew how much I loved it.
To this day, I still think it's the perfect food. I could eat an entire plate by myself. It's perfectly balanced in terms of taste (sweet and sour) and texture (crisp, slightly chewy, and juicy). The secret is tapioca starch!
My first piece of advice is to cook at least once daily, whether for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or a quick snack. The best way to learn is by getting into the kitchen and actually doing it.
My second piece of advice is to go out and eat food made by others. Whether that's fast food, mom-and-pop shops, or fine dining restaurants, you'll expand your palette by eating a vast array of food. Be curious about your food, and ask the chef questions if they're open to it (and not busy).
My third piece of advice is to be critical of your own food. Always ask yourself how it can be improved. Did anything go wrong? What would you change next time? Ingredients? Techniques? Time? Never stop asking questions.
My final piece of advice is to read! Learn food science. Knowledge is power, whether through food blogs, cookbooks, or scientific articles! Without understanding how food works, you'll be a prisoner to recipes, never really knowing why certain ingredients are used or certain techniques are necessary.
My favorite website of all time is Serious Eats. They have a huge focus on food science, explaining why recipes work in a certain way. For Chinese cooking, I love The Woks of Life; it's run by a Chinese-American family. They're extremely knowledgeable about everything related to Chinese cooking.
My Favorite Recipes
These are my favorite recipes on my blog.
