“Food unifies us as human beings, because food is a story, our collective memory and collective sustainability over the many centuries that we have lived on earth. Food is our history, our continuity and our collective voice. Food is the message from those before us, and our message to those after us. Nothing therefore, is more precious than our collective Plated Heirlooms. This is exactly why I find food to be marvelous and why I chose it to be my medium of expression.” — Dima Sharif

Which brings me to you

At a very young age, I was very fascinated by all things food and was always around my mum in the kitchen when she cooked. As the years passed, I got busy with a whole lot of other things and so the kitchen was no longer something I was interested in.

In fact, during my teenage and early adult life, I refused to cook or learn cookery despite my mother’s constant request to teach me. At that age, I thought I don’t want to be one of “those women stuck in the kitchen”! I thought of cooking as conforming to a gender role, which I am totally opposed to.

However, as I grew older and a little wiser, I decided that everyone has the right to choose what they like to do, and just because I am a woman who wants to live her life fully did not necessarily mean I should not cook. That understanding changed my life and eventually connected us here.

“Always keep a lookout for basic recipes that are open for your interpretations. Then have your say with those recipes to own them.” Dima Sharif

“We learn from the basics, we build on them then we fly once we have mastered them, and that is when we start creating. So make sure to invest your time in the good basics. That is all you need to do to own your kitchen.”

Dima Sharif

“The people who give you their food give you their heart” – Cesar Shavez