Taishan Chinese dishes are her culinary heritage

Although Ho is a second generation Malaysian, she continues to make food from her ancestors’ homeland of Taishan, China. Clockwise from bottom left: glutinous rice dessert, braised chicken with dried mandarin peel, stewed lamb with dried sugarcane and glutinous rice ball and Chinese sausage soup. — Photos: ART CHEN/The Star

Taishan is a city in south-western Guangdong, China, that is famous for exporting people, which is why it is often called the “first home of the overseas Chinese”. In America alone, over 500,000 Chinese Americans are said to be of Taishanese descent.

In fact, dig a little deeper and you’ll find quite a starry line-up of people who descend from Taishan, including Hollywood silent movie actress Anna May Wong, Hong Kong actor Donnie Yen and Australian chef Kylie Kwong.