Budding chefs cook up a storm with celebrity chef Suzie Lee in Derry for new cookbook

A group of seven budding chefs from Northern Ireland joined local celebrity chef Suzie Lee at the Grandmother's Hands cookbook competition in Derry.

The Grandmother's Hands project is run by SEEN which is a Barnardo's initiative which aims to create better futures for children and young people of African, Asian and Caribbean heritage.

National Programme Manager at SEEN, Dean Walker-McKenzie said: "The aim of the project is to start conversations around food and its pivotal relationship to our identity, physical health and mental wellbeing."

Schools, community groups and colleges across Northern Ireland took part in the competition, while seven lucky and very talented young chefs were selected as finalists from almost 200 entries.

The finalists then had the opportunity to join Suzie Lee at Brook Hall Manor & Gardens in Derry to cook their own recipes which will feature in the Grandmother's Hands cookbook!

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Commenting on the project, Suzie Lee said: "It has been wonderful to be involved in the Grandmother’s Hands project, as intergenerational cooking is something very close to my heart. Intergenerational cooking is so important, it preserves cultures and creates family bonds, even when some family members are no longer with us. 

"I lost my Mum very suddenly when I was 16 years old and I became 'Mum' to my 15-year-old brother and my seven-year-old cousin overnight. It was then I started making proper family meals for everyone.

She added: "Fast forward 20 something years later when I gave birth to my children. The need to reconnect with my culture and heritage was huge. I wanted to show my children their heritage. Food and family are entwined in Chinese culture and as many people know my family own a Chinese takeaway, so food has always been a big part of my life.

"I am now writing my third cookbook and these books are an ode to my Mum. They hold the recipes I grew up eating, what my Mum made for us and what my Grandparents passed on to her, and now I get to pass these onto my children. For me that is so special."