Little did she know that 13 years later, she would be a champion on TV, showcasing her cooking skills and in particular, Malaysian cuisine.
That’s the story of Ping Coombes, or as she was previously known, Chin Wan Ping, in a report by The Star today.
Coombes, 35, participated in the 10th season of the hit MasterChef UK TV reality show in 2014 and emerged champion, with a Chinese-style wonton soup and traditional Malay nasi lemak being part of her final competition meal.
Less than two years later, in May this year, Coombes published her first cookbook in the UK, calling it simply “Malaysia” and featuring 100 Malaysian recipes.
“It is my home, where I was born and raised, and the country that helped shape who I am today,” Coombes told the daily in an email interview.
She also spoke of the diversity she experienced growing up, which had helped her in becoming the person she is today.
“I am lucky to be born in a multi-cultural country.
“I see beauty in being different. The different people I met throughout the years have inspired me greatly at different levels and I think that is priceless,” she said, according to The Star.
Now considered a celebrity chef, with the MasterChef title and cook book under belt, Coombes also believes that Malaysia is unique and that “Malaysians need to remind themselves that they stand better and stronger as one”.
“We as anak-anak Malaysia have a great responsibility to be a great example to the next generation, to inspire and to guide.
“We need to stand together in harmony and unity to make a strong nation,” she was quoted as saying by The Star.
Coombes, who now lives in the city of Bath with her husband and their three-year-old daughter, however called on the country to better recognise the great human resource it already has.
“Malaysia should appreciate its own resources and pool of talent more,” she said, according to The Star.
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