Cooking from Memory

A poignant and deeply personal cookbook from Christine Ha, James Beard Award–nominated chef, MasterChef winner, and New York Times–bestselling author

After losing her vision in her twenties, Christine Ha had to learn how to cook from memory the Vietnamese recipes she’d grown up eating with her family. But losing her vision didn’t hold her back. She went on to become the first-ever blind contestant on MasterChef US—and won. Since then, she has written a New York Times bestselling cookbook, opened the thrice James Beard Award–nominated restaurant The Blind Goat, and become a disability advocate.

Cooking from Memory is her long-awaited second cookbook, a collection of recipes that are nearest to her heart. As a tribute to her mother, she recreates Mom’s Beloved Pho Bò from memory, shares fusion recipes like Viet-Mex Aguachile that reflect her Texas upbringing, and offers classic Vietnamese recipes like The G.O.A.T. Sate Sauce from her acclaimed restaurant.

A heartfelt love letter to her parents, the flavors of Vietnam, and the Vietnamese diaspora, Cooking from Memory contains stories from Christine’s childhood and reflections on the challenges of becoming blind, learning to cook, and becoming the person she is today. Christine’s memories and recipes remind us to follow our own senses and intuition, to slow down, and to savor our food and our time with the people we love the most.