Chef Alesandra Paut (right) teaching Masterchef UK champion, Ping Coombes (left) how to cook Kadazan traditional food the Pinasakan Basung at My Native Sabah Restaurant.
KOTA KINABALU: If there is one word to describe Sabahan cuisine, it will be “unique” to Ping Coombes.
The Masterchef UK 2014 champion found that Sabahan cuisine has unique ingredients that cannot be replicated.
Ping and family were in Sabah for a week from August 11-16 along with Michael and Helen Oon, writers for the luxury travel blog, My Faces & Places UK.
Travelling with her two younger children, age two and six, Ping described Sabah as a suitable destination for a family.
“I’ve been travelling with my kids, and both of them have such a big age gap and have different needs. There are boundless things to do here, suitable for young children. Sabah is definitely a family destination,” said Ping when being interviewed by Sabah Tourism Board.
She added that there are things here that people will not find in Peninsular Malaysia and is unique to the rest of the world. “Sabah is magical. The people are really friendly, the food that I have tasted is incredible and so unlike the rest of Malaysia,” claimed Ping when asked about her first experience travelling to this state.
Apart from a tour to Manukan Island and Kinabalu National Park, the group had several culinary experiences with local chefs. Ping had a chance to visit the weekly local Tamu Donggongon as part of her cooking session with My Native Sabah Restaurant owner, Chef Alesandra Paut.
As a person who is always experimenting with food, Ping shared that she would write some recipes that she had learnt from her trip to Sabah and share it with her social media fans.
Ping’s trip to Sabah was jointly hosted by Hilton Kota Kinabalu and Shangri-La’s Rasa Ria Resort and Spa.