Charlie Sheen's Fil-Am chef wins $100,000 grand prize, car in TV cooking tilt

The moment she appeared on the January 22 debut episode of the new ABC cooking competition The Taste, Khristianne Uy, 31, quickly established herself as a maverick. From her androgynous looks to her unabashed asides, the West Hollywood resident stood out for being unafraid to stir the pot, so to speak.  She did so consistently, impressively. A personal chef since 2002, “Chef K,” as Uy is known in the foodie community, wowed celebrity chef-judges Anthony Bourdain, Nigella Lawson, Ludo Lefebvre and Brian Malarkey week after week with each spoonful of the show’s required ingredients and category. By the third of the eight-episode contest that pitted professionals against home practitioners, the Filipino American proved top shelf, leaving the judges singing praises to her mastery of the culinary arts.  The March 12 finals sealed Chef K’s superiority when the arbiters crowned her champion of The Taste, besting all 8,500 aspirants. “It’s so amazing, no one could believe that someone like me could win,” said Uy, who took home $100,000, a car, and a path to join author-TV show host Bourdain, whose earlier PBS and cable programs kept her glued to the television, dreaming of packing up, exploring the world, and expanding her knowledge of food, people and culture.   “He’s the reason why I decided to audition for show,” Uy told PNews.  “I’ve been such a fan.  I admire how he travels the world and has such a diverse palate.  He’s quite influential.  I like his rawness, his realness.  He has done what Julia Child has done for French food, bringing food from diverse cultures to America.” She is already doing exactly the same for Filipino food. “My cooking style is California comfort nostalgic,” she said.  “Food must have a certain texture, profile and taste to remind of home and childhood. It should make you feel warm, make problems go away.” Her style suits actor Charlie Sheen, her employer for a year and a half.   “He has an open palate although I wouldn’t call it ‘adventurous,’” she describes the frequent tabloid target’s food choices.  “He likes Americana - burgers, wings and fries, but he also tried adobo and said it’s good.” Uy draws flavors and textures from her childhood then adds “my own twist.”  An example would be her recipe for duck, a French classic, to which she might perfume with soy sauce.  Or she might cook a traditional Filipino favorite, execute with a French technique, like sous vide (cooking in a sealed pouch) as she did with quail eggs for her tapas in the finale. She is classically trained, after all. Chef K studied at the Art Institute in Los Angeles.  She spent half of the time in the kitchen learning “practical skills” to complement the “costing, managing, ethics – everything in the hospitality industry” that defines Culinary Management.   She did so at the risk of displeasing her father, a police captain in Manila, who preferred that the youngest and only daughter among his three children would pursue a career in medicine or law. Celebrity chefs were objects of amusement rather than admiration heading to the turn of the 21st Century, when the Uy family uprooted from Manila and joined the rest of their clan in Torrance, a coastal city in Los Angeles County. Twelve-year-old Khristianne mourned leaving her childhood friends at the all-girls’ Woodrose School in Alabang, just outside Manila, but tightened the bond with her brother, Wilson, now 37 and director of nursing with a Sheriff’s Dept. The adolescent found solace in her guitar and in the cooking of her mother Linda Abad Uy, referenced by the champ in many episodes of The Taste. Uy ultimately prevailed upon her parents to allow her to follow her heart.  She found employment immediately after graduation in 2002 but becoming a personal chef was what “validated” her career choice. “Peeling onions for a whole year at $5.75 an hour working in restaurant made me wonder if my dad was probably right,” she told PNews of her beginner’s misgivings.  Venturing on her own connected her with her first client James Cameron of Titanic fame.  The Saudi royal family and American Idol producer Simon Fuller came next. She realized then that her place in the sun was indeed at a home stove, even if it came with much sacrifice. “Being a private chef means having no Christmas because you’re on the job that day that’s most important to us Filipinos,” she said, ruing how she missed going to all nine Masses of the Misa de Gallo.  “But then I saw a gift with my name on it under the Christmas tree at the Cameron home, and that gave me a sense of belonging, of acknowledgment, making me smile.” The last time she celebrated Christmas with her family was 10 years ago.  She has not been to the Philippines since she immigrated.  It may be a while before she does revisit, with contractual obligations and other opportunities opening since her victory. A private chef may start “at $60,000” to a high of “$100,000 a year,” she told PNews, the top bracket achievable through “10 years of hard work and failed relationships.” Chef K herself has weathered that period and is in a committed union with Brittany Weiner, a nurse, whom she calls “the love of my life” on her website www.chefkla.com. With her prize cash, she plans to buy a house, maybe work on a cookbook.  Just as close to her sights is her favorite foundation for teen runaways, recipient of her and Wilson’s joint benefits touting her cookery. The devout Catholic also supports the Human Rights Campaign that promotes gender equality through humanrightscampaign.org. “I’m a Filipino American lesbian chef catering to the world’s palate,” Uy responded to PNews query on how she self-identifies.  She gives visibility to both the Filipino culture and the LGBT community that continue to mystify.   She values her unique position, calling the opportunity “very important.” “At this time, society is all about diversity.  As a supporter of the Human Rights Campaign, I’m active in fighting for equal rights.  You can still feel bigotry, the way people stare at you (if you look different), and this is rooted in ignorance, which must be changed,” she said. On set in the show that rated up to 5 million viewers an episode, her food did give pause - for positive reasons.  Three “best” votes in the penultimate contest propelled her to the finals. Lefebvre, who seems averse to anything foreign to his French palate, jumped to his feet and gave Asian fusion specialist Chef K a standing ovation in the end.    “She dominated, she has style, she is refined,” said her mentor Malarkey, who selected her for his team. All through the competition, Uy stayed true to herself. “I think people (other contestants) were so intimidated that they overdid the cooking, putting too many ingredients that it didn’t make sense,” she looked back.   “No one was tasting their food, meanwhile all my spoons were gone (from frequent tasting).  How can you serve something without tasting it?  I think they lost sight of the concept behind the show – the title is The Taste, right?  I competed each day thinking that if I went home today, at least I gave it my best.” She cooked with her heart, opened palates and minds.  Prayers helped, she believes.   “I pray every night, kneeling by the bed,” she shared, adding that along with her tattoos is a scapular and a cross she is never without. The Taste cameras caught her making the sign of the cross many times.   “I prayed to God to help me win and if I did, I would give to charity.”   Clearly someone was listening. - Philippine News