Baking Bonds

Cookbook Author Kat Lieu Talks Community and Representation

by Madeleine Ruo

Kat Lieu has been cooking for as long as she can remember, but it wasn't until 2017 that she decided to teach herself how to bake. Her love of baking grew and she founded the Subtle Asian Baking group where like-minded bakers could share and learn from each other.  Since then, she has made the jump to bestselling cookbook author with Modern Asian Baking at Home.

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You are a Doctor of Physical Therapy. What made you decide to switch careers and become a cookbook author?

In 2020, I worked remotely as a school physical therapist and managed my son's remote schoolwork. Compassion fatigue exhausted me and I felt burned out like many other healthcare professionals. Baking brought me a lot of joy. In my kitchen, I could be creative, experiment with flavors, and bring joy to many of my loved ones. Early in 2021, I got the chance to pitch a cookbook to Quarto Books and become a published author, which has been one of my most significant and lifelong dreams. It's surreal to become an author at the age of 38, after 13 years in healthcare. I can't wait to get started on my second cookbook!

Where did the idea for your book Modern Asian Baking at Home come from? 

The idea came from my group Subtle Asian Baking. We have a unique collection of thousands of traditional, modern, and trendy Asian baking recipes. My editor and I thought, why not pay homage to the group and publish a collection of fantastic recipes? I polled group members to see what recipes they'd like to see in the cookbook: melon pan versus pineapple bun, Kare pan versus Korean garlic buns. Both ended up in the cookbook. Recipes in my group inspired my book's recipes; I wrote, rewrote, tested, and retested my recipes multiple times.

From concept to publication, what was the most challenging part of the process?

There was an initial challenging learning curve with writing recipes and I had a strict word count and page limit I had to adhere to, so that made it difficult. I remember cutting out a lot of words and recipes. Recipe testing also took a lot of effort to coordinate as my recipe testers came from different parts of the world. You have to be very organized and disciplined.

After I handed in my completed manuscript, I felt so relieved! What surprised me was the long pre-ordering period. I spent a lot of effort and time marketing my book on my own. It was a stressful period and I don't have the financial resources to pay for an external publicist, which would have cost about $21,000 for three months! So, I'm very proud that Modern Asian Baking at Home made the Publisher's Weekly bestseller list the week of August 8th, 2022. I can toot my own horn and say I'm a bestselling debut cookbook author!  

You founded the Subtle Asian Baking group during the pandemic and it now has over 153,000 members. How did the group come about?

Early during the pandemic, I was nostalgic for my mother's Cantonese desserts and I thought about all the delectable and fun sweets I had on my recent trip to Tokyo. I also tried to perfect Asian desserts like tong sui, milk bread, and Japanese cheesecakes. Back in 2020, there wasn't a network or space online where you could bounce ideas off of other bakers baking the Asian way. I identified a need for a space where I can quickly ask bakers about Hong Kong egg tarts, Japanese choux creme, Taiwanese castella cakes, and gulab jamun.

The group has evolved now into a safe space where we can support home bakers and small businesses, fundraising for various charities through bake sales, and compete in global virtual bake-offs and connect through social gamification. 

Do you find that most of your members are Asian?

While many of our members are Asian, our group is diverse and inclusive. We welcome everyone who loves Asian flavors, techniques, and ingredients. Asian baking is slowly becoming more and more mainstream, with rising popularity.  

Not only have you highlighted Asian desserts with your book and created an online community, you also use your platform to give back to the API community. How important is that for you?

Running a global group that highlights and promotes Asian baking, I understand I cannot be the voice for all Asians. I also recognize I have a huge platform and, with a huge platform, there is potential to reach out and network with others, and motivate others to fund raise for a cause or collaborate together for good. Why not do that?

Baking is so beautiful, coming together is magical, and giving back and being good is so, so needed. This way, I also feel we steer clear of appropriation: we give kudos and credit to the original culture for their recipes and food and try to give back to the AAPIHN communities whenever we can! 

What is your favorite go-to dessert recipe and why?

As I mentioned earlier, I love Japanese cheesecakes. The science behind perfecting it has been a three-year-long obsession and I can make it in almost any color and flavor these days. Japanese cheesecakes launched my love for baking the Asian way, and it's my favorite dessert to eat. I also love that it jiggles beautifully once out of the oven and then transforms into a denser yet still very light cheesecake post-refrigeration.  

Is there a piece of advice that you are glad you didn't follow?

Certainly! When I wanted to author young adult romantic comedies in the past (the early 2000s), a mentor told me I would not sell any of my books featuring Asian culture and characters. I went on to sell 50,000 self-published e-book copies on my own. And, as we see now, Asian culture is hip, trendy, and profitable AF. 

Follow Kat at:

IG: @subtleasian.baking
FB Group
FB Page
YouTube