A SAN Carlos City-born chef who is currently based in the South of France made a name internationally for cooking Filipino food at the “World Cook” competition in London.
The show, which will be aired in December 2022, will feature 41-year-old Cristina Jade Batusin among the 16 participants.
“The World Cook” is a cooking show streamed via Amazon Prime and BBC UK.
Batusin cooked Ginataang Hipon with Squash and Chili during the panel audition and was able to showcase Bisaya food during her stint at the contest.
Batusin said joining the contest paved the way for more opportunities for her, including an invitation to join Masterchef France, an internship with the famous British celebrity chefs Gordon Ramsay and Jamie Oliver, and more clients.
She urged fellow Sancarloseños to follow her Instagram account @aupetitcebu and like the random Filipino food, she posts which she said will help her once she joins another competition.
Batusin, who is married to Stephane Collin, is blessed with three children.
Her eldest, Danielle, 22, seemingly followed in her footsteps as the latter is a pastry chef graduating with honors in Marseille, France.
Her other children are Gabrielle, 13, and Marielle,9.
She is also affiliated with Amandine Chefs, where she works as a private chef during summer and winter, and owns the catering company Petit Cebu, which serves Paklay, Escabeche, and Lumpia.
She is also pushing Filipino-style Humba and Dinuguan, which are slowly creating a buzz in the food industry in their place abroad.
“In God's perfect time I would love to put up a small but cozy restaurant which I will name after my grandmother, Lola Kikay,” she shared.
She has done a lot of charity work in San Carlos City through the tips she received from her clients, which she preferred not to further detail.
"Anyone can cook but not anyone can be a chef, so be resilient, humble and learn from the best,” Batusin said.
But most of all, one should believe in his or her own cuisine, the ones you ate when you were a kid, serve them to anyone who is not familiar with the food, and eventually sell it, she stressed. (PR)