{"id":8836,"date":"2011-05-12T18:05:41","date_gmt":"2011-05-12T18:05:41","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2025-10-15T13:36:58","modified_gmt":"2025-10-15T13:36:58","slug":"the-stiletto-chef-candice-kumai","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/asiancemagazine.com\/?p=8836","title":{"rendered":"The Stiletto Chef \u2013 Candice Kumai"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>Candice Kumai captured our interest when she first aired on the first season of Top Chef darting around the kitchen in her stilettos, hence earning the name \u201cstiletto chef.\u201d  Hailing from a small town in San Diego, Candice\u2019s exotic Japanese and American heritage landed her a decade long gig as former model that later attended the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu and turned into a celebrity chef and television hostess for shows such as Lifetime\u2019s \u201cCook Yourself Thin,\u201d and TLC\u2019s \u201c Home Made Simple.\u201d  Her latest projects are promoting her new cookbook for the everyday woman called \u201cPretty Delicious\u201d where she shares her favorite healthy recipes to help you lose weight without sacrificing taste, and travelling around the country as spokesperson and judge for Woodbridge Wines\u2019 program \u201cGiving through Growing\u201d which awards over $40,000 in grants to 4 gardening projects that give back to the community and promote healthy living and fresh produce.  Candice shares with Asiance her secrets to maintaining a balanced life with an insane schedule and how she eats her way to happiness and finds support from the community.<\/em><\/p>\n<h3>ASIANCE: How has your Asian background influenced your style of cooking? <\/h3>\n<p><b>Candice:<\/b> I didn\u2019t even notice until I was in Culinary school in my second term. I noticed we used pickling, daikon radish, plums, and I realized I already knew about a lot of these ingredients from my mom and my cultural upbringing.  When I was younger, I didn\u2019t really listen to my mom about eating healthy, because every kid wants to rebel. I wanted to eat peanut butter &#038; jelly sandwiches, chicken tenders.  It wasn\u2019t until later that I learned the value of what my mom taught me with soba noodles, and rice and making incredible Japanese meals that were second nature to me when I was a kid and now they obviously come out. When I\u2019m cooking and you\u2019ll see in my cookbook, I have mom\u2019s gyoza, miso glazed salmon, soba noodles with edamame and these are very influential in my everyday life now.<\/p>\n<p><iframe src=\"http:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/14011825?title=0&amp;byline=0&amp;portrait=0\" width=\"400\" height=\"220\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/vimeo.com\/14011825\">CK_COOKING_FRESH<\/a> from <a href=\"http:\/\/vimeo.com\/user4459158\">CEEVEE<\/a> on <a href=\"http:\/\/vimeo.com\">Vimeo<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h3>ASIANCE: What do you feel are the main differences between preparations, dishes, and ingredient selection between male &#038; female celebrity chefs? <\/h3>\n<p><b>Candice:<\/b> I think everyone has their own style and the best thing about being a chef is incorporating your own style into your cooking.  Obviously everyone has a different audience as well.  It\u2019s really nice to see everybody stay true to who they are and what\u2019s in their realm of the cooking space in the world of food.  It\u2019s really inspiring to see other people cook, like I don\u2019t know a lot about cooking Italian because I\u2019m not Italian, but it\u2019s really inspiring to see other people I went to school with cook in their style.  It\u2019s really cool to see everyone stick to their guns and hone in on what they know &#038; love and also learn from each other as well.<\/p>\n<div class=\"pullquote\">\n<div class=\"pullquoteTop\">\n<blockquote><p>\nI am inspired by other Asian women. I feel like we\u2019re sisters. We all have the same upbringing and hard working strict Asian moms, who always taught us how to live a very good life.  We need to learn to stick together.  I\u2019ve seen what we can do.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<div class=\"pullquoteAttribute\">Candice Kumai<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h3>ASIANCE: How do we \u201ccook ourselves thin\u201d? <\/h3>\n<p><b>Candice:<\/b> It\u2019s more about making small lifestyle changes that make a big difference.  You really have to take it one day at a time, be more aware of what you\u2019re consuming every day.  Look over the package and see what you\u2019re eating.  If you\u2019re nuking up a frozen lean meal look at the package and see what ingredients are in there.  It\u2019s really about taking control over what you\u2019re consuming and cook your own recipes and eat unprocessed foods and try to eat wholesome real foods again.  I often try to do this 30 day food benefit challenge to eat unprocessed foods and people think it\u2019s the hardest thing in the world but once you get the hang of it, it\u2019s not difficult at all.  You really have to take it very seriously.  Because often times people will be diagnosed with something and sadly that\u2019s when they make this sudden lifestyle change.  Instead of having to wait for bad news, why not change your lifestyle now so you never have to see that day come.  I find that breaks my heart and I never want to come to that day with my own parents or my sister. I just want everyone to be aware that everything is preventable through diet and all you have to do is make conscious changes to your everyday life.  Be aware of consumption of processed foods or high corn syrup and tons of chemicals and processed ingredients can lead to health issues down the line.  If you\u2019re responsible for your family\u2019s diet and nutrition why not take care of that and not only cook yourself thin, but why not cook yourself happy and healthy, and the same for your family.  Everyone has to be aware of where their food is coming from that\u2019s really where we\u2019re at now. People tend to be really confused and lazy.  I\u2019ve come to the conclusion that it has to because I grew up with a really healthy Japanese mom and for years I shot episodes with families across the US. I\u2019ve slowly found where the missing links are, and a lot of them are in sheer laziness and confusion and so I\u2019ve come to the conclusion that if I make it fun and engaging for people to want to make these lifestyle changes, then sometimes they listen. That\u2019s the purpose of Pretty Delicious to get people\u2019s attention where they can still live this fab life and still have a healthy lifestyle.<\/p>\n<h3>ASIANCE: How has your modeling background shaped your diet and recipes? <\/h3>\n<p><b>Candice:<\/b> It\u2019s a great question because a lot of people want to know what models eat.  When I was modeling full time I didn\u2019t really eat anything except frappuccinos, diet coke, maybe a handful of nuts but now that I know what proper nutrition is and being a fit model for over a decade, people tend to be inspired by how I stayed the same size for over 10 years.  Eat everything in moderation. It\u2019s being aware, and keeping it balanced.  I do exercise 4-5 times per week.  If I can\u2019t exercise one day I won\u2019t eat as much or will exercise longer the next day. I just have to be aware of how to balance it out.  In my book I mention a lot of \u201cfoods with benefits\u201d. There is a chart and that is how I can keep myself on tract, I won\u2019t consume anything that won\u2019t benefit my body. I taught people to hone in on these \u201cFWB\u2019s.\u201d  Like if you eat a bag of chips, what are you going to get out of it? You won\u2019t feel very vibrant or healthy but if you ate some trail mix or Swiss chard that has nutrients in it, you\u2019re going to feel a lot happier. That saying \u2018you are what you eat\u2019, I always think about. I want to be vibrant, fresh, lean, and those are the things I think about every day.<\/p>\n<h3>ASIANCE: What projects are you working on? <\/h3>\n<p><b>Candice:<\/b> I am writing a bunch of recipes for different lifestyle publications.  I have a new TV show in development, and I try to work on different TV shows that can make positive changes in people\u2019s lives. I see a much more philanthropic side of myself.  Also, I am the spokesperson for Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi Giving Through Growing program, which will be providing four grants totaling $40,000 to individuals with an idea for a community garden project. It\u2019s free to apply, the deadline is May 22 and the website is: http:\/\/garden.robertmondavi.com\/<br \/>\nMy blog is www.stilettochef.com where people can log in to see what I\u2019m up to. <\/p>\n<h3>ASIANCE: Tell me a bit about your new book. <\/h3>\n<p><b>Candice:<\/b> When I was on Cook Yourself Thin on Lifetime that\u2019s what inspired me to do this book.  All the women on the show were losing weight and getting healthy. They made me see that there was so much more than being a TV food host.  They inspired me to become a better host by helping others to change their life which is not just cooking and hosting but helping people to change their lives. <\/p>\n<div class=\"imgRight\">\n<div><a rel=\"lightbox[picture]\" href=\"http:\/\/www.asiancemagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/legacy\/201105_CandaceKumai_pic1.jpg\" title=\"Candice's Paella\"><img decoding=\"async\" border=\"0\" width=\"300\" src=\"http:\/\/www.asiancemagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/legacy\/201105_CandaceKumai_pic1.jpg\" alt=\"Candice's Paella\" \/><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"imgCaption\">Candice&#8217;s Paella<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<h3>ASIANCE: What are your favorite recipes in the book? <\/h3>\n<p><b>Candice:<\/b> The crab cakes, the strawberry and walnut spinach salad.  It\u2019s a naturally fat free dressing.  There\u2019s a great balance between sweet, savory, and crunch.  I think people need to know how to make great food at home.  You shouldn\u2019t just need to dine out to get wonderful food.  You should be able to get 5-6 great meals at home.  You can change your life without a crazy diet plan. You just have to eat better food and make better choices.  The book is sort of a best friend category_ide to getting healthy and starting to cook again.  I couldn\u2019t have done this without sweets.  I\u2019m a huge fan of anything chocolate. We only use dark chocolate.  It helps with anti aging and has anti oxidants.  The pecan banana chocolate cookies are one of the favorites. Bananas are a great way to add moisture instead of using butter.<\/p>\n<h3>ASIANCE: Who has been your biggest inspiration? <\/h3>\n<p><b>Candice:<\/b> I am inspired by other Asian women. I have my mom\u2019s friends. I have many Vietnamese, Chinese and Filipino friends.  I feel like we\u2019re sisters. We all have the same upbringing and hard working strict Asian moms, who always taught us how to live a very good life.  They taught you to always take pride in what you do, I learned that we all need to support each other in what we do.  I love that I can share this book and the cooking that my mother taught me with other Asian women as well.  We need to learn to stick together.  I\u2019ve seen what we can do.  I think it\u2019s magical when we can all come together, and man we are some smart girls.  I\u2019m very proud to be half Asian, and I hope that other Asian women can be inspired by me and we can all help each other to learn and support each other in our community.  My parents are great examples of altruistic and loyal people.  When you\u2019re growing up, you\u2019re really blind to how wonderful and supportive your parents are.  They inspired us to do great things with our lives, even though when I was young, I hated some of the things my mom made me do like extra homework. <\/p>\n<h3>ASIANCE: For more information on Candice and her projects please visit: <\/h3>\n<p>www.candicekumai.com<br \/>\nwww.stilettochef.com<br \/>\nhttp:\/\/garden.robertmondavi.com\/<br \/>\n<iframe title=\"Pretty Delicious: Lean and Lovely Recipes for a Healthy, Happy New You: A Cookbook\" type=\"text\/html\" width=\"800\" height=\"550\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen style=\"max-width:100%\" src=\"https:\/\/read.amazon.com\/kp\/card?preview=inline&#038;linkCode=kpd&#038;ref_=k4w_oembed_MKcDFDasPAcDUv&#038;asin=1605293504&#038;tag=kpembed-20\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Candice Kumai captured our interest when she first aired on the first season of Top Chef darting around the kitchen<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":617,"featured_media":62766,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"colormag_page_container_layout":"default_layout","colormag_page_sidebar_layout":"default_layout","footnotes":""},"categories":[1011,2087,1],"tags":[2119,2123],"class_list":["post-8836","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-home-gardening","category-lifestyle","category-news","tag-home","tag-lifestyle"],"magazineBlocksPostFeaturedMedia":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/asiancemagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/201105_CandaceKumai_pic1-150x150.jpg","medium":"https:\/\/asiancemagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/201105_CandaceKumai_pic1-200x300.jpg","medium_large":"https:\/\/asiancemagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/201105_CandaceKumai_pic1.jpg","large":"https:\/\/asiancemagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/201105_CandaceKumai_pic1.jpg","1536x1536":"https:\/\/asiancemagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/201105_CandaceKumai_pic1.jpg","2048x2048":"https:\/\/asiancemagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/201105_CandaceKumai_pic1.jpg","colormag-highlighted-post":"https:\/\/asiancemagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/201105_CandaceKumai_pic1-300x272.jpg","colormag-featured-post-medium":"https:\/\/asiancemagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/201105_CandaceKumai_pic1-300x205.jpg","colormag-featured-post-small":"https:\/\/asiancemagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/201105_CandaceKumai_pic1-130x90.jpg","colormag-featured-image":"https:\/\/asiancemagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/201105_CandaceKumai_pic1-300x445.jpg","colormag-default-news":"https:\/\/asiancemagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/201105_CandaceKumai_pic1-150x150.jpg","colormag-featured-image-large":"https:\/\/asiancemagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/201105_CandaceKumai_pic1.jpg","colormag-elementor-block-extra-large-thumbnail":"https:\/\/asiancemagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/201105_CandaceKumai_pic1.jpg","colormag-elementor-grid-large-thumbnail":"https:\/\/asiancemagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/201105_CandaceKumai_pic1-300x417.jpg","colormag-elementor-grid-small-thumbnail":"https:\/\/asiancemagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/201105_CandaceKumai_pic1-285x450.jpg","colormag-elementor-grid-medium-large-thumbnail":"https:\/\/asiancemagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/201105_CandaceKumai_pic1-300x198.jpg"},"magazineBlocksPostAuthor":{"name":"LuvKitty","avatar":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d438f7bfe2938a2f1899c8c7ffa7db3643a4f3a3c0cfe2150897633a033c8d59?s=96&d=mm&r=g"},"magazineBlocksPostCommentsNumber":"0","magazineBlocksPostExcerpt":"Candice Kumai captured our interest when she first aired on the first season of Top Chef darting around the kitchen","magazineBlocksPostCategories":["Home &amp; 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