Ken Hom OBE is a well-known American chef and food writer. He learned cooking by working in his uncle's Chinese restaurant from the age of 11, and while at university taught Italian and Chinese cookery classes at the weekend. BBC's hugely successful Ken Hom's Chinese Cookery School (1984) brought him to British audiences and he has had a number of television series and best-selling books, including Exploring China: A Culinary Adventure and Ken Hom's Travels with a Hot Wok.