Blind chef Allan Fraude cooks with a zeal that even sighted people will envy, writes Peggy Loh
WHEN a friend told me about Allan Fraude, the star of a 13-episode TV series Cooking In The Dark, (still in post-production), I was keen to share his story. This is because Fraude is blind and his passion for cooking will inspire those going through life’s challenges.
Armed with a positive attitude, the 53-year-old has overcome obstacles with sheer determination. Meeting him was a reunion of sorts because in the 1950s, my parents and Fraude’s mother used to work together in the Johor Baru General Hospital (now known as Hospital Sultanah Aminah).
While our mothers caught up, I join Fraude in the kitchen to start his cooking demonstration. Fraude is comfortable in the kitchen because his wife, Wong Man Chen, has organised the space in such a way that Fraude knows where everything is and can reach for items intuitively. The twin sinks, narrow draining board area as well as the four-stove gas cooker are his domain.
The affable Fraude kept up a lively banter as he cooked seven dishes for our lunch. Throughout, Fraude flitted between the sink, stove and refrigerator and I was careful to get out of his way.
EARLY INFLUENCES
Fraude, the sixth in a family with five older sisters and one younger brother, gradually lost his sight in 1990 due to glaucoma. His late father, Kalliff Paul Fraude, a Eurasian of Scottish and Thai descent was born in Ipoh and came to Johor to work in Kulai Palm Oil Estate. His Thai grandmother used to prepare spicy dishes and as his father acquired a taste for spice, so did Fraude and his siblings. Fraude recalls how he used to help his grandmother buy ingredients and this probably sparked his interest in cooking.
Cili PADI
Cili padi feature greatly in the recipes handed down from his Thai grandmother to his father. Fraude’s father had a few favourites like Devil Curry, fried kway teow and fried rice which he often cooked for the family, including generous amounts of cili padi. He fondly remembers how irresistible his father’s Devil Curry was because no matter how spicy, they would brave it.
In the estate, they lived in a bungalow and had a carefree childhood, roaming the estate and mixing freely with multicultural neighbours. Fraude said they discovered the pleasure of eating traditional Malay and Indian food and were exposed to various cuisine and cultures especially during festive seasons.
FUSION TASTE
One of the images he remembers well from his childhood is how his mother would grind her own chilli paste using a batu giling or grinding stone, for her famous curry and other spicy dishes. She is Teochew and between her Chinese recipes and his father’s Eurasian dishes, they created some unique family favourites, the most popular is a form of Roti John they fondly call Roti Babi because it is a sandwich filled with minced pork, dipped in egg batter before being fried and then savoured with a spicy dip sauce.
In those days, travelling traders would set up a small pasar malam or night market in the estate on pay days to sell food and clothes. Fraude said this was a much anticipated month-end treat for the family because his father often bought them satay and ketupat. He said they seldom ate out and the only time they could eat in restaurants was when they were invited to weddings.
TURNING POINT
His wife, Man Chen, was a former schoolmate who became his sweetheart and they were married in 1989. For 10 years Fraude worked in a bank in Kulaijaya and over the years, he often experienced high eye pressure and was later diagnosed with glaucoma. He did not realise that optic nerve damage was gradually developing in his eyes and his vision was slowly deteriorating. Man Chen recalls the horror of being called to the bank one day for an emergency when Fraude was suddenly bleeding from his left eye.
She rushed him to the hospital but after treatment, the permanent damage to the optic nerves resulted in his gradual loss of sight in his left eye. Man Chen will never forget one night in 1990 when she was pregnant at full-term and her water suddenly broke. She said it was a miracle that Fraude managed to drive her safely to the hospital in Johor Baru at 2am when he had less than 10 per cent vision left in his right eye.
Fraude’s eyesight degenerated rapidly and when their daughter, Rebecca, was just two months old, he became blind. In 1993, Fraude joined the Gurney Training Centre in Kuala Lumpur where he learnt to read Braille and other skills to live with his disability. Even though Fraude took a training course in massage therapy, he did not pursue it as a career.
Man Chen became the sole breadwinner of the family and as she hardly had time to cook, they ate at their in-laws’ homes or at nearby restaurants. As his mother aged and cooked less, he decided to try cooking himself.
It was a turning point for Fraude when he decided to cook his family’s favourite dishes. If he was unsure of the recipes, he would phone his mother. He realised that if he did not learn to cook those familiar favourites, he may never taste them again because his sisters never mastered their family’s recipes.
“My wife and daughter were my guinea pigs,” said Fraude. Her courage in supporting his culinary pursuits reaped a mutual benefit because Fraude gained new confidence, and got to enjoy his boyhood delights and sharing them with family and friends.
COOKING IN THE DARK
Fraude’s reinvention caught the attention of his niece, Sonia Chall, who introduced him to a local production company, Crooked Mirror Productions. The producer cast him as the star of their 13-episode TV series Cooking in the Dark where the blind cook shares the secrets of his family recipes.
In the 30-minute programme hosted by Malaysian TV personality, Jay Menon, Fraude demonstrates his ability to cook in the dark. This TV series aims to inspire the disabled with Fraude’s “can-do” spirit and uses cooking as a life analogy to show how we can overcome life’s obstacles.
He recalls his exciting experience filming in Kuala Lumpur and the challenges of cooking in an unfamiliar kitchen. But, he says, it was great fun to whip up more than 20 of his family’s recipes for the series. Besides his father’s Devil Curry, Fraude also made local favourites like popiah, nasi lemak, petai sambal as well as Indian fish curry.
“I’ve never cut myself before,” said Fraude with a smug smile as he wielded the knife with precision to slice cucumbers for stir-frying with dried shrimps and garlic. Using touch and feel, Fraude put dried shrimps and garlic pips into the mortar and pounded them with a pestle.
I watched with fascination as Fraude washed and measured the lengths of brinjals and ladies fingers and deftly cut them into equal lengths to add to the Fish Curry simmering in a pot. He listens to the sizzle and pop and smells the fragrance of the sauteed ingredients to ascertain how well cooked the food is. This, while he shifts pots and pans around the stove and sink with amazing skill.
As we sit down to enjoy the food, I’m deeply humbled. My respect for Fraude grew with every bite of his fiery Devil Curry, fish curry, masala mashed potatoes, egg omelette, stir-fried cucumber with dried shrimps and garlic, stewed chicken in black sauce and stir-fried bean sprouts with salted fish.
His determination to live more independently and contribute to the well-being of his family, is truly an inspiration. As Rebecca helped to serve at the table and Man Chen tidied up the kitchen, I can sense their unspoken pride in Fraude.