Nina Daza Puyat and her children’s book “Ang Alamat ng Lumpiang Shanghai.” (Photo by Claire Mercado-Obias)

Many of us were introduced to Nina Daza Puyat when she cooked alongside her mother, Nora Daza, on the TV show “Cooking It Up with Nora” back in the ‘80s. Having been exposed to the culinary industry at a young age, it was no surprise that she pursued this path. She has a degree in Hotel Administration from Cornell University, and she was actively involved with the family restaurants in the Philippines, Paris, and New York. 

Nina was the editor-in-chief of Appetite Magazine and its companion cookbooks. She recently updated her mother’s cookbook, Let’s Cook with Nora (first published in 1965) to make the recipes more relatable to the modern cook. She also adds children’s book author to her achievements, having written Ang Alamat ng Lumpiang Shanghai (The Legend of the Fried Spring Rolls) and launching it with a multicity tour of the U.S.

Ang Alamat ng Lumpiang Shanghai is a 36-page fictional folktale about one of the most popular Filipino dishes. Nina used the alamat traditional storytelling technique, providing both backstory and moral lesson. She says, “I wanted to tell a story about food, but also one that would teach a lesson to children.”

“At first, I only wrote the story in Filipino because I wanted to share it with school children around the country. But then, I realized that many children’s books now are published in dual languages, and this format could reach a wider market. It would be another opportunity to teach Filipino-speaking children English, and English-speaking children Filipino,” Nina explains.

The book comes to life with the illustrations of Sean Erwin Santia, a seasoned visual artist and first-time book illustrator. Having grown up with alamat stories from his lola (grandmother), Sean says, “I fell in love with the book,” which took five months to make.

“I designed the characters first, then page by page, I started sketching the layouts and colored them. Working with Nina was really smooth, she has no air of arrogance, is good in communicating, and she made me comfortable with my personal thoughts on each page,” says Sean. A unique feature of the book is a QR code that one can scan to reveal the main characters, a creation of Nina’s son Joe (a sound engineer). A recipe for Lumpiang Shanghai is also included.

Nina continues, “Why did I write this book in first place? Well, I became a lola two years ago and I wanted to tell my apo (grandchild) a story about food. Because it is something that I know, love, and feel very passionate about. And I just started to feel this generational connection between my mom, me, my daughter, and my granddaughter.

Nina Daza Puyat read her book “Ang Alamat ng Lumpiang Shanghai” to school children in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, and New Jersey. (Photo courtesy of Nina Daza Puyat)

“A more important reason is that I’m making it my mission to teach young people to be more aware and appreciative of where their food comes from. And that’s the reason why in this alamat, I focused on the ingredients because I believe that that’s where the appreciation for every dish should begin,” she explains.

“I believe that we would have a deeper understanding and appreciation of our food if we could connect the dish to our land, people, traditions, and culture.” She elaborates:

“My personal mission is to advocate for the documentation of recipes in every home and eventually in every community because there’s so much to learn about regional cooking outside our own sphere, right? There are so many things we don’t know about what’s going on in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao or wherever you’re from. Imagine all the cooking that is done by everyday cooks (kusinero and kasambahay), not chefs, who may not have the chance to pass the recipe on to their children and grandchildren. So, if you are that cook, share that recipe, and pass that on. Don’t be selfish about those recipes.”

To go about this project, Nina recommends, “Start writing the recipes down, one dish at a time. But maybe dig deeper and ask for recipes from older relatives and interview them about their everyday life in the provinces. Who knows what they will discover? Then maybe they can recreate the dishes and share the recipes with their own families to keep the tradition alive. It will encourage other members of the family who are not too keen on cooking, to at least try their hand in the kitchen. It can be a fun family activity that everyone can participate in. They can even publish their own family cookbook! I hope someday there will be an official campaign to document recipes in each province.”

During her book launch, Nina Daza Puyat read an excerpt from her book and demonstrated how to make Lumpiang Shanghai. (Photo by Claire Mercado-Obias)

The book launch in New York City was quite emotional for Nina because the venue, The Philippine Center, was once Maharlika, her mom’s restaurant. “It was my mom who first showcased Filipino cuisine in a formal, elegant, sit-down restaurant in the U.S. in 1973 via Maharlika. And in 1974, Maharlika was listed as one of the top restaurants in New York City. She was so proud of our food. She always said that Filipino cuisine is unique because we have managed to blend and integrate the influences of the Spanish, American, and Chinese into our own Indo-Malaysian roots,” Nina proudly remarked in her speech.

Nina Daza Puyat during her New York City book launch at the Philippine Center. This used to be where Maharlika, the restaurant of Nora Daza, was located. (Photo courtesy of Nina Daza Puyat)

Nina also stopped by the New York Public Library (NYPL) for the rare opportunity to share copies of her children’s book. She says, “Consul General Senen Mangalile was present during the turnover, and he reiterated that the NYPL does not just accept any book donation. It dawned on me how it was truly an honor and I got goosebumps! I’m so grateful to the Vice Consul Atty. Tanya Ramiro and to the Consul General for reaching out to the NYPL The library officials even gave us a tour and showed us some of their Filipiniana collection.”

Nina Daza Puyat turning over a copy of “Ang Alamat ng Lumpiang Shanghai” to the New York Public Library. (Photo courtesy of Nina Daza Puyat)

Consul General Mangalile exclaims, “We were really very proud of that moment because the New York Public Library is considered the second largest public library in the USA, behind only the Library of Congress. But the important thing to note is that every book in their collection has to earn its spot.”

As Filipino cuisine finds global popularity, what would Nora Daza say if she were still around? Nina declares, “Oh she would be tickled pink! Imagine, she already brought powdered ube (purple yam) to our Filipino restaurant in Paris and turned it into Ube Pie – this was in 1972! And now 50 years later, ube has become the rage, especially in the U.S.”

Nora Daza was the original influencer and celebrity chef even before those terms ever existed. Thankfully, Nina keeps this legacy alive, encouraging the new generation, “Let us be proud ambassadors of our own culinary traditions just like my mom was many decades ago.”

Let’s all give Nina a hand, shall we?

“Ang Alamat ng Lumpiang Shanghai” by Nina Daza Puyat is available on Filipino Food Crawl, Shopee.ph, and Lazada.com.ph

Copies can also be bought at Philippine Expressions Bookshop philippinebookshop.com and Eastwind Books of Berkeley https://www.asiabookcenter.com/store/p4776/The_Legend_of_the_Lumpiang_Shanghai_(Fried_Spring_Rolls).html