Culinary aunties of Asia: 5 famous female cooks who fed a region
They’re not celebrity chefs in the traditional sense. Most don’t have bestselling cookbooks, nor do they do tasting menus. But across Asia, culinary aunties—women who run kitchens dedicated to traditional cuisine and street food—represent a different kind of gastronomic icon, one who quietly dominates the food landscape with intuition, heritage and heart.
These women, often clad in aprons older than the average influencer, are the unsung guardians of flavour and memory. Their cooking is intuitive, honed through repetition and care rather than formal schooling. Whether served from a roadside cart, bustling market stall or modest shophouse, their food defines entire communities—and sometimes, entire nations.
Here, we honour five legendary culinary aunties of Asia. Their legacies are not just written in Michelin stars or streaming fame, but in dishes that tell stories across generations.
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Jay Fai (Bangkok, Thailand)
Supinya Junsuta—better known as Jay Fai—is perhaps the most recognisable culinary auntie in Asia, thanks to a combination of global acclaim and Netflix stardom. With fans that include Hollywood actor Russell Crowe and K-pop idol Lisa.
A former seamstress turned street food legend, she helms the one-Michelin-starred Raan Jay Fai in Bangkok. Her signature crab omelette—golden, fluffy and abundantly stuffed—is cooked over charcoal flames. Ever the perfectionist, Jay Fai works the wok herself, famously donning ski goggles to guard against smoke. Now in her 80s, she continues to redefine what street food can be, proving that technique and integrity matter far more than fine surroundings.
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Gaik Lean Beh (Penang, Malaysia)
In Penang, a city revered for its diverse food culture, Auntie Gaik Lean Beh is a steadfast guardian of Peranakan cuisine. At her restaurant, Auntie Gaik Lean’s Old School Eatery, every dish is a family heirloom served with a side of nostalgia: her Nyonya gulai tumis and assam hae are made following closely guarded family recipes, full of painstakingly hand-prepped spices and soul. Like others on this list, Auntie Gaik Lean holds a Michelin star—a testament to the enduring power of tradition when prepared with precision and soul.
Mdm Leong Yuet Meng (Singapore)
Leong Yuet Meng, the late matriarch of Singapore’s beloved Koka Wanton Noodle, passed away in February 2024 at the age of 94. Yet her influence on the hawker scene remains indelible.
She began her wanton mee stall in 1957, offering a version of the dish that stood out for its light, nuanced sauce—a departure from the heavier variants common at the time. For decades, she hand-rolled wantons and prepared egg noodles from scratch at her stall in North Bridge Road Market. Today, her grandson continues the business, guided by her values of craftsmanship, humility and enduring flavour.
Read more: Blood, sweat and tears: Young hawkers preserving Singapore’s food heritage and legacy
Cho Yon-soon (Seoul, South Korea)
Known as “Grandma Jo,” Cho Yoon-soon (sometimes spelled Jo Yeon-soon) is a fixture at Seoul’s Gwangjang Market. Once a stay-at-home mother, Cho started her culinary journey after her husband incurred a massive debt that forced her to work. She first took her cue from her mother's recipes, but she improved on them, turning her stall, Gohyang Kalguksu, into a certified hit. She specialises not only in the eponymous hand-cut noodles but also kimchi mandu (dumplings).
Grandma Jo has been featured often in food tours and TV shows, including Netflix’s Street Food: Asia in 2019, but she hasn’t changed a thing—she cooks for her regulars, not the cameras.
Mbah Satinem (Yogyakarta, Indonesia)
A living legend of traditional Javanese sweets, Mbah Satinem has been waking up before the roosters could even think about it for decades to prepare jajan pasar. Her lupis—glutinous rice cakes served with palm sugar syrup and coconut—is pure childhood in a bite for many Indonesians.
Mbah Satinem became a breakout star on Netflix’s Street Food: Asia, but she still serves from her same roadside spot. The only difference is that the lines just keep getting longer.
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