Book of recipes and stories celebrates Hong Kong refugees and asylum seekers

LM grew up in a small village on the Indonesian island of Java where food was central to daily life. “My mother, my grandparents, my aunts always cooked – food brought us together,” says LM (a pseudonym), who arrived in Hong Kong 23 years ago to work as a domestic helper and later joined her African husband in seeking asylum. “When I fell pregnant, I could not get a new contract – 20 years ago, it wasn’t easy to find work when you’re pregnant. I didn’t want to go home and leave my husband here with a child and another on the way.” She also feared being stigmatised at home in conservative Indonesian culture. “You cannot go home pregnant without your husband.” Giving up her Indonesian passport, a decision LM made without having a full picture of the challenges asylum seekers face in Hong Kong, is one she regrets. “The system is a mess,” she says. Many obstacles exist for the 15,000-plus asylum seekers who live in Hong Kong, a city that does not grant asylum but offers “non-refoulement” protection – a pledge not to send people back to countries where their life is in danger. Getting settled in a third country can take years, decades even, as in LM’s case. Not being able to work is the biggest frustration. The impact on her stateless children’s opportunities – she has three, aged 17, 16, and 11 – adds to her stress. “Being stuck in Hong Kong would not be so bad if I had the right to work, but I’m not allowed to earn a living and that is a big problem,” she says. “There are many talented asylum seekers in the city who don’t have the chance to earn a living. People feel unappreciated and that leads to depression.” We didn’t ask for the most grandiose dish from their culture, or that they pick their national dish. We just wanted dishes that best represent who they are Tegan Smyth, founder of Grassroots Future LM is one of 17 people featured in Table of Two Cities: Untold Stories of Refugees in Hong Kong, a collection of heart-warming recipes and heart-tugging stories that shed a light on the city’s refugee and asylum seeker community. The 210-page bilingual (English/Chinese) book contains 32 recipes provided by interviewees from five regions: West Africa, Central Africa, East Africa, North Africa and South Asia. While the ingredients and cooking techniques vary, the common thread is the happy memories of home that each dish evokes. The driving force behind the book is Tegan Smyth, founder of Grassroots Future, a charity that supports refugees in Hong Kong. “We didn’t ask for the most grandiose dish from their culture, or that they pick their national dish,” says Smyth of the recipe selection process. “We just wanted dishes that best represent who they are.” On a crisp winter morning, a group of refugee women from diverse backgrounds gather at the Kowloon Union Church in Hong Kong’s Yau Ma Tei district to take part in a crocheting workshop. It is typical of events organised by Grassroots Future, which include comedy and music shows and film screenings. What Smyth found at these functions was how food played a key role. Smyth also wanted to provide a different narrative to the one told by Hong Kong’s media that often portrays refugees and asylum seekers through the lens of abject poverty and criminality. “I wanted to find a way to give dignity to the community,” she says. The seeds of the project were sown in 2016, when she ran events under the name Table of Two Cities, an initiative built around the idea that refugees could have a safe space to share their food culture with the wider community. Smyth renamed the organisation Grassroots Future when it was registered as a charity in 2020. The cookbook project involved interviews on sensitive subjects and countless hours of recipe testing, translation, editing, photography and a deadline put back by the Covid-19 pandemic. The result is a beautifully presented book bursting with colourful photos of mouth-watering dishes. While the recipes ignite the senses, the stories behind those sharing them stir very different feelings. Take Andre (not his real name), who arrived in Hong Kong in 2013 after fleeing political turmoil in the West African nation of Togo. “It was the choice between staying and potentially dying or being far from [my family], [but] with the hope that one day I may live to see them again. That was how I made the decision,” he says in the book of his decision to leave home. In Table of Two Cities, Andre shares a recipe for lanmoumou dessi, a protein-rich fish stew he prepares with okra and plantain that connects him to his Togolese culture. Political infighting also forced “Kiran” to flee Nepal more than 15 years ago. “Maoists blew up my house. They killed my uncle. They kidnapped me three times and threatened me with death unless I joined their political party,” he says in the book, referring to a time when Nepal was gripped by civil war. Kiran’s strong connection to his home is reflected in the recipes he shares: dal, a lentil meal that is Nepal’s national dish, and chicken momos (dumplings). Madagascans “Laura” and “Maria” met in China, where they had moved to for work but instead found themselves victims of forced marriages. Despite traffickers confiscating their passports, the pair were able to escape to Hong Kong in 2016. But returning home is too risky, says Maria. “I would be threatened and maybe even killed by the people who sold me. They lost their money because I escaped; they lost what they earned for me,” Maria says in the book, where she also shares her recipe for poisson coco (fish in coconut sauce), her favourite dish. It is also loved by her mother who taught her how to make it. Recipes shared by “Sabah”, who left Egypt for fear of religious persecution after converting from Islam to Christianity, include mahshi, Egyptian-style steamed cabbage rolls stuffed with a mix of spices (cumin and coriander seed) and simmered in a rich, tomato-based sauce. LM is grateful to have been part of the Table of Two Cities” project. Food, she says, is a universal language. “We may not speak the same language, but we can enjoy food and we can represent ourselves through food.” The recipes LM shares in the book are a love letter to her native Indonesia, and include gado-gado – a healthy salad of blanched vegetables and peanut sauce – and soto ayam, a spicy chicken soup. Smyth says proceeds from book sales will go to those interviewed as well as to the refugee organisations that support Grassroots Future. “We are indebted to all interviewees for bravely sharing their stories.” Table of Two Cities: Untold Stories of Refugees in Hong Kong is available on Amazon

Book of recipes and stories celebrates Hong Kong refugees and asylum seekers

Cookbook Table of Two Cities shines a light on refugees and asylum seekers in Hong Kong with recipes contributed by them, and their stories

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