I am Ethan Imara Omukhango. At home, they call me Chef Etan. I just turned 8 years old and I love cooking.
When I was born, I was allergic to many things. My family has told me that my first two years were very hard. No matter how many times they went to the hospital, my parents could not figure out what was wrong. One day, Dr. Yvonne, a pediatrician in Nairobi, went out of her way to help my parents figure out what was causing my allergies.
One was animal hair and fur. My parents took everything made of wool out of the house, including sweaters, blankets, and other things. They also stopped Charlie and Cookie, our two dogs, from coming into the house. Later, Courage and Brave, our two cats, also could not come inside because of my reaction to fur.
Dr. Yvonne also used the elimination method, which involved eating only one food for two weeks to see how my body would react. After many months, it was clear that the only protein I could eat was white meat. My parents stopped me from eating eggs, beans, beef, and other proteins.
For the first five years of my life, I only ate chicken: whether it was fried, stewed, boiled, minced, deep-fried, or with sauce. I became interested in cooking chicken because of this. It was the only meat I could eat. We had tried fish, also white meat, but my whole body swelled in five minutes and I was losing my breath. We have not cooked fish in our home since that time.
One day my mum called her mother, my ‘Shosho’ (grandmother) Lucy, to tell her about my allergies. ‘Shosho’ told my mum that she had the same thing happen to her when she was a child. Therefore, my allergies are inherited from my mum. In addition to what the doctor had told my parents, ‘Shosho’ also told them what to do to help me get over my allergies or learn how to deal with them.
‘Shosho’ advised my mum not to stop me from eating proteins altogether so that my body does not learn to do without them. In addition, some of the home remedies she gave to my mumworked. This was helpful information that my Shosho passed on to my mum who then passed it to me.
From the eight years of my life, I have learned that it is important for families to pass down recipes that have worked from generation to generation. Not only because they help with sickness and allergies, but also because they are things the family has enjoyed for many decades and generations. I keep track of these recipes so that I may make them again in the future.
Finally, because of spending so much time with my mum Muthoni Omukhango in the kitchen from an early age, and finding creative ways to cook chicken, I developed a love for cooking. She would allow me to help her cut vegetables and tell her stories while she was cooking.
At age four, she allowed me to start cooking here and there. Though I would create more cleaning work for her because I was little and so messy, she allowed it. She is my inspiration in cooking and I thank her for giving me the space to know and love cooking. I want to keep going and do well in it.
Now I collect recipes from my family members and put them together so that I may keep cooking yummy food for family and friends. It is from that experience that my family helped me put together my first book. It officially started on my 5th birthday – my family bought me a knife, chopping board, rolling pin, an apron, and hat called a toque among others.
On my 7th birthday in July 2023, my mom allowed me to cook all the meals for the guests apart from rice and beef (I am yet to learn how to do them) so my nanny cooked for me. Everyone also brought me more stuff to help me cook. I got a hand mixer, aprons, a chef’s knife set, and cooking pots. I also got two small shelves to put my things. That was the best birthday ever for me.
My first book has my first signature recipes that I know how to cook. It also has devotional sections around cooking and my mum, Dr. Muthoni Omukhango contributed that for me. It has sections where families can encourage their children to gather recipes that are important to their family.
I hope this book will help all families to start collecting their family’s recipes! Not just to avoid sickness but to also keep the memories of their loved family members.
It was nominated last year.
I was allowed this year to cook for 50 people in our reading club for kids and teens. It has made me so proud of myself. I have cooked three times once every month and the kids loved it. I have never cooked for so many people 🙂 but I am happy to know I can do it. That’s what I am good at doing. I spend a lot of my time in the kitchen and I love it.
I hope families will enjoy filling the blank spaces with recipes for their families so children can keep the memories in the future. We called it ‘Preserving Family Legacy’. You can do it with meals.
Maybe later there will be legacy books for travels, events, and anything that can tell the future children, what parents in the past were passionate about as a family.
After the first book, my dad and I started talking about what lessons we can learn from foods in the Bible. That’s how the second book was born. After we were done, our publisher, my mum, said it was too long so we split it into two. So now I am the author of three books. And this made me very happy.
Join Chef Ethan on an exciting journey through the Bible in “Food in the Bible”! Each part of the story is filled with delicious discoveries, just like going on a tasty adventure.
While you learn about the different kinds of food and how they can benefit your body, you will also uncover important truths from the Bible to nourish your spirit. So not only do you get to enjoy yummy food facts, but you also gain valuable lessons to help you grow in God.
It’s a double win! Because you will be feeding both your body and your spirit!
I am thankful to God for making me creative and giving me the ability to cook.
I am glad that my family has helped me to keep going, even when I fail and create a mess in the kitchen.
My dad, Patrick Omukhango, encourages me to go out and try new things. My mum, Dr. Muthoni Omukhango, helps me cook and she is also my publisher. My older sister, Abiah McKenna watches inspiring cooking shows with me. My younger sister, Ella Amani is my food taster and plays with me.
My extended family and family friends are also very supportive. Thank you all!
Chef Ethan,
Aspiring Chef
