Michelin-starred chef criticized for plagiarism

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A former competitor of Masterchef and Michelin-starred chef is accused of plagiarizing the recipes and personal anecdotes of a Singaporean cook.

Elizabeth Haigh, who has Singaporean Chinese heritage, published her cookbook Makan in May, which received high praise from prominent figures including Nigella Lawson.

But New York-based Singaporean cook Sharon Wee claimed Haigh copied or paraphrased recipes and trivia from her 2012 book, Cooking in a Nonya Kitchen, in Makan.

Both cookbooks are based on the respective authors’ childhood and Singaporean heritage. But Wee claims Haigh extracted at least 15 recipes and personal stories from his book.

In a statement, Wee said: My book Growing Up in a Kitchen Nonya, first published in 2012, is both a cookbook and a memoir in which I recreated my mother’s personalized recipes, interviewed with older parents, researched my Nonya heritage and told about my family. the story.

So I was distressed to discover that some recipes and other content in my book had been copied or paraphrased without my consent in Makan by Elizabeth Haigh, and I immediately brought this matter to the attention of the book publisher, Bloomsbury Absolute.

I am grateful that Bloomsbury responded to my concerns by removing Makan from circulation.

However, The Independent found out that Makan is still available for purchase through Waterstones, Foyles, and Amazon.

A Bloomsbury spokesperson told The Bookseller: This title has been taken down due to copyright issues.

Haigh has not released a statement on the matter. Social media posts promoting Makan on the Bloomsbury Absolute and Haighs accounts have been removed.

Social media users have expressed anger at the accusations, with many pledging to buy Wees’ now out of print book in solidarity.

One person wrote: Hand over my copy of Makan and hope Growing Up in a Nonya Kitchen will be reissued soon so I can buy it instead.

Several examples of similarities between Wee and Haighs’ books were shown side by side in an Instagram post by Singaporean poet Daryl Lim.

One example included an explanation of the health benefits of ginger, an ingredient frequently used in Southeast Asian cuisine.

Wee wrote in his 2012 book: It is believed that ginger can cause angina (remove toxic gases and moisture to relieve aches and pains). Therefore, postnatal mothers were given a lot of ginger to combat the wind.

Haigh wrote in his 2021 book: Ginger is believed to have pukol angin healing properties (to remove toxic gases and moisture to relieve aches and pains). That is why postnatal mothers were given a lot of ginger to fight the wind.

The Independent has contacted Haigh for comment.

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