Diana Chan is a creative innovator with a passion for cooking and baking. She was born in Shanghai, China, and grew up in Hong Kong and Brazil, where she watched her family’s Chinese chef prepare simple daily meals and elaborate banquet dishes. Her cookbook has simple recipes that can be made in 30 minutes and gourmet recipes that appeal to the epicurean palate and could turn a novice into an instant gourmet cook. Here she introduces variations on a theme: once the reader learns one of her basic recipes, many new dishes can be made using the same method.