Su-Mei Yu

Su-Mei Yu is the chef/owner of two successful San Diego restaurants, Saffron Thai Chicken and Saffron Noodles and Sate. Her first cookbook, "Cracking the Coconut: Classic Thai Home Cooking", will be published by William Morrow and Co., Inc., in August 2000.

Yu is one of Southern California's most popular cooking instructors, offering classes filled with Thai cooking techniques, history, stories and recipes researched during annual visits to her native Thailand. She has written for numerous publications, including Fine Cooking magazine, Food and Wine magazine, and the prestigious British journal Petits Propos Culinaire.

Of Chinese heritage, Su-Mei Yu was born and reared in Bangkok. At the age of 15, she moved to Kentucky and then to California, where she received her master's degree in Social Work from San Diego State University. Today, her ongoing desire to re-create the foods and cultural traditions of her youth have made her a foremost authority on authentic Thai cuisine.