Meet Christie
I'm Christie, the creator, photographer, videographer and writer of "Christie at Home". I’m a first generation Chinese-Canadian Recipe Blogger with a passion and expertise in Asian recipes!
I was born and raised in the Greater Toronto Area, Ontario. I've been a full-time recipe blogger since 2019 and started the blog in 2015. I've been cooking from a very young age and I'm a self-taught home cook.
My mother and grandmothers (from Hong Kong and China) taught me the foundation of Asian home cooking. Both of my grandmothers worked in the food industry. They passed down their recipes and expert tips to me on how to make Chinese dishes.
What You'll Find Here
You'll find quick and easy Asian recipes that are simple and approachable! I share step-by-step instructions, cooking tips, photos and quick comprehensive recipe videos on how to make your favorite Asian dish. I share Chinese, Malaysian, Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese, Thai, Filipino recipes and more!
Featured On
My work has featured on BuzzFeed Tasty, Food52, The Kitchn, The FeedFeed, Sur La Table, Yummly and more! You may know me from social media with a community of 1M+ followers, who repeatedly make my recipes (I am so grateful for all of you!)
How it Began
When I was young, I watched copious amounts of The Food Network. Chefs like Ina Garten or Wok with Yan brought me a lot of comfort as they cooked in their cozy kitchens. I learned that one day, I wanted to bring that same comfort to other people's homes.
My love for Asian cuisine began with my travels to South-East Asia with my Malaysian-Canadian husband in 2012. From then on, I studied all types of dishes from various Asian countries on my own. Teaching myself cooking techniques and common ingredients used in those cuisines with a lot of kitchen experimentation. At this point the blog was not born yet.
However in 2014, I started to experience depression and anxiety from feeling stuck in a demanding corporate job and industry that I no longer felt passion for.
To find a way out, I started side ventures one after another (a wedding videography business, homemade card Etsy store and a jewelry business). But they all failed and I felt like there was no way out again. I longed to have a fulfilling job where I could be of service to others in some capacity.
So I continued with my corporate job and depended a lot on God for strength, perseverance and hope that things would change.
Then on one evening in December 2015, when I was at my wits end, I cried out to God for help. He quietly whispered, "Start a recipe blog". I was stunned by His answer but thought this entails my passion for cooking, writing, photography and videography into one!
The next day, I started the blog (with my first blog post below - yikes!) and dedicated any spare time and weekends to building a recipe blog, while also working my full time job. I didn't mind because cooking and blogging became my passion and I loved it!
My blog took my mind off of all my troubles and all I could think of was what I could cook next. I thrived on how much I learned through creating recipes, learning how improve my photography and writing skills.
Fast forward to August 2019, I took a leap of faith and pursued the blog full-time leaving my corporate job and a stable paycheque. It was a scary decision but I trusted God wanted this for me.
I trusted that it would all work out in God's time and I would rely on the bible for strength. "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand".
-Isaiah 41:10
Day after day, I continued to cook and blog - nothing could stop me! My passion fuelled a fire in me to press onwards. There were some sleepless nights wondering, "Is this going to work out somehow?" but I knew I couldn't focus on that if I wanted this to work.
Then in 2020, Covid hit and with everyone cooking in the kitchen, my recipes started to gain traction on the internet. In February 2021, I built up enough website traffic to sign onto an Ad Network that paid me! A year later, I began posting recipe videos on social media and this grew the blog further. Everything that happened was all in God's plan.
I am so grateful to God, my loving husband, my sweet pups, family, friends and this community that has given me with the chance to follow my dreams. I appreciate every single person who makes my recipes and supports my passion. I hope my recipes bring you joy, comfort, nostalgia or are useful in some way.
My Other Passion
In my spare time, I love to spend it with my husband and two pups out in nature going for walks. I also love to cook, enjoy good food, listen to music, read, watch a good show or movie and travel the world! I also have a passion to help animals and rescue dogs.
One of my dogs was rescued from a puppy mill farm. Puppy mill farms take advantage of young dogs (around the age of 1 year) to mass produce puppies. Forced to live alone in small cages or stalls without room to move freely, nor are they properly nourished. Their puppies are sold in pet stores or to illegal pet brokers to customers, who are unaware of this or don’t do their research.
When most of the dogs have reached their productive peak, they're discarded with zero compassion to reduce cost of living. For the lucky ones saved by dog rescues, they have no trust in humans and they don't know how to be a dog living in constant fear. They don't know how to socialize, play, or even wag their tail because so much joy has been ripped away from them.
It took us 6 years to rehabilitate our dog and she's finally healthy and happy. She started wagging her tail more regularly this year, which was a big milestone for her!
It's my mission to give back to dog rescues that specialize in saving puppy mill survivors. If you're interested in donating, fostering or adopting a puppy mill dog, please check out The Dog Rescuers Inc. in Oakville, Ontario.
Yours truly,
Christie
Ps. Connect with me on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Pinterest, and Facebook!