I

t’s no surprise that veteran culinary expert Sisca Soewitomo’s lifelong love is cooking. The little Sisca eagerly awaited her mother’s various cakes and dishes, and began to develop her own cooking skills in elementary school.

After graduating from Trisakti Tourism Academy in 1976, she set out to improve her cooking knowledge and skills at China Baking School in Taiwan and the American Institute of Baking in Kansas, the US.

Known for her calm, motherly style, she gained fame hosting the popular Aroma cooking program on private television station Indosiar, which first aired in 1995. In a more than 30-year career, she has written almost 100 cooking recipe books and conducts cooking demonstrations, including on weekends.

And she declares that age is not cramping her cooking style.

“I will continue writing cooking books,” said the mother of three. “All my activities make me happy. There are times when I work on weekends, and sometimes I get days off on weekdays. I love spending my free time with my grandchildren.”

Favorite food …

I love tempeh. All you need to do is cook it with cabe rawit (small fiery chili), garlic, kencur (greater galingale), and it will be delicious.

And one I avoid …

Goat meat, because I’m now 63 years old.

My idols …

I admire all my seniors and I never stop learning.

Favorite holiday destination …

For me, trips to other cities are vacations because I get a different experiences from where I live. Every city is memorable.

Things people do not know about me …

I was a lecturer at a hotel school for 21 years and worked for a women’s magazine for five years. I also worked at a frozen food company.

Most memorable cooking experiences

I once did a cooking demo for the kapak merah (red axe) gang family at an event held by the UN’s World Food Program. At the end of the demo, all the participants begged me to give them all the cooking equipment I had used. I also did a cooking demo in Yogyakarta after the Mount Merapi eruption a few years ago. +Frederica Ermita Indriani