I was very impressed with the street food of Singapore. I was very impressed with the dishes that they did.

I realized very early the power of food to evoke memory, to bring people together, to transport you to other places, and I wanted to be a part of that.

As a chef and father, it kills me that children are fed processed foods, fast food clones, foods loaded with preservatives and high-fructose corn syrup.

I prefer natural hardwood lump charcoal - the other stuff makes your food taste like Goodyear tires.

One thing that makes me very happy is to see the growing activism among chefs in America. Chefs like Tom Colicchio, Bill Telepan, and Rachel Ray and food writers like Michael Pollan have gone to Congress, indeed sometimes even have testified before Congress, have lent this support to Mrs. Obama's effort to combat childhood obesity.

I love to talk about cooking and recipes, but I love as much talking about how food and cooking can change the world.