Hello, I’m Shu. I was born and raised in food-obsessed Singapore. 15 years ago, I moved to London with a suitcase half-filled with clothes and books, the other half taken up by a rice cooker.  It was in the sparse, cramped kitchen of my uni halls, that I taught myself how to cook. I missed the sounds and smells and flavours of home terribly, and it gave me the excuse for a weekly call with Mum (a formidable cook). Since then, I have gone on to do lots of tasty things:

I make small-batch Southeast Asian spice pastes and sambals over at Rempapa Spice Co. From our early bootstrapping, part-timing days at the farmer’s markets back in 2018, we have grown to supply Ocado, Whole Foods, Selfridges and independent delis up and down the country.

I write about food and develop recipes. Some examples of the brands and publications I’ve worked with include: Jamie Oliver, Kikkoman, Tilda, Lee Kum Kee, Ocado, Sainsbury’s, Great British Chefs, and Delicious Mag. I wrote my debut cookbook Chicken & Rice: Southeast Asian Recipes from a London Kitchen in 2016, combining the best of British ingredients with Southeast Asian flavours. I am working on my new cookbook Agak Agak: Everyday Recipes from Singapore, out summer 2024.

I help food brands, large and small, to develop menus and creative things. I collaborated with Wagamama to create Shu’s Shiok Chicken. The dish is now a permanent menu item in all their UK and US restaurants. For 7 years, before I took the plunge wholeheartedly into the world of food, I was a creative strategist for brands such as Waitrose and have created award-winning campaigns for them.

I’m always up for something that’s fun, delicious and/or will help me pay my rent. 
For literary opportunities, please email emily@emilysweetassociates.com
For anything Rempapa-related, please email hi@rempapa.com
For everything else, please email hi@shuhanlee.com / follow @iamshuhanlee