Adam Liaw facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Adam Liaw
Liaw in 2012
Born	(1978-09-08) 8 September 1978 (age 46) Penang, Malaysia
Nationality	Australian
Education	Bachelor of Science (Pharmacology), Bachelor of Law
Alma mater	University of Adelaide, Prince Alfred College
Occupation	Cook television presenter producer author
Predecessor	Julie Goodwin
Successor	Kate Bracks
Spouse(s)	Asami Fujitsuka
Children	3
Awards	Winner, MasterChef Australia

Adam Liaw (Chinese: 廖崇明; pinyin: Liào Chóngmíng; born on 8 September 1978) is a famous Australian cook, TV presenter, and author. He was born in Malaysia. Adam won the second season of MasterChef Australia, a popular cooking competition. He beat another contestant named Callum Hann in the final round. Since then, Adam has created, written, and hosted many of his own cooking shows. These include the Destination Flavour series and The Cook Up with Adam Liaw on SBS Food.

Adam Liaw's Early Life

Adam Liaw was born in Penang, Malaysia. His father was Malaysian Chinese, and his mother was English, born in Singapore. Adam is the middle child, with an older brother and a younger sister.

When Adam was three years old, his family moved to Adelaide, Australia. After his parents divorced, his mother moved to New Zealand. Adam then lived with his grandmother. He often says that his grandmother taught him a lot about cooking and life.

Adam finished high school early, at age 14. He started university when he was 16. He earned two degrees from the University of Adelaide by the time he was 21. He studied Science and Law.

After university, Adam worked as a lawyer in Adelaide. He helped companies with technology, business, and international trade. In 2004, Adam moved to Japan. There, he worked in media law for The Walt Disney Company.

Winning MasterChef Australia

In 2009, Adam Liaw thought about trying out for the second season of MasterChef Australia. In April 2010, he was chosen as one of the top 24 contestants. Even though he won a challenge by cooking dishes from famous chefs, Adam wasn't sure he had the skills to win the whole show.

On 22 July 2010, Adam was the first person to get a spot in the grand finale. On 25 July 2010, he was announced as the winner of MasterChef Australia Season 2. He won against Callum Hann with a score of 89 to 82. His victory is still one of the most-watched TV events in Australian history that isn't a sports game.

After winning, Adam thought about different opportunities. He even considered opening an izakaya (a type of Japanese bar/restaurant) with a friend. He later came back to MasterChef Australia as a guest judge for seasons 4 and 6.

Adam's Cookbooks and Writing

As the winner of MasterChef Australia Season 2, Adam got to write his own cookbook. His first book is called Two Asian Kitchens. It was published in April 2011. The book is divided into two parts: "the Old Kitchen" and "the New Kitchen." In it, Adam shares recipes he grew up with and new recipes he created. Many people in Australia liked the book.

Adam has written more cookbooks since then. Some of his other books include Asian After Work (2013), Adam's Big Pot (2014), Asian Cookery School (2015), and The Zen Kitchen (2016). He also writes articles for newspapers like Good Food and Sunday Life magazine. He also writes for The Guardian.

Adam Liaw on Television

On 14 March 2012, it was announced that Adam Liaw would host his own travel and food TV show called Destination Flavour. It started airing on the SBS network in August 2012. Other hosts on the show included Renee Lim and Lily Serna.

In September 2013, Destination Flavour: Japan premiered. Adam was the only host for this series. After that, came Destination Flavour: Down Under in September 2014. Later, Destination Flavour: Scandinavia aired in 2016, Destination Flavour: Singapore in January 2017, and Destination Flavour: China in November 2018.

In March 2017, Hidden Japan with Adam Liaw started on SBS Food. In 2019, he appeared on the TV show Julia Zemiro's Home Delivery. In late 2020, Adam hosted Adam Liaw's Road Trip for Good for SBS Food.

In April 2021, Adam Liaw began hosting a nightly talk and cooking show called The Cook Up with Adam Liaw on SBS Food. This show was a very big project for SBS, with 200 episodes planned for the first season. On the show, Adam chats and cooks with many guests. These guests include other chefs like Colin Fassnidge and Julie Goodwin, and famous people like Yumi Stynes and Jimmy Barnes. In October 2021, Adam teamed up with Poh Ling Yeow, who was also a MasterChef Australia runner-up. They presented Adam and Poh’s Malaysia in Australia, exploring their shared Malaysian heritage.

In 2022, Adam Liaw joined the ABC panel show Tomorrow Tonight.

Other Cool Things Adam Does

Adam Liaw is a National Ambassador for Nutrition for UNICEF Australia. This means he helps promote healthy eating for children. In 2016, the Japanese government made him a Goodwill Ambassador of Japanese Cuisine. He also helps lead the Australia-Japan Foundation.

Adam is very active on social media. In 2015, a website called BuzzFeed Australia wrote articles about why people should follow him on Twitter and Instagram. They highlighted how good he was at using social media.

In 2017, All Nippon Airways (a Japanese airline) named Adam as their Culinary Ambassador for Australia. He created special menus for the airline.

In May 2022, Adam Liaw launched a podcast series on Audible. It was called How Taste Changed the World and had seven parts.

Where You've Seen Him (Filmography)