Cook
My name is Balla Ali. I am a 26-years old Cameroonian and currently living in Cameroon. I attended the Government Primary School Buea Town, where I obtained a first school leaving certificate. I then went to the Government Secondary and High School Bokwango where I obtained my ordinary and advanced level certificates. While in High School I was also learning how to cook from my aunt, Mrs Matilda Effange who is a renowned Chef in my town and she owns a Decor and Catering company ; Sparrow Venture.while working with her, I earned my first culinary certificate in catering and decoration.
My love for cooking started from a very tender age as i watched my grandmother serve her customers from our kitchen since she could not afford to pay for restaurant space. Nothing gave me more joy than watching and helping her serve food to basically the whole neighbourhood .The smile she put on people faces always fascinated me and inspired me to want to do the same and even more. Since then, my love for cooking has only grown tremendously.
My grandmother’s cuisine has and will always be my first inspiration to become a Chef. My Mom, being a single mother at the time,needed some sort of income and thus also helped her mother to cook and sell food. The skill rubbed off on her and became my second inspiration for cooking.
In my second year at secondary school my mom became very sick and she could not do much for herself or for her family. Due to her state of health I had to move in with a family friend, Mrs Matilda Effange.she owns a Decor and Catering service ; Sparrow Ventures. When she noticed my interest in cooking, she decided to formally train me in Decor, pastries and cooking.
After the training I started cooking for a Best Selling author, Sherry L,Lewis From the United States who came visiting cameroon with her friends. Upon their return to the United States, I started working for Hotel Mermoz and after a couple of months I was promoted to steward on a ship partly owned by the hotel. After a little over a year, I started cooking for the General Manager of the Cameroon Cocoa and Coffee Board. Five months later, I was called back to work on a new ship called the R.T Margo of Kutug company from Holland, a position I held for 4 years; I then resigned to try out new experience in the restoration business. Over the years I have learned so much and I am slowly becoming the master of my art.
I define myself as a vibrant and enthusiastic Chef who over the years has accumulated experience and tries to inspire others through the art of cooking. Learning first from my Mother and Grandmother and then being formally trained by Mrs Matilda Effange and Chef Malonga who inspired me a lot gives me a unique flair and advanced techniques when it comes to African cuisine which I can’t wait to show the world.
Playing around the kitchen,I came up with a unique way of making porridge coco yams with no red oil but using instead, the original milk from the locally grown palm nut and some other vegetables .
Also, growing up in an area where rice was a main part of our daily menu, I came up with a recipe which is healthier,very tasty and also presentable . I named it WANGIS after a survivor I know
Serving African cuisine on a global scale has been a Dream of mine: showing the world what mama Africa has blessed us with. Making them yearn and crave our cuisine by bringing my home grown and unique methods of cooking and presenting our African delights.
I intend to validate the African cuisine by doing cookouts in communities all over the world. Food is the one thing everyone has in common and bringing together people would build a sense of unity and show people the power inherent in being united. This can have great impact on their lives and even on a nation. I also intend to pass a legacy to the next generation by creating an African cuisine Academy in my community. The goal is to get as many people as possible to understand and value the gifts God gave us Africans through the various flavours and textures we have in our cuisine.