Where does my maid learn to cook Chinese food?

At a Glance

Free start: the Spice N' Pans YouTube channel, a Singapore channel with 1.1M+ subscribers, teaches local Chinese home dishes.
Grandmothers' Recipes runs a 5-day course for beginners and domestic helpers at S$750 (course page, checked Oct 2026).
That course fee includes all ingredients, take-home portions for employers to taste and a copy of the school's cookbook.
Your helper is entitled to 1 rest day a week, with at least 1 a month that cannot be compensated away (MOM).
A class on her rest day should be her choice; book weekday classes if it is part of her job.

Friends,

Many employers ask me the same thing after the helper arrives.
"She is good with the house... but can she cook the food we grew up with?"
Chinese home cooking is a skill, and skills can be taught.
Here are the free and paid ways to get her there, with prices checked this month.

Where can my maid learn to cook Chinese food for free?

Spice N' Pans is run by a Singaporean couple, Roland and Jamie, and posts local-style recipes.
The channel has over 1.1 million subscribers (YouTube channel stats, Oct 2026).
The videos are free and step by step, so she can pause, rewind and cook along on her phone.
Start with 3 or 4 dishes your family already eats every week, then add one new dish at a time.

Tip: send her the video link the day before, so she can watch it and you can buy the ingredients together.

Is there a Chinese cooking course for domestic helpers in Singapore?

Yes. Grandmothers' Recipes teaches Peranakan and Singaporean home recipes and runs a course for beginners and domestic helpers.

Swipe left or right to see the full table on mobile.

Option	Cost	What she gets
Spice N' Pans videos	Free	Self-paced recipe videos, local Chinese dishes
Grandmothers' Recipes 5-day course	S$750	Hands-on classes, ingredients, take-home portions, cookbook
Cooking at home with you	Ingredients only	Your family's own taste and recipes

Indicative figures as of October 2026, from the Grandmothers' Recipes course page (the fee was S$700 in March 2024). Check the school's current schedule and fee before booking.

Can I send my maid to a cooking class on her rest day?

The MOM rule

She is entitled to one rest day a week. You both agree on which day. At least one rest day a month cannot be compensated away.

The practical way

If cooking is part of her job, book classes on a working day. If she wants to learn on her rest day, let it be her choice.

Source: MOM, Rest days, health and well-being, checked October 2026.

How do I teach my maid to cook my family's dishes at home?

Cook it together once

Let her watch you, then cook it again with you beside her.

Write it down

A simple recipe card with amounts (how much soy sauce, how much salt) saves a lot of guessing.

Taste and give feedback

Say what to change next time ("less salty", "softer"), kindly and specifically.

Bring her to the wet market or supermarket so she learns the ingredients by name.
Involve her in the weekly meal plan, so she knows what to practise.
Expect some salty or bland dishes in the first weeks. Patience pays back fast.
Ask her to cook a dish from home too. Your family gets a new favourite, and she feels valued.

Can I hire a maid who already cooks Chinese food?

Yes. Look for helpers who list cooking and previous work with Chinese families in their profile.
At the interview, ask which dishes she has cooked, for how many people, and how often.
Cooking for your household is fine. Sending her to cook at another address (a relative's home or your shop) is illegal deployment, with a fine of up to S$10,000.

Find a helper who can cook

Compare maid listings with cooking experience from over 200 Singapore-registered maid agencies.

Browse Searchmaid

Ray

P.S. Give her a few weeks before you compare her cooking with your grandmother's.
Your grandmother had about fifty years of practice... and she still oversalted the soup sometimes.