Blind MasterChef Christine Ha – A Testament of Resilience
By Stephen Sherwood, Staff Writer
Christine Ha’s life took a drastic turn when she started to lose her sight in 2004, she was diagnosed with neuromyelitis optica, where the immune system attacks the optic nerves and spinal cord. By 2007, Ha was almost completely blind. She joined MasterChef in 2012 after some encouragement from her husband and to gain inspiration for her creative writing projects. She quickly became a fan favorite, outperforming other contestants and winning the competition.
Ha explained the importance of Vietnamese braised pork with egg (Thịt Kho Trứng), “Whenever I cook [this dish], I think of her. It’s the dish I made in the finale of MasterChef season 3 as my second course to pay homage to her.”
Winning the MasterChef competition came with a prize of $250,000, the title of MasterChef and the publication of her own cookbook. With the cookbook and prize money, she opened her own restaurant “The Blind Goat” located at 8145 Long Point Rd. in Houston, Texas. The focus is on Vietnamese dishes set in a comforting family environment. Some of the dishes include Texas BBQ Brisket Fried Rice, egg and ketchup fried rice with smoked brisket and Beef Carpaccio (Bò Tái Chanh) which contains thinly sliced beef steak, Vietnamese herbs, pickled shallot, peanuts, fried onion and sesame crackers.
A prime example of this story coming full circle is Ha’s creative take on a favorite of her mothers creations, the Thịt Kho Dumplings, which Ha made from the Thịt Kho Trứng. They are stuffed with pork belly braised in coconut juice, garlic, and fish sauce which can be ordered from her restaurant.
Ha’s strong passion for writing and has been telling stories her whole life. Ha earned her bachelor’s in business administration and finance as well as a Masters of Information Systems from the University of Texas at Austin. She then went on to earn a masters of fine arts in creative fiction and nonfiction from the University of Houston’s acclaimed writing program.
“It’s all about storytelling. It’s about framing a scene or a dish, then giving the narration on why it’s included in a story or on a menu. It’s about self-expression,” Ha said. She views everything in the lens of storytelling whether it be recipes, written words, or interviews. “It’s the story of human struggle and triumph, simple as that. It’s about showing others the thread that connects us all as human beings.”
Ha’s late mother was her inspiration for recreating the Vietnamese dishes she grew up eating. That desire created the MasterChef winning culinist of today, but she would not have opened a restaurant if she had not won the competition. She remembers two dishes fondly. “Always and forever, Vietnamese beef noodle soup, or Phở Bò,” Ha exclaimed that this was her favorite dish she had been trying to teach herself from memory “Her’s [Ha’s mother] was the best, and although mine is pretty good, I feel like it’s still not as good.”
All of these dishes are a story of Ha’s childhood, her mother’s cooking and her current culinary career.
