Cook Like a King: Recipes from My California Chinese Kitchen

In her debut cookbook, Top Chef All-Stars champion and award-winning chef Melissa King shares 120 of her favorite dishes, blending her California sensibility with the Chinese cuisine of her childhood.

From the moment she could see over the kitchen counter, King would spend hours in the kitchen with her mom. For King, the kitchen was a place to play with fire and knives. Now, it's a space where King can express herself, melding the Cantonese flavors with which she grew up and the French, Italian, and Californian ones of the Michelin-starred restaurants in which she trained.

Cook Like a King features 120 unforgettable dishes that showcase King's effortless blending of these cuisines, like in her Lemongrass Cioppino and Miso Caesar with Gai Lan and Chrysanthemum Greens. She includes nostalgic, homestyle dishes like her grandmother's Shanghainese Lion's Head Meatballs and her mother's Black Vinegar Ribs, and, of course, her famous Hong Kong Milk Tea Tiramisu, which made renowned Italian butcher and Top Chef guest judge Dario Cecchini shed tears of joy.

King keeps the needs of the home cook in mind, making recipes accessible while inspiring readers to experiment with food, culture, and flavor. Her recipes, crafted from a lifetime spent cooking for her Chinese family, in restaurants, and on television, show how simple techniques, attention, and graceful application of the Asian pantry can elevate familiar dishes and create new, thrilling classics. With stunning photography, personal stories, and expert guidance, Cook Like a King is a thoughtful, playful examination of the flavors that shape our lives.

Author: Melissa King
Binding Type: Hardcover
Publisher: Ten Speed Press
Published: 09/23/2025
Pages: 272
Weight: 1.25lbs
ISBN: 9781984861924


Review Citation(s):
Library Journal 06/01/2025 pg. 103

About the Author
Chef Melissa King is best known as the winner of Bravo's Top Chef All-Stars Los Angeles Season 17 and the winner of All-Star's Fan Favorite. King holds more challenge wins than any other competitor in the show's history. She is the host of Tasting Wild, the National Geographic docuseries and serves as a guest judge on Top Chef, Food Network's The Julia Child Challenge, Pamela Anderson's Cooking with Love, and America's Test Kitchen: The Next Generation. Along with being a chef-entrepreneur, event curator, television personality, philanthropist, and model, she is an activist who speaks publicly on issues of women's empowerment, LGBTQ+ rights, sustainability, food education, and diversity in entrepreneurship. Out Magazine named her one of the 100 LGBTQ+ individuals making a groundbreaking impact on the world.

JJ Goode helps people write books, and mostly cookbooks, which are the best books. He has coauthored several New York Times bestsellers and has been nominated for several James Beard awards.