In the kitchen with Yui Yamashita

While some see cooking as just a means of nourishment for the body, in many cultures, it is also a way of expressing our love and care for others. For Yui Yamashita, it is this belief that led her to become a private chef, focused on making high-quality, wholesome meals for post-natal mothers.
Based in central Sydney, where she lives with her two-year-old son, Issa, Yui founded her culinary business in 2020, through which she offers weekly family meal packages and more – her own granola. We recently caught up with Yui in her home, where she showed us how to prepare one of her favourite Japanese breakfasts, shared more about her journey into health and wellness, along with a recipe that you can recreate at home.

Born in Tokyo, where she spent many of her formative years, Yui’s passion for health is informed by her Japanese heritage, as well as Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda – two key practices which she incorporates in the kitchen. Drawing much of her inspiration from meals that she ate during her childhood, she recalls fond memories of her grandmother and mother’s cooking. “I remember staying at my grandmother’s home in the south of Japan, where she made us brown sugar steamed buns with sweet azuki bean paste,” says Yui. “She let us help wrap the sweet bean paste inside the buns and seeing them coming out of the steamer all puffed up and hot was one of my happiest food memories.”

While Yui had always had an interest in food and cooking, it didn’t initially strike her as a feasible career path. After finishing school, she cut her teeth in the wellness industry working as an occupational therapist, but ultimately realised that a traditional 9-5 wasn’t quite the right fit for her. “I worked for a few years but I knew it wasn’t for me and I started travelling around the world, teaching yoga and cooking in detox centres, volunteering and hitchhiking,” she says.

Upon moving from Melbourne to Sydney a few years later, she established her meal package offering as an extension of her private chef service. “One of my clients made a specific request to cook replenishing meals for her after she’d had some complications post birth,” explains Yui, “This started my journey in learning about the fourth trimester and how important it is for mothers to have proper nourishment and care during that time. I realised that all the wisdom and knowledge of postpartum nourishment came from the Eastern traditions and I felt that it was my purpose to learn and share this food.”

One of Yui’s most recent ventures was launching her own granola, Uchimama, which she created with her co-founder Alex. The name Uchimama is a portmanteau of ‘uchi’ meaning ‘home’ in Japanese, and ‘mama’ referring to the postpartum mothers she endeavours to nourish with her cooking. “Like so many, we were juggling the demands of work and motherhood and we needed a way to look after ourselves so that we could show up each day,” says Yui. “Our mission is simple; to help people nourish themselves, so they can be the best version of themselves.” Made in small batches using premium ingredients, the granola is gluten-free, and infused with powerful supplements like lion’s mane, mesquite and inca berries – all of which are renowned for their ultra-nourishing and anti-inflammatory benefits.

Reflecting on her own journey with wellness and nutrition, Yui shared some insights for those looking to lead a more health-conscious lifestyle – with high quality ingredients being one of her top priorities. “I go to farmers markets or the local organic grocer to get my fresh seasonal ingredients,” she says, “Choose something that you haven’t seen or you can only buy during the season and try something new, because this way your gut bacteria will love you for diversifying the food you’re eating.” As a big advocate of slow cooking, Yui continues “Pair [your produce] with cuts of meat with bones or joints that you can slow cook. It takes time but it is much easier for your body to digest and absorb and you will get all the minerals and nutrients from slow and low temperature cooking.”

Between the demands of work, friends, family, and for many of us – parenthood – we could all benefit from investing a bit more energy into our wellbeing. Should you wish to try out one of Yui’s nourishing meals for yourself, read on, as she shares her recipe for a salmon, soaked egg and pickled vegetable breakfast.

Click here for the recipe to recreate at home.