Manal Al Alem is a notoriously famous TV chef with bestselling books and a successful path that only seems to be going forward. Manal studied Psychology at Cairo University but her passion for cooking had taken her away from her original field - only to make her beyond popular. Here's why I personally think she's great:
Manal is friendly-looking. She has the Arab girl-next-door looks. She looks like your regular neighbour or family friend.
Your average middle-class Arab women feel like she's one of them, her kitchen is not much fancier than theirs. She addresses food-related topics and recipes that a housewife in the Arab world, not in Alaska or Madagascar, faces and is interested in.
Manal is one of the first, if not THE first Arab female chef to become super popular.
Manal knows the whereabouts of marketing herself. Afterall, she had started an advertising agency in Kuwait in 2000. Apart from her popular Abu Dhabi TV show, her official Facebook page has over 200,000 fans. Her website is pretty rich in content and nicely designed. She is an active tweep, has a bestselling book, a Youtube channel and even has an iPhone app.
Manal's ingredients are simple. You can find most of them at any home. Unlike some other sophisticated male Arab chefs, you won't expect her to mention no foie gras sauce or gruyere cheese - keeping it plain and simple with a touch of creativity.
