A few years ago, I did write about the Chinese Sunday Theater in the Philippines. There was also the poorly-dubbed in Tagalog Chinovela Sundays on ABS-CBN and GMA-7. If my memory is right then the late Fu Pei Mei's show was aired during the Sunday Drama Theater. Taking the place of Judge Bao was indeed Daoming Si. Daoming Si's red tag would probably be a dominant thing in the memory of people in the 2000s. If I'm not wrong, Fu's show aired back-to-back with Meteor Garden (2001) on Sundays. It's been a long time already. Now, we have a gem from a few years back called What She Put on the Table. It was aired last 2017 in Taiwan. Now, you could watch it on Netlix for probably a limited amount of time (since they rent the shows) before the company may no longer renew the rights.
The show's Chinese title is 植劇場 - 五味八珍的歲月 (Read as Zhí jùchǎng - wǔwèi bā zhēn de suìyuè in Pinyin) literally meaning Zhi Theater - The Years of Five Flavors and Eight Treasures. I guess the international distribution title was more appealing than the long literal Chinese to English translation. The Chinese title speaks volumes of what Fu did while she was still alive. Fu already passed away last September 16, 2004, of pancreatic cancer. It sucks to think how cancer can be such a killer. It would be two years later when Soga Machiko would die of the same disease in May 7, 2006, of the same disease.
The show has a unique storytelling. A wayward grandson borrows a huge sum of money. The grandson learns of his grandmother's past. The storytelling goes from present ot past. What amazes me is how every flashback is digitally edited to make it feel the 1950s Taiwan. It was a time when Taiwan was still poor. Fu was born in Dalian, China, before moving to Taiwan. Fu wasn't always the master chef people know her to be. The mini-series showed her struggles with cooking. In the present, the wayward grandson starts to learn to cook. The show also blends in Mandarin and Amoy so it's best to turn on the subtitles.
It gets amazing to know how Fu and her household servant learn a lot. There's also Fu's struggles with her married life. It eventually discusses how Fu went all the way from the backyard to the television set teaching new stuff. This show reminds me of what was often shown in Milo commercials - great things start from small beginnings. Fu's humble start to her launch is expored in great detail. I really recommend watching it.
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