FOOD and music are the two loves of many Singaporeans, and she now serves them up together.

Meet Ms Irene Jansen - Singapore's first singing chef.

It's no gimmick, the 41-year-old told The New Paper. She really sings while she cooks.

'Music and food go together. I've been doing both since I was a kid, when I was always put in the kitchen where my parents could supervise me.'

A Talentime semi-finalist in 1989, Ms Jansen believes music helps to enhance the mood of a cooking demonstration, which she describes as 'honestly, very boring'.

To spice up her demonstrations, she belts out five original songs, composed by her friend Julian Wong, during her cooking demonstrations, which vary in duration depending on her client's needs.

One, titled Hot Chocolate Waltz, has lyrics about the recipe's ingredients and cooking instructions, so they are easy to remember.

Another, titled A Dash of Love, details how she feels, as a mother, cooking for her children.

Ms Jansen also sings covers - usually jazz tunes, but sometimes, she says the dishes call for pop ballads and more up-tempo tunes.

She said: 'Without music, there's no flow, no emotion... Cooking to me is not just about food, it's about sharing stories.'

Other singing chefs include Italian Francesco Milana, and American Olga Watkins.

Like Jamie Oliver and Rachael Ray, Ms Jansen is a lifestyle chef who teaches cooking, minus the chef outfit.

She doesn't have a catering service, but does private cooking lessons or cooking shows at different venues.

Working on a freelance basis, she also provides consulting work, like coming up with new menus and evaluating existing ones.

The money, she said, is enough to get by.

But isn't it dangerous to sing when you're cooking?

'While I'm singing, I always keep one eye on the board. And I cook so often, I know what I'm doing,' said Ms Jansen.

'When I sing, I try not to do a lot of cutting. I just put the pre-prepared ingredients together.'

And she draws the line at dancing.

'I'll leave it to the dancers!'

Ms Jansen launched her first cookbook, titled Food Inspirations, in November.

She worked on the cookbook with her sister Audrey, 25, for 5 1/2 months.

The book, on sale at selected boutique outlets, is very personal, with sections titled 'Letting Go', 'Just Us, Girls' and 'Milestones' to indicate particular aspects of her life.

Each of Ms Jansen's recipes - there are about 40 - tells a story, many of which revolve around her family.

She has been married for 13 years, and has a son Gerard, 11, and a daughter Sarah, 8. She said her husband, who works in the financial industry, is very supportive of her work.

Gerard has a spaghetti recipe in the book, and Sarah contributed a recipe for yoghurt fruit trifle.

Ms Jansen's kids have also inspired many of her own works. Her lemongrass lime creme brulee was conceived last year, when Gerard, then only 10, had to go on a school trip to China for seven days.

Said Ms Jansen: 'He was alone so far away. I missed him terribly, so I used the feeling of missing him to create the creme brulee.'

Food and family

Family is important to Ms Jansen, which is why the main objective behind her cookbook is to 'encourage more children to eat at home'.

She said: 'Do you know that there's less family bonding nowadays because people don't eat at home?'

She describes her cooking as fusion, like her own mixed ancestry. She is of Peranakan, Cantonese and Eurasian descent.

'I want my recipes to be simple, so that anybody who doesn't know how to cook can take it up quickly,' she said.

Ms Jansen has a colourful and varied working background. In addition to being a judge at singing and beauty contests and contributing articles to food and lifestyle magazines, she has worked as a secretary and public relations consultant, and has been involved in arts management.

Ms Jansen is also a vocal coach who works with schools to coach students on vocal technique, and to build their confidence in singing.

It's working with young people which keeps her young, she said.

But no matter what the future holds, she says she is content to cook and 'go with the flow', because it's all for the children.

'The one ingredient that goes into every mother's food is not pepper or salt. It is love,' she said, smiling.

Said Ms Annie Beh, 38, a homemaker who attended the launch of Ms Jansen's cookbook: 'The fact that she sings makes you feel a more personal connection. The singing makes me feel much closer to the chef, and really brings out her passion for cooking.'

But some others are less enthusiastic. Said insurance manager Diana Ng, 26: 'I don't mind using her once, or for special occasions. But I won't engage her frequently, or the novelty might wear off.'

Teacher Lee Chuen Hing, 25, said: 'The singing is novel. But I'm not sure if the multi-tasking will affect the quality of her food, which is more important.'

This article was first published in The New Paper on Jan 3, 2009.