Some of these books are about recipes that are "quick" and "easy". Is that a new idea for traditional Chinese cooks?

My personal experience is, I need to make everything from scratch: I make pancakes by weighing the flour and beating the eggs, I make tortillia wraps from mixing the dough. But, on the other hand, for people living in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, there are Tescos and Wal-mart, etc, so it's a lot easier for them to get (prepackaged) ingredients. I tried some of the recipes, and always tried to get my substitutes, but I did not make any adjustments for Chinese readers in the book.

Did you ever test your translations by asking Chinese readers to use them?

I have tried loads of the recipes, although sometimes (for myself) I alter the recipe a little, but most of the time, it's because of the personal taste that requires a bit less sugar or more chili, etc. I have a group of moms living in Dali in my community, and many of them have bought Jamie's cookbooks that I translated, and we sometime gather to cook a recipe together.

Why do you think such cookbooks appeal to Chinese readers?

As Chinese people are more and more interested in a healthy lifestyle and also interested in trying new things, Western food has become appealing. Many had tried baking simple cookies and cakes to start with; some found it so different and interesting from their daily staple, they want to try more. Jamie Oliver is famous not only in the UK, but also globally. As more Chinese people have received higher education now, English has become an essential tool for most of the younger generation, and exploring the Western cooking is a good way to learn about Western culture and history.