FIRST ON FOX: A private chef for a well-known Hollywood family is revealing savvy ways to incorporate healthy foods into everyday meals — especially for kids at young ages who are just developing a curiosity about food and need smart guidance.
Chef Khristianne Uy, better known as Chef K, is a private chef for the Kardashian family in Southern California as well as other celebrity families.
In an on-camera interview with Fox News Digital this week from her home in Los Angeles, she discussed healthy choices, a healthy mindset, and a new salad dressing collaboration with Health Nut, which puts a fresh twist on modern-day topping options. (See the video at the top of this article.)
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The four salad dressing flavors — an original house blend, sesame, spicy Asian and ranch — are fresh and full of flavor. Health Nut also offers a low-calorie option.
"This has got to be on everyone’s shelf," she said, emphasizing how "easy" it is to use the dressings to freshen salads, flavors and tastes. "You can make the ‘shake-shake-shake’ salad in the comfort of your own home," she added, referencing the Kardashians' penchant for shaking up their salads before eating.
"So convenient. Why not?" she said.
The new dressings are all non-GMO and gluten-free — and three of the four are vegan, made with an apple cider base.
They need to be stored in the refrigerator, she noted, for shelf-life longevity, as they're full of fresh ingredients including — in the case of the ranch dressing — rich buttermilk and eggs.
"These are not ultra-processed," she said.
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Uy recommended using the "versatile" dressings for more than just salads. They can be used as dips and marinade for any proteins that might be grilled this summer.
"The sesame is my favorite," she said. "It's a comfort thing for me. I grew up with that, with the taste of tuna and sesame." (Uy immigrated to California from the Philippines when she was young.)
The private chef has worked with the Kardashian family for a decade, posting unique and creative food stories on her social media over the years, often inspired by extravagant events held by the family.
She gains inspiration for some of her unique menu items, she told Fox News Digital, from the specific foods and tastes she knows members of the family enjoy.
"I get really passionate and really channel my clients. I memorize really diligently what they like, flavor-profile wise, and then circle back up with [themes like] ‘Ghostbusters,’ 'The Powerpuff Girls,’ and also in a healthier way," she said, recalling recent Kardashian children's birthday parties that she helped cater and create.
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"That's my responsibility," she said, emphasizing the healthy aspect of what she prepares.
Getting children to eat healthy foods can be a struggle, Uy acknowledged, but she said incorporating fresh veggies and fruits into the process can ease a resistance to new foods.
"With all my clients’ kids, I do a salad bar, and they can build their own taco bar or pizza bar," she said. "They're more curious" about the food, she said — and they really "have fun" with it.
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This type of hands-on engagement can build excitement for kids around eating certain foods, she said.
Here's more of Fox News Digital's original interview with Chef K.
Chef K: Healthier eating is so much easier today. And when we tap into a nostalgic part of our brain, it's comforting, too.
My job, as a chef, is to first get curious about what a family wants. And then introduce a healthier version of it. So I will start a "forever/never" list.
Let's say a family wants a certain pasta or sauce or salad. I then will introduce one added topping for it. Maybe they like it; maybe they don't.
And that's how I build from there — putting a food in the "forever" or the "never" pile.
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Especially with children, this process gets them curious about food.
They'll say, "Oh, Chef K, what's that?" or "Chef K, let's have that again."
I want to build trust with them [about the food she makes], and then we can have that [food or dish] again. Then it's in their memory bank. And that becomes part of a new tradition, which is so important.
Chef K: Not anymore! To be honest, I've been doing this for 24 years.
So, no, there's nothing that I haven't seen as far as requests.
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I do get curious with my clients, and what's nostalgic for them may not be nostalgic for me. And I like to provide comfort for them — comfort and healthy choices.
Chef K: I'm finding that a lot of salads are now served on pizzas. Either that, or inside wraps.
When you get creative and curious like that — in any way, shape or form, it's still a serving of salad that you're taking in, as opposed to not having a salad.
Things are constantly evolving, constantly moving. Even with a Caesar's salad now, the [new dressings] have made life so much easier because they're so versatile.
And I've been putting dried fruits and nuts in my salads — and marinating the proteins and putting them into the salad is such a nice component.
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You feel satisfied when you eat that. You're not saying, "OK, I just had a salad. What's next?"
You just had a meal.
And yes, I would stress the importance of getting protein in your meals.
Yes, I believe in the balance of everything.
We all like to splurge a little bit now and then. So, hey, OK, have a little fun. Have a salad four or fives a week — and then, maybe on a Saturday, have a little bit of pizza.
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Keep things in balance. You feel better that way.
One other thing: The condiment part of my refrigerator is like that medicine cabinet or makeup drawer that I have in my bathroom, right?!
It's very important to me — it's my go-to.
For me, the new salad dressings are so delicious and promote healthy living.
They can be used for dipping for almost anything, and they make life so much easier.
The Health Nut dressings are available nationally at Walmart, plus regionally at Target, Albertsons, Jewel, Bristol Farms, Gelsens, Stater Bro’s, Wakefern, Smart and Final.
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