Today we’d like to introduce you to Rajaa Tuere
Hi Rajaa, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois and currently reside in Houston, Texas. Honestly, I fell in love with cooking and creating at a young age. As I became older, I became more passionate and curious about the different worlds I could open myself up to simply through the design and taste of food. As my passion and excitement grew, there was a time in my life where a prominent figure discouraged me from pursuing my goal as a chef. I was 12 and had been excited to share my dream only for it to be shut down. Over the years, that moment replayed in my head. I continued cooking, but I stopped experimenting. At that point, I was just cooking to eat. There was no longer anything exciting or satisfying about being a chef. It was not until I moved to Houston, Texas, after my first year of college, that that love began to re-emerge. It started forcing its way through and in retrospect, the universe intentionally placed me in positions, hinting that this was the future intended for me.
After that enlightenment, I went all in. I began my journey initially preparing dishes for me, my mother, and younger sister. My mom worked as the Vice President of Harris Health Systems, and my sister was in high school and on an elite cheer team, which in turn took up the majority of her time, as well as my mom’s. I was in school for Communications at the time and I truly needed a purpose for myself. I became invested in nutrition and health as a part of my desire to cook and I wished for that to reflect in our lives. I also believe apart of me wanted to have purpose in that moment and cooking for us fulfilled that need. I made breakfast, packed lunches. made dinner, all of this, almost every night. I insisted on doing the grocery shopping, so I could guarantee I would receive the freshest ingredients possible for all the dishes I created in my head and reimagined from searching online. Sometimes I was making the recipe as I went along, but it always seemed to come out great. I remember my mom telling me later on, that she would watch me in the kitchen and she could see my love and passion for cooking exude from me. And she was right, I felt like I was floating. The act itself simply brought me peace and joy, especially when my dish turned out how I imagined it. I started cooking for friends, family, and the feedback was always amazing. It was nerve-wrecking for me, because even though I thought my food tasted amazing, it didn’t mean everyone else would. When everyone complimented me, it settled my soul. I knew I had been given a gift blessed by God and I desired to share my talent with others.
In 2019, I decided to enroll in culinary school at the College of Southern Nevada in Las Vegas, Nevada. From then on, I began polishing my self taught skills and knowledge. I enjoyed every second of school, the mistakes, the failures, the successes, because they helped mold me into the chef I am today. I started my business in January 2020 where I released my first recipe book, ‘Atelier de Tuere’, created and published by me. I graduated from school with my Associates of Applied Sciences in Culinary Arts, as well as my Food Protection Manager’s. Over time, I’ve catered events such as birthday’s, baby shower’s, and holiday parties. I have meal prepped for fitness trainers, entrepreneurs, and families, and sold plated meals occasionally.
I currently am running my business full time and finding novel ways to network, learn, and expand my business. I will be headed back to school in the spring to pursue my bachelor’s degree in Nutrition so that I may possess the full knowledge and understanding behind the food I am preparing, aside from the research I’ve done myself. I want to be able to provide communities with food that tastes and look appetizing, but do not have the unnecessary and unhealthy ingredients that many foods contain. I want to give back and not only teach people how to live a healthy and sustainable lifestyle, but provide them with nutritious and flavorful food.
I have been blessed to be where I am today and all of the challenges have only fueled me to persevere and face any adversity with my head held high and simply trust the process. I am grateful for where I am today, as a woman, mother, chef, and entrepreneur. I know where God wants me to be and I know I’m headed down that path.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I have encountered many obstacles along the way, especially being a woman in a male-dominated industry. I’ve had chefs under and over me attempt to belittle me or my position, and set me up to fail because they did not believe I deserved to be in the position I rightfully earned. I’ve even had people attempt to book with me to scam me.
However, one of the largest barriers has been battling my need for perfection and being confident in myself and skillset. I’ve consistently battled with myself, always attempting to ensure everything I pursued was with perfection, which in turn caused me to question my talent and skillset. I would overwhelm myself with the thousands of goals I set and felt I immediately needed to accomplish. These actions caused me to feel overburdened, resulting in procrastination, and in turn accomplishing nothing. This specific challenge is something I still work on today; ensuring I don’t get in my head about whether or not the dish, photo, or content is perfect or will be received well. I am learning to give myself grace, while being comfortable with the unknown and the not so perfect moments.
Another challenge I’ve continuously been faced with is finding the clientele, or rather them finding me, that is meant for me. I’ve had to pass up on many caterings and private dinners because the services and food being requested did not add up to the budget given by the client. While it has been difficult, I’ve had to learn to stand firm on my price and remind myself that my prices are based off my talents and the quality of my food and services, not their budget. Regardless of the hurdles, I have to trust that I am walking the plan God has laid out for me and continue to trust that the opportunities that are for me will reach me, therefore, I will continue to set my standards and goals ridiculously high. James Cameron said, “If you set your goals ridiculously high and it’s a failure, you will fail above everyone else’s success.” I plan to keep soaring to greater heights.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a chef, an artist and creative, and a business owner. I have many talents, however, cooking is my priority. I consider myself to be an artist and creative because I am, but mostly because that’s what cooking is. It’s a type of art form. There are a variety of different avenues that can be explored in the culinary world and I don’t intend to limit myself to a box on my journey. My business is called Atelier de Tuere, also known as the Workshop of Tuere, my middle name. I am a private chef and caterer. I offer services such as private dinners and caterings for any type of occasion. I also provide services such as meal preps for clients, whether you’re a parent, athlete, or doctor, etc., and will also be offering cooking classes in the near future. I cater to my clients needs personally and intricately, therefore every event is different. Who wants to be the same anyway?
I am known for providing my clients with intense and everlasting flavor, all the while guaranteeing that they will physically feel good after eating my food. My clients do not feel sluggish or exhausted after eating a meal of mine, but rather feel energized and robust. And I specialize in providing fresh and nutritious ingredients, while practicing sustainability.
I am most proud of my persistence. Despite the many challenges I have been confronted with, I always got back up and I admire that about myself. I never allowed the doubts from myself and others around me to stop me or cause me to quit. I persevered against all adversity and because of that, I will always win.
I believe what sets me apart from others is the burning love and passion I possess for cooking. This passion translates into the excellence I deliver in my craft; from synthesizing what my client wants to what my client needs and providing a highly nutritious, aesthetically pleasing, and savoring entree. If I was unable to be paid, I would still be on this path. I thoroughly enjoy what I do, but even more so, I take pleasure in the fact that not only do people love my food, but that I truly want to make a change in the food world. Food is also more than just eating a meal; it is an experience and I aspire for people to have memorable experiences that fulfill their soul. I desire to show communities, especially disparaging communities, that there are methods that can allow you to have amazing food, while practicing sustainability and prioritizing your health and the health of the loved ones around you.
Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
I have never been a risk taker. I am a planner. I need to know where I’m going, who is going to be there, how long it’s going to take, otherwise I feel uneasy or rather, I should say, felt uneasy. As time has gone on, I’ve learned to be spontaneous, not just with my personal life, but professional as well. I feel as though I’ve taken a few risks such as leaving a job I was unhappy with, without having another position set up. However, I think the biggest risk I’ve taken since my career commenced was starting my business and truly believing it could work out. While many may not view that as a risk, for me it was, Being an entrepreneur is not easy. It requires true dedication, consistency, and commitment. And just because you are working hard does not mean the success will be immediate. Often times, it is not. I remember I used to pray for opportunities such as this one. For someone, just one person, to see me. To truly see and recognize my talent and give me the chance that would propel me into the level I’ve been working so hard to climb to. And in all transparency, I truly wished I would’ve taken more risks, more moments to believe in myself. Because that’s what I think risk truly is, a little bit of delusion, a little bit of dare, and a little bit of belief. Risk to me is someone daring to believe in themselves, to believe they could achieve their hopes, even when they were told no, or shut down, or that their dreams were to big. Risk is taking a chance on yourself, on your dream, and quite literally hoping and praying that it all works out.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://atelierderajaatuere.gumroad.com/
- Instagram: Www.instagram.com/
ChefrajaaTuere - Facebook: https://Facebook.com/AtelierdeTuere
- Other: https://Atelierderajaatuere.gumroad.com
Image Credits
Food photos were taken by me. Chef Headshots were taken by mom.
