Into the Fridge 🪽
Sasha Mei on volunteering and making congee
Sasha Mei 🪽
is a Toronto-based creative who comes from a beauty PR background. She’s the co-founder of Yu+Mei, a Toronto-based supper club and community collective, and she writes the Substack, , which means ‘table’ in Malay. She’s a recreational runner, a frequent traveler, and (in my opinion) an arbiter of great taste. 
What is your fridge philosophy?
Keep it clean! It should be mostly filled with produce and leftovers, but always keep two martini glasses chilled just in case!
Your fridge is always always always stocked with ____.
Leafy greens (i.e. baby spinach and kale) that are washed and ready to cook. They’re the easiest to add onto any meal. And coconut water. I am from Malaysia, and some things I cannot forego. For some reason I always have a ton of beverage cans (NOT coconut water), which I find funny since I’m not a huge beverage drinker at all, but it’s great for when guests come over.
Top 5 condiments, go.
sambal oelek
tahini
almond butter
pickled red onions
preserved lemons
Fine, I’ll open it up to pantry too. Let’s hear your favorite snacks / pantry staples:
I have such a sweet tooth for snacks. I love Hu chocolate bars (the hazelnut butter-filled ones specifically), dates stuffed with almond butter, GoMacro bars if I’m running around and in a pinch. I always keep jars of Corona beans and chickpeas for lazy weeknight meals (fry in olive oil and top with feta and preserved lemons!), as well as multiple types of rice. There’s a Japanese grocery store called Sanko near my apartment that has an incredible selection.
A meal that’s on heavy rotation these days:
Goop’s Winter Salmon bowl is my go-to comfort meal. It’s easy to make and batch cook for the rest of the week, and the protein can be substituted with just about anything. It’s warm and cozy and filling. I always keep a jar of the dressing from the recipe in my fridge, because it seems to go with everything and makes a lot of simple roasted dishes better.
Let’s go a little deeper…
What’s the mantra you keep coming back to?
Everything in moderation, including moderation.
What products / practices are part of your regular mental wellness habits?
I definitely don’t prioritize this enough, but I go to therapy once a month (or more if I feel I need this!). I also make an effort to spend time with people in my community. I live and work mostly alone, so my support system is very important. It’s as simple as going out to my local cafe once a week and meeting up with friends there. I like to have a small circle that I can deeply trust, and fostering that makes me happy.
I started waking up earlier to take one hour in the morning that’s just for me. This could be my time for a run, it could be just to enjoy my coffee and a book. My favourite way to spend it, though, has just been writing. It could be a Substack or scribbling notes on a pad. Getting my thoughts out gets my brain going and I like how it feels.
As for quieting the brain, I’ve never been particularly good at meditating. But I find that scents really help to create a sense of calm and tranquility. I love the Sidia Braless candle and the Flamingo Estate Adriatic Muscatel Sage candle. I also find that volunteering where possible is really beneficial for mental health - giving your time to others is a great way to feel gratitude and fulfillment (and is further proof that altruism is a myth).
And your physical?
My habits for physical health simultaneously take care of my mental health. I feel my best when I’m consistent with exercise, nutrition, and sleep, and try my best to enforce a routine that prioritizes these three. I exercise five times a week: I run three times a week and lift weights twice a week. I recently started working with a trainer and it’s been such a great investment – they’re really good at making you see what you’re capable of. When I’m traveling (which is quite often), exercising feels immediately harder, so I pivot to low impact workouts like Pilates.
Cooking for myself and nourishing my body with healthy meals is an act of self love and care, and I try to eat as much home-cooked food as possible. It feels very difficult in my industry, where there are so many sit down dinners and social plans, so I started inviting friends over for casual weeknight dinners to try balance things out. It’s not unlike me to say, “Hey, I’m sick of restaurant food! Can we hang out at mine and I’ll cook you dinner?”
Once a month/once every other month I’ll get a lymphatic drainage massage – I really like Naz at Nüd in Toronto - and I’ll get a facial a few times a year. Michelle at Trove, as well as Virginie at the Caudalie Spa, are my local favourites.
What do you think is the most underrated part of wellness?
Consistency.
And overrated?
IV Drips.
Picture this: you wake up one morning and feel like shit. What’s your next move:
If it’s that familiar tickly feeling in my throat or a headache that indicates I’m about to get sick, I start by clearing my day as much as possible. I take a ton of vitamin C and drink hot water with lemon basically all day (adding a little honey sometimes), and make myself congee.
If I can’t make congee, I usually have homemade bone broth on hand and will add some rice to that, because your body needs fuel to heal. I stay warm and try rest/sleep as much as possible.
In the evening I’ll drink this Malaysian tea (from Ipoh, where my mum spent a lot of her childhood) that I usually stock up on when I go visit relatives (though I’m sure there’s places where you can order it online) called ‘Ho Yan Hor’. I grew up calling it “icky tea” but it’s great for treating multiple things like a cold or “heatiness” (a traditional Chinese medicine concept that refers to an imbalance of internal energy that causes you to feel, well, crappy), or prevent getting even sicker. Honestly, even if I’m not getting sick but just feeling overall gross, I follow this same routine.
Give us your ride or die wellness products:
Caudalie Beauty Elixir - I spray this in the shower and it’s such a calming experience. Honestly, most of my skincare is Caudalie.
Nue Co. probiotics - I didn’t believe in these until I started traveling a lot and had to reset my digestive system every time.
White Flower oil - another traditional Chinese remedy I swear by. I rub this on my tummy when I’m bloated/have a stomachache, on my joints/muscles where I’m sore, and on my temples when I have a headache.
Eye mask - I had six other roommates in college and worked part time and managed a dance team. Getting good quality sleep has always been a non-negotiable for me, even back then. I got very used to sleeping with an eye mask and ear plugs and haven’t kicked the habit. I notice a significant decrease in sleep quality when I don’t have my eye mask.
On Cloudmonster 2 - I’m counting this as a wellness product! These are my current favourite all-round shoe (great for all types of runs).
One thing you do everyday that makes you the most YOU version of yourself:
My skincare routine. I take 10 minutes to myself and really get into it, because some days this is all the time I’m going to have to myself (read: off my phone, not inundated with notifications, not feeling like I’m behind or missing out on anything). My face is a big part of my work and is the most exposed to the elements, and taking good care of it is so important. I don’t think I’ve ever gone to sleep with makeup on.
Whose taste inspires you?!
Imogen Kwok and Bella Thomas. Everything they do and create is art, and feels like it comes from a place of peace and serenity. Their work (though completely different from one another), is beautiful and graceful and I hope to carry even a minute part of that into my work.
Big thanks to Sasha for sharing a taste of her life with us. She’s hands down one of my favorite follows on Instagram and her Substack,
, is a breath of fresh air. Find her fridge favorites and more here.Feel free to leave a comment or respond to this email with questions you want asked, people you want featured, or anything else that’s on your mind. Don’t be shy, I love hearing from you.
The chilled martini glasses! Such a smart move
loved this one too! Barbet's deep dive is sososo good 💛