Each article in the book "Vietnamese Dishes are Home" evokes the old-fashioned memories of children far from home: The atmosphere of markets, the instructions of their grandmothers, the snacks that are often eaten at the market, the rice soup often found at home, the offerings for the Lunar New Year, the Mid-Autumn Festival, the spices in the Vietnamese rice tray... to the busy but cozy activities in each kitchen, the instructions of the grandmother, mother to the girls, the grandchildren about cooking, arranging meals, houseworking... The little things that decades later, if not understood, are still as impressive.
The author started writing in July 2021, when the COVID-19 epidemic seemed to be over, but her daughter still could not return home, she could not go to New York (USA) to attend the graduation ceremony with her child.
The old mother and daughter's thoughts and worries were eased through video calls. The author hopes that her daughter will take care of her health, eat, and mention dishes as one of the most frequent contents. At that time, the author's daughter also started working, there was no longer a school canteen, and had to cook for herself.
The culinary experiences after 4 years away from home also made the author's daughter affirm that Asian dishes are still easy to cook, easy to eat, nutritious, healthy... and importantly, the most suitable. And right in those conversations, author Ann Lee and her mother began to pay attention to building and storing interesting content for Vietnamese cuisine, and their daughter suggested it with questions, while the author started writing.
The author of Vietnamese food is at home shared: Many Vietnamese people, when seeing a Vietnamese dish being boiled, exclaim: Oh my, this is a dish I really like and have not been able to eat for too long, let alone ask if cooking this dish is difficult? Many people were surprised that the first time they tried a dish, they felt the familiar taste, then realized that the dish was actually called by another name of the dish that their grandmother, mother, sister or grandmother had cooked... for a long time. Surely, at those times, the cook will feel extremely warm in his heart.
The joy is not only because of being praised for being good at cooking, but also thanks to the gratitude for helping diners suddenly meet an old relatives who have been away for many years, as if touching the memories of so many close care, the taste of being almost forgotten still seems to be deep in an area called memory.
The house is the place where the door opens to the balcony and the bamboo shoots have blown again, remembering the Minister's fragrant water bottles release some flowers, remembering the cup of sweet soup that occasionally places incense on it to express gratitude to the elders for their kindness to their children and grandchildren with firm, soft, and stony feet. The house is always a peaceful place, with a kitchen and Vietnamese dishes when the whole family gathers in love. And any dish cooked with love will exude an unforgettable flavor. To grow up, get old, who doesn't need to eat and be loved? It is not by chance, but when Den Vu sang, the way home was in our hearts, and immediately had tens of millions of likes. The house is always home, with fragrant Vietnamese dishes from memories. For millions of Vietnamese people, Vietnamese dishes are at home.
In Vietnamese Dishes at Home, author Ann Lee mentioned a dish familiar to her, the congee with ribs eaten with sticky beans. The author confided the reason: "Skin cakes have green beans, coconuts, sweetness, as Google describes, the cakes are usually soft, and the outside is also covered with a layer of pureed green beans, I remember Mr. Vu Bang calling it "Mo sticky bean cake", while my grandmother and many others still used to simply call them bean sticky rice cakes. If the sticky rice cake is salty, my grandmother will cut it into small pieces and eat it with hot rib congee.
My grandmother and grandmother like to congee ribs with thick bean cakes so much that for many years, on her death anniversary, her mother and grandmother often used this gift to burn incense. And I, the niece, always remember and find all the dishes she likes delicious, I made them myself when I had the chance and once went to a rural market, there was also that dish. rib porridge with salty sticky rice cake is like a special, sticky fried dough sticker, which will help me recognize a fellow countryman who shares the same interests as my grandmother, no matter the direction of the world.
Admitting himself to being a kitchen lover with a simple love for everyday Vietnamese dishes, like the majority of Vietnamese people growing up with home meals, author Ann Lee always believes that many dishes will gradually be transformed and forgotten, even without any concept in their children's minds as GenZ.
Therefore, author Ann Lee does not dream and expect great things like having a museum for traditional Vietnamese dishes typical of the region. She just hopes that books like Vietnamese Dishes are Home will be on the shelves of some families with Vietnamese dishes lovers, helping to preserve a little bit of their childhood memories and their own lives through the most understandable and memorable described dishes that their mother and grandmother cooked.
Because for the author of "Vietnamese Dishes are Home", culinary art before becoming an indispensable part of culture, life, and history, the main dishes are childhood, youth, and the cradle of love in every family.
