Vietnamese Cuisine Abroad, Food Writer Andrea Nguyen and Saving Ancient Art Forms

Our first segment (1:12) covers several great youth-led projects that have highlighted traditional forms of Vietnamese art that would otherwise be largely forgotten. Examples include Ve Ve Hat Boi, a collective working to preserve the Vietnamese theater opera of hát bội; as well as an effort to digitalize the disappearing art of Hanoi's classic Hang Trong paintings (links below). Then (8:51) we dig into foreign interpretations of Vietnamese food and whether they represent creativity or cultural appropriation. In our interview segment (18:26) culinary expert and food writer Andrea Nguyen calls in from California. She helped bring Vietnamese cuisine into the American mainstream through her best-selling cookbooks. We chat about her background, the significance of her childhood cuisine becoming a global phenomenon, 'The Pho Cookbook' and whether the term "authentic" has a place in food writing. As always, we close with Banh Mi Banter (45:15). https://saigoneer.com/saigon-arts-culture/arts-culture-categories/12555-ve-ve-hat-boi-saving-vietnam%E2%80%99s-age-old-art-with-youthful-passion https://saigoneer.com/saigon-arts-culture/arts-culture-categories/12378-preserving-hanoi-s-hang-trong-paintings-through-digitization