Limited Edition Zine: Hotdish

A LOVE LETTER TO
HOTDISH
IN THE WORDS OF CHEF YIA VANG
Chef Yia Vang of Union Hmong Kitchen and the highly-anticipated restaurant Vinai, has
been among the chefs and Minnesota foodies experimenting with hotdish as a staple meal
with the potential to transcend cultures. Read our interview with Chef Yia Vang on mustard
greens in hotdish in section 5.
Hotdish,
Hmong food has been described as bright, bold, hot, spicy, and herbaceous. So how
can we, the Hmong, relate to hotdish? Well, that’s simple, the Hmong people are
survivors. We’re scrappy and when others tap out of the fight, we keep pushing
forward. My mother used to tell me stories about her experiences as a little girl. At
times, all she had to eat was rice and water, with a banana for flavor.
It's these stories of suffering that explain how my mother and grandmother were able
to put together meals for us growing up, mixing what we were given from the food
shelter with whatever rice we had in the house. They ensured that we would never
have to experience what they went through in the old country. They fought for us,
they suffered for us. Over the past few years, I’ve begun to understand the impact of
their sacrifices. It has changed the way I talk to people. It changed the way I view
people. Most notably, It changed the way I cook for people.
When cooking hotdish, there is also a deep sense of perseverance and hope. Hotdish is
a grandmother’s love, to make sure her family will make it through the harsh
Minnesotan winters. Ensuring that her grandkids are well fed and healthy means that
she can keep their family legacy alive. Whether hotdish is made by a Hmong kid or a
white grandmother, at the end of the day, they tell the same story of love and hope.
Yia Vang