When Kristy Xiong emigrated as a child from Thailand to the United States in 1992, she learned to hold onto her cultural roots through food.
Xiong and her father spent hours in the kitchen – preparing meals, experimenting with foods and sharing stories that generated an abundance of laughter. Their favorite dish to cook together was tomato chicken stir fry.
“My teacher was always my dad,” Xiong said. “When it comes to food, I like to be creative just like him.”
Xiong carried her love for cooking and food with her as she grew older. She said it makes her feel like she can “create my own little worlds on plates.”
When Xiong started working at the Fresno-based nonprofit A Hopeful Encounter that focuses on serving the local Hmong community, she knew exactly how to use her skills to uplift Hmong youth – a class that teaches them how to cook authentic foods called Taste of Tradition.
“This class is really about getting the next generation to pick up our traditions and not lose who we are,” Xiong said.
Taste of Tradition is a year-long, monthly class open to local youth. Xiong leads two sessions, one for younger chefs from ages 8-11 and for older chefs from 12-18.
Xiong said it was important to her that students become comfortable in the kitchen earlier in life. She also emphasized the need for parents to allow their children the opportunity to practice their skills at home.
“Instead of just saying ‘no, no, no, don’t come to the kitchen,’ I’m like, ‘why don’t we spend that time bonding together and teach[ing] and pass[ing] on my skills?’ Because we’re losing our own identity, we’re losing our own dish,” she said.
Hmong roots in Fresno, the Valley
Hmong immigrants came to the U.S. from Laos, Thailand and Vietnam after the Vietnam War in the 1970s.
During the war, the CIA covertly recruited indigenous Hmong soldiers to fight against the spread of communism in the Secret War. According to the Minnesota Historical Society, an estimated 50,000 soldiers were killed in the war, and over 200,000 Hmong fled their home countries as political refugees. The federal government allowed the Hmong to resettle in the states with the aid from world relief organizations.
Fifty years later, 360,000 Hmong live in the U.S. with large populations spread across the country, according to census data.
An estimated 360,000 Hmong live in the U.S. today – with a third in California. The city of Fresno is home to the second largest Hmong community in the U.S., the first being Minneapolis, Minnesota, according to the Pew Research Center.
Hmong have a rich history in the Central Valley. Over 80,000 call the region their home, with vibrant communities in Fresno, Merced, Stockton and Sacramento counties, according to Nielsberg Research.
Back in the kitchen, Xiong gathers her ingredients and instructs her young chefs in how to make a sweet treat – coconut sticky rice with purple yam (known as taro) wrapped, steamed and grilled inside banana leaves.
She sprinkles phrases in both English and Hmong throughout the class. For Xiong, the passing on of language is essential because it’s at risk of disappearing after decades of assimilation. Her main goal, she said, is to teach her students the same of the dishes in Hmong.
“Anywhere we go, it’s just English. Our own language is not being used enough for them to learn and speak it. For some, this is the only chance they get to practice.”
“I want them to remember it,” she said. “The youth can still learn.”
‘They learn things I won’t be able to teach them’
After Xiong’s finished with the demonstration, she sent the students to their cooking stations to attempt making the dish on their own.
Ten-year-old Evelyn focused hard on getting the intricate banana leaf fold just right for her sticky rice. She talked through the steps, furrowing her brows as the leaf unfurled and she had to start over.
“It’s pretty tricky here. But if you keep doing it, you’ll finally get the hang of it,” she said.
A few tables over, 8-year-old Yulia beamed with excitement after nailing her fold.
“This reminds me of a lily pad,” she said as Xiong reviewed her work.
Susan Xiong (no relation to Kristy) took Yulia’s pockets and placed them onto a hot griddle to finish cooking. The room slowly filled with warm, early aromas. Xiong said the drifting smells transported her to Laos.
“When you’re eating it, you have this sensation of like ‘oh my gosh, it’s so sweet in my mouth’ but like the smell of it…it smells so like soul food,” she said. “It just wraps you up, like it’s home.”
Xiong’s 10-year-old daughter, Ondine, is the one taking the class, but she felt like she was learning too – it was her first time making the dish. She’s looking forward to taking the lesson home and making more with all of her kids.
“I would have never gone through this process with them because the food that we eat at home, it’s more of a blend of like American cuisine with some Hmong food,” she said. “But now, at home, I get to say, ‘Hey, remember that dish? You guys want to make it?’ and that grows our love for our traditional food.”
The biggest thing, Xiong said, is that the class brings their culture to the forefront. So it won’t be forgotten as generations pass.
“They get to come here and they get to learn things that I won’t be able to teach them, but I know that yes, like this is part of our culture.”
That’s one reason this class is in high demand and has a waitlist every year. Registration for the next season opens up in the fall.
For more information, visit the A Hopeful Encounter website or Facebook page.