At Hai Hai, chef Christina Nguyen and her partner Birk Grudem—the duo behind the wildly popular Hola Arepa—are serving some of the most interesting and celebrated food in the Twin Cities these days. Located in Minneapolis’ Northeast neighborhood, it’s been packed since the doors swung open in 2017. Not only was it named one of… Read More →
Tune in for The Zimmern List in Las Vegas, May 15 9/8c on Travel Channel! I love Las Vegas. Don’t hate me. For decades, Vegas was essentially food negligent. There were some decent steakhouses and lousy casino buffets. Folks went to Vegas to gamble, see a show and lower themselves slowly into the hot tub… Read More →
How to Prep Lemongrass I love cooking with lemongrass. It’s a staple of many Asian cuisines that lends a unique citrusy aroma and flavor to soups, curries, marinades, stir-fries, dumplings and dipping sauces, even cocktails. Peel away the dried, tough outer layers, trim the top of the long stalk, pound the root end with a… Read More →
United Noodles & Unideli If you follow my social media or watch my shows, you know I’m obsessed with Asian cuisines—Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, Thai, Vietnamese, Korean… I love it all. And while there are plenty of great spots in the Twin Cities to indulge, I’m cooking it at home more often than not. Mastering the… Read More →
What’s the easiest way to peel fresh ginger? The best tool for prepping ginger is something I guarantee you have in your kitchen cabinet: a spoon. Because the irregular-shaped root has thin, delicate skin, a spoon can easily scrape it away without much waste. It’s also much easier to get into all of the nooks and crannies… Read More →
St. Paul’s Hmongtown Marketplace A pillar of the Twin Cities’ Hmong community—which is the largest in the country—the sprawling Hmongtown Marketplace in St. Paul is the next best thing to hopping a flight to Southeast Asia. This market and those making the food represent centuries of Hmong traditions. In warmer months, you’ll find people selling plants,… Read More →
Central Asian Comfort Food in Chicago You’ve probably heard me say that you can understand the history of a country and its people by looking at its food. No where is this more true than the countries of Central Asia, where the Silk Road impacted all parts of culture. Dive into the meat-centric culinary traditions of… Read More →
My next Quarterly box drops in just a few weeks. I’m thrilled with how it’s shaping up. I love surprises, but suck at keeping a secret, so when Quarterly said it was fine if I let a cat out of the bag this time around, I couldn’t wait. As a part of my #ZIM05 box,… Read More →
Eating Queens Queens-based food writer Joe DiStefano has been covering the borough’s ethnic food beat for more than a decade. When it comes to ethnic diversity, some estimates name Queens as number one in the world – it’s so rich that DiStefano has made exploring the borough his life’s work. He’s our go-to guide for… Read More →
Test 1, 2, 3 During a photo shoot for Babson College in downtown Minneapolis, I stopped by my food truck, AZ Canteen, to work on a new item coming to the menu. Chef Asher Miller shows us how to make AZ Canteen’s spicy peanut sesame noodles. To see where you can find the food truck… Read More →
