Delicious food and Chef Nini Nguyen’s hometown of New Orleans are synonymous. Nini has witnessed this firsthand as people flock from every corner of the world to revel in the Creole and Cajun flavors that are so deeply engrained in the Crescent City. But there’s another side to the city’s beloved food scene that she wants to share in her new cookbook—a side she came to know during her early childhood. Some of Nini’s fondest childhood memories are the days spent visiting the Asian markets in New Orleans East with her grandmother and seeing their community’s influence on display.
“This was way before farmers’ markets were cool,” Nini says. “But these markets are probably exactly like you’d think. I remember walking around in awe, seeing fish on piles of ice and vegetables from my neighbors’ backyards.”
The ingredients they found on those adventures were then brought into the kitchen for family meals and dishes for large gatherings. Nini would watch as her grandmother cooked the day away., which comes out this summer.
