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Yia Vang (born 1984)[1] is a Hmong-American chef in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Vang cooking Copi on season 2 of Feral

Early life and education

Vang was born in Ban Vinai refugee camp in Thailand after his family had fled Laos at the end of the Vietnamese War after the fall of Saigon.[2][3] His father, Nhia Lor Vang, and mother, Pang Her, both widowed during the crossing of the Mekong, met at the camp in 1977 and married in 1978.[4][1] Vang was born in 1984.[1]

In 1988, when he was four, his family immigrated to the United States, first to Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and then in 1997 to Port Edwards, Wisconsin; while growing up he learning butchering when his family would buy whole animals.[3][1][5][6] He graduated in 2010 from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse with a degree in communications.[3][7]

Career

He started his kitchen career early as a dishwasher at Ridges Golf Course and cooked at Golden Sands Speedway. After College Vang moved to the Minneapolis area and worked at Gavin Kaysen’s Spoon and Stable and other restaurants, as a cook.[3][4] He noticed that while the Twin Cities area has the largest Hmong population[8] outside of Southeast Asia, it didn't have a restaurant dedicated to Hmong cuisine.[3][4]

Featured on the cover of Bon Appetit (May 2020) for his restaurant (Union Hmong Kitchen) and unique perspective on Hmong food[9] Vang was able to get national attention from the food media world. Starting with his first national feature on W. Kamau Bell Emmy Award winning show United Shades of America in 2019[10] and then getting his first feature on the Food Network digital series "Stoked".[11] of June of 2022 he appeared on Iron Chef[3] and in November of 2022 he started hosting Feral, a show that explores the culinary use of invasive species such as wild boar, on the Outdoor Channel.[12][13][14][15] He has been feature on national press segments on "Good Morning America"[16] and featured on the nationally acclaimed hunting podcast "MeatEater".[17][18] He also started a podcast called Hmonglish with journalist Gia Vang about Hmong culture in America and another called White on Rice.[19][20] He has also served as the host for the TPT series Relish.[21] 2024 the newest season of Twin Cities Public Television Relish will be featuring Seaon 5[22] Along with his hosting duties and guest appearances on television shows Vang also is requested as a keynote speaker for companies such as Target Corporation, 3M, U.S. Bancorp, General Mills and many other Fortune Global 500 companies on the topic of Hmong food and culture.

Union Hmong Kitchen

Beginning in 2016, Vang opened an estimated 100 popups that he called Union Hmong Kitchen with menus including his father's Hmong sausage recipe and his mother's hot sauce recipe.[2][3] He initially tried to cater to midwestern tastes but eventually decided it was disrespectful to Hmong food and decided to focus on traditional Hmong flavors and techniques.[3][23]

Vang's first permanent brick-and-mortar space is Union Hmong Kitchen. The restaurant is located in Graze Provisions and Libations, a food hall in Minneapolis' North Loop neighborhood, which opened in October of 2021[24].[25][3] In 2022, Union Hmong Kitchen was the first Hmong food served at the Minnesota State Fair.[5][26]

Vang also ran a series of pop ups in a space on Lake Street in Minneapolis through 2023 before reopening the space as the second location of Union Hmong Kitchen.[27]

Minnesota State Fair

In August of 2022 Union Hmong Kitchen became the first Hmong food vender in the Minnesota State Fair located in the International Bazaar.[28]

Vinai

In 2020, Vang started a crowdfunding campaign to fund the opening of Vinai,[29] a new higher-end restaurant.[3] The COVID-19 pandemic slowed the development.[3] Vang states that we're not here to elevate Hmong Food but we're here to illumate Hmong Food.

As of 2022 Vang was still developing Vinai, named after the refugee camp in which he was born, which Esquire called one of the first dedicated Hmong restaurants in the United States.[3][30] In 2023, he announced Vinai should open in the spring of 2024 in Northeast, Minneapolis, in the space previously occupied by Dangerous Man Brewing Company.[31]

Recognition

In 2019 Minneapolis St Paul Magazine name Vang Chef of the Year[32] . 2020 City Pages Outstanding Chef. [33]In 2022 Twin Cities Eater names Vang Chef of the Year.[34] 2023 he was a James Beard Award semifinalist; in 2022 he was a James Beard Award finalist and Union Hmong Kitchen was a semifinalist.[3][35][5] Francis Lam in 2021 called Vang "one of America's leading voices in Hmong cooking".[1]

Personal life

In 2021 Vang became a United States citizen.[3][36]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "Light Up Your Grill". www.splendidtable.org. Retrieved 2023-01-22.
  2. ^ a b Ross, Theodore (2022-04-25). "In Pursuit of Chicken Rice". Guernica. Retrieved 2023-01-22.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Nelson, Kate (2022-06-09). "The Chef Who is Telling the Story of the Hmong People, One Dish at a Time". Esquire. Retrieved 2023-01-22.
  4. ^ a b c Halpern, Ashlea (2020-04-22). "Yia Vang Made Some of the Best Food We Ate All Year. So Why Is He So Afraid of Failing?". Bon Appétit. Retrieved 2023-01-22.
  5. ^ a b c Uhlig, Keith. "Central Wisconsin native Yia Vang's trendy Union Hmong Kitchen lives up to all the hype". Daily Tribune. Retrieved 2023-01-22.
  6. ^ Garland, John (2018-03-23). "The Very Visible Yia Vang". Growler Magazine. Retrieved 2023-01-22.
  7. ^ "From dishwasher to 'Iron Chef'". All In Wisconsin. 2022-07-21. Retrieved 2023-01-22.
  8. ^ "Hmong population - Cultural communities - Minnesota Compass". www.mncompass.org. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  9. ^ Nast, Condé (2020-04-22). "Yia Vang Made Some of the Best Food We Ate All Year. So Why Is He So Afraid of Failing?". Bon Appétit. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  10. ^ Tribune, Sharyn Jackson Star. "CNN show 'United Shades of America' goes inside the home of Minnesota's rising star Hmong chef". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  11. ^ Stoked. Retrieved 2024-04-30 – via www.foodnetwork.com.
  12. ^ "From Yia Vang to Ann Kim, Twin Cities chefs shine on national TV". Twin Cities. 2022-11-03. Retrieved 2023-01-22.
  13. ^ Claeson, Hanna (2022-10-31). "Yia Vang Takes Us Back To His Hmong Roots With Feral". Mashed. Retrieved 2023-01-22.
  14. ^ Jackson, Sharyn (25 November 2022). "Chef Yia Vang takes on television hosting — and snakes — in his latest adventure". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2023-01-22.
  15. ^ Union Hmong Kitchen chef debuts new show, "Feral", retrieved 2023-01-22
  16. ^ America, Good Morning. "Chef Yia Vang's pork katsu sando with honey slaw". Good Morning America. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  17. ^ "MeatEater | Your link to the food chain". www.themeateater.com. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  18. ^ Rinella, Steven. "Ep. 480: Going Feral with the Hmong | MeatEater Podcasts". www.themeateater.com. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  19. ^ "White On Rice Is One of Minnesota's Best Podcasts". Minnevangelist.
  20. ^ "Gia Vang and Yia Vang on 'Hmonglish,' Iron Chef and leaving KARE 11". MPR News. 2022-06-15. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  21. ^ "Relish Season 1". TPT Originals. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  22. ^ "Feast Your Senses on a New Streaming Season of Relish". Twin Cities PBS. 2024-04-26. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  23. ^ "Chef says people who ask for vegan version of his dishes have 'food privilege' | indy100". www.indy100.com. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  24. ^ "Union Hmong Kitchen to open in North Loop food hall". Pioneer Press.
  25. ^ "Union Hmong Kitchen". Graze North Loop.
  26. ^ Mohs, Marielle. "How Union Hmong Kitchen is prepping for the Minnesota State Fair". CBS News.
  27. ^ Longworth, Nick (2023-07-18). "Union Hmong Kitchen opens Lake Street location, Chef Yia Vang continues vision expansion". FOX 9. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  28. ^ Rodgers, Niles (2022-10-07). "Union Hmong Kitchen Makes Its Inaugural Appearance at the Minnesota State Fair". Asia Matters for America. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  29. ^ "Vinai". Vinai. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  30. ^ Kelly, Brianna (20 December 2022). "Chef Yia Vang's Union Hmong Kitchen to launch noodle pop-up in Lyn-Lake". bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2023-01-22.
  31. ^ "Chef Yia Vang announces new restaurant Vinai will open next spring in Minneapolis". MPR News. 2023-09-11. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  32. ^ "Videos". FOX 9 Minneapolis-St. Paul. 2020-02-07. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  33. ^ "» Chef Yia Vang". www.craftinamerica.org. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  34. ^ Jones, Justine (2022-12-01). "Here Are the 2022 Eater Awards Winners for the Twin Cities". Eater Twin Cities. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  35. ^ "Why BIPOC Chefs Are Rolling Their Eyes When You Demand Substitutions". HuffPost. 2022-05-09. Retrieved 2023-01-22.
  36. ^ Jones, Justine (2021-10-20). "Chef Yia Vang on the Meaning and Price of Citizenship". Mpls.St.Paul Magazine. Retrieved 2023-01-22.

External links

source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yia_Vang