In the pages of this notebook are the flavors of my familys journey from Vietnam to the United States.
In April 1975, our family of seven fled Vietnam to escape communism.
My father instructed us to each bring a change of clothing.
Photo: Andrea Nguyen / design by Evan de Normandie
That was all she needed, she figured, to start a new life who knows where.
We were among the first wave of Vietnamese refugees and mostly cooked from regular supermarkets in those early days.
Nevertheless, my mom looked to her notebook for notes and memories.
The author with her mother in Saigon in 1973.Andrea Nguyen
Her initial handwritten entries are for popular Vietnamese dishes such as cha gio, fried rice paper rolls.
Mom was always marshaling us into kitchen duties.
On page 39 there are notes for 1975 Tet sticky rice cakes made months before we left the country.
Andrea Nguyen and her family in 1975.Andrea Nguyen / design by Evan de Normandie
Soon thereafter, the stateside entries included new favorites like Seven Layer Cookies, which Mom swooned over.
My sister Linh made that recipe from a ladies' magazine that someone had gifted us.
In the final pages, there’s a Sweet and Sour Sauce entry in my dad’s striking penmanship.
Such a subtle and organic mixing of language on the yellowed notebook pages speak volumes about the Vietnamese experience.
The book is modest but it traces my family’s journey across the Pacific.
Andrea Nguyen is a James Beard Award-winning cookbook author.
Her latest book isVietnamese Food Any Day.
