ROUSES_JulyAug2019_Magazine

A traditional Vietnamese meal: Hot Pot

groups helped them resettle. (It is somehow fitting that both Louisiana and Vietnam are former French colonies.) Religion has thus been a unifying force for many large Viet- namese communities; it allowed these areas to grow, survive and thrive, and it gave im- migrants a sense of self and of safety. You can basically follow Highway 90 from Biloxi to New Orleans and find strong Vietnamese communities all along the way. The Gulf Coast was well-suited for Vietnamese cuisine and the staple dishes migrants brought from home. Fishing was a trade many practiced in Vietnam, and immigrants worked — and continue to work — long, hard hours. Today, a majority of the shrimping businesses along the Gulf Coast are run by men and women of Vietnamese descent. In the process of settling in, the Vietnamese community has rejuvenated neighborhoods and set first- and second- generation Vietnamese Americans on paths for success — especially with the language barrier removed for the younger generations.

or shrimp, or other seafood that might be caught in areas along the Gulf Coast. The proteins are basically poached in the broth, absorbing the flavors of the various ingredi- ents. It is a communal noodle dish, with its amazing aromas adding to the experience. Because Vietnamese dishes so often use ingredients familiar to locals not of Vietnamese descent, but who use them in a different and interesting way, it can be exciting for locals to try Vietnamese cuisine for the first time. It is familiar and yet not familiar, and the popularity of Vietnamese restaurants along the Gulf Coast today reflects the interest of the non-Vietnamese locals in the cuisine. It’s not just via food that the Vietnamese have added to the region. Vietnamese festivities have also joined the rich tapestry of Southern celebrations. The three-day Tet festival — the “Feast of the First Morning of the First Day” marking the Vietnamese New Year — has been celebrated annually at Mary Queen of Vietnam Church in New Orleans since 1990. The event is marked with live music, traditional cuisine and dancing, and fireworks. Other Tet celebra- tions are held all along the Gulf Coast. VIETNAMESE AMERICANS TODAY Far from being an economic drain on the U.S., Vietnamese immigrants today have a

mi, sometimes called a Vietnamese po’boy, is a wildly popular sandwich composed of a baguette split lengthwise and filled with meats and vegetables (and when prepared as a dessert, even ice cream). And these days restaurants specializing in pho, the Vietnamese soup comprised of broth, rice noodles and meat, seem to be on as many corners as McDonald’s. Vietnamese cuisine is known for its potent chilis and aromatic vegetables — things like garlic and shallots, cilantro and green onion. Those foods were already being grown in the South, helping to make this place seem a little more like home. Moreover, like traditional Louisiana cuisine, Vietnamese food often features strong flavors in its broths. And of course, the dishes use fresh seafood — things like crabs, shrimp and fish. So it’s no surprise that Vietnamese food was a natural addition to the region, and it has influenced local cuisine as well. One classic Vietnamese meal that would have been prepared by new immigrants — as well as in restaurants today — is a hot pot. It is just what it sounds like: a big, hot pot sitting in the middle of the table, filled with flavorful beef or chicken broths, or fish stock, or a combination thereof, with heavy aromatics: ginger, garlic, lemongrass. The dish often has chilis in it, and the aforemen- tioned vegetables are added with whatever proteins are desired — white, flaky fish

VIETNAMESE CUISINE AND CULTURE

Though early Vietnamese immigrants chose to open Chinese restaurants, thinking they would have an easier time of it, Vietnamese cuisine has exploded in popularity in Loui- siana and along the Gulf Coast. The banh

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