For over half a century, my kitchen has been a canvas for culinary explorations, beginning with the comforting dishes of my New England upbringing. This foundation in classic techniques and familiar flavors—meat, root vegetables, and simple herbs—expanded over time to embrace the nuances of French, Italian, and even the bolder profiles of Mexican, Moroccan, Indian, and Asian cuisines. Initially, my culinary world was defined by a northern European approach, characterized by its reliance on technique to build flavor rather than a heavy hand with spices.
Then, a trip to Hanoi completely shifted my perspective. Driving from the airport into the city, I was immediately immersed in a vibrant, bustling scene unlike anything I had known. Motorbikes teemed with life, carrying everything from livestock to lumber, families navigating the crowded streets. It felt like stepping onto an entirely different planet.
But it was the food that truly resonated. The explosion of flavors in lemongrass with clams, the comforting warmth of pho, the satisfying crunch of a banh mi for breakfast. Roadside stalls offered tantalizing grilled foods, from simple eggs cooked in their shells to sweet potatoes roasted over open flames. The fresh, vibrant mango and papaya, the complex dance of hot, sweet, salty, and bitter in the salads, the nourishing broths and diverse noodles, and the rich, energizing coffee with condensed milk and raw egg – each dish was a revelation.
This experience sparked a profound realization: the concept of “ethnic” cooking is fundamentally flawed. It’s a limiting and inaccurate label. Ultimately, it’s all just food – dinner or lunch – prepared and enjoyed in different corners of the world.
Coming from Vermont, a place deeply connected to tradition and local continuity, I’ve always valued the sense of place and heritage in life. There’s a grounding comfort in knowing where you come from. However, when it comes to food, I believe it’s time to embrace a more expansive perspective.
We often think of recipes as belonging exclusively to a specific culture or region, viewing outsiders as intruders. Milk Street Boston challenges this notion. It extends an invitation to cooks from every corner of the globe to gather around a shared table, to learn from one another and celebrate the universality of food.
Milk Street Boston embodies those transformative moments of culinary discovery – that instant in a Hanoi kitchen, and countless others experienced and yet to come. It champions a culinary exchange, transcending cultural boundaries. Because at its heart, cooking shares universal values that effortlessly translate from Saigon to Kiev, Jerusalem to Quito, London to New York. These are the enduring kitchen values that Milk Street Boston seeks to explore and share.
