Ramsey County History Summer 2023 – Hmong Foodways

Volume 58, Number 2: Summer 2023

Hmong Foodways in Ramsey County
Author: Kristina Her

For nearly fifty years, a large population of Hmong from Southeast Asia have called Ramsey County home. Settling into a new environment in the 1970s and ’80s was tough. Few of the earliest refugees spoke English, American culture and lifestyles were unfamiliar, and American food was very different. As the Hmong community grew around St. Paul, newcomers planted seeds, cared for gardens, opened grocery stores, joined farming co-ops to learn American farming practices, sold produce at farmers’ markets, and eventually opened innovative restaurants. Author Kristina Her interviewed several Hmong American family members and community leaders to learn about their relationships with food and farming and how they and other Hmong, who originally simply wished to find comfort in their own familiar foods, have slowly introduced fresh produce and delicious cuisine to the wider world. Ua tsaug! Thank you!

PDF of K. Her article

• Article Supplement 1 – Select Markets
• Article Supplement 2 – Recipes