TikTok star Joanne Lee Molinaro shares culture and family recipes in ‘The Korean Vegan Cookbook’

Joanne Lee Molinaro is the author of "The Korean Vegan." (Anne Kosmoski)

Among the many appetites we indulge through social media and the internet – connection, entertainment, attention, the list goes on – vegan chef and author Joanne Lee Molinaro feeds an incredibly universal and natural craving for nourishment. Throughout 2020, Molinaro became a star on the social video app TikTok, where she shares vegan recipes, techniques, and stories about food to her followers, who now number nearly three million. Molinaro’s parents were born in what is now known as North Korea, and she was raised in a family culture that cherishes food, once intimately familiar with scarcity and deprivation. She now shares a new book, “The Korean Vegan Cookbook: Reflections and Recipes from Omma’s Kitchen.” Molinaro joined “City Lights” host Lois Reitzes via Zoom to talk about the unique family love language of food that The Korean Vegan celebrates.

Interview highlights:

On why Molinaro’s videos sparked such a strong response in 2020: