I knew I wanted to talk to Chantha Nguon as soon as I got a copy of –and read some of – her memoir, Slow Noodles: A Cambodian Memoir of Love, Loss, and Family Recipes, which she wrote with the writer Kim Green. To be honest, though, I was really nervous. How to talk to someone who has been through so much, someone who has persevered the way Chantha has, someone who essentially embodies the word “inspirational”?
Five years before the start of the Cambodian genocide, when Chantha was nine years old, she fled her home there for Vietnam. Slow Noodles is the story of her life as a refugee who loses everything and everyone – home, family, country – and eventually flees to a refugee camp in Thailand, with nothing but her memories of her mother’s cooking to sustain her. The story of how Chantha picked herself up after seeing and experiencing such atrocities is, as you might imagine, remarkable. You’ll hear some about just how she did that – and much of it involves food. She is an absolute wonder, and it was an honor to talk to her.
Also, we’re sharing Chantha’s recipe for Sour Chicken-Lime Soup, Village Style, from Slow Noodles – you can find that here.
And last – If you have a minute, we’d love it if you’d take a short survey about our show. We appreciate you!
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