In Hanoi, food is everywhere. It’s fragrant herbs and tropical produce spilling out of market stalls, the scent of charcoal meat on a busy street, or a steamy bowl of phó grabbed on the go at breakfast time.

So what can Vietnam teach us about food resilience? And can it offer a meaningful contrast to the industrialised food landscape many of us navigate in the West today? In the second episode of our new series, Jay and Garth set out to find answers alongside their crew of food experts, Rohan, Zane, and Mateo.

This episode will make you discover the bold flavours of Vietnam and South Asia dish by dish -- from homemade spring rolls known as gỏi cuốn, to a smoky meatball dish (bún chả), and of course, the inimitable phở. Between the busy urban life of Hanoi, and an active kitchen, our group uncover the leading principle of Asian cooking: balance. Here, food is more than sustenance; it is a cosmological art de vivre that can be sustained over time, connecting body, mind, and environment.

Rather than focusing on policy or supply chains, this episode interrogates food resilience on a personal level. How does food reconnect us with our bodies? What does it really mean to eat well, and feel like it too? And how might those answers guide the next changes we make in our own kitchens and communities? Through shared meals and simmering broths, the group returns to the essence of eating well, rediscovering the pleasure of cooking and enjoying fresh food, day after day.

This episode reveals how Vietnam’s food culture acts as both teacher and mirror, reminding us that resilience doesn’t just live in institutions or systems, but in the very act of cooking too.

If you’ve ever wondered what it feels like to eat in harmony and what Western food cultures can learn from Eastern traditions, this episode is a great place to begin.

Highlights:

• Welcome to the streets of Hanoi (1:02)
• A picture of the food landscape in Vietnam (3:39)
• The marketplace: a space for social connection (7:54)
• In the kitchen making gỏi cuốn and bún chả (13:16)
• The links between Asia and the Global North (17:57)
• Defining “glocalisation” in Asia (24:13)
• A dive into the history of the Silk Road (28:35)
• Food and health: Traditional Chinese Medicine, Ayurveda, and a “cosmology of flavour” (31:07)
• Spirituality, philosophy, and food habits (34:18)
• Reconciling proactive and reactive healthcare systems (38:19)
• A new global food education movement (43:15)
• Making vietnamese coffee (49:53)
• Democratising cooking through social media, YouTube… And the Covid-19 pandemic (52:08)
• “Resilience means paying attention to our system and to our bodies” (57:15)
• Final roundtable: drawing conclusions around a rich bowl of phó (59:14)
• Cooking means getting your agency back (01:01:40)

Further Resources:

• Pegasus Website
• Learning about regional cuisine in Vietnam from the Michelin Guide
• Further (accessible) research on traditional health Practices in India and China
• Exploring food education through the YouTube cooking universe
• Articles and research sources

The Philanthropist's Conversation is a podcast from Pegasus. For more any enquiries, you can write to us at: [email protected]