The Korean Vegan Series

Named a Must-Read Cookbook of Fall 2025 by Saveur

Joanne Molinaro, author of the New York Times Bestselling and James Beard Award Winning Korean Vegan Cookbook, returns with fresh new dishes with Korean twists

Joanne Molinaro is everyone’s favorite storytelling vegan cook. On her platform, The Korean Vegan, she’s known for her personal narrative voiceovers, which accompany mouthwatering videos of her making everything from Kimchi to Korean-inspired pasta dishes. Whether it’s a reflection on her relationship with her father over a plate of noodles or a story about learning to love her body as a marathon runner while she bakes dessert, Joanne is always making deep connections with her followers through food. Now, in The Korean Vegan: Homemade, Joanne offers the recipes that she makes most often at home. 

As Joanne likes to say, she loves to “veganize” Korean cuisine and “Koreanize” everything else.  This book is a tribute to all the culinary inspirations that have shaped her cooking over the years and incredible flavors they have created. A memory about learning to repurpose leftover rice from her grandmother Hahlmuhnee results in Fried Rice Waffles; a question from her father leads to Joanne learning to make his childhood favorite noodles, Janchi Guksu; her Pesto Tteokbokki combines her husband’s Italian roots with her own; and her love of savory snacks and kimchi helps invent Buffalo Kimchi Artichoke Dip. With her stunning signature photography and tips for building a Korean pantry, Joanne celebrates the magical connections between family, home, and food.

THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST NEW COOKBOOKS OF THE YEAR BY Epicurious • EATER • Stained Page • Infatuation • Spruce Eats • Publisher’s Weekly • Food52 • Toronto Star

The dazzling debut cookbook from Joanne Lee Molinaro, the home cook and spellbinding storyteller behind the online sensation @thekoreanvegan

Joanne Lee Molinaro has captivated millions of fans with her powerfully moving personal tales of love, family, and food. In her debut cookbook, she shares a collection of her favorite Korean dishes, some traditional and some reimagined, as well as poignant narrative snapshots that have shaped her family history.
 
As Joanne reveals, she’s often asked, “How can you be vegan and Korean?” Korean cooking is, after all, synonymous with fish sauce and barbecue. And although grilled meat is indeed prevalent in some Korean food, the ingredients that filled out bapsangs on Joanne’s table growing up—doenjang (fermented soybean paste), gochujang (chili sauce), dashima (seaweed), and more—are fully plant-based, unbelievably flavorful, and totally Korean. Some of the recipes come straight from her childhood: Jjajangmyun, the rich Korean-Chinese black bean noodles she ate on birthdays, or the humble Gamja Guk, a potato-and-leek soup her father makes. Some pay homage: Chocolate Sweet Potato Cake is an ode to the two foods that saved her mother’s life after she fled North Korea.
 
The Korean Vegan Cookbook is a rich portrait of the immigrant experience with life lessons that are universal. It celebrates how deeply food and the ones we love shape our identity.