When Mark Padoongpatt was first asked to write a book about Thai food in America, he wasn’t interested. But then he began to examine the immigration history between Thailand and Los Angeles, and found a rich story about immigration and cooking. Padoongpatt ultimately wrote “Flavors of Empire: Food and the Making of Thai America,” which examines how cooking was at the heart of the assimilation of Thai Americans.
The history of Thai food in LA
The front cover of "Flavors of Empire: Food and the Making of Thai America (American Crossroads)" by Mark Padoongpatt. Photo credit: University of California Press Publishing