Food & Culture
Meet the Chef
STICKY RICE DUMPLING or 粽(Zòng)子(Zi)
HISTORY: The Dragon Boat Festival is one of the four major festivals celebrated by Han Chinese…
Mama Xiao Ya
Owner of Mama Xiaoya’s Kitchen
We met Mama Xiaoya back in 2019 when we first started our Chinese Street Market Pop-up community. She was one of the 35 volunteers who helped with our inaugural event. Mama Xiaoya is from Fujian province in China, an area known for its Shaxian County Delicacies or 沙(Shā)县(Xiàn)小(Xiǎo)吃(Chī). A professional and a mother, one of her passions is culinary arts. She started to maintain a kitchen operation in response to personal requests for prepared dishes, an endeavor that has grown into a private “cult” group of patrons who regularly submit orders through social media platforms. Mama Xiaoya brings her childhood memories of food and traditional, regional recipes into her craft. Her most popular dishes are Chinese spice-braised vegetables and cold dishes with meat or 凉(Liáng) 拌(Bàn), both of which are popular types of small plate dishes. Her chilled taro sticky rice ball dessert has become a signature dish, and makes for a perfect summer treat.