This is my book, which I am so proud of. But, ngl: Seeing everything that’s been happening in the world, I can’t help but remember that my own mother was once a hungry baby. And thus in answer to the question “why is a food blogger so political?” I don’t know how food couldn’t be political for me. Army Stew has such a fraught history attached to it. There’s a reason my mother still eschews this hearty, protein-packed dish. But as is the case with so many Korean dishes (like the iconic kimchi or kimbap), budae jjigae is a dish that, to me, symbolizes resilience, survival, and sheer will. These are all attributes I see in my mother, attributes I endeavor to emulate. Naysayers will come at me for this plant-based version (the original was all about protein, which makes sense given how malnourished the Korean people were at that time). Or, they’ll accuse me of romanticizing one of the uglier chapters in Korea’s history. Being political is an openness to having these tough conversations, ...