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Joanne Lee Molinaro

Joanne Lee Molinaro, known as The Korean Vegan, pairs plant-based cooking with stories about family, Korean American identity, and everyday life, and writes award-winning cookbooks.

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Joanne’s happenings, collected from public sources, plus their backstory and Starbook, where fans write.

Known for

Overview

From: Chicago, Illinois
Known as: The Korean Vegan
Started: A plant-based food blog in 2016
Breakout: TikTok recipe videos and family stories in 2020
Work: Cookbook author, storyteller, lawyer, and beauty founder

Mini bio

How it started.

Born in Chicago to parents born in what is now North Korea, Joanne started The Korean Vegan blog in 2016 after adopting a plant-based diet. Food became a way to explore her heritage while changing how she cooked.

Finding a voice.

She began posting on TikTok in July 2020 during pandemic isolation. A video of Korean braised potatoes went viral while her husband taught a piano lesson in the background. She then focused on short recipe videos paired with family stories.

From videos to books.

Her 2021 debut, The Korean Vegan Cookbook, combines Korean recipes with family history and became a New York Times bestseller. It won the 2022 James Beard Book Award for Vegetable-Focused Cooking. Homemade followed in October 2025, with the dishes she makes at home and Korean twists on other cuisines.

What comes next.

After leaving her law firm and moving to Los Angeles, Joanne expanded into Korean Vegan Beauty. Her forthcoming memoir, Seven Princesses: A Memoir of Family, follows her own life, her mother’s, and her maternal grandmother’s. Her official site lists it for April 2027.

Creditschronological, newest first

Quotes

We are a composition of our choices.Joanne Molinaro, The Rich Roll Podcast, episode 942

On identity and everyday decisions, October 13, 2025. Source: https://richroll.com/podcast/joanne-molinaro-942/

Trivia

Anthony, her husband, suggested the name “The Korean Vegan” after praising her vegan chocolate cake, according to their official beauty-brand team page.
Her Homemade recipe for pesto tteokbokki brings together her Korean roots and her husband’s Italian roots.
She is a marathon runner, a part of her life that also appears in her food storytelling.