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In Depth Interview
MichelleTamForTranscript
August 21, 2017

Interviewer: [Laughter] Let’s get started. Our first question is from [Yen Truong] and she says
“Hi Michelle. First of all, I love your new webpage. Do you cook paleo for your kids
and do you cheat sometimes and have a crusty baked bread whole treat? Also, we
need more Vietnamese recipes, please, pretty please?” [Laughter]

Respondent: Yes, I do cook paleo for my children but people who follow me on Instagram know
that I’m not perfectly paleo especially when we’re out traveling or eating out. But
when we’re at home I make sure that I make for breakfast, I pack for lunches, and
then I cook one family meal for dinner and everything we make at home is pretty
much paleo. But when they go to parties or when they’re at school, I don’t control
it and I want my kids to be raised to make their own good decisions so I let them do
what they do when they’re out in the wild. My younger son does have to eat
gluten-free but he’s really good at self-regulating himself just because he knows
what happens when he eats gluten like you get canker sores and all these GI
distress and so he would prefer to not have that happen so he doesn’t eat that
stuff. In terms of cheating, I don’t eat bread or anything with gluten just because I
have such a bad reaction to it. But I definitely have gluten-free treats as people
can see on social media and I am trying to make more Vietnamese recipes. In fact,
our new book, I think, has a bunch of Vietnamese recipes because we travelled to
Vietnam and Thailand right before we finished our books.

Interviewer: Nice, very nice. The next question is from [Garfuppy] and she wants to know
what’s your view on the vegan diet?

Respondent: I think that there’s a lot of things that vegans and paleo people agree on and that
we both are promoting a diet that is filled with plant foods because I think it’s
really to important to eat tons of vegetables and fruits just like vegans and I also
agree that factory farming is pretty terrible. But I do think people need to find the
right diet and lifestyle that works for them. If the vegan diet works for them, great

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 and if they need to eat some animal protein, that’s great. You just need to find out
what works best for you.

Interviewer: Okay, perfect. Thank you so much. For our next question is from [Poochie Chao]. I
love their user names. They’re just – [Laughter]. They’re so amazing. She wants to
know how have you managed to keep your website, which is absolutely terrific, and
she says that you’re – sorry, I’ll do it again. How have you managed to keep the
website fresh and interesting after so long and what was the biggest challenge you
faced as a food blogger?

Respondent: My website is a total partnership between my husband and I so it’s not like me and
myself just creating everything but Henry and I both always push ourselves to try to
be innovative and to only put out content that we’re really proud of. So when we
were working on our book, we didn’t put a recipe up every week just to put a
recipe up. I think we had times when we didn’t have stuff up for a few weeks just
because we didn’t have anything amazing that we wanted to put on the blog. But I
think you just have to be excited to put these contents up and especially after our
book finally went to the printer, we’re like “Oh, it’s time to go back and work on
our blog.” Sometimes, taking a little break is good and I used to worry about that
because it was like “Oh no, no one is coming to the website,” but I think these days
blogs are repositories for recipes so people can always go back. The stuff there
should be evergreen content and if people want to keep in contact with you, they
can follow you in all sorts of other stuff like Instagram stories, or Facebook, or
Twitter, whatever. But I think the biggest challenge that I faced as a food blogger,
I think it’s probably just trying to find stuff that resonates with people and create
recipes that people actually want to cook at home and I think video content is also
very difficult just because Henry and I are both super difficult and that is not
something that we naturally know how to do well. [Laughter] That is probably a big
challenge.

Interviewer: Perfect, thank you so much. Our next question is from Carrie, finally a normal user
name. [Laughter] [Her question] is “Hi, Michelle. What are your go-to veggie dishes
for your son and do you have any suggestions for kinds with picky eaters?”

Respondent: My kids will definitely eat roasted broccoli, stir-fried bok choy, and any green salad
like they’ll eat lettuce. Then, I make vegetable soup a lot in my instant pot and I
dump in whatever is in my fridge into that pot of soup and they seem to be okay

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 with it. It’s not like they love vegetables but, I think, because this is what I serve
them and I tell them “This is what we’re having.” [Laughter]

Interviewer: Yes.

Respondent: They have to eat it.

Interviewer: Yes.

Respondent: In terms of suggestions for picky eaters, my younger son is definitely a picker eater
and it was much easier with my older son, who is the first born and a people
pleaser. But I think what we learned is that we decided we were going to have one
family meal for dinner and I was not going to be a short order cook. I think we have
had to compromise on all – all of us had to compromise in some way. I couldn’t
make super spicy stuff or really out-there stuff and then my kids had to promise to
try what I’m eating. So I think you just have to be firm and don’t just give in
because they’ll think it’ll be easier to just say “Fine, I’ll just make you your own
thing.” You should be firm but you should also be patient and persistent and
eventually they will come around. Because my younger son now does eat what we
all eat but he eats it very slowly and so I think that is how he’s still able to assert
his individuality, is just by eating super, super slow but he does finish everything on
his plate.

Interviewer: Nice, as long as he finishes the stuff, that’s good. It doesn’t matter if it takes you,
like, three hours. [Laughter]

Respondent: Yes or even if they don’t finish it. We’re like “Hey, I would like you to try this.”

Interviewer: Yes.

Respondent: If you don’t want to finish eating it, that’s fine, but realize this is all you’re
getting. [Laughter]

Interviewer: Yes. Now, that’s right and I’m glad you’re very kind. My mom – I’m Mexican so my
mom’s methods were very like “Oh, you don’t want to eat? Okay, here’s double!
Now you finish that [Laughter] and if you don’t finish that, here’s the Vitamin B
injections that I’m having for you for dessert.” [Laughter]

Respondent: My mom was way more like “No, you have to eat whatever.” I just think it’s funny
that I thought it was okay to do whatever my kids asked me to? You know what I

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 mean? Whereas, I would never think to tell my mom “No, I don’t want you just
made and spent all this time cooking. I want you to make something different and
totally not healthy that will take all your time just because I said so.” You know
what I mean like I –

Interviewer: Yes.

Respondent: I cannot believe I was insulting my kids like that.

Interviewer: Yes.

Respondent: Yes, we don’t do that anymore. Not good.

Interviewer: Yes, I’m glad we’re the new generation now. [Laughter]

Respondent: Yes.

Interviewer: Oh, that’s perfect. Our next question is from [Remy’s mom] and she says that it’s
hard for her to pick a recipe. So she can browse hours and hours on the Internet or
on cookbooks but then at the end, it’s hard for her to settle and pick one. She
absolutely loves your blog and loves your recipes and she wants to know if you have
some suggestions for her to help her for [her kind decision.]

Respondent: [Laughter] You can say to make something but I understand. Sometimes, surfing the
internet for recipes could be very relaxing and it’s a way to escape but eventually
you have – it says [Remy’s mom] so I’m assuming there’s some kid that needs to be
fed and so you do need to just make something. So what I would do to make sure I
actually would make something because there are a lot of times where I have no
time, I have nothing to make and so I have something in my fridge called the
defrost bowl, which is literally just a stainless steel bowl, like a sandstone mixing
bowl. I would grab that from the freezer a few days ahead a time and just throw it
in there some ground beef or some chicken pies or something that is in my freezer
that needs to thaw. So I just open up the refrigerator and see what’s ready to cook
and that is what I am cooking. Then, I find a recipe that will cook that utilizes that
ingredient like ground beef or whatever and if I want to use my instant pot, I’ll just
search “Instant Pot Ground Beef” and on my site there’s a Ground Beef Chili and
that will be dinner. [Laughter]

Interviewer: That’s nice. That’s actually a great tip for other moms too.

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Respondent: Yes, in that way you use the stuff that you’ve already bought and it’s in your
freezer and waste not, want not.

Interviewer: Yes, that sounds really great and I’m actually writing down stuff here [Laughter].
Learning from you on-the-spot. [Laughter] So our next question is from Foxy Blue
and she wants to know, she asks what are your favorite research papers to point at
people who believe in the alkaline diet or that believe that the gluten-free should
be the norm? Basically, she researches a lot and she likes going to PubMed but she
wants to know what are your research papers that you will point out to people who
feel very strongly about the gluten-free diet or alkaline diet?

Respondent: So I said that and I’m like – my answer would be my focus is on creating delicious
and nourishing recipes and I try to leave the scientific debating to other more
qualified folks. I never try to argue with people about their dietary choices or try
to sway them with research papers because I believe food should bring people
together and not cause division. Yes. [Laughter] [I can’t believe I’m saying this!]
[Laughter]

Interviewer: We don’t need more divisions in this country and in the world.

Respondent: No! I understand that research has been very well-meaning and nobody wants some
research papers shoved in their face saying “You are doing the wrong thing.” You
know what I mean?

Interviewer: Yes.

Respondent: Nobody’s going to listen to that so I don’t believe in doing that. [Laughter]

Interviewer: Yes. No, that’s great and I totally agree. Historically, food is always the point of
gathering for many cultures and societies so yes, I love that you’re saying food is
supposed to gather us and not segregate us moreso. I love that philosophy.

Respondent: I also think food is like religion or politics, right?

Interviewer: Yes.

Respondent: It’s so personal and people feel personally attacked if you are pointing out that you
don’t agree with them so I just think it’s better not to engage like that if you want
to have friends.

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Interviewer: Exactly.

Respondent: We probably can say that on the air. [Laughter]

Interviewer: Exactly. We’ll be very politically correct.

Respondent: Yes. [Laughter]

Interviewer: Fantastic. Our next question is from [Gladding Gam] and she feels like the term
“paleo” is getting used by the food industry as a label of health. They do the same
thing with organic label and, at the end, the final product is very loosely following
the principle of a paleo diet. So what do you recommend to people to not fall into
the belief of paleo label on packaged foods that equals good. Do you have any tips
to consumers?

Respondent: I think, like all things, you have to use your common sense and decide what you
want to put in your own mouth. I think it’s really important to read labels and
ingredient labels, not just a stamp of approval on the front of the package?

Interviewer: Yes.

Respondent: Just stick with foods and products made with whole food ingredients and you’ll be
fine. [Laughter] But there are some things that do make life easier now that there
are more people who are interested in paleo like you can get riced cauliflower in
the freezer section so you don’t have to dirty your food processor. You can buy
paleo mayonnaise that’s made with avocado oil and no weird junk so there are
some good things that are corporate labeled paleo but you do need to read the
ingredients and use common sense. Like if this is a bunch of paleo cookies and
brownies, they might be technically compliant but it’s probably not a good idea to
eat a whole box of them at one sitting. You know? Just like -

Interviewer: Yes.

Respondent: But if you’re looking for a treat and it’s probably something you can reach for.

Interviewer: Yes, that sounds fantastic and yes, it’s a problem with everything, right? Just like
because you have no sugar, that doesn’t means it’s healthy for you or just because
–

Respondent: Yes!

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Interviewer: No fat like the non-fat yoghurt, whatever, it doesn’t mean that that’s exactly
healthy. I think it’s also like a personal thing because like you said, it’s a personal
choice but also your body might react differently to something that is super
[healthful.]

Respondent: Great. Cool.

Interviewer: Perfect. Our next question is from Michelle and she started the whole 30 diet and
now she’s paleo-[leashed?] [Laughter] She misses bread and [Unintelligible]. Oh, do
you need to take that call? I don’t mind waiting.

Respondent: Oh, no my sister Kim I think is like – the hotel room telling us “You need to check
out soon.” [Laughter]

Interviewer: Okay, we’ll just have two questions.

Respondent: [Laughter] No, it’s cool.

Interviewer: I’m also in San Diego so I’m also in the hotel room taking the call so –

Respondent: And I saw you on vacation so thank you for taking this call.

Interviewer: Oh my God. Don’t worry. Don’t worry so let’s continue.

Respondent: There’s a bunch of people who have grain-free bread on the market or grain-free
bread products. I really love the grain-free tortillas from Siete Family Foods and
you can buy them I think at whole foods and stuff in the refrigerator section. But
also fried-green plaintains, also known as patacones or tostones are really fantastic
as bread substitutes.

Interviewer: Yes.

Respondent: I have recipes in Ready or Not. They’re on my blog and you can make those jibarito
sandwiches and stuff. I think that’s really tasty. [Laughter]

Interviewer: Sounds delicious.

Respondent: I had them for my first time at that – I think it’s called Soul Food in Sausalito? But
they have really amazing sandwiches and you can ask for them on patacones.

Interviewer: Nice.

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Respondent: Or tostones. Yes.

Interviewer: Nice, that sounds delicious. I’m writing that down because I love going to Sausalito
to have my [lunch.]

Respondent: Yes. [Laughter]

Interviewer: The next question is from H.H.C. So she says “How do you come up with recipes
and what are your favorite recipes from your new book?”

Respondent: My recipes are always inspired by something that I’ve eaten before, either growing
up in my household, something my Mom made, or dining out because I do that a lot
or on my travels. So it’s always something that I’ve eaten that I want to recreate as
easily as possible with whole food ingredients at home. Then in terms of my
favorite recipes from Ready or Not, it changes because it depends – I know this is
goofy but it does depend on my state of readiness and [request of the season.] I
think the most basic recipe that I love because I always make it and it’s good year-
round is my all-purpose stir fry sauce because it takes no time to throw together
and I have a jar of it that keeps for up to two weeks in my fridge and I can use it in
any type of stir fry. I can use it in the asparagus beef stir fry in the book. I use the
sauce for my paper-wrapped chicken. You can use it as salad dressing or you can
even throw it into the instant pot with your favorite braising cuts like chicken pies
or pork shoulder or chuck roast and it makes a really, really tasty stew. So I think I
like that because it’s easy and versatile and then I have no excuse to go out to eat
[Laughter].

Interviewer: That sounds delicious. Well, our last question and I’m sad about that but it’s from
Searching for Clues and she wants to know if you still do [sous vide] and if you have
any updates on what kind of bags are less impactful?

Respondent: I don’t cook [sous vide] as much as I used to. When I first started my blog, it was
back when I used to work night shift at the hospital and so I did a lot of [sous
videing] because I was learning how to cook paleo and I was working nights and I
still had to get dinner on the table so it was a really effective way to cook meat
perfectly especially if I’m trying to buy high quality meat and you can both cook
sauces. I think it’s a really great cooking method but I stopped doing it as much
because I stopped working nights and then I realized that a lot of my readers just
wouldn’t accept it as a cooking method? [Laughter]

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Interviewer: Yes.

Respondent: I think it started way back in 2010, 2011, way before they had immersion
circulators readily available and priced the way they are now?

Interviewer: Yes.

Respondent: But I still think it’s a great way to cook. I just don’t do it just because my readers
don’t do it and a lot of the times when I’m cooking these days is stuff for the blog
or for the cookbook and so that’s why I don’t do it. But in terms of bags that are
least impactful, I think I wrote a post a while ago and I said [“Oh so converting
these silicone bags] that are reusable,” but I think since then a lot of people had
been using basin jars that are reusable and recyclable and they say it’s a very
effective way to use it. You can use it for [sous vide] very effectively.

Interviewer: Nice! That’s a very good idea right there. Well, Michelle -

Respondent: I haven’t done it personally but I know people have. [Laughter]

Interviewer: Yes. You can give it a try and see if it works for them. It’s always worth trying it.

Respondent: Yes.

Interviewer: Well, Michelle, thank you so much. We know you’ve got to go. You have a tough
day ahead of you. We can’t thank you enough for being so awesome and this is like
a little personal secret. I have your little doll because I bought one. I love it so
much. [Laughter]. I bought it and I have it on my desk. It’s so adorable.

Respondent: Awesome. Hey, if you ever need another one, just shoot me an email and I’ll send
you another one because we have tons of tons of that.

Interviewer: Oh my God. That’s so sweet of you. She’s happy cooking for Batman, my Lego
Batman. [Laughter]

Respondent: Awesome, and everybody in New York was awesome like [“How does it go?”]. I
once sure had, I used to be like – I had a crazy handle way back when. [Laughter]

Interviewer: Nice, so nice. Well, thank you so much, Michelle. Have a good trip and I’ll send you
this whenever we post the interview. I’ll send you the link so you can read it.

Respondent: Awesome.

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Interviewer: Thank you so much. Have a great one!

Respondent: Okay, thank you. Bye

Interviewer: Bye bye.

- End of Recording -

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