As far as we’re concerned, fruit and spice are everything nice: a sprinkle of tajín on a cup of mango from a street vendor or a dusting of cinnamon on an orange slice enjoyed after a tequila shot, as is the norm in areas of Europe. A little spice can add and extract explosions of flavor from the most commonplace produce. The combinations are endless!
Melisa Gereççi
Born in Houston, lives in Dallas
“Tomatoes with dried mint. I grew up in a Turkish-American home, between Texas and Istanbul. This was a family dish, often found cozied up to some feta cheese at the breakfast table.”
Michele Vaccari Harriott
Born in Newark, NJ, lives in Bloomfield, NJ
“[I grew] up Italian, [and] cantaloupe or honeydew was often wrapped in prosciutto, part of the salad course for a special occasion, like a wedding. But it’s so good with just a little salt and fresh cracked black pepper.”
Kristine Pontecha
Born in Laguna Hills, CA, lives in O‘ahu
“When the months grew warmer and we wanted something refreshing, my grandma served cold Korean pears topped with shiso lime salt that she ground together with a knife’s blade. To this day, I think of her when I serve it.”
Caitlin Dinneen
Born in Mountain View, CA, lives in L.A.
“Mango, apple—any fruit, really!—and li hing mui. School carnivals would sell cut lemons dusted in li hing with stick lollies to dip. Mouthwatering!
Dorothy Porker
Born in the Netherlands, lives in Brossac, France
“For as long as I can remember, we’d have Indonesian-ish rujak manis—melon and red currant in a sauce of kecap manis and fresh chilis—after summer satay barbecues. Traditionally I think it’s more of a side, but for us it was dessert. My dad is Dutch-Indonesian and he would man the barbecue, but my mom loves red currant—I think that’s why it was always in our rujak manis.”
Fiel Valdez
Born in San Francisco, lives in greater L.A.
“Chili crisp on watermelon and chili crisp on an Orange Julius–type smoothie. During COVID, when we were all peak chili crisp, I put it on everything. My husband is Thai, and his culture has a tradition of mixing sweet with spicy.”
Jess Stephens
Born in St. Louis, lives in L.A.
“Soursop and sesame. When I was burnt out at a cooking job in NYC, I grabbed some soursop puree and made it into a sorbet. While it was spinning, I made a crumble out of black sesame and popped amaranth. The next day, I doused a fat chunk of Crémeux de Bourgogne cheese with the crumble and quenelled the sorbet on top. Years later, it’s still one of my all-time faves!
Malina Syvoravong
Born in Eureka, lives in L.A.
“Tart plum or pickled fruit with Laotian toasted rice powder, salt, and crushed pepper—thanks, Dad!”
Vivian Liu
Born in San Francisco, lives in L.A.
“My partner’s family introduced me to Filipino green mango with shrimp paste, and I discovered Vietnamese pomelo or guava with chili salt through my college best friend.”
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