Middle Name: Theodore
When people define themselves as “third culture” kids, they’re usually referring to their experience as the children of immigrants or expats.
Jon Kung is the popular Chinese American chef, content creator and podcast host, who has amassed an online following of more than 2 million people for his unique style of third culture cooking, blending cultural traditions, flavors and ingredients that are meaningful and personal to him. After graduating from Eastern Michigan University with a bachelor’s degree in theater arts and creative writing and earning a law degree from University of Detroit Mercy, Jon changed career paths to focus on cooking. He worked in some of the top Detroit kitchens before launching his own successful pop-up Kung Food Market Studio.
When the pandemic forced him to shut down his pop-up, he turned to social media, where he created instructional yet entertaining cooking videos exploring the vast Chinese diaspora and applying culinary techniques of traditional Chinese cooking (stir-frying, braising, creating broths, using a cleaver) onto global flavors and ingredients. In addition to developing recipes, Jon hosts the podcast 1 For The Table with his close friend, legendary makeup mogul and extraordinary drag queen Kim Chi. Kung Food: Chinese American Recipes from a Third Culture Kitchen is Jon’s debut cookbook.
Follow me @jonkung
