Ep.05 Katie Reuther: Embracing the In-Between – A Transracial Chinese Adoptee’s Journey Through Food Studies

For transracial Chinese adoptees, standing in between is their daily reality. Their navigation of identities mirrors the uncomfortable feelings we all experience while trying to find our place in the world. How do food and cooking play a role in navigating this in-between? Tune in to learn stories from Katie Reuther.

--Chapter Breakdown--

Chapter 1: Introduction and Exploring Identities

• Katie’s Self-introduction (中文) (3:52)
• Story about Katie's Chinese name (5:14)
• Katie’s Self-introduction (EN) (8:11)
• Top 3 key identities to Katie (9:23)

Chapter 2: The Academic Journey

• Transition from neuroscience to food studies (15:21).
• Overview of Katie's master research (25:52)
• Takeaways of 93-page thesis (37:23)
• Kaite’s travel and agriculture food systems learning in China (47:37)

Chapter 3: Farm, Cooking, Family and Cultural Identity

• Growing up on a farm (56:10)
• Family food memories (58:18)
• Making and sharing mooncakes as a way to practice identity (01:02:08)
• Discussion on storytelling through food experiences (01:06:23)

Chapter 4: Gender Identity, and Future Plans

• Discussing gender identity complexities (1:18:29).
• Generalizability and resonating with the broader audience (1:21:59).
• Katie's next steps and future plans (1:25:14).

--Speical Guest--

Katie Reuther is an aspiring audio producer with a Master’s in Food Studies. As a transracial Chinese adoptee, her research focuses on documenting and uplifting the stories of Asian Americans in the food system.
Email: [email protected]

--Your Host--

Cindy Zheng, RD, Ph.D. student in Nutritional Sciences
Twitter@ZhengLuyue
📫：[email protected]
Weibo：悦食分子
小红书：悦食分子

📢Listen on：小宇宙，Apple Podcast，Spotify，Amazon Music

• Katie Reuther's Thesis — "In February 2018, I found myself at Nirvana Organic Farm Inn, located outside the city of Guilin in a rural part of Guangxi province. The remote farm-to-table inn was my first stop on a multimonth trip to China, my first time returning to the PRC since being adopted 23 years earlier. One evening after dinner, I sat outside with a young cook who worked at the inn and a middle school-aged girl who was staying there with her mother. The cook offered to peel us a pomelo to share, and I asked, in Mandarin, what it was called. He replied, and a look of confusion spread across the middle schooler’s face. She questioned the cook, and he explained that I was from the U.S. and only knew a limited amount of Chinese. ... " -- from Introduction.
• Finding Roots: Asian American Farmers in Contemporary America: — During 2020-2021, Katie Reuther documented the unique voices and experiences of 21 Asian American farmers and 1 fisherman, focusing primarily on Generation Y "Millennials."
• Smithsonian story — In 2023, Katie Reuther wrote for Folklife Magazine that explores how culture shapes our lives.
• Mooncake recipe — Save it for your 2024 Mid-Autumn Festival :)
• Support my podcast — Hey, please consider donating Auphonic Credits to support my production ❤