The tastiest things can come in the smallest of packages – even those that were borne out of tragedy. Kristy Lam founded and owns Mulan Dumplings, based in D.C., with her wife Roya Shadravan.
In 2016, Shadravan faced a health scare with a brain tumor, which changed the couple’s perspective on food and lifestyle. “We realized how important it is to consume nourishing meals without additives or artificial ingredients, yet we struggled to find convenient Asian cuisine that met these standards,” Lam says.
They “felt moved to create Asian dumplings that reflected the positive impact their new diet had on them, and could have on others,” and Mulan Dumplings was born.
Lam soon started a food truck, serving a handful of varieties of natural dumplings using meat free of antibiotics or hormones.