American attorney, food blogger, and author
Joanne Lee Molinaro (born April 24, 1979) is an American attorney, and vegan author and blogger. Widely known as the Korean Vegan, Molinaro started her food blog in 2016, and began posting videos of her cooking and life stories in 2017. As of June 2023, she has over 1 million subscribers on YouTube and 3 million followers on TikTok.
Early life, education, and career
Joanne Lee was born on April 24, 1979, in Chicago, Illinois. Her parents were born in present-day North Korea, and escaped when they were young.[2] She was raised in Skokie, Illinois,[3] and has a younger brother named Jaesun.[4] She earned a bachelor's degree in English from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign,[5] and a Juris Doctor from the University of Chicago Law School.[6]
Attorney
Molinaro began her career as a lawyer. She is still currently a firm partner at Foley & Lardner LLP's office in Chicago.[7] She is a member of multiple practice groups in the firm, including Bankruptcy & Business Reorganizations. As a specialized practitioner in bankruptcy, she defended the liquidating trustee against almost $1 billion in claims in the second-largest Ponzi scheme case in United States history.[8] She has also prosecuted frauds, avoidance actions, and breaches.[9][10]
The Korean Vegan
Molinaro started her food blog, The Korean Vegan, in 2016,[11] which consists of recipes that re-imagine traditional Korean meals through plant-based adaptations.[12][13] She began posting to TikTok in 2020 under the same name, and sharing recipes along with personal stories [14] that focus on how her family escaped North Korea and adjusted to life in the United States, how it feels to be a Korean woman living in the diaspora, her law journey, and her abusive first marriage.[15] She also includes discussions on racism, sexism, and xenophobia.[16][17]
In 2021, she published her first cookbook, The Korean Vegan.[18] It was named one of the 16 best vegan cookbooks for 2023 by Food & Wine,[19] and one of the best cookbooks of 2021 by The New York Times. [18] She has been featured in numerous publications, including CNN,[20] CBS,[21] The Atlantic,[22] and the Food Network.[23]
Personal life
Molinaro resides in Chicago,[26] and has run several half and full marathons.[27]
Shortly after graduating law school, Molinaro married her first husband. While his name is unknown to the public, she has described the marriage as emotionally abusive. They have since divorced.[28] On July 21, 2018, she married Chicago-born concert pianist and music professor Anthony Molinaro in Rome.[29][30][26]
