meet Rachel

Hi, I'm Rachel! I'm a college student at the University of Texas at Austin and the creator of Potluck.

Throughout my childhood, my love for the art of food and culture began to simmer and stir among each delicious new dish that my mother ventured into making. I would peer over my mom's shoulder to find the culprit of the unrecognizable aroma that wafted across the kitchen, and would find a surprise -- anything from Hawaiian-style Rice-burgers , to Mexican tostadas piled high with beans, pico, and beef, to comforting traditional Korean dishes that my mom learned from my grandmother. My mother's experimenting nature introduced me to a rich, diverse range of dishes as a Korean-American, as well as a myriad of other cultural cuisines. Most of them I loved, while others were questionable renditions of their original counterparts. However, each time, I could clearly see that each meal was carefully crafted with passion and curiosity -- and as a result, my love for cooking was born.

Along with influences from my mom, I would devour cooking competitions or food reality TV shows with my dad, watching intently as Gordon Ramsay ruthlessly berated a poor home cook in MasterChef or as Guy Fieri bopped along to the next swanky American diner in Diners, Drive-ins, & Dives. Soon enough, I was trying my hand at baking cinnamon rolls and cooking kimchi fried rice. Although there were some frustrating moments where things didn't come together as I'd imagined, every second working with food felt purposeful. Now, I'm steadily self-teaching myself different techniques, slowly discovering my cooking style and preferences as I go.

Navigating through college, I began to notice that cooking as a student is hard. Often, it feels like convenience or budgeting in cooking means compromising taste and culture -- however, I believe that with a community of peers who are going through similar experiences, we can help each other find what works best for ourselves. Potluck is the place for college students to exchange their creative ways of putting together meals, to share their cooking journey, and to find a supportive community at all levels of foodie-ism. Distance and boundaries have no meaning here, since food is a universal language. Potluck is a place to pour your love, culture, and experiences into -- and I'm excited to see how you'll shape it.