"This trick for getting the perfect water-to-rice ratio, I learned from Vietnamese people, and it's incredibly effective," Sean says.

While the rice cooks, the 33-year-old takes out some pickled mustard greens he prepared last week, washes and chops them. Nearby, a pot of braised ribs simmers. Sean lifts the lid and uses chopsticks to test the tenderness of the meat.

Sean's rice-cooking video has attracted nearly 3 million views on social media. "If I covered his face, I would have thought this was a Vietnamese person cooking, not an American," one comment with over 1,000 likes reads. Another commenter writes, "Skillful technique, authentic Vietnamese ingredients."

On his channel, Sean also shares videos of other Vietnamese dishes like shaking beef, pho, and home-style meals. Each video garners from over 200,000 to several million views. In the past two months, he has received thousands of comments asking for recipes, pickling methods, and pho broth techniques.

Sean cooks in his Seattle kitchen in 4/2024. Photo courtesy of the subject

Sean cooks in his Seattle kitchen in 4/2024. Photo courtesy of the subject

Sean Ventrella, a software engineer in Seattle, first encountered Vietnamese cuisine when he met Van Khanh (later his wife) in 2017. Their dates often took place at Vietnamese restaurants, where Khanh led Sean on a culinary adventure, introducing him to pho, bun bo hue, banh xeo, and bun cha.

"Vietnamese food has a distinct style, diverse flavors, and the fresh vegetables always served alongside balance the richness of the dishes," Sean says. He even enjoys dishes with strong aromas like fish sauce.

His wife, Van Khanh, immigrated to the US in 2008. Her mother once owned a restaurant in District 7, Ho Chi Minh City. Though the restaurant is gone, the memories of its flavors remain with her.

During their first six months together, Sean began learning to cook Vietnamese dishes for Khanh, aiming to recreate the tastes of her childhood. Living near Asian markets made sourcing ingredients like rice noodles, pho noodles, and fish sauce easy.

The first dish he learned was pho with oxtail. "It was really difficult," Sean says. Vietnamese cooking is like "assembling a machine; if one part is missing, it won't work," with its numerous ingredients and precise steps. The seemingly simple, delicate broth requires simmering with roasted onions, ginger, star anise, and cardamom. The beef bones also need long simmering, with frequent skimming to maintain a clear, pure flavor.

"Eating and cooking are two entirely different experiences. It helped me deeply understand Vietnamese cuisine," Sean says.

Sean and Van Khanh married in 2018. They welcomed two sons, Oliver and Henry. Sean's motivation to cook Vietnamese food intensified with the desire to connect his children to their mother's heritage.

"Teaching Vietnamese to our children in America is already challenging enough for Khanh, so I'll take care of the food," Sean says.

Sean Ventrella shows off his homegrown garlic in his Seattle garden. Photo courtesy of the subject

Sean Ventrella shows off his homegrown garlic in his Seattle garden. Photo courtesy of the subject

He cooks almost all their meals using Vietnamese recipes. Sean buys cookbooks, flips through the pages, and selects unfamiliar or intriguing dishes to try, gradually increasing the difficulty.

Some dishes he learns not from books but from videos of street vendors in Vietnam. Take banh xeo, for example. Initially, he struggled because the crepe-like exterior kept tearing. After reading viewer comments, Sean discovered the key was the batter ratio and using a stainless steel pan, drizzling oil around the edges to prevent tearing. "Now, I'm pretty confident, like flipping a crepe without breaking it," he says.

However, the three-course home-style meals remain the most enjoyable challenge, especially braised fish or meat. Sean cooks based on his wife's taste memories, with fish sauce as the primary seasoning.

He sweats in the kitchen as the caramel for braising the fish, made from sugar and water, repeatedly burns. With each mistake, he takes notes until the dish is "almost there" and eventually becomes perfect, according to his wife.

Sean believes food in Vietnam has taught him much. He recalls family gatherings around the dinner table, a stark contrast to meals in America, where eating is often an individual pursuit. In Vietnam, meals are clearly a part of connection and community. His motivation is fueled by Oliver's love for pho and broken rice, while his younger son, Henry, eats almost anything they offer.

In 2023, the Vietnamese-American couple visited Vietnam for the first time. Sean noticed a distinct difference in the dining experience. The vegetables, fish, and meat were all fresh, but the atmosphere left the greatest impression. Sitting on red plastic stools, shoulder-to-shoulder with strangers, enjoying banh mi chao (bread with eggs) in the morning, and grabbing sugarcane juice from a street vendor offered a unique sense of intimacy.

"Street vendors are like seasoned chefs, some having cooked their specialty for over 30 years," he says.

Back in America, Sean gained renewed motivation to try more complex dishes like bun bo hue and to pickle his own mustard greens, ingredients hard to find in supermarkets. They also host Tet (Lunar New Year) celebrations at home, with all ingredients prepped so he can focus on the cooking sequence and timing, avoiding distractions.

Sean Ventrella's family during their trip to Vietnam in 2023. Photo courtesy of the subject

Sean Ventrella's family during their trip to Vietnam in 2023. Photo courtesy of the subject

Duong Bat Hoi, 31, a friend of Sean and Khanh for eight years, often joins them. She says one of Sean's "love languages" is cooking for others, from preparation to serving.

Sean explains that he cooks each dish with intention, viewing it as a way to honor Vietnamese cuisine and the culture of his wife's homeland. He strives to maintain the authenticity of the original dishes. Bat Hoi has enjoyed his beef stew, stir-fried pork belly with pickled mustard greens, and shaking beef.

"Whenever it gets cold, I go to their house for a meal. It's very cozy," she says.

Meanwhile, Van Khanh has been surprised by her husband's progress with Vietnamese cooking. She always tastes the food as he cooks.

"I'm very happy because of these dishes," she says.

Ngoc Ngan