Born Maria Ann Gentemann, I got hitched and now I’m Maria Ann Rice.
I was Born in Nha Trang, Vietnam in 1971 to a fierce Asian Mom, and a courageous Marine Dad. With my little sister in tow, my mom, dad and I came to the United States before the war ended. We moved to Estacada, Oregon, my dad’s hometown. I loved growing up in this quaint farm town on the Clackamas River; it’s where I grew into being a ‘farm girl’.
This is where my love for preserving food started early in life; on the farm. My mother’s Vietnamese cooking lessons opened my eyes to flavor and heat. My father’s baking skills were aromatic to our noses every holiday. Both parents canned vegetables and fruits from our enormous garden. It was teamwork that fed our family of 6.
After high school, Portland became my home in 1989. To this day I still love good ol’ Portland, Oregon. After years of cooking and preserving foods with friends, I realized I could start my own business. Off I went on this endeavor of Entrepreneurship finding support in friends and family, and the beginning of CHOW THIS!
Where does the name “CHOW THIS!” come from?
Long story short; after years of canning everything in my garden, sharing recipes with friends and family, my Midwestern neighbors Dan and Linda Hilderbrand introduced me to Chow Chow. I fell in LOVE! Being in the Pacific Northwest I wanted to introduce you all to this style of brined vegetables. So we are easing into the chow chow realm with my versions. Hence, CHOW THIS! was born in 2017.
So come taste, and see why I am chasing my dream of being the Fruit Salsa Lady, the Pickling Queen, the Goddess of Brine. I’m Maria Rice and I want you to come “CHOW THIS!“
