Food practices, transnational identity and belonging of Vietnamese migrants in Moscow: Nostalgic consumption

Based on 18 months of ethnographic research, this chapter explores how Vietnamese female migrant traders experience and manifest their identity and belonging through their food experiences in Moscow, Russia. Their desire to consume specific products from a particular place in Moscow influences and shapes their sense of belonging and identity. This particular desire exemplifies what I refer to as nostalgic consumption-the act of purchasing and consuming products that evoke memories of home, places, people, feelings and senses. Nostalgic consumption allows migrants, who are able, to make demands and purchase products. Therefore, it can structure identity and belonging while, at the same time, creating boundaries.