Conversations with Diem & Khai Vuu

Today we’d like to introduce you to Diem & Khai Vuu.

Hi Diem & Khai, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers.
While eating dinner one night, we felt our dishes needed a little kick. Immediately, we thought of our grandmother’s pickled condiments and how delightful they would be with our dinner. As children, we remember them picking up mustard greens, carrots, cauliflower, and garlic, but we never recall them picking anything spicy.

Our idea was to use their traditional brine and add a spicy twist to it. We started pickling peppers in 2018, but I learned how to pickle condiments at a young age with my grandmother. We began experimenting with the brine and found a nice balance of flavor and spice that we both enjoy. So, we started sharing them with our family and friends to get their opinions and it was an instant hit among spicy lovers.

We were so humbled by their responses and amazed by the number of dishes they paired with our pickled peppers, noodles, rice, eggs, pasta, sandwiches, pizza, tacos, nachos, and sushi! With many great responses, we also heard from a few that they like the taste, but some wanted a little more spice while others wanted less spice. Then we started experimenting with other types of peppers and found a spice level for everyone.

In March 2020, we began our journey to share Moon Peppers with the world. But at this time, Khai worked for Samsung, I worked with the banking industry for 18 years and our son, Luke, had just turned 3 yo. and we wanted to spend more time with him. We both would often talk about leaving our corporate jobs one day and starting a business together in the hope of having more time to spend with our son.

In February 2022, we decided to take the leap of faith, Khai left his position at Samsung, and I transferred my job to Colorado. We first moved to Broomfield and Khai was working on Moon Peppers R&D and watching our son while I was still working at the bank. I ended up leaving my Job in March of 2022 and we moved to the Springs in Mid-April of 2022. We found that our hearts were always in the Springs. We always kept finding ourselves vacationing in the Springs.

The close view of the Rocky Mountains, Pike’s Peak, the weather, hiking trails, parks, small mountain towns, the people, and the strong supportive communities. We love it here and knew that this is the place where we want to live, start a business and raise our son. We started selling Moon Peppers at farmers’ local Farmers Markets in June of 2022. We didn’t know what to expect and or how people would respond to our products. We took a chance and were humbled and overwhelmed by the great responses.

Along the journey we have met amazing people whom we now call our market family, wishing nothing but the best for us and some even became wonderful mentors. We are so grateful to grandmothers for sharing their wonderful pickling with us, and to everyone who has helped us along the way. We are always looking forward to spicing-up everyone’s dishes.

“Keep it Spicy”

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
We sure have met some challenges along the way. When we first started, sourcing local products was a challenge, jars were also hard to find but through the connections, we made at Farmer’s Markets, Vendors (most have become our dear friends) were more than helpful and shared their knowledge and resources with us.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Our full-time job now is manufacturing pickled products. We pride ourselves in taking the time and producing quality pickled products. Starting from sourcing the best and freshest local peppers to our rigorous pickling process.

For example, our Pickled Jalapeno goes through 3 pre-washes, is sliced, and then it would go through a process where we shake and wash the seeds away while leaving the vein for a milder and more enjoyable spice level.

We would also de-seed and de-vein each of our Caribe Pickled to bring the lightest spice level that almost anyone could enjoy! Our Habaneros are all hand-cut to have the perfect shape. And our brine, the pride of our pickle products, creates a perfect balance between Sweet and Tangy.

Can you share something surprising about yourself?
We don’t like pickles at ALL! Just kidding we love them! We are very open, and most people who know us, know what we love and enjoy. From hiking to visiting a small town, museums, and art. Most of all, we love the outdoors!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.moonpeppersco.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/moonpeppersco
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/moonpeppersco 

Image Credits
Brent Avanti