Farm Story
The CultivaLA Farm is the largest non-profit Farm in Los Angeles located in the Whittier Narrows Recreation Area. Established in February 2023, it occupies what was one time the Native Shevaanga Village, considered by the first people in the Los Angeles Basin a crown jewel for its rich soil and biodiversity.
About the area
The area surrounding the CultivaLA Farm is industrial and residential, and its population is broadly an Asian and LatinX community. Historically, this community came from several generations of farmers, and has flexed it agricultural traditions in both public and residential spaces. They share indigenous farming techniques and regularly receive traditional high quality seeds from their native homeland. Village Eating for CultivaLA showcase a curated selection of recipes that share compelling culinary traditions from various corners of Asia, Mexico, Central and South America, each recipe accompanied by diversity of colors and tastes that provide context and deeper insight into the rich diverse history of the community. These recipes are drawn from family archives, as well as emerging talents, ensuring a varied rich fusion of traditional, contemporary, and cross-cultural perspectives.
Chyote (合掌瓜) also known as christophine, mirliton and choko, is a pear-shaped bumpy green squash used in Asian and LatinX dishes in our community. A member of the gourd family, it is technically a fruit but eaten as a vegetable. At CultivaLA, our Asian Village Eating community uses Chyote in soups and our LatinX community uses Chyote in side dishes and also uses its leaves to wrap tamales.
The Village Eating Community Kitchen at the Farm
What are Community Kitchens about?
Our Community Kitchen is an extended village cooking compilation. These Kichen’s showcase a diverse array of culinary traditions that capture the essence of heritage and cultures of our area, reflecting literal farm-to-table cooking styles and perspectives of local residents using a variety of produce from the CultivaLA Farm.
Where are we located, ancient map?
Ancient maps show indigenous roads, rivers and pathways near the Shevaanga Village. The natives of the Los Angeles Basin intentionally located their most treasured village near resource-rich rivers important for thriving indigenous food systems.
Are Community Kitchen’s free events?
At the moment, Community Kitchen events have remained small and are free to the public. Since CultivaLA is a non-profit farm we provide locally grown and free farm fresh produce to our local community. At our Community Kitchen, we capture and record recipes and cooking demonstrations to host on the Village Eating website to share globally.
Where are we located, present day map?
Present day maps of Whittier Narrows Recreation Area, where CultivaLA is currently located, have shown that streams and wetlands and rivers, while still present, have been drastically altered to accommodate urban development.
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