Delicious in any language

October 22, 2016 12:06 PM

The PBS documentary series "The Migrant Kitchen" explores Los Angeles’ booming food scene through the eyes of a new generation of chefs whose cuisine is inspired by the immigrant experience. The filmmakers visit the kitchens of those who have transformed the culinary landscape of the city, combining traditional ethnic cuisines and a fusion of new flavors and techniques. Ep 1: Chirmol: How a Guatemalan Tradition Journeyed to an American Menu; Ep 2: Barkada: L.A.’s Exploding Filipino Food Movement; Ep 3: Mercado: Artisanal Street Food & L.A.'s Best Mole; Ep 4: Loghmeh: Whole Animal Roasts & Middle-Eastern Culinary Traditions; Ep 5: Banchan: Korean Food Beyond BBQ. [Scroll down the pages for related background and recipes.]
posted by Room 641-A (9 comments total)

Oh wow. I started off with the Korean one, because I'm more familiar with Korean food, and after listening to the story about how the mom started out with selling box lunches, I'm both weepy AND hungry.

tl;dr: these are great. Thanks so much for posting!
posted by joyceanmachine at 12:27 PM on October 22, 2016 [2 favorites]

In case anybody is wondering, this is the blog post from Ruth Reichl about Eggslut that was their lucky break.

Walking down Fairfax in the absurd sunshine of an LA winter, we happened upon a food truck. I am incapable of passing one without stopping for a bite, but this one called out to me with a particularly loud voice. It wasn't the name – Eggslut – but the description of their signature dish: A coddled egg on top of potato puree with gray sea salt and chives.

UNHF.
posted by joyceanmachine at 12:32 PM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]

I think the series is just these five, but another good subject would have been Komodo's Erwin Tjahyadi. If you have the chance, the Phoritto (what it says on the tin) is amazing. I've eaten an embarrassing number of them because they are a limited-time-only menu item.
posted by Room 641-A at 3:10 PM on October 22, 2016

WTF is UNHF?
posted by yoga at 4:22 PM on October 22, 2016

The UN high commissioner on food.
posted by Bee'sWing at 5:25 PM on October 22, 2016

Some of my fondest memories of Los Angeles are the Farmer's Markets and their stark socioeconomic and geographic differences. East side? Man, oh man.
posted by lazycomputerkids at 6:58 PM on October 22, 2016

Eggslut at the Grand Central Market is great, because all the tourists go there and stand in line instead of going to the good places like Wexler's/Belcampo/Berlin Currywust.
posted by sideshow at 8:46 PM on October 22, 2016

Very cool! I did not know about this. Is it PBS, though? Perhaps not if it's KCET.
posted by persona au gratin at 11:23 PM on October 22, 2016

Thanks to this post, I now know that KCET has a Roku channel! More importantly, I'm visiting LA for the first time in a couple of weeks and will be adding some of the featured eateries to my list.
posted by Sheydem-tants at 3:18 AM on October 23, 2016 [2 favorites]