Last year I was contacted by Bruce Seidel on Twitter, who wanted to know if I’d like to be on his new show. He is a from the Food Network and the Cooking Channel, and he made Iron Chef America and the Next Food Network Star. He was directing and producing Lucky Chow starring Danielle Chang, the creator of the Lucky Rice festivals across the US. The show was all about Asian food in America.

He introduced me to Danielle, and they said my part would be to teach kimchi and japchae making to Kristen Kish, a chef who is a Korean adoptee and won Top Chef. I’d never met Kristen or watched Top Chef, but it sounded like a lot of fun, so I agreed!

The show is now airing on PBS, and the episodes are on YouTube, too, and I just watched my part today. It turned out really good! My part is about halfway through, but the whole episode is worth watching.

Kristen Kish and Maangchi

I had a great time filming the episode with Bruce, the crew, Danielle and Kristen. When I film my videos I am the director, and my videos are very simple, so it was interesting to work with a much larger, more complicated video shoot. And the cooking was a lot of fun, and the food turned out very well.

Lucky Chow Lucky Chow

I had to develop a small batch kimchi and japchae recipe for this show, and Kristen loved it and also Danielle said that usually after filming,”tv food” is not good, but this was a real exception which was a good compliment for me. That’s why I still remember what she said!

Check out the show and let me know what you think!

16 Comments:

  1. rhostam joined 6/15 & has 4 comments

    Thanks for sharing this episode. I’m Cambodian/ Mexican and I love trying all sorts of food from all over the world. I have had a lot of intimate experience with Korean cuisine as a result of working with Koreans for many years. I have to say, as I have said before, I love your attitude and willingness to share your food with the world. Learning to make Korean food similar to what I love in the restaurants is a gift. I mentioned my background because like Kristen, I am estranged from one side of my heritage. I wish now that the world would produce a Cambodian Maangchi so that the world might experience the cuisine of a little-known peoples; particularly now that Maangchi and those like her have made Korean food popular and ubiquitous!

  2. hannaone Spokane joined 12/14 & has 2 comments

    Hi Maangchi

    Just wanted to say great job on the show. You have done a lot to help make Korean food popular, and you just keep getting better.
    Keep it up.

  3. Jaxcyn joined 10/10 & has 2 comments

    Loved your part! I’ve made many many of your recipes from YouTube and now form your cookbook! You are amazing!!!

  4. Souavarat Houston, Texas joined 9/10 & has 45 comments

    Maangchi I loved your segment with Kristen! It so true of what Danielle said too, how wonderful it must be to be able to reconnect with your heritage through food; it was absolutely beautiful to see and all the great dishes you and Kristen cooked as well. I think I in the mood for some japchae and watermelon soju, it would be so refreshing in this summer heat. YAY! YAY! Awesome video.

    Thank you for introducing Lucky Chow to me as well. I’m going to have to start watching it as well.

  5. Sav_sss Canada (near Montreal) joined 3/15 & has 29 comments

    Wow great video i loved it !!! i was mouth wathering all along hahaha :P. God if only korean food was known more in Quebec. i mean there is korean restaurant and grocery store in montreal but that’s it. it’s 1 hours and a half from where i live i wish there was one near by my house ahah :P. But then hey with your teaching i’m getting pretty good at korean cooking :P. But it’s so not known in quebec (korea in itself isn’t know in quebec) and it’s such a new flavor here that whenever i make them taste they do a face where they just don’t know if they are in love with it or they hate it ahahah. It actually took me a while to really really love kimchi when i first made it. now i can eat a whole bowl of it without anything else ahah. But in took me a while. By the way i’m so excited in 1 month i’m going to the korean grocery store i can’t wait to cook korean food again. (since i ran out of all the stock i bought 5 months ago lol i bought for like 250$ the korean lady who served me was so happy and said to her son omg she’s buying a lot with a smiley face ahahah).

    Hope we will see you in often in those kind of video you deserved to be known Maangchi :)

    Have a nice day

    Savannah

    • Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,045 comments

      Hi Savannah,
      Thank you so much for sharing your story! It sounds like you get your friends and family to know about Korean cuisine through your own cooking! I’m sure many of those who read your story will say they are also spreading Korean food in their area.

      “…Whenever i make them taste they do a face where they just don’t know if they are in love with it or they hate it” It’s so funny and cute! : )

      I’m very happy to hear that you are considered as a Korean cooking guru among your friends and family. I remember you posted awesome looking kimchi, kkakdugi, spicy rice cake, and sweet potato rice!

  6. powerplantop Louisiana joined 6/09 & has 70 comments

    That is so cool! I love that you are having fun while getting exposure!

    I recently had a similar experience with a large team to help with the filming. When I was in Mexico City I did some videos with a very large Mexican YT channel. She has a full team (all great people). It was so different from making videos by myself.

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