DEDICATION/EPIGRAPH I DEDICATE THIS BOOK TO MY AMAZING WIFE AND DAUGHTER, JEAN AND KAELYN, WHO I DON’T WRITE ABOUT MUCH IN THIS BOOK BECAUSE THE MOMENTS WE SHARE TOGETHER ARE OUR OWN. I LOVE YOU GUYS FOREVER AND EVER AND EVER AND EVER. “FOR IT IS EASY TO CRITICIZE AND BREAK DOWN THE SPIRIT OF OTHERS, BUT TO KNOW YOURSELF TAKES A LIFETIME.” “THE POSSESSION OF ANYTHING BEGINS IN THE MIND.” —BRUCE LEE CONTENTS DEDICATION/EPIGRAPH ACKNOWLEDGMENTS INTRODUCTION 1. MOTHER SAUCES KIMCHI ABALONE PORRIDGE TWICE-COOKED DUCK FAT FRIES CHILI SPAGHETTI 2. SILVER GARDEN DUMPLING TIME KOREAN CARPACCIO (SORT OF) INSTANT PICKLED CUCUMBERS POTATO PANCAKES KIMCHI STEW 3. NECK FROZE LEBANESE BEE’S KNEES CHORIZO FOR BREAKFAST, CHORIZO FOR LUNCH, CHORIZO FOR DINNER, CHORIZO TO MUNCH WINDOWPANE SMOOTHIES CHINATOWN ALMOND COOKIES PIE, GIVE THEM PIE! PECAN PIE WILL DO. 4. NOLAN RYAN MAGIC FISH DIP FRUIT ROLL UPS AND DOWNS CHIPS AND DIP THAT’S SO SWEET 5. GROVE STREET CARNE ASADA BEEF JERKY YELLOW RICE AND GOAT STEW PORK AND BEANS KUNG PAO CHICKEN, PAPI STYLE SALSA VERDE HORCHATA SPLASH 6. CRACK PERFECT INSTANT RAMEN GHETTO PILLSBURY FRIED DOUGHNUTS KETCHUP FRIED RICE CHEESE PIZZA, DOUGH TO SAUCE BUTTERMILK PANCAKES 7. YOU VERY LUCKY, MAN PORK FRIED RICE MY MILK SHAKE KALBI PLATE SPAGHETTI JUNCTION: THE $4 SPAGHETTI THAT TASTES ALMOST AS GOOD AS THE $24 SPAGHETTI CASINO PRIME RIB PHO FOR DEM HOS 8. EMERIL KOREAN-STYLE BRAISED SHORT RIB STEW SOYBEAN PASTE STEW SPICY OCTOPUS KOREAN STAINED-GLASS FRIED CHICKEN YUZU GLAZED SHRIMP OVER EGG FRIED RICE HIBACHI STEAK TEPPANYAKI GUMBO 9. NEW YORK, NEW YORK POTATOES ANNA BANANA SEARED BEEF MEDALLIONS WITH SAUCE ROBERT VEAL STOCK COCONUT CLAM CHOWDER POUNDED PORK SCHNITZEL SEARED SCALLOPS WITH CHIVE BEURRE BLANC 10. THE PROFESSIONAL BIRRIA CRISPY DUCK BREAST WITH POLENTA AND SWEET AND SOUR MANGO SAUCE RED ONION MARMALADE SIMPLE CLUB SANDWICH EASY DE ANZA COBB SALAD SIMPLE CHICKEN PICCATA FRIED RIBS. WHAT?! FRENCH ONION SOUP CAESAR SALAD MUSHROOM QUESADILLA BROILED HALIBUT WITH SOY GLAZE 11. FISH SAUCE EGGPLANT CURRY OVER RICE CHICKEN SATAY WITH PEANUT SAUCE COCONUT RICE CARDAMOM MILK SHAVED ICE SPAM BÁNH ME HAINAN CHICKEN, KIND OF CRÈME BRÛLÉE 12. WINDSHIELD BEEF CHEEK TACOS ROY’S BURGER L.A. CORNER ON THE COB KIMCHI AND PORK BELLY STUFFED PUPUSAS L.A. DIRTY DOG SESAME-SOY SALAD DRESSING 13. VEGETABLES 1-2-3 ASPARAGUS BABY BOK CHOY BROCCOLI RABE BRUSSELS SPROUTS AND KIMCHI ROASTED CAULIFLOWER ROASTED MUSHROOMS QUICK SPINACH SOUP ROASTED SWEET POTATOES SLOW-ROASTED TOMATOES ZUCCHINI FRITTER OMELET WATERMELON AND GOAT CHEESE BUTTER PINEAPPLE SALTED MANGO AND CUKES THE RULES INDEX ABOUT THE AUTHORS CREDITS COPYRIGHT ABOUT THE PUBLISHER ACKNOWLEDGMENTS THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU IN AND OUT OF OUR LIVES. GRACIAS POR TODO. THIS BOOK IS A PART OF YOU, TOO. —ROY, TIEN, AND NATASHA INTRODUCTION HELLO. I’M ROY. Get in. We’re going for a ride. Right around the time I started writing this story, I picked up a book about tribal tattoos, written by a Samoan chief. The opening line began, “I had to write this book.” That first line was so powerful to me. It struck me then, as I started putting the pages of my life together, and it strikes me now, as I sit here writing this introduction after, funnily enough, having finished this book. He wrote that line because he was compelled to tell the story of his tribe and his islands. Because he thought it was his destiny to help keep former generations alive by documenting the folklore, the information, and the stories that are passed down through the art of the tattoo. So it wasn’t that he wanted to write that book. He had to. It was his spiritual duty. In a small, weird way, I feel the same about this book. I had to write this book. To tell the story of my journey from immigrant to latchkey kid to lowrider to misfit to gambler to a chef answering his calling. To tell a story of Los Angeles and the people who live here. And to preserve it all on wax. But before we get knee-deep in the messy yet beautiful chapters of my life, maybe it’ll help to have a little map in your pocket. L.A. is a huge place, and sometimes the glare of stereotypes and television screens blinds visitors to its true character, the amazing cultural diversity of our residents and the food. That muthafuckin’ L.A. food. So let me play tour guide for a minute and show you around. We’ll start in the same place I started when I immigrated here with my family from South Korea in 1972: Olympic Boulevard and Vermont Avenue. This is a big intersection in the middle of a neighborhood that’s now the hardworking community of Koreatown, where the smoke from the Korean BBQ grills will stick to your hair for days no matter which fancy shampoo you choose and where you’ll wash down your beers with crispy Korean fried chicken before hitting a multitude of other bars. A few miles north of here is Hollywood, and a dozen miles to our west is Sawtelle Boulevard, a little street with some of the best ramen and sushi in the country. Keep going west to see the canals of Venice and to kiss the sands of Malibu. UCLA and Beverly Hills aren’t too far from the beaches, and if we hop northbound on the 405 and 101, we’ll hit the San Fernando Valley—Granada Hills, Burbank, Tarzana, Sherman Oaks. Or if we ride the 405 southward instead, we’ll drive right into the cradle of the South Bay —Torrance, Gardena, Carson, Long Beach. East of Koreatown is Downtown proper, where Hill and Broadway split like wooden chopsticks through Chinatown and the wind tunnels of Pershing Square whoosh us through the Jewelry District. Farther northeast of Downtown is a whole other world: the hills of Pasadena, the tacos and burritos and families in East L.A. and Boyle Heights, the amazing noodles and ph and soup dumplings in the San Gabriel Valley. And there’s so much more: from the SGV, we’ll jump down the 710 or 605 freeway and drive through Commerce or Bell Gardens, passing factories and a casino or two along the way. Roll down your window and smell the sweet drippings of lechón and carne asada smoking in backyards as we swing by Cerritos or Whittier. Keep going south, and there they are, our neighbors, Orange County and Riverside. To loop back to L.A., we’ll head up the 110 freeway, pull off in South Central and Inglewood for a hot minute to ride the wide streets and grub on BBQ and soul food, and then swoop west on the 10 freeway, through Downtown, to end up right back where we started—right here on the corner of Olympic and Vermont, the heart of Koreatown. I know. We covered a lot of ground. But don’t sweat it. I got the wheel and a full tank of gas. All you have to do is sit back and trust. In the pages that follow, you’ll see a little bit of this magical city through the lens of my life and through the food of the people who really live here. Through all of that, you’ll start to understand this amazing place that I was raised in and taste the flavors of the streets of L.A. Thank you for picking up this book. Thank you for joining me on this ride through the crooked journeys of my life. L.A. welcomes you, and I welcome you, with love. Oh, by the way, are you hungry? Let me cook for you. I got that, too. You’re riding shotgun with Papi now. What could possibly go wrong? NOTE: BEFORE DIVING INTO THE RECIPES, FLIP TO ESSENTIALS AND CHECK OUT INGREDIENTS YOU MIGHT NEED TO STOCK UP YOUR PANTRY. CHAPTER 1 MOTHER SAUCES Seoul, South Korea, 1970. A hospital room in the heart of downtown Chongro-gu. A baby with a big Frankenstein head, drenched in his own blood, with more spewing out through his upper cleft like lava erupting from a volcano. Wailing, crying. Yeah, they stitched me up all right, but when the rumble in the jungle was over, I had a fat lip and a Harry Potter scar between my mouth and nose. One hell of a hectic entry into this world,