“Home cooking, what I call ugly delicious food, has now become the food that I want to make in the restaurant,” David Chang says in this clip from his new Netflix show. The chef behind the Momofuku empire then puts together a dish of braised cod with peppers that he describes as “vaguely Portuguese -Korean, but tastes Sichuan-style.” That’s a unique mashup of influences, but Chang explains, “If you try to respect these cultures, you can figure out how to merge them together without bastardizing any of it.” While preparing the cod-and-pepper combo, Chang remarks that it’s “basically one of the ugliest dishes I’ve ever made.”
Ugly Delicious, which premieres worldwide on Netflix this Friday, February 23, will feature Chang and a crew of notable chefs, writers, comedians, actors, and artists exploring the link between food and identity. Across its eight episodes — which have individual themes like “pizza,” “fried chicken,” and “barbecue” — Chang and his colleagues will also look at how popular dishes evolved over time, while questioning the concept of authenticity.
The clip above is from the “home cooking,” episode, which includes cameos from chefs Jessica Koslow, Alex Raij, René Redzepi, and Ray Garcia, as well as food writers Mark Bittman, Evan Kleiman, and Jonathan Gold. Chang’s mom Sherri also appears in this episode.
Stay tuned for more intel on what to expect from Ugly Delicious later this week.
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