Watch: Marcus Samuelsson Dives Into Pho and Fried Chicken in New Orleans

On episode two of No Passport Required, chef Marcus Samuelsson heads to New Orleans to learn more about the city’s Vietnamese community. Samuelsson eats pho, rice paper rolls, combination salads, and banh mi. He visits a farming co-op, shares a meal with the first Vietnamese city councilwoman in New Orleans, talks about immigration and family over fried chicken wings, goes go-karting with chef Peter Nguyen of Banh Mi Boys, and spends an evening cooking and eating with chef Tung Nguyen’s family during Tet, taking part in their Vietnamese New Year celebrations.

The idea of “Creole-izing” food — creating food that pulls from a variety of local influences — runs through the episode, and is evident in dishes from the Vietnamese iced coffee affogato at Drip to Peter Nguyen’s hybrid banh mi-po’ boy sandwiches. Samuelsson also talks with pioneering New Orleans chef Leah Chase about her iconic restaurant and how Vietnamese ingredients and cuisine are making New Orleans’s culinary traditions stronger.

Watch the full episode below.

Note: In the episode, Zella Palmer is identified as the co-founder of Eat Nola. She’s also the Chair of Dillard University’s Ray Charles Program, which is where this scene was filmed.

No Passport Required is produced for PBS by Eater and Vox Entertainment, part of Vox Media. Stream full episodes on Eater and PBS, or check local listings. Get more information on the show at pbs.org/nopassrequired.