No Passport Required

Chef Yong Liu of Chengdu tastes remarks on the unique and comprehensive flavors of Sichuan cuisine: numbing, sour, sweet, bitter, spicy, and more. He discusses his desire to appeal to a wide audience, beyond just the Chinese community, while preparing kou shui ji (steamed chicken with chili oil and peanuts), as well as toothpick lamb.

Executive chef Alan Ji, of Las Vegas casino Palazzo's upscale Chinese restaurant Mott 32, demonstrates precision as he prepares lobster ma pa tofu.

Chef Damon Menapace explains the sourcing of some of his ingredients, opting to go local more often than importing, as is custom in Abruzzo. This is part of an overall effort at Le Virtù to respect the origins of the food on their menu. After tasting the taccozzelle that chef Damon prepares, Marcus likens it to a symphony orchestra playing metallica: delicate and rustic.

Termini Bakery owner Vincent Termini and his sons, general managers Joseph Termini and Vincent Termini Jr., guide us through the century-old process of baking their famous family recipe for ricotta cheese cannoli with chocolate chips.

Francis Cratil-Cretarola, owner of upscale Italian restaurant Le Virtù in Philadelphia, speaks with Marcus about the causes that led to Abruzzian immigration to the U.S., including his own grandfather, who came to the conclusion that the best way to help his family was to leave his home in Italy, in 1909.

James and Jolly Onobun, owners of Jolly Jolly Bakery, share their passions for their business, their origin story, what to look for in a Nigerian agege bread (a pillowy texture), and their desire to leave something good for their sons.

Chef Jonathan "Jonny" Rhodes discusses aking the reigns from African-American soul food pioneers and their industrious use of available ingredients. Chef Jonny demonstrates his creativity for Marcus, cooking a dry-aged heritage pheasant filled with jollof rice, and finishing with a dessert of emulsified candied yams, pecan butter, granola, and torched marshmallows.

Jollof rice is one of the most popular dishes in West Africa. Marcus tries some Nigerian jollof rice at Wazobia Market in Houston and draws comparisons to jambalaya from the southern U.S., essentially a derivative of jollof. Kavachi tells Marcus a story about her third grade teacher not accepting West African food, after having asked the students to bring in home cooking to share with the class.

Mother and son Evelina and Sarges Yegiazaryan explain their process for churning out 10,000 sini-monta (Armenian beef dumplings) per day, by hand. Having begun as a wholesale operation, they eventually opened their doors to the public, and since then, they've provided a hearty taste of home to members of the Armenian diaspora, while also broadening the palates of non-Armenian Angelenos.

Host Marcus Samuelsson arrives in sunny Los Angeles to meet with Armenians influencing the city's food scene. Armenian food is diaspora food — the community is widespread, building homes in countries like Turkey and Syria following the Armenian Genocide.

Armenian-American LA surfer and chef Ara Zada discusses his Egyptian and Armenian roots, eating cow foot soup atop the tallest peak in Armenia, his discoveries about the origins of traditionally Armenian dishes, and the ongoing conversation between the cuisine of the Armenian diaspora, and the cuisine that can be found in Armenia proper today.

Andy Kozanian, owner of Kozanian Ranch Market in LA, discusses the beauty of some of his imported Armenian food ingredients, and points out other nations' dishes to which Armenians have added their own signature. He then shows Marcus the preparation of simple, ageless Armenian flatbread, lavash.