Mind of a Chef

American

American cuisine has come to be known as much more than just burgers and hot dogs. Ed and Pok Pok's Andy Ricker head to Sunset Park - Brooklyn's Chinatown - for some exotic ingredients, then head to the kitchen to make jop chai, a Thai stew. Ed plays with some local by-catch in that most American of cities, Houston, Texas, with chefs Chris Shepherd and Paul Qui, making a crispy fish fresh from the gulf and Filipino kinilaw. A sweat-inducing crawfish dinner in a Vietnamese joint exemplifies how Creole, Cajun, Mexican, and Asian flavors blend with the gulf's bounty, effectively creating an entirely new American cuisine.