I've had Jamaican Curry go in Flatbush, Malaysian Curry hot Pot in Chinatown and Japanese curry rice in the East Village.

But now, as I explored Korea's relationship with Curry, I had to leave the five boroughs and head to the Golden State.

I'm here in L.

A home of one of the country's largest Koreatown.

Cissy would hate town.

Curry is all about to help me on my quest.

I'm teaming up with a true Korean American icon.

Jae Park is a K pop heartthrob turned rock nation rapper who had a breakout year thanks to his Korean drinking anthem, Soju from curry instant noodles to barbecue curry chicken.

We're heading to Toe Bank Cafe, where chef Chris Oh is whipping up a special spread of Korean Comfort classics.

Let's see, So you just had a song with two chainz called soju.

What can you tell me about Korean drinking culture?

Extreme.

In Korea, you can buy alcohol at all hours of the day.

Everything is open 24 hours.

Even this place is called TOBA.

Wait a minute.

So told means throw up problem means room.

So basically, this is the throw side dishes when you drink or our advertisers or whatever it's called Andrew and that that she is very, very important.

You can't drink on an empty stomach.

There's a lot of, like soups and broths and stuff like that while you drink or there's like, Yeah, bunch of just a bunch of shit.

Just Monday shit.

You will probably see something like today.

So for those who don't know what is soju, soju is basically the drink of Korea's, like the traditional drink of Korea, everybody from younger people to elders drinking everybody drinks it from like, you know, they get lit or like they drink it like one is like their sad or they drink it when I try to have a conversation with somebody like, let's have some social, you know, So everybody drinks.

So we're gonna be eating Korean curry so my mom would cook for us like dinner for us every time we come home from school, every so often, she would make curry from the instant packets.

I feel like a green curry.

It always has potatoes, carrots.

I know there's kata, which is Japanese curry.

I know this Indian care.

I know.

There's Indonesian curry.

I know there's Steph Curry.

I know there's, uh but that's the whole point of this idea's curry is, But it came from India and traveled the world.

It kind of had its own journey through.

Different cultures were like the curry hunters.

Yeah, we are kind of dope.

All right.

We're gonna get a lot today.

I'm hungry.

I did not eat breakfast.

Okay.

Are you ready?

Ready?

Let's get it.

First up, we're gonna be trying Sam Yang's curry Hot chicken flavor Rahman.

Sam Yang is a stir fried instant noodle from Korea, which became popular in the U.

S.

In recent years.

Thanks to the viral fire noodle challenge, the freeze dried noodles come with a thick, spicy curry sauce and a packet of fried potatoes, carrots and other vegetables.

Oh, you have a good little turn thing.

Isn't this like little kids eat spaghetti dealing with the eating like this in Korea?

This is I think this is me.

I got this grows that is this straight.

This is is cool.

This is actually kind of good isn't a curry flavor, so I think the original one is is hotter.

You have, like any type of flavor.

Yeah, there's like this cheese.

There's spicy.

They're like black being paste.

It tastes like curry, but a very light.

So I heard that Koreans actually consumed the most instant noodles all around the world.

What is the obsession with that?

It is.

It's good.

It's easy.

My parents seated like all the harm.

Easy, like we goto, you know, like PC cafes.

What's that?

So it's called a PC punk.

Like the Internet cafe.

They just stay there for hours and just eat noodle and or they study a lot.

And then so they need something just kind of fast and quick.

And so they eat noodles and then go back to studying.

I know that how the people in Korea eat it, but I didn't know that it was like they consume more than anybody in the world.

There's this whole Internet trend of might say this wrong.

Mok bang.

Yeah, that's what we're doing right now.

This is Mark Buckman.

We're muck bugging it up.

It's like I think it's short for, like a long and pounds and pounds like pounds on.

So it's like it's like eating broadcast.

Basically, could be someone trying just good food, someone trying weird foods.

It could be anything but just broadcasting it.

He would make a shitload of money like this is doing just orders, have a fool like pizza and shaded.

He just eats it.

He gets paid, like hundreds of $1000 a year.

How do you feel about the whole Asian hip hop scene blowing up in the U.

S.

I know we have Chris Woo.

We have yourself.

We have 88 rising.

Are we seeing a moment for Asian Rat?

Right now?

The space is getting bigger for for people like me, for people like you know how our brothers which Brian People like Stupid Young you know that he's just Cambodian do from Long Beach.

He's like an Asian Y G.

You know, there's people like Don't found it has been putting off for a while, So I think people are getting used to seeing an Asian person you know, rapping and do hip hop.

And so, like they're getting used to it.

So the space for it is getting next up.

We have the classic Korean style curry rights here Chris is making the dish with a pack of instant curry powder, two cups of cooked rice, potato, carrots, onions, garlic and bacon.

And then a fried egg is laid on top.

You're breaking the egg first.

I'm gonna follow you.

All right?

No, don't follow me.

I don't really carry that often, so I'm just doing what feels natural to me.

Good.

Very like sick consistency for the curry on the rights.

The egg is really nice with it.

How is this compared to all the other careers that you've tried?

Um, this one's I feel like maybe a little bit more savory, but similar to a Japanese curry.

OK, Very different from like the Jamaican in the Japanese ones.

A little bit more on the sweeter side, we ever had Japanese.

I really like that.

So from my understanding, currying curry came from Japan.

How would you describe the similarities or differences between Japanese and Korean cuisine?

Mean?

They definitely have sushi, um, sushi And like and, um, Korea.

They have played okay, eyes like sashimi.

And then in Korea is called a la me on.

And then Japanese called Lamine.

Oh, yeah.

I feel like in Korea everything's a little bit more spicy because they use a lot more peppers.

So, yeah, there are similar dishes, but the tastes are very different for sure.

So I know that this is actually a big home cooking staple.

Was the food like in your house growing up?

Your mom make this?

Definitely.

Everything would have rights involved because, like I love rice abrasion be like hamburger helper with rice.

I could be like a fusion of Western food and Korean food.

I don't really like Carrie going up.

I didn't like kimchi before.

I went to Korea.

What now is kind of like all I eat is carrying food, So I've been talking a lot about Korea, but I know you're from Seattle, and you've lived a lot of your life there.

Seattle actually invented the American style of teriyaki.

Ever since I was going up until now, it was like it has been hell and just teriyaki spots.

And it's all my Korean people, like all the Korean families, they either on like a dry cleaning or like a teriyaki splatter.

Okay, I guess.

You know, like the Korean Americans in Seattle, they kind of like teriyaki, But their own twist to it.

I used to eat it a lot.

Not so much these days.

Well, I don't want to step because we got one more dish.

You're gonna love it.

You're gonna call your mom and say, Hey, all those days that you were making curry, I was wrong.

Mom, I'm sorry.

For sure is good.

Let's go.

Hey, what's up, buddy?

Miss.

Chef Chris.

Oh, chef owner of Shingle Hawaii.

Soul sausage, managing partner of K Pop Foods.

And I'm here in K town.

I'm taking overto bonk doing a curry Korean takeover.

Karina Korean sampling In Korean culture, it was more like a comfort food, You know, you'd come home from a rainy day.

You know, your mom wouldn't make you this site.

Nice.

Hot, bubbly, gooey curry from out of the packet over some rice.

It was kind of like our like comfort food.

Asgard Chicken noodle soup.

So basically different.

Jane Jasmine was barbecue curry chicken with cheese.

Space office.

Really fun dish in Korea where they take chicken with some melted mozzarella.

But what we did today was kind of just sparked it up with some curry.

It's a really fun and really delicious This The first thing I do with that dish was marinate the chicken in the curry, let that sit for a couple hours and then once that marinated throat right under the girl we're looking for the chicken Warm, grilled A Is that nice char?

You know, I'm sure that some natural sugars in the curry I want to get caramelized.

The type of cheese we're using is just good old classic mozzarella.

Apparently, mozzarella is a big thing in career right now.

Um, I don't know why, but it tastes good.

It's nice and melty.

So you just use my tough, a little bit of corn.

And if you know what corn cheese is Israel real traditional Korean street, blutrich and dish.

Not just that we have did some shreds of pickled ginger, some pickled jalapenos topped up to look for a car.

K.

Put some green onions and send it out.

Who doesn't love hot melted cheese and some delicious chicken?

We got this burner in front of us.

I don't know what we gotta do, but we need some help.

Yeah, so the best thing about Korean restaurants is you'll have to wait for waiter because they have this bell, so yes, sir.

Right.

Because for your last days, yes.

Oh, my God.

That looks delicious.

That cheese on the bottom this way got barbecue.

Chicken curry with cheese, some corn hole attain Eos and pickled ginger.

Wait for the fire to melt the cheese.

Just take a piece of chicken, take some cheese and just have one big party.

I appreciate.

Of course, guys.

Thank you guys for years.

All right, this looks so intense.

I'm excited to try this.

Okay.

You already got your bite ready.

Ah, who will go?

This is the one.

Nobody.

This is the one.

This is the one.

Who was it?

It was the name of the dish calling to Chris.

Oh, Chris.

Always famous chicken.

This chicken kind of reminds me of the dui chicken.

But what then?

Duty?

It's an Indian style chicken.

Often read when they do it in a thin dude, which is like a clay oven.

Put it in there and it's all charred.

But this delicious, it's endless is endless.

So corn and cheese is not necessarily a pairing that I've done before.

But how big is this inquiry in cooking?

You eat corn cheese as Andrew when you drink.

Oh, yeah, when you drink.

And so just this place is like a drinking spot called Tobar.

So I think that's why they have it.

But this is This is on another level.

I've had cheese and corn together.

I've had chicken, but I've never had it like all in the same little pot.

But it is good.

I regret not having it and not trying until now.