Eric Kim | K-Pod | Ep. 26

02/22/22 • 44 min

Eric Kim is a writer for the New York Times and author of the cookbook Korean American: Food That Tastes Like Home. Over the past couple of years, Eric has become something of a darling in the New York food world not only for his innovative and idiosyncratic creations (think: sheet-pan bibimbap, gochugaru salmon, Stouffer’s style mac & cheese) but the intimate stories that accompany them. His readers know that as a kid growing up in the suburbs of Atlanta, he loved the McNuggets and greasy ball pit at McDonald’s. They also know that for his first date with his boyfriend, he made kimchi and mayo sandwiches. Eric attended NYU and was on his way to getting a PhD in English at Columbia when he dropped out to pursue food writing full time. He tells Catherine and Juliana about his experience moving home during the pandemic, where he stayed nearly a year to work on recipes alongside his mother. He also shares his theory about the connection between Atlanta’s strip clubs and lemon pepper chicken wings, the story of how he came out to his parents and his not-very-Korean take on the best way to make rice.

Follow Eric Kim on Instagram @ericjoonho
Follow K-Pod on Instagram @kpodpod

Co-host, Producer, Photographer: Juliana Sohn @juliana_sohn

Co-host, Producer, Editor: Catherine Hong @catherinehong100

Audio Engineer: AJ Valente

Executive Producer: HJ Lee

KoreanAmericanStory.org is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to capture, preserve, and share stories of the Korean American experience.

Follow Eric Kim on Instagram @ericjoonho
Follow K-Pod on Instagram @kpodpod

Co-host, Producer, Photographer: Juliana Sohn @juliana_sohn

Co-host, Producer, Editor: Catherine Hong @catherinehong100

Audio Engineer: AJ Valente

Executive Producer: HJ Lee

KoreanAmericanStory.org is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to capture, preserve, and share stories of the Korean American experience.

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Peter Sohn | K-Pod | Ep. 25

If you’ve seen a Pixar movie in the last 20 years, you’ve almost certainly enjoyed the work of Peter Sohn. A director, animator and voice actor, Sohn’s credits include Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, Ratatouille, WALL.E, and 2015’s The Good Dinosaur, which he directed and co-wrote. Another fun fact: Peter served as the physical model for Russell, the lead character in Up. Peter tells Catherine and Juliana about his memories of growing up in the Bronx in the ‘70s, where his parents owned a grocery store. He also shares stories about his mother, a talented artist whom he credits for sparking his lifelong love of movies (despite her later objections to his choice of career). Animation fans will enjoy hearing about Peter’s path to CalArts, his experience co-directing the English language version of Ponyo (stressful!) and the types of new multicultural stories he hopes to tell.

Follow Peter Sohn on Instagram @petesohn18
Follow K-Pod on Instagram@kpodpod

Co-host, Producer, Photographer: Juliana Sohn @juliana_sohn

Co-host, Producer, Editor: Catherine Hong @catherinehong100

Audio Engineer: AJ Valente

Executive Producer: HJ Lee

KoreanAmericanStory.org is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to capture, preserve, and share stories of the Korean American experience.

Next Episode

John Cho | K-Pod | Ep. 27

In recent years we’ve seen a boom of Asian American actors in film and TV. But for decades, John Cho was practically the only one. He first came to fame in 2004 playing Harold in the Harold and Kumar films, a role that challenged many people’s ideas about what a leading man could look like. He’s built his career thoughtfully ever since, taking roles (Sulu in the Star Trek films, Spike Spiegel in Netflix’s Cowboy Bebop) that don’t play into negative stereotypes. The son of a minister, Cho was born in Seoul and moved to the States when he was six. He has just written his first book, Troublemaker, a middle grade novel about a 12-year-old Korean American boy’s experience of the LA riots. In a candid and open conversation, Cho recalls his own experience of 사이구(SaIGu), his memories of growing up in the church and the bottled up anger he’s often felt as an Asian American man. Juliana and Catherine also get to hear about Cho’s love of Little House on the Prairie and how books helped him through his peripatetic childhood.

Follow John Cho on Instagram @johnthecho

Co-host, Producer, Photographer: Juliana Sohn @juliana_sohn

Co-host, Producer, Editor: Catherine Hong @catherinehong100

Audio Engineer: AJ Valente

Executive Producer: HJ Lee

KoreanAmericanStory.org is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to capture, preserve, and share stories of the Korean American experience.