- A single ingredient tells a story, Smells incredible.

about a person.

- I start cooking because my mom.

- [Yia] A place.

- Viola.

Moist Jamaican fruit cake.

- [Yia] A culture.

- This is the matzah.

- [Yia] I'm chef Yia Vang.

Boom.

Hey guys, I'm doing it.

Step into the kitchen - Ooh, nice.

- [Yia] with local chefs, What's the proper way of eating a dumpling?

- [Peter] Just go for it.

- [Yia] as we relish the cuisines and cultures of our neighbors.

Coming up on "Relish," we spice things up with the delicious Egyptian dukkah.

Plus, a decadent dessert featuring a classic Guatemalan mole.

But first, we're making egg rolls with my friend and old boss, Bunbob Chhun.

- [Bunbob] What's up buddy.

- [Yia] Hey buddy.

How are you?

- [Bunbob] Great.

Come on in.

Yeah, we're happy to have you.

You remember where the kitchen is.

- Yeah, I remember where the kitchen is.

His parents are stopping by later to show us how to wrap them and tell us about growing up in Cambodia.

(upbeat music) For your egg rolls, what ingredients do you put in?

- So we put carrots, onion, garlic, black pepper, white pepper, salt, and mung bean thread or glass noodle.

We'll start by peeling the carrots and we will shred them.

Oh, you're fast.

- You know, I've peeled a few carrots in my time.

(laughing) Do you just go right on the mandolin?

- [Bunbob] Yep.

Yep.

Yep.

Yeah.

- When was like the first time you can remember making egg rolls?

- My first memory.

Like we made 'em when we were young and we each had a job.

- Yeah.

What was your first job?

- Maybe mixing?

This was, kind of, more of a special occasion food.

Growing up, it was me, my two brothers, my younger sister, my mom, my dad, and my grandma.

You know, it was a special thing to get everybody together when we could, 'cause my parents were working, they were in school.

We got together and we just slowed things down and made egg rolls as a family.

- Has this family recipe changed, or anything?

- I mean, I've kind of tweaked it a little bit for the restaurant, but it's pretty close to Mom's recipe.

- His mom's recipe is pretty much the same as the one she grew up with.

The biggest difference, is in Cambodia she used taro, a starchy root vegetable native to Southeast Asia and India, instead of carrots.

- Do you wanna mince the garlic?

- Okay.

How much you want me to do chef?

- Just do it all.

- [Yia] Oh, dang.

Okay.

Bun, there's a lot of versions of egg rolls.

- [Bunbob] Oh, yeah.

For sure.

- So I always talk about Hmong way of making them.

Is there a version of like a Cambodian way of doing egg rolls?

- The size is a indicator of a Cambodian egg roll.

Not too big, but not too small.

- Origins of egg rolls come from ancient China where they were called spring rolls.

As Chinese egg rolls spread to other countries, wrappers, fillings, and sizes changed.

- [Bunbob] So Yia, now we'll soak the noodles.

- [Yia] And these are mung bean noodles, right?

- [Bunbob] Mung bean thread made out of mung beans.

- [Yia] Mung beans are small green legumes.

Starch extracted from the beans is used to make translucent noodles called cellophane noodles, glass noodles, or mung bean thread.

- [Bunbob] We'll soak them for about 30 minutes.

- [Yia] Mm-hmm.

- [Bunbob] So we'll salt the carrot and onion.

- [Yia] So chef, why are we salting onions and the carrots?

- To extract the moisture.

So, we don't want our mix to be super wet.

It'll be problematic in the fryer.

- [Yia] When you have all this moisture in the egg roll, it creates steam and that's how egg rolls explode.

- [Bunbob] Just let this hang out about 30 minutes.

- As a kid, this was my favorite part.

So Bunbob, are we looking for a certain size?

- [Bunbob] Yeah.

Let's look for a quarter inch, half inch.

- [Yia] It's still like one of my favorite things to do.

It's just very therapeutic, you know?

- [Bunbob] I'll let you know next time, call you up.

- Bun, I had a rough day.

Let me just come in and cut some noodles.

- [Bunbob] Yeah.

All right, so we're squeezing this mixture to get every little, last drop of moisture out.

- [Yia] Man, there is a lot of moisture in there.

- [Bunbob] Yeah, it's surprising.

- Oh yeah.

- It's a workout.

- Onion and carrots.

You know, one of the things I love with the onions and the carrots is it gives just a hint of sweetness in the egg roll.

- [Bunbob] Yeah, absolutely.

All right, so now let's add our garlic, salt, black pepper, white pepper.

- [Yia] Now, what's the difference between the black pepper and white pepper?

- White pepper, well, it's a little spicier and it has this iconic Asian flavor to it.

So if you're cooking Asian food at home, you need white pepper.

The last thing we'll add is ground pork.

After that, we'll just let it hang out, let it marinate together.

- [Yia] So do you guys put eggs in here?

- We actually don't put any eggs in our egg rolls.

- Huh.

You know, in our family recipe my mom puts eggs in there as a binder to keep everything together.

But I read that the reason why they call it egg roll was because you use egg wash at the end, - Sure, yeah.

- to kind of make sure that it sticks together.

- Okay.

- That's just how it, literally, got its name.

- [Bunbob] We actually just use wheat and water.

- So technically, it should be called a wheat and water roll.

- I guess so.

(Yia laughing) (upbeat music) - [Bunbob] Hey.

- [Mrs. Chhun] Hi.

- [Bunbob] Come on in.

(upbeat music) - We have everything set up here.

Literally, ready to roll.

It's a wet towel you guys throw on top, right?

- [Bunbob] Right, right, right.

Because these wrappers dry out fast.

- And so I noticed right away that these are triangle.

- Sure, yeah.

You buy it as a square piece.

- [Mrs. Chhun] And then you cut in half.

- And why we like to do it as a triangle is that sometimes, depending on the size of the square, there might be too much wrapper and it doesn't fully cook when you throw it in the fryer.

- So at home you just get all this skin ready.

- [Yia] Yep.

- [Bunbob] Get about tablespoon, tablespoon and a half.

- For me anyway, it's like my index finger.

- Sure, yeah.

- [Yia] I got big fingers.

- Sausage fingers here.

(Yia laughing) Pack it in.

Yep.

- You have to keep it tight, right?

- Yep.

And once you get it, you can fold in the sides.

- Okay.

- So it kind of looks like a little envelope or a package.

And then from there, just roll it up.

- [Yia] Okay.

- And take the mixture, a little dab.

And this is water and flour.

Grab the end, seal it up, and you've got yourself an egg roll.

- [Yia] With your mom here, I'm like all nervous.

- [Mrs. Chhun] It's okay.

- Oh, mine's not tight enough.

- Yeah.

It's first time, that's okay.

- I know.

I feel like my mom right now is just like, I have brought dishonor to us all.

- Here, one more time.

- Oh man, I feels so embarrassed.

- Here, we'll put that up here.

- [Yia] So Mrs. Chhun, where did you learn how to make egg rolls?

- Well, I learned from my mother.

So back home, we made egg roll only occasionally because it's hard work and it costs money, too.

- [Yia] Yeah.

- We both come from different place in Cambodia.

My wife, Mrs. Chhun, is from Phnom Penh, and the way they do egg roll, they do different way.

And from where I came from, they do different way.

- How did you guys end up here in Minnesota?

- When the Khmer Rouge took over in 1975, I went to school in Phnom Penh.

- [Yia] The Khmer Rouge was a brutal communist regime that ruled Cambodia from 1975 to 1979.

- After they threatened to kill me, I escaped all the way to a village, it's called Khla Krapeu.

Khla means tiger and a Krapeu means crocodile.

(somber music) We live in that village and we don't have anything to eat.

They took people to kill every night.

If people survive in that place, that will mean their life is precious.

- [Yia] During the Khmer Rouge, nearly 2 million Cambodians were executed or died from exhaustion, starvation, or disease.

- In my family, we have six children.

My dad got killed, and my four brothers were killed.

So my mother decide to bring two of us who still alive, run away from the communist regime to the refugee camps.

- Did you guys meet in the refugee camp or did you guys meet here?

Where did you guys meet?

- Part of it.

Because I know a little bit of English and they look for translator to work for refugee for the settlement agency.

And one day her family came (slow music) and I asked them where they came from.

- He interviewed my family.

- Yeah.

- Yeah.

- Yeah.

And they say that they came from Khla Krapeu, which is a tiger crocodile village.

And we all are crying because nobody would survive in that place.

When I finished my contract and then they send me to transit camp, and we were on the same plane to come to United States.

- It's so great to hear your story, 'cause it's so parallel to my parents.

You know, so when I'm hearing this, I'm like in a way, I'm hearing my parents' story too, you know.

- Yeah.

We know the Hmong, Cambodian, Laos, have the same situation.

- Yeah.

And it's amazing to be here at this table, just rolling egg rolls with you guys, the same way I would with my mom and dad too, you know.

(gentle music) (oil sizzling) (gentle music continues) - [Mrs. Chhun] Oh, here he comes.

- [Mrs. Chhun] Hey, all done.

- [Bunbob] I've got the egg rolls here.

This is my beautiful wife, Lucy.

- [Mrs. Chhun] And, hi.

- [Bunbob] And the little one.

- [Mrs. Chhun] Yeah.

- [Yia] Hey buddy.

- Hi Rowan.

- Well, let's pass out some of these plates and let's get going.

I'm really excited for this.

- [Bunbob] Grab a couple.

- [Yia] Okay.

- [Bunbob] Hot, hot, hot.

- [Yia] It is.

- [Mrs. Chhun] Hot, yeah.

I think this egg roll must be mine because it looks good and it's wrapped really good.

(everyone laughing) - [Bunbob] Mm.

It's great.

- So delicious.

This smaller size, like it's crispier, you know, because that skin.

I don't know.

I just love it.

This is so delicious.

- And we passed the egg rolls recipes to Bunbob, and now what you gonna do next?

- Pass it to baby Rowan.

(laughing) - [Yia] Awesome.

Bunbob, I feel like it's a little homecoming for me to come back to Dumpling here.

Mr. and Mrs. Chhun, just to hear your story, it reminds me so much of my mom and dad's story, you know.

And then just to be able to be here with Lucy and Rowan, just to see the next generation here.

Thank you so much, brother.

- Thanks for coming.

- Thank you for everything.

You can make all the dishes featured on "Relish."

Find the recipe at TptOriginals.org/relish.

(upbeat Caribbean music) We're making mole.

Guatemalan mole with fried plantains to be exact.

And we're using ingredients that date back thousands of years, including one ingredient that's so treasured it used to be traded like gold.

(upbeat Caribbean music) You know, I am a little ignorant in this 'cause when I think mole, automatically I just think Mexican food.

I mean, right?

But you're Guatemalan.

- The Mexican mole ingredients and some of the techniques are similar, but the way we combine the ingredients, make it into a different sauce.

And many other moles are savory, whereas Guatemalan mole, especially mole de plátano that we're making today, is sweet.

- This dish, mole de plátano, is a staple in Guatemala.

In fact, it's one of the country's most important dishes landing on a list of foods considered intangible cultural heritage by the Guatemalan Government.

- This board has all the Guatemalan mole ingredients.

People are often surprised that there's an odd combination of tomatillos, roma tomatoes, and chocolate.

- To get this all started, we are gonna char tomatillos and the tomatoes.

- Yes.

Then I go in and grab the seeds and start roasting those.

I'm gonna ask you to flip the tomatoes.

Don't be concerned that they are very charred.

In fact, the darker the charring is the more flavor there is.

And what we are looking to do here is to blister this and to char them, but also we want them to become mushy.

So while this is roasting, I will throw my roasted seeds into the food mill.

(plastic tapping) Voila, sesame seeds.

So the same process with the pumpkin seeds.

Do the same thing with the cinnamon and then the peppers.

- [Yia] How far back do some of these ingredients go?

- So moles are very ancient preparations.

Ancient native ingredients combined with ingredients that came when the Spaniards brought their ingredients, culture, and their techniques into Latin America.

- The area where we find Guatemala today was once home to the Maya civilization.

To learn about the Maya, we need to go back.

I mean, like way back to around 1400 BC.

The Maya were one of the largest indigenous societies in Mesoamerica, which is the area stretching from Mexico to central America.

They lived in a pretty concentrated area covering the Yucatan peninsula in Mexico, plus Guatemala, Belize, and parts of Honduras and El Salvador.

More than 6 million descendants of the Maya still live in the same area, most in Guatemala.

In fact, about 40% of Guatemalans are of Mayan descent.

- [Amalia] After the peppers are roasted, they go into this hot water.

- So you're reconstituting that moisture.

- Yes.

I have some that have been soaking here for a while.

You want to let it sit there until they become soft.

- It takes a while to kind of mis en place everything, get everything ready.

But now we're gonna blend it all up.

- [Amalia] So everything is gonna go into the blender except for the oil and the chocolate.

We're gonna put in the tomatoes and the tomatillos, the soaked chilies, the raisins, and the prunes.

- We put all the dry ingredients in.

- [Amalia] Yes, and a lot of these things are to taste.

We're gonna add the pepper liquid, and we are ready to go.

(blender buzzing) - [Yia] This process, it's not done yet, right?

- Yes, we are going to heat the sauce and prepare it to receive the chocolate.

(sauce sizzling) Ooh, nice.

- All of it?

- Yes.

And it's bubbling nicely.

And then we're just gonna throw our chocolate right in there and start melting it.

- [Yia] This chocolate looks different than like a Hershey's bar, you know.

- [Amalia] There is a very ancient crop.

This is artisan chocolate.

It's the closest to pure chocolate there is.

- In Guatemala chocolate is a big deal.

It all starts with cacao.

The cacao tree is native to Mesoamerica.

Pods from the cacao tree are filled with beans that are used to make chocolate.

The Maya considered it a sacred food, calling cacao "food of the gods."

Cacao beans were considered so valuable they were even used as currency.

- This is what you're looking for, velvety smooth.

It's absolutely heaven on earth.

This is what I crave when I am craving something sweet.

Should we fry some plantains?

- [Yia] Let's do that.

- Okay.

As you can see, these plantains are nice and ripe.

- [Yia] Yeah, they're so tender.

Like, you gotta be careful or I'm gonna squish 'em.

(Amalia laughing) - These are very sweet and they're very delicious.

They're ready to go.

- [Yia] Okay.

- [Amalia] So they can come out.

(upbeat Latin music) - So we're gonna start plating this up.

- Yes.

I like to plate this partly the traditional way, but partly my way as well.

- So you say you like a lot of sauce, right?

- I like a lot of sauce.

What you'd want is to have a little bit of sauce with every bite.

That is definitely a must.

But traditionally, people will take sesame seeds and put them on the top and then some pumpkin seeds.

So this is the way they would serve it in Guatemala.

- What's the way you would serve it, Chef?

- The way I would serve it is I would start with a traditional way and then I would place some strawberries, and some mint, and raspberries as well.

So there you go.

This is mole with plantains, Amalia style.

- [Yia] Awesome.

Let's eat.

- I love this dish because it brings back memories of my time in Antigua, Guatemala.

We used to go to this restaurant on Sundays with my father, and the dessert was almost always plantains in mole sauce.

So for me, it's those flavors that remind us of home, that connects us to the culture.

(upbeat Latin music) - This is so delicious.

- You saw the process, you know what the ingredients are.

So you start tasting all those ingredients almost simultaneously as you eat it.

And that's what I love about mole, it's an experience.

- It's one of those bites where you're like after you're done, you're so ready to go back for another one.

- I'm glad you liked it.

When I left Guatemala, I felt that I had lost part of myself.

So that's one of the reasons why I like to recreate my dishes here because it allows me to share the culture, the history, and of course the delicious food.

And that is fostering tradition.

I don't want those traditions to go away.

(upbeat Latin music) - [Yia] Connect with us on social media using #TPTRelish.

Poison or pleasing?

This apricot has a bigger story than you realize.

And for us, it all starts with dukkah.

(upbeat jazzy music) Hey, Mo.

Good to see you brother.

- Thanks for coming.

- Where are we at here?

- Oh, Holy Land.

Here we go.

- What are we doing today?

- We gonna buy the ingredients for dukkah.

- Okay.

Dukkah is a crunchy, nut, seed, and spice blend from Egypt.

This seasoning is put on everything from appetizers to entrees.

What are the spices we need?

- Allepo chili pepper.

- [Yia] Yep.

- It's got this beautiful smokiness and then bright acidity.

- But it has a little bit of that heat, right?

- Just really, really very subtle heat that fits perfectly in the Midwest, uh... - Yeah.

Palate.

- Palate.

I like to use whole spices.

So fennel seeds, coriander seeds, cumin, and sesame seeds.

We'll get the toasted one.

Sesame seeds.

- Almonds.

- Yeah, we toast it and then we crack it.

- So when you're looking for apricots, what are you looking for?

- For the dukkah recipe we using the kernels, but I will buy some ripe ones so we can enjoy the apricot itself and then use the kernels.

That should do it.

- One of the things, Mo, I'm seeing as we're buying these ingredients is like, they're not like exotic ingredients.

Most of this stuff you probably have in your house already.

- I agree with you.

What I really love about dukkah is a versatility, you know.

You can use it in a lot of different things.

Sprinkle it on soup, salads, on eggs, eat it with bread and olive oil.

- You know, the more you talk about dukkah, the more I just think about how it's kind of a condiment, right?

- It is a condiment, yeah.

Has a great shelf life so you can make real big, big batch and enjoy it.

(upbeat music) - So tell me about dukkah.

- We'll make two different version of dukkah.

- Okay.

- One is more like a holiday version where we use almonds, because we don't use it on a daily basis.

And one, like, the poor man version, which is the apricots kernel.

- Apricots are an ancient stone fruit.

Unlike many other stone fruits, apricots actually ripen from the inside out, making it particularly difficult to decipher when they are ripe and even more difficult to find as the apricot season only lasts a few short weeks.

- So what we're gonna do is just cut some of these apricots in halves.

- Pretty simple and it pops right out.

- Pops right out.

As I was a little child growing up in Cairo, we have a fruit shop in the street corner so we'll go there early in the morning and then we'll find all the apricot kernel, collect them, and then crack them, and toss them, add cumin, salt, and pepper.

- [Yia] Let's get cracking, huh?

- We're gonna crash all these bits up and get the nuts out of them.

And I'm just gonna fold it.

And you basically, just kind of like (mallet pounding).

And then just, (pounding continues).

You see it?

I hear it.

- [Yia] So, you're really listening for that breaking.

- [Mo] Yeah.

Here you go.

And I try not to break it too much, so it doesn't crack around.

So here we go, that's the kernel right here.

- [Yia] And it looks like a little almond.

- A little almond, yes.

- Yeah, it looks like a tiny little almond.

- Tiny little almond, yeah.

- So apricot kernels, some people say they cure cancer, others say they'll kill you.

There's no scientific studies proving that they cure cancer, so we're gonna leave that one alone.

But apricot kernels have a natural plant toxin called amygdalin.

And once eaten, amygdalin turns into cyanide.

Yes, cyanide!

Which can kill you.

Amygdalin is found in lots of things you're familiar with like apple seeds, cherry pits, and almonds.

Basically, processing the kernels like fermenting, soaking, cooking, or grinding them decreases the amount of amygdalin, which is why we see them used sparing in recipes like jams and even ice creams.

But yeah kids, don't try this version at home.

Leave it to the experts.

- [Mo] Next step is to toast those apricot kernels.

- [Yia] So Mo, what does dukkah mean?

- Dukkah literally means to pound.

When dukkah was found centuries ago, there was no grinding machine, everything was done by hand.

So you'll bring all the spices and just literally dukk, in Arabic, meaning pound.

Yeah, when you toast nuts like this, you really have to be close to them because in the matter of, like, split seconds it can get burned.

So I think these are really good.

(upbeat music) We're gonna throw some fennel seed, coriander, and then cumin.

But now we can smell, you know, the aroma of the spices.

That really reminds me of my mom, reminds me of the spices store in Cairo, reminds me of the falafel store.

It's really just so intoxicating, it's almost like incense, you know.

The next thing we'll be toasting is the almonds, 'cause we're gonna make one version of the dukkah with the apricot kernels, the second one with almond.

Three minutes and then should be ready to go.

- So Mo, we toasted everything.

What's next?

- Well, next we're gonna ground these beautiful spices.

Here we go.

(grinder buzzing) That should do it.

It's super fast.

- Okay.

- [Mo] Yeah, that's pretty good.

It's got a little course shape to it.

- [Yia] Mm.

- Oh, the smell.

- That smells incredible.

- Voila.

So now put some spices in each bowl because we're gonna make two different versions.

Here we go.

So that's the apricot.

Yeah.

And then basically we're just gonna crack it, but you want it to be course.

See.

- [Yia] Okay.

- And then we just going to drop this on top of one of the bowl.

And then get the almonds.

(upbeat music) So the next thing is we're gonna add some salt, some black paper, some aleppo chili for subtle spiciness, smokiness, acidity, and then the beautiful sesame seeds.

Don't be shy with the sesame, just go for it.

And then just really, really a tad of sugar.

And what the sugar does is doesn't make it sweet, but it opens up all these, like, powerful spices.

It really opens it up.

Yeah, go ahead.

- I'm gonna stir this one.

- Yeah, please.

Yeah.

- [Yia] What do you eat with this?

What are some of your favorites?

- My favorite one is really eating it with eggs.

It's so fantastic.

I love poached egg on top of anything.

That poached egg gets a good dose of dukkah, amazing.

- How would you use this in a protein?

- I take the dukkah and add really good olive oil and then a bunch of different herbs.

And I take that beautiful paste and I coated marinated lamb chops in it.

Out of this world.

- Yeah.

- With lamb, with chicken, fantastic.

- Yeah.

- Really good.

Really good.

(upbeat music) Welcome.

Have a seat.

- Mo, this is incredible.

What do we have here?

- Oh, well we have the two versions of dukkah.

We did the almond and the apricots.

Some Tunisian extra virgin olive oil, pita bread.

So basically, going to enjoy this.

- By the way, I love these napkins.

(both laughing) - It's like a... - I feel like a giant.

(Mo laughing) - No, but there is something really close to my heart about sitting on the floor.

And we have an Arabic saying that says, (speaking Arabic) which means, from soil we are created and to soil we will return.

And when you sit down, it's almost like you become closer to the soil, to the earth, to the ground.

So I love sitting on the floor like this.

- [Yia] Yeah.

- But why don't you go ahead.

Olive oil, dukkah, enjoy.

- [Yia] Oh, thank you, my friend.

- [Mo] You're welcome.

So yummy.

- [Yia] This is so delicious.

- [Mo] Yeah.

- And it's so flavorful.

And you're right, the combination of those seasonings is incredible.

As I eat the one with the... - [Mo] Apricot.

- Apricot kernels in it.

Yes, you have all that flavor.

'Cause it is overpowering, you know, the cumin, the coriander and everything, but it does have kind of that nutty richness from the apricot.

- Apricot flavor really takes me to my childhood.

It really does, that flavor that reminds me when we harvest the apricot kernel from the food store, and crack it and toast it.

It is really, very childhood memory.

That's for sure.

(mallet pounding) Don't hear anything.

Wow, they are really stubborn.

Okay.

Gonna go to a different spot.

- [Yia] You need a bigger mallet.

(mallet pounding) (Yia laughing) (mystical music)