#ChineseFoodiesofIG: David R. Chan

David R. Chan

This is part of an ongoing series of interviews I’m doing with my favourite Chinese foodies that I follow on Instagram. Come and follow the #ChineseFoodiesofIG hashtag on Instagram and leave a comment showing your support for these talented folk!

Where are you from? Where are you really from?

I’m from Los Angeles. My parents were born in Los Angeles in the 1920s and my grandfather came to California in 1880. We are typical of the first period of Chinese immigration to the US which was almost exclusively marked by migration from Toishan in rural Guangdong province. In the mid 20th century Chinese America was primarily Toishanese and because of the Chinese Exclusion Act enacted in the 1880s, majority American born.

What does home taste like?

That background makes your question about the taste of home a complicated one. Growing up it was very Americanized—we didn’t even celebrate Chinese New Year. Further mid 20th century LA had a small Chinese community and many Chinese dishes prevalent in San Francisco never made it down here. Meanwhile my wife was born in Toishan though she came to LA when she was five. While she is largely American, growing up in an immigrant household her culinary influence is largely Chinese so everything is stir fried with heavy cleaver cut food preparation.

Share a food memory:

Rather than a specific food memory I think most notable is the change in my attitude towards Chinese food which directly ties to the changes in Chinese food. As a kid I ate little Chinese food and did not like what I did eat, reflecting a combination of my family background and the low quality of Los Angeles Chinese food. That ended when new Chinese immigration was first permitted in the late 1960s and the new immigrants brought a new and greatly improved Chinese cuisine with them.

The most important Chinese ingredient is:

The most important Chinese ingredient is the wok. The enabling of high heat cooking in a perfectly designed vessel is the backbone of much of Chinese cuisine. It’s a shame this is under siege in California where some cities are forbidding new natural gas hookups in the name of minimizing carbon emissions.

What’s in your fridge?

Our fridge is full of leftovers both restaurant and home cooked, reflective of the pandemic and limiting our away from home.

Ultimate comfort food:

Comfort food currently is fish dumplings but this changes over time as Chinese food continues to evolve and improve. Fish dumplings didn’t exist here in the US 15 years ago and comfort food of the past doesn’t taste that good anymore as new and better dishes come to the fore.

Who's your Chinese food legend?

No individual Chinese food legend but I marvel at the early 20th century urban Chinese restaurant operators who, operating in an environment of anti-Chinese hate, managed to bring Chinese restaurants into the American mainstream. I am particularly impressed by those Chinese entrepreneurs who turned Chinese dining into a trendy and popular late night activity in places like Manhattan in the early 1900s.

Know any good Chinese restaurants?

LA has the best Chinese food in the US surpassing a century and a quarter of San Francisco hegemony and a brief period of New York dominance. But now LA leads the pack as the first landing point for mainland Chinese and other Chinese overseas chains to set up shop in the US with LAs regionally diverse and well heeled Chinese population. Having said that, I’m most impressed by the Koi Palace Group in the San Francisco area which besides Koi Palace includes the Dragon Beaux and Palette brands. They have done a terrific job of continually reinventing themselves to improve their products recognizing that you can’t do that with a single organization and single brand.

What does Chinese food mean to you?

Chinese food means Chinese identity, including a separate Chinese American identity and Chinese American food culture in addition to a more general one.