Kuniko Yagi spoke little English when she moved to Los Angeles from Japan 10 years ago. She also had never cooked professionally. A decade later, she is now executive chef at David Myers’ Los Angeles restaurant Hinoki & the Bird.
Though she plans to stay in Los Angeles indefinitely, Yagi’s homesickness for Japan is reflected in the food she cooks at home on the weekends. That includes the dish she shares with the latest edition of the Sous Chef Series: a chicken hot pot seasoned with homemade ponzu sauce, a staple of Yagi’s diet and one she makes year-round, varying the vegetables depending on the season.
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