By Alondra Valdez, Staff Reporter
Los Angeles has one of the most dynamic food scenes in the world. From tamales and tacos to smash burgers and Korean barbecue, there’s no shortage of spots for hungry foodies to satisfy their appetites. The history of LA cuisine is arguably as storied as the city itself, and for scholars like CSUDH anthropology professor Will Lucas, that offers a learning opportunity that’s too good to resist.
Wanting to dive deeper into the LA food scene, Lucas and his students started a cooking show on YouTube this past September, called Toro Time Live (or TTL). Every episode – three to date – Lucas explores different aspects of local culinary culture and nutrition. Lucas interviews local chefs as they discuss and prepare some of their signature dishes – it’s an intimate look at food that aims to go beyond the ingredients.
Lucas told The Bulletin that he was inspired to create TTL one night after watching the Netflix series “Dinner Time Live,” hosted by chef and restaurateur David Chang. The show also builds upon a visual anthropology course he taught last spring that explored LA’s pro wrestling scene. The ultimate goal of TTL, he explained, is to help students better understand the connection between a dish and the culture that inspired it.
“Humans don’t have human nature, humans have culture, and you filter the world through that,” Lucas said.
Lucas and his students – Leslie Hernandez, Hailey Hobill, and Emily Lorenzana – produce TTL with the help of the crew at DHTV, the on-campus broadcast programming service of CSUDH. Through the channel, students not only get a practical lesson in culinary anthropology, but an opportunity to learn more about LA. To produce each episode, students are tasked with researching nutritional meals, cuisine, migration, and diet.
“We aren’t just exploring a certain part of LA culture, we want to explore all of it,” said Lorenzana, a sophomore who studies criminal justice and anthropology.
Lorenzana told The Bulletin that it was her idea to feature chef Lemel Durrah, who opened Compton Vegan inside Loker Student Union last fall. During the show, Durrah used chickpeas to craft a savory “tuna” sandwich. A lifelong resident of South LA, Durrah told The Bulletin he started Compton Vegan to support his community and discourage consumption of fast food.
”I wanted to help eradicate food injustices in the inner city and give back to the city of Compton,” he explained.
Working closely with the chefs on set was a highlight for Hernandez, a senior who studies applied anthropology. She said she learned a lot about LA food culture by producing TTL, and she hopes the audience will, too.
”We wanted an approachable conversation about what food says about culture and what cultures [says] about food,” Hernandez said. “Asking questions to chefs who have their own culture and experience with cooking.”
“The show is meant to break stereotypes in order to humanize them to show how cultures are a natural everyday occurrence,” Lucas said.
