Skip to main content

What Your Next Party Needs: A-Frame's Furikake Kettle Corn

Support Provided By
Photo Courtesy A-Frame
Photo Courtesy A-Frame

After years as a corporate chef at the Beverly Hilton, Roy Choi made his biggest stamp on the culinary scene with a simple taco. Well, not just any taco, but rather one filled with grilled marinated short ribs and spicy kimchi slaw--a Korean-Mexican, street-food hybrid served curbside. After the birth of Kogi, Choi can't be stopped.

The chef now casts the same broad flavorful strokes at his two brick-and-mortar restaurants: Chego in Palms, and A-Frame in Culver City (we can add Beechwood in Venice to the list, where he was just brought on to tweak the menu). Chego is a tight pop-in spot for loaded rice bowls; at A-Frame, it's a hipster picnic in a stylishly designed former IHOP.

Listening to Choi talk about his food philosophy is akin to hearing a hip-hop, skate-punk, surf-artist rap. "A-Frame was a mixed tape for me, a lazy-foot style of food," he says. "I wanted to create a restaurant where you can reach across the table, double dip, put something in someone else's mouth. Like dim sum...there's a certain energy. You just eat, share and have fun."

Choi was interviewed in Departures: Venice, KCET's oral history and interactive documentary. Watch another video interview here.

While the crispy beer-can chicken--one of the best birds in town--sticky, air-dried ribs, and Korean-inspired burger will probably always be on the menu, you'll see things like knuckle-and-oxtail stew, whole fried Dungeness crab, and seasonal salads make appearances.

The furikake kettle corn, another menu staple, is the perfect example of Choi's mix of bold yet familiar flavors--kettle corn, Corn Pops, dried pineapple, bacon, a little spice and garlic, plus Japanese seaweed seasoning. It's a wildly addictive snack that you'll devour in seconds.

"When I was in Hawaii, my friends told me 'this is how it's done on da islands,'" says Choi. "So I came home, and it became the cornerstone to the development of A-Frame, L.A.-style."

And it definitely adds soul to any party. Here's the recipe:

Furikake Kettle Corn
Recipe adapted from Roy Choi, A-Frame
Makes 4 servings

4 cups kettle corn
2/3 cup of corn pops
2 ounces clarified butter
2 tablespoon furikake
1 teaspoon red chili flake
Pinch of cayenne pepper
2 tablespoon dried pineapple
2 tablespoon chopped bacon
2 teaspoon minced chives or Shiso

In a large bowl, add all of the ingredients and mix well. Pour into a serving bowl or onto the table. "Lick your fingers and get dirty with some friends and strangers," adds Choi.

Support Provided By
Read More
A black and white photo of an adult dressed as the easter bunny with a giant costumed head, holding a little girl on their left who gives it a kiss on the cheek and, with his right arm, holding a little boy who brings his hands to his eyes as though wiping away tears.

Behold the Bunnies and Bonnets of L.A.'s Past Easter Celebrations

The onset of the spring season heralds the arrival of fragrant flowers in bloom — and all the critters that enjoy them, including the Easter bunny and families who anticipate his arrival with egg hunts, parades and questionable fashion choices.
A black and white image of an elephant holding a broom with its trunk. A man is seen near the elephant, walking towards the animal.

Lions and Tigers and Cameras! How the Movies Gave Los Angeles a Zoo

The early days of the movies in Los Angeles inadvertently allowed visitors to experience the largest collection of animals in the western United States. When animals weren't appearing in a movie, they were rented out to other film companies, performed for studio visitors, or in the case of filmmaker William Selig's collection — an opportunity to create one of Los Angeles' first zoos.
A vertical, black and white portrait of a blonde woman wearing a sparkly four-leaf clover costume as she holds her arms out and extends a leg as though in a curtsy.

Irish for a Day: L.A.'s History of 'Going Green' on St. Patrick's Day

Whether it was a parade, dance, tea party, home celebration or just enjoying a good ol' wee dram of whisky, here's a photo essay of how Los Angeles donned its green apparel to celebrate St. Patrick's Day and embrace the luck o' the Irish over the years.