David Chang is a famous Korean-American Chef. He is a TV star, a “bad boy” character, and he presides over a growing food empire. His specialty dishes such as pork buns, ramen, fried chicken and now spice lines, have given him fame and notoriety in the food world. He is a restauranteur and entrepreneur and most recently has been launching home spices to help home cooks improve their meals.
Mr. Chang became an instant sensation after opening his first restaurant, Momofuku, in New York City. He had an irreverent approach that both diners and food critics found refreshing. Later he made notable TV appearances on two Netflix shows which raised his profile even further: Mind of a Chef and Ugly Delicious. He also launched a food magazine called Lucky Peach – the magazine is no longer published, but attracted a cult following for its quality writing.
David has also written some excellent cookbooks. If you like Momofuku, he published the recipes in his Momofuku Cookbook and his next book which looks fascinating is out in October 2021 – Cooking at Home: Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying About Recipes (And Love My Microwave) – can’t wait to get myself a copy of this one!
David has had quite an accomplished career with many awards and accolades in his culinary journey. A few examples: Food and Wine Magazine named Chang as one of America’s Best New Chefs in 2006. The James Beard Foundation named Mr. Chang “Rising Star Chef of the Year” in 2007 and Best Chef in New York City in 2008. And in 2010, Time Magazine noted Chang in their list of the 100 Most Influential People.
David Change is an inspiration to rebellious chefs everywhere. Here are the quotes from David that inspire me the most.
David Chang Quotes
“Food, to me, is always about cooking and eating with those you love and care for.” –David Chang
“We’re hoping to succeed; we’re okay with failure. We just don’t want to land in between” –David Chang
“To eat well, I always disagree with critics who say that all restaurants should be fine dining. You can get a Michelin star if you serve the best hamburger in the world” –David Chang
“I constantly think I’m a fraud, that this success is not warranted or justified” –David Chang
“Rage or fear… It oscillates. Rage I need to motivate me to try things that I can’t ordinarily do – as I’m a lazy man. Fear – to keep pushing harder so we don’t lose what we’ve accomplished” –David Chang
“Life’s too short to just breeze on by” –David Chang
“I love chicken. I love chicken products: fried chicken, roasted chicken, chicken nuggets – whatever. And going to Japan, I would see that these chicken were smoked and then grilled and then have this amazing crispy skin” –David Chang
“People don’t think that bread is part of Asian culture or Asian food culture, but it’s quite prevalent in Northern China, and you see it throughout Japan and as you go to Taiwan” –David Chang
“Cooking and gardening involve so many disciplines: math, chemistry, reading, history” –David Chang
“Contemporary ramen is totally different than what most Americans think ramen should be. Ramen is not one thing; there are many, many different types” –David Chang
“Fine dining teaches you how to cook many different things, and it gives you the basic fundamentals, but these specialty restaurants, theyre not teaching you the broad foundation you need to become a well-rounded cook” –David Chang
Related: Jamie Oliver’s Inspirational Quotes
“I look forward to the spring vegetables because the season is so short. Mushrooms, edible foraged herbs, wild leeks, early season asparagus” –David Chang
“You can’t go into the chef’s office of any serious kitchen and not see a copy of Larousse. A must-have for professional and home cooks alike” –David Chang
“I’m grasping with how you do something on a large scale with multiple operations and not have quality decrease” –David Chang
“The livelihood of the restaurant is dependent upon getting the word out. There’s so much more competition. You can do an event every week and not cook at all.” — David Chang
“I find that there are a lot of similarities between French and Japanese food. I think they’re two countries that have really systemized their cuisine and codified it” –David Chang
Related: Alice Waters Best Quotes
David Chang – $17 Fried Chicken vs $500 Fried Chicken
Wow, this is a fun and amazing video that almost 40 million people have watched! Fame Chef Marcus Samuelsson and David Chang sample two very different fried chicken dishes!
Related: Christina Tosi’s Most Inspiring Quotes
Summary
When David Change graduate from college with a degree in religion, no one could have predicted he would be a famous chef with magazine covers, Michelin stars and James Beard awards.
He now presides over the Momofuku corporation which includes his restaurants and also products you can buy for home cooking. I HIGHLY recommend his Chili Crunch if you like some spice in your meals. Trust me, it will elevate even the most basic dish into something more sophisticated and delish.
Related: Emeril Lagasse’s Best Quotes
Image Credit: “Future of Food: A Conversation with Jim Yong Kim & David Chang” by World Bank Photo Collection is licensed underCC BY-NC-ND 2.0
I’m Alice Judy and AnQuotes is a fun hobby for me. We know that everyone loves a great quote and our mission here is simple – to be the best and most interesting quote site in the world! If you have quotes you would like us to cover, please contact us.
