Food Network + Cooking Channel's Ali Khan craves Vietnamese Meatballs and threw together an impromptu recipe. Served up in taco form.

The Vitals: the spot: Spicy Boys Fried Chicken 1701 E. 6th St. Austin, TX 78702 the eats:bone in fried chicken the bucks: $11 the full nelson: how to get hooked on dark meat chicken I’ve been eating fried chicken all wrong. I like white meat. And I order white meat almost every time. The thing is, you can’t do that at Spicy Boys Fried Chicken. It ain’t on the menu. And it’s because like most awesome chefs, they know their ...

A couple years ago I found myself at a street fair and the aroma of grilled kabobs from a Vietnamese food stand caught my attention. Meaty, juicy and flavorful, I asked the vendor what cut of meat he used. The answer was what I suspected but still surprised me: pork shoulder. I walked away determined to figure out how to make this at home.

The Vitals: the spot: Three Fold Noodle and Dumpling Co 611 S. Main St. Little Rock AR 72201(one of two locations) the eats: The Half and Half – Dumplings + Noodles the bucks: $10 the full nelson: legit dumplings in a slick setting that makes you respect the Little Rock food scene Three Fold Noodle and Dumpling Co is the kind of place you want to have in your neighborhood. I’ve been to Little Rock once before, over 20 years ...

Brisket Pho: the greatest leftover recipe hack ever It doesn’t get any simpler. Boiling water. Leftover brisket. Instant Pho. And it is so incredibly delicious. To my peeps in San Antonio, you might have caught the episode of me making this Brisket Pho on the show Texas Eats with David Elder. And if you didn’t, not to worry, this is as easy as it gets.

The Vitals: the spot: Ippudo 65 4th Ave New York NY 10003 the eats: Ramen the bucks: $16  the full nelson: a ramen that comes with a ton of hype and some seriously good pork belly buns How much should you pay for a bowl of ramen? That answer has changed dramatically over the last 20 years, in the US at least. In college, I never touched the stuff. And by “the stuff” I mean the ramen packets my pals ...

The Vitals: the spot: Cafe China 13 E. 37th St. NY, NY 10016 the eats: Spicy Chengdu Wonton, Scallion pancake, Double Cooked Pork, Baby Cucumber, Shredded Tripe in chili oil, Ma Po Tofu,  the bucks: plan on spending $25-30 a person to feast comfortably  the full nelson: legit Szechuan that comes with a renowned food producer’s stamp of approval I have been to New York City many times over the years and yet every time I go I feel like ...

The Vitals: the spot: Julie’s Noodles 8557 Research Blvd #110 Austin TX 75758 the eats: Xiao Long Bao(crab and soup dumpling), Pork Chopped Noodle Soup the bucks: $10 a person will set you up nicely  the full nelson: a divey Chinese joint that satisfies the itch for affordable & authentic dough driven cravings

The Vitals: the spot: Uroko 1023 Springdale road bldg 1 ste C Austin TX 78721 the eats: handrolls all day! the bucks: $4.50 – $7 per roll, factor about $20-$25 per person for a reasonable meal the full nelson: Quality sushi hand rolls at an almost hand roll only sushi spot Uroko is a fascinating sushi concept: a high quality hand roll only joint that moonlights as a sushi school on Thursdays and a Omakase(Chef’s tasting menu) restaurant by reservation ...

The Vitals: the spot: Lin Asian Bar + Dim Sum 1203 W. 6th Street Austin TX  the eats: Xiao Long Bao, Chao Shou, really all the dumplings + anything else on the menu you can afford the bucks: $20 a person and you will be stuffed with premium dumplings the full nelson: Top shelf Dim Sum in the heart of Austin TX