Roy Choi Masterclass Review: Complete Details 2023

Are you a fan of the modern food truck revolution? If so, you’ve probably heard of Roy Choi.

Roy often branded the ‘Godfather’ bought kimchi and tacos to the streets of Los Angeles in his taco truck, kickstarting an insatiable appetite for unique food-truck offerings.

Now, Roy Choi has taken Masterclass to teach hungry students how to use their own intuition to guide their own cooking and create delicious, unique, crowd-pleasing recipes. 

Now, we’re here to review Roy’s masterclass so you don’t have to.

We’ll walk you through the ins and outs of each lesson and give you our final verdict. Ready to find out in this Roy Choi Masterclass review? Let’s dive in!

Who is Roy Choi? 

In this lesson, you’ll be taught by legendary Korean-American chef Roy Choi. Roy Choi, born in February 1970, rose to fame after he took to the streets with his Korean-American taco truck named Kogi.

Choi’s skill and passion are widely revered in the culinary community, earning Choi his nickname ‘Godfather’ – that is, the godfather of a new style of food truck movement that’s taken the world by storm. 

Roy has worked exceptionally hard to get his business off the ground, and for many budding chefs, Roy is an inspiration. In 2008, his taco truck took the streets.

Although the business started slow, Twitter soon exploded with word of his exceptional food, and Roy continued to travel the states and attract large crowds.

Roy’s success has only continued to grow, and now he has a growing culinary empire across Los Angeles. 

Roy Choi Teaches Intuitive Cooking 

Roy Choi’s comprehensive Masterclass is made up of 20 lessons, and it will take you approximately four and a half hours to complete.

Like most other masterclass courses, you’ll also get a workbook to read through as you learn, which will help guide you through some of Roy’s practical cooking lessons, and guide you through all the ingredients, tools, and skills you’ll need to recreate his visions.

However, this course is focused on INTUITIVE cooking.

This means that Roy will teach you how to cook with your existing instincts and equipment, so you can create mouth-watering dishes you didn’t even know you could do! 

Here’s a closer look at Roy’s intuitive cooking lessons: 

Lesson 1: Meet Your Instructor 

In this lesson, you’ll get to know more about your instructor Roy Choi, including his incredible love for food, and how it spurred him to open his infamous taco truck.

You’ll also learn more about his upbringing as a self-described “immigrant kid” and how his experiences, including his family’s restaurant, shaped his love for food and cooking.

Lesson 2: Roy’s Pantry Staples

Roy talks us through the importance of fresh tastes like ginger, scallion and garlic, and those super-tasty marinades and sauces.

Tofu, noodles, soy sauce, and egg are some of the most important staples you’ll need to get started, too.

Lesson 3: The Equipment You Don’t Need

Here, Roy reassures us that we don’t need a million different knives to get started.

You also don’t need measuring cups or a hand blender, and Roy offers some innovative alternatives, such as your hands, elbows, and a reliance on your senses to determine temperature. 

Lesson 4: Mother Sauce: Kalbi Marinade

This is our first practical lesson. Here, Roy teaches us how to make a kalbi marinade. He also introduces the idea of a ‘mother sauce, which can be used in a variety of recipes.

Lesson 5: Mother Sauce: Kogi Vinaigrette

Roy introduces us to another mother sauce: Kogi Vinaigrette. This is one of Roy’s most famous sauces, and he’ll talk us through the few simple steps needed to create it.

With just a few ingredients, like ginger, soy sauce, scallions, garlic, sugar, and salt, you’ll be well on your way!

Lesson 6: Mother Sauce: Scallion Dipping Sauce

Here’s another mother sauce: scallion dipping sauce. This is another versatile dipping sauce that can be used for all sorts of recipes, and it’s an excellent addition to add to your collection. 

Lesson 7: Mother Sauce: Salsa Verde

Our final mother sauce, salsa verde, packs a real punch.

Cooked on a smoking grill and destined to leave an unforgettable taste in your mouth, Roy is generous enough to share this infamous recipe with us – and it’s worth it! 

Lesson 8: Kogi Taco Part I: BBQ Kalbi and Veggies

Now, we begin to learn the secrets of Roy’s award-winning Kogi taco. This is split into two parts, and in this lesson, you’ll learn how to marinate your beef and veggies. 

Lesson 9: Kogi Taco Part II: Slaw, Toppings, and Assembly

Roy continues to spill his taco secrets. In this lesson, he teaches us how to make his Kogi slaw and assemble your finished taco. Delicious! Warning: this is a little messy. 

Lesson 10: Napa Cabbage Kimchi 

Now, you’ll learn how to make kimchi paste and your kimchi napa cabbage. 

Lesson 11: Kimchi Fried Rice

Here, we continue the kimchi theme with Roy’s version of kimchi fried rice. 

Lesson 12: Kimchi Tuna Melt

Last on the kimchi list is his delicious tuna melt. It’s simplistic and delicious and pays homage to Roy’s favorite Korean flavors.

Lesson 13: Savory Mung Bean Potato Pancake

Want to make a savory pancake that can complement one of your mother sauces? Roy’s got you covered. 

Lesson 14: 3 P.M Dumplings: Beef-Pork and Veggie

Dumplings can be tricky to make, but here, Roy shares his techniques to fill, fold and cook the perfect beef-pork or veggie dumplings. 

Lessons 15 and 16: Large-Format Carnitas with Pork Fat Cilantro Rice and Bonus Carnitas 

Want to take things up a notch? In these lessons, Roy will teach you how to make low and slow pork carnitas with a bonus burrito recipe. 

Lesson 17: Whole Grilled Fish with Ponzu Sauce 

If you’re interested in Korean-inspired fish, Roy will teach you how to debone and grill a fish and create this delicious recipe finished off with a delightful ponzu sauce.

Lesson 18: Panchan: Asian Pear and Watermelon Kimchis

Kimchi is more versatile than you might think, and here, he shows us how to pair it with fruit like watermelon. 

Lesson 19: Panchan: Blanched Vegetables

These blanched vegetable bites are a great starter, and Roy will share his best-kept secret techniques for creating them. 

Lesson 20: Panchan: Quick-Pickled Cucumbers

Love that pickled cucumber flavor? Learn to recreate it on your own stovetop with this panchan recipe.

Lesson 21: Rice Bowls

If you want to use your food wisely, Roy will show you how to combine your leftovers and create stunning dishes. 

Roy Choi Masterclass: Is It Worth It and Final Thoughts

We’d never turn down the opportunity to learn from a pro chef, and Roy shares some invaluable insight into his own world of Korean cooking.

However, we did feel that the ‘intuitive’ side of these lessons was lacking. With the exception of a few of the first lessons and the last lesson, most lessons follow Roy’s own recipes.

These are a delight to learn, but they lack focus on the intuitive side, such as how to pair flavors together and how you can tweak these recipes using your intuition. 

However, if you’d just be grateful to learn some delicious recipes in great detail from Roy, with a whole host of innovative preparation techniques, this is a fantastic course that will not disappoint.