Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Would You Eat Christopher Walken's Chicken?
Our friends over at Slashfood just turned us on to a fun new website, imcooked, a web community for sharing video recipes. In the clip above, Christopher Walken prepares a roasted chicken with pears - and you know what? He looks to be a pretty good amateur chef! I'm only wondering why, at the end of the video, he decides to dump his cat on top of the chicken. Maybe he's short on dining partners? Maybe...he's just really fucking weird?
The site also features Paul McCartney making, uh, mashed potatoes (the long and winding boil?), but if celebrity cooking videos aren't your style, there are some other gems here, like this clip of a Thai street vendor putting together an omelette on her boat-stand, and this beautiful little demonstration on how to make sushi kappa-maki (salmon and avocado wrapped in cucumber). Although the site still looks fairly new and untried, the idea is a great one: cooking demonstrations are perfect for the internet-video medium; most of the clips are short, informative, and highly appetizing.
Below the jump is another featured video from the site: this one taken from Alton Brown's recent appearance on David Letterman. He shows Letterman all sorts of neat Alton-ish tricks, like making yogurt out of milk that's been warmed in a household heating pad, and grinding pepper with a power tool. Oh Alton!
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.

-
The L.A. City Council approved the venue change Wednesday, which organizers say will save $12 million in infrastructure costs.
-
Taxes on the sale of some newer apartment buildings would be lowered under a plan by Sacramento lawmakers to partially rein in city Measure ULA.
-
The union representing the restaurant's workers announced Tuesday that The Pantry will welcome back patrons Thursday after suddenly shutting down six months ago.
-
If approved, the more than 62-acre project would include 50 housing lots and a marina less than a mile from Jackie and Shadow's famous nest overlooking the lake.
-
The U.S. Supreme Court lifted limits on immigration sweeps in Southern California, overturning a lower court ruling that prohibited agents from stopping people based on their appearance.
-
Censorship has long been controversial. But lately, the issue of who does and doesn’t have the right to restrict kids’ access to books has been heating up across the country in the so-called culture wars.